How to Organize A Yard Sale
This month I have been talking all about How to Get Your Family Organized this summer. One of the things I mentioned is to have a yard sale! In this post I am going to tell you how you can prepare for a yard sale, and how to organize the items you want to sell, to make them more appealing so they sell quickly!
Having a yard sale is a wonderful way to finally remove items from your home that you are no longer using and just taking up space. Not to mention, it’s a great way to earn some extra cash! After all, the items you are trying to sell are just items that are taking up space in your home and you no longer have any use for them.
Here are some steps to get to get ready for a successful yard sale:
1. Prepping for the Sale
One of the things you want to do to prepare for your yard sale is to make sure that people KNOW about the sale. Here are a few ways you can spread the word about your yard sale:
Post in your local town’s Facebook groups
Post on your own personal Facebook page
Advertise in the local daily/weekly newsletter
Post ads on Craigslist
Put up signs/flyers around the town and neighborhood (Head over to Adobe's Free Event Flyer Maker to pick from design templates or create your own sign first!)
Nextdoor
Another thing to do in order to prep for the sale is to make sure you have all of the materials you will need during the sale! Here is a list of items/supplies/materials you will need to set everything up:
For the Staff:
Aprons/fanny packs to hold money and change
Calculators to add up any items
Money to make change. LOTS of singles. Then some twenties, tens, fives, and $10 in quarters.
Markers and price tags to price items before hand
Chairs
Credit Card readers - if you want to take credit/debit cards as payment
For the Customers:
Measuring tape - for customers who need to measure any items
Boxes and plastic bags - for customers who buy a lot of items to carry them home
Put out some free lemonade/water and cookies for the customers
For Displays/Selling Items:
Tables and tablecloths
Tarps or blankets for items on the ground
Garment Racks/Somehow to hang clothes and hangers
Full length mirrors - so customers can see what the clothes look like
Extension cords - so customers can make sure electronics work
A “Free” Box
Clear Bags - to “bundle” multiple items together to sell bundles instead of each individual items
Bookshelves to display more items
2. Setting Up
The way that you set up your items in your yard will make a huge impact on attracting customers and selling your items.
High Ticket Items: You will want to place the high value items/nicer items towards the front of your yard to draw customers into your sale.
Use Tables, Bookshelves, and Shelving: You will want to use as many tables and shelves as possible to display your items instead of keeping things on the ground. You do not want to make your customers have to bend over to view items - keep things higher up to make sure they are easy for customers to see.
Keep Like Items Together: Set up your yard like a store sets up their departments. Keep like items together in each section on the sale.
Children’s toys: Children’s toys are the most acceptable items to keep on the ground. You want the children to be able to see and play with these items so they will hopefully tell their parents to buy the toys for them!
Clothing: Make sure to hang adult clothing up and put a full length mirror right next to it so customers can see themselves with the clothes. If you have children’s clothing or baby clothes, place those in groups together by size.
3. Selling Your Items
Determine A Price: Price items to be sold. Remember, the items have just been sitting in your house not being used. Getting something for them is better than nothing.
Label Each Item: There are a few different things to consider when pricing your items. First of all, you will want to make sure to label everything for sale with a price. That way you will not be bothered all of the time with people asking, “How much?” They will already know. However, be ready to negotiate - everyone always wants a better deal.
Create Bundles: Instead of selling all of your items individually, consider creating “bundles” of items together for one price. For instance, maybe you have a pajama set, a toy, and some books all in one bundle for $1 or $2. This will make your items go quicker and it will make the customer feel like they are getting a deal by getting a lot of items all together.
Create a Free Box: Have a table or box of items labeled “free” for your customers
Have A Sale At The End: If your yard sale is wrapping up and you find that you still have quite a few items left, you could run a special. Give the customers a plastic bag and tell them that whatever they fit in the bag will be $5 total.
4. Wrapping Up
Make sure that you have extra boxes on hand to pack up anything that does not sell and bring it to your local donation center or schedule a pick up from a local donation service. Do not keep thinking about what if’s with these items. They are already out of your house, they didn’t sell, so it’s time to just donate them
I hope you found this as a helpful next step for when you are ready to find those items that are no longer serving you in your home, a better home.