Garage sale season is in full swing. I myself have visited a number of garage sales in the past few weeks, but have yet to throw a sale of my own. I have, however, been taking mental notes as I visit other sales. I’m not sure if a sale is on my horizon, but I can bet that most of you intend to throw your own sale at some point this season. So here are a few of the things I’ve noticed that I haven’t discussed recently:
1. Place your largest items toward the curb. These will attract attention and catch the eye of your “drive by” shoppers.
2. When your big items sell, place a sold sign on it, but leave it out. Shoppers may not be prepared to immediately haul away a large piece of furniture. Instead of seeing this as a bad thing, see it as an opportunity. Having those bigger items still out on the curb will keep shoppers coming. No one likes to stop for a picked over sale, so having the larger items out with a sold sign will still keep buyers interested.
3. Do not accept checks. Even if the check is local, you have no guarantee that check will clear. I maintain this rule for any and all dealings. Cash is king, and the only way to go (unless you’re selling online, in which case Paypal is a great option.)
4. Do your research before you price your items. Buyers aren’t the only ones who benefit from a little research. Taking a little bit of time to search eBay and WorthPoint for values can help you significantly increase your profits. Do keep in mind, however, that just because an item is worth $300, doesn’t mean a garage sale shopper is going to be willing to pay that price. You’re still throwing a garage sale, so you need to be prepared to lower your prices. If you really want to get top dollar for your item, try listing it for sale online before your garage sale.
5. Recruit friends and neighbors to participate in your sale. If your short on items, recruit more. The more you have, the more buyers you’ll attract. This can do nothing but help your sale.
6. Spread out your items to show off the amount that you have. Don’t cram everything onto one table; you want it to look like you have the most amount of items possible.
7. Keep a power cord on hand. Your buyers will want to test out any electronics you have for sale. That having been said, be sure you test everything before the sale as well. You’ll want to price items based on how well they do or do not work.
8. Do a bit of digging for the original box or packaging for your items. Buyers love to have the original box, or at least the instruction manual.
9. Hold onto all of your old clothing in anticipation of your next sale. Thrift store clothing is extremely popular right now, and provided your items are clean, you can sell just about anything. Organize them by size and gender to make it easier for shoppers to find what they need. The best part about selling clothing is you can easily take any unsold items to Goodwill and write the donation off on your taxes.
10. In terms of clothing – start saving those plastic store and dry cleaning hangers. Shoppers love to be able to take the hangers with them, and it will save you a great deal of time if you don’t have to un-hang and stash each and ever hanger. In addition, start saving grocery bags as well. Shoppers will appreciate having bags they can use to take away their finds. Plus, you’ll be re-using, which is always great!
Anyone have any helpful tips to share? I’d love to hear them!
Good luck, and happy hunting!
– Aaron
To learn more about Aaron LaPedis, visit www.thegaragesalemillionaire.com or email him at [email protected].
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