Xuzi Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I want to have a garage sale next Saturday. I've never done one before though! What are some tips for making it successful? Somethings I'm already considering doing: *Flat pricing (kid's clothes .50, adult clothes $1, toys $1, etc.) *Selling sodas and water (because we'll be just a block from our town's 4th of July festival which starts that same day, and I'm hoping for a lot of foot traffic) What are some tips for how to lay things out? I'll have 2 card tables, a bunch of large blue and green storage bins, and some tarps. Should I keep the clothes in the (labeled) bins, or lay them out on the tarps? How should I advertise? just Craigslist? or newspaper too? Where do you put up signs if your city doesn't allow you to use utility poles? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-FL Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Flat rates are good & post them if you can. Hang nicer clothes & price individually, otherwise fold & put on tables or tarps. Group like things together (kid's shirts, kid's shorts, women's shirts, etc.) Drinks are big sellers, esp. if the kids get the $. My dc made a killing when they were small! Unless someone else in your area is having a sale to bring traffic your way, an ad is a good idea. Also signs at intersections & balloons on the mailbox. We've used big boxes w/posterboard glued on to make signs w/a brick inside to keep it upright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lacie Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Be reasonable with your prices, it sounds like you are. Make sure you have enough change. If you are expecting foot traffic, some bags for people to put purchased items in would be nice. If you are selling anything electronic, a plug for people to test things in would help sales. Good luck with the sale. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandymom Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Always have the person hold their money until you have the change already made and ready to hand them. I was scammed once where someone told me that they had given me more money than I know that they did. But, since I had already stuck it in with all the other money, I couldn't prove anything. If you always put big bills ($20 and higher) in a separate place it helps with the problem too. If you aren't carrying any of the big bills, they can't say they gave you any. The professional garage sale scammers are really big here. They are pretty slick too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I price what I would pay for it.....which is pretty darn cheap. :D What I'm about to say next probably won't apply to you....but I had this great idea the other night. I am so sick of the work that's involved in having a garage sale. I have so much to sell again but can't even stand the thought of pricing everything. I think what I want to try next time (should be sometime this summer) is to bag clothes up by size. Such as girls size 4, boys size 5, etc. And, just put a reasonable price on the entire bag. Call me crazy! I will probably have the bag open so people can kinda see that's it's nice stuff. For the rest of the stuff (not bagged clothes by size)...I think I'm going to have it be donation/make an offer. Sure....I wanna make some money....but I want to get rid of this clutter more than anything. Have fun with you sale!! The professional garage sale scammers are really big here. They are pretty slick too. Really?? Wow...I never heard of such a thing. The nerve of some people!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eaglei Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I want to have a garage sale next Saturday. I've never done one before though! What are some tips for making it successful? Somethings I'm already considering doing: *Flat pricing (kid's clothes .50, adult clothes $1, toys $1, etc.) *Selling sodas and water (because we'll be just a block from our town's 4th of July festival which starts that same day, and I'm hoping for a lot of foot traffic) What are some tips for how to lay things out? I'll have 2 card tables, a bunch of large blue and green storage bins, and some tarps. Should I keep the clothes in the (labeled) bins, or lay them out on the tarps? Any possibility of getting more tables? Perhaps borrowing from your church or from a town hall where you perhaps know someone, etc.? In both having had yard sales and also going to yard sales, I noted that things on tables were looked at more thoroughly and purchased, than things spread out on the ground or grouped in bins. If possible, hang up the clothes, especially the larger ones. Once, dh put up two ladders and a rod between, and that was where I hung clothes. Worked quite well. I've seen people hang clothes off their fences, string line between trees, hang from their porch eaves, for example. Clothes for babies and small children seem to do well laid out on a table. How should I advertise? just Craigslist? or newspaper too? The newspaper, for sure, imho. And be prepared for early shoppers, unless you clearly state no early shoppers. We purposely did not state that because we wanted to sell the stuff! But I was surprised to see shoppers as early as 5:30 a.m., while we were still setting up, for a sale advertised to start at 8:00 a.m.! These early birds made good purchases, though. In the same vein, I'd also say not to be too quick to tear down. Lookers tend to come in spurts. Just because it gets quiet, and you get tired and the heat is awful doesn't mean more people aren't coming. Some purposely come late, looking for your best deals because it's close to closing time. Also, I purposed to leave things up an hour longer than advertised, and was not disappointed in that decision. Have prices clearly posted. Where do you put up signs if your city doesn't allow you to use utility poles? Dh made a tripod-type stand. Put something on it to draw attention. I think someone suggested balloons. We had a huge red bow on one of ours and several people complemented us on it - it not only stood out, but also their first thought was not baby/wedding shower or birth. This may sound obvious, but don't forget to put your address in the newspaper ad and, if it can be confusing, you may need to put your town/city as well. We have that problem locally - people put a street but not which town! Not all the streets are listed in the phone book maps section. If you're near a well-known landmark, mention it. If possible, get some free end rolls from your newspaper to wrap purchased breakables in. Have bags handy. No matter how great your math skills, have a calculator handy and use it when someone is purchasing several items - people tend to appreciate the accuracy and speed. :001_smile: If possible, have some containers available for folks to put their items in as they shop. We had some baskets with a sign above but also made sure we handed one to each person who seemed intently looking. It was amazing how people began adding things to the basket that they had previously picked up, then put back. Of course, these didn't hold the bigger items, but many people brought their filled baskets (some had two or three) for us to watch while they decided on the larger items. Which reminds me, if possible, have sufficient help! You not only need *eyes* on the shoppers, but check-out goes faster, too, if one tallies, while one wraps breakables and another bags. Well, my two cents got awfully long... I hope you enjoy your yard sale and make a nice profit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Always have the person hold their money until you have the change already made and ready to hand them. I was scammed once where someone told me that they had given me more money than I know that they did. But, since I had already stuck it in with all the other money, I couldn't prove anything. If you always put big bills ($20 and higher) in a separate place it helps with the problem too. If you aren't carrying any of the big bills, they can't say they gave you any. The professional garage sale scammers are really big here. They are pretty slick too. On that note - If you sell DVD's, check each case they buy. Some people will put two discs in one case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xuzi Posted June 23, 2011 Author Share Posted June 23, 2011 Lots of great advice here! Keep it coming! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nukeswife Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I agree about the tip of getting more tables if you can. I really hate when people have clothes laid out on tarps on the ground. When I go to a garage sale I hate crawling around trying to check out clothes. For toys it's not bad as long as they are good sized toys and not really small things. Definitely make sure you have lots of change. Whenever we have a sale it never fails that the first few people to buy only have large bills. Also if you can set up the tables in the garage the night before and then just have someone help you move them out into the yard/driveway in the morning. Even if you put "No earlybirds" in your add, there's always somebody that shows up right when you're starting to set up and it can be rather nerve racking. If all you have to do is move the tables out it's not as crazy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xuzi Posted June 23, 2011 Author Share Posted June 23, 2011 I agree about the tip of getting more tables if you can. I really hate when people have clothes laid out on tarps on the ground. When I go to a garage sale I hate crawling around trying to check out clothes. For toys it's not bad as long as they are good sized toys and not really small things. Definitely make sure you have lots of change. Whenever we have a sale it never fails that the first few people to buy only have large bills. Also if you can set up the tables in the garage the night before and then just have someone help you move them out into the yard/driveway in the morning. Even if you put "No earlybirds" in your add, there's always somebody that shows up right when you're starting to set up and it can be rather nerve racking. If all you have to do is move the tables out it's not as crazy. I *really* wish I could do that, but our garage faces an alley *behind* our house, and I'm going to have the sale on our driveway in *front* of our house. Set up is going to be a pain. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eaglei Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I *really* wish I could do that, but our garage faces an alley *behind* our house, and I'm going to have the sale on our driveway in *front* of our house. Set up is going to be a pain. :tongue_smilie: That's where we had our yard sales. Lined the two sides of the drive with tables (borrowed), plus had a card table at the top, near the house, with smaller, easier-to-walk-away-with items (:tongue_smilie:); then, had tables arranged in the yard with plenty of walking-around space; finally, larger items interspersed among the tables in the yard, keeping in mind room for walking and moving around. Really, outside affords more room to move, usually better lighting, plus people don't wonder about items not meant to be in the yard sale. Of course, drawbacks are having to get everything outside, and the potential for weather interference, i.e., rain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sara R Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Label the sizes with a large sign. The first thing I want to know about clothes (and shoes) at a sale is whether or not it will fit someone in our house, so make that information easy to find out. If possible put different kids' sizes into different labeled boxes (for example, girls size 6). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xuzi Posted June 24, 2011 Author Share Posted June 24, 2011 Label the sizes with a large sign. The first thing I want to know about clothes (and shoes) at a sale is whether or not it will fit someone in our house, so make that information easy to find out. If possible put different kids' sizes into different labeled boxes (for example, girls size 6). This is one of the reasons why I'm thinking of putting stuff (clothes) into storage tubs, so I can just label the tubs "Infant Boy 0-12 months" "Girl 3T" and people can dig through for what they want specifically. I can imagine things getting mixed up pretty quickly if it was organized on a table. I'll try to use lots of bins so that they aren't very full, so you won't have to dig through a whole pile of stuff to find one or two things you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sara R Posted June 24, 2011 Share Posted June 24, 2011 Sounds perfect! I've only been to a couple of yard sales that had clothes organized that way, but I bought a lot at those sales :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xuzi Posted June 28, 2011 Author Share Posted June 28, 2011 (edited) Okay, another question! If I run an ad for our garage sale in the paper, should I run it Thursday + Friday, or Friday + Saturday, or Thursday + Friday + Saturday? (it'll be a 2-day sale, Friday and Saturday) ETA: Okay, so my paper only allows a minimum of a 3-day ad, and it'll cost $31.95!!! Is that worth it?? Edited June 28, 2011 by Xuzi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trailofsparks Posted June 28, 2011 Share Posted June 28, 2011 Okay, another question! If I run an ad for our garage sale in the paper, should I run it Thursday + Friday, or Friday + Saturday, or Thursday + Friday + Saturday? (it'll be a 2-day sale, Friday and Saturday) ETA: Okay, so my paper only allows a minimum of a 3-day ad, and it'll cost $31.95!!! Is that worth it?? I love garage saling. I usually like it best when I follow the signs - make them all the same or using the same colors so they are easy to follow. I occasionally check Craig's List. I never check the paper. I live in a metro area, lots of burbs, so there are always lots of sales. I guess it depends on where you live - but since your prices will be so reasonable, I would still say it is not worth the $31+ fee. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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