Raising Our Wild Things

Southern Living - Red Wine Sippin' - Wife - Mom of 3 - Jesus Follower- Mompreneur

10 Tips for a Successful Yard Sale

10 Tips to A Successful Garage Sale


I had the most successful garage/yard sale I’ve ever had a few weeks ago ($600 in one day) and so thought I would share 10 tips with you guys that I learned that might help you have a successful yard sale as well.

1. The more stuff the better! In order to attract someone to get them to want to stop at your sale you need to have a lot of stuff and show it off…this is why it is great if you can get family or friends to have a joint sale with you (plus then you can advertise multi-family sale). As a shopper I hate to stop at a sale that doesn’t have any stuff and will not stop if I ever see a sale there again.

2. Advertise, advertise, advertise but don’t waste money by advertising in your local newspaper. There are so many ways you can advertise now a days without spending money. The number one way is through Craigslist. You would be shocked at how many yard salers use Craigslist to search sales. The second way is through local Facebook yard sale pages. You can search Facebook for your county and city and post your sale to the page. This will also help attract more people to your sale. When advertising be sure to list what type of items you are selling and especially any big items. Lots of home decor? Vintage items? Tools? List it all! 

3. Pick a good location to have your sale. This is an important one. If you can find a house in a neighborhood on a busy street that is best. I live in a very large neighborhood and am on the main street so this def helped contribute to the success of my yard sale. 


4. Strategically “merchandise” your stuff. Put all the home decor together, clothing together, and movies together. Thing of your yard sale as your own personal store. The more organized and the more attractive your layout the more people will want to shop. 

5. Set up as much stuff as your can ahead of time in the garage. This will really help you out come yard sale morning. I opened my garage door at 7am to find multiple cars parked outside waiting for me to open my doors. Thankfully I already had most of my stuff set up in the garage and all I had to do was move my larger items and items to attract people to the sale outside. 


6. Price everything individually as much as possible. Shoppers don’t want to have to ask you about prices. Having everything priced will make it much easier on you and will encourage people to buy more than if things aren’t priced. If you don’t want to have to buy yard sale price tags for everything use masking tape. Works just as well and will save you money. 

7. Be willing to negotiate. People will want to feel like they get a good deal so be willing to negotiate. Don’t mark things at your bottom price so you have a little leeway. 

8. Put up readable signs that show your address. Using bright colors helps. Make sure your full address is clearly labeled as well as an arrow to point which way drivers should go. It is best to put signs out the night before your sale. If you use poster board be sure to laminate it if you put it out early in the morning or the night before. I learned the hard way that poster board not being laminate gets wet from dew and curls up so no one is able to see your signs. 

9. Have change handy and keep records of what you have made. You will need lots of change. I suggest getting $100 in advance in $10s, $5s, $1s, and quarters. I also suggest writing down the amount purchased as you sell so you can have a running total. On that note it is very important that when you start getting larger bills you take some money inside and lock it up. You would hate for someone to walk away with all your hard earned money!


10. Have fun and remember your purpose! If you don’t have fun it’s really not worth your time. Talk to people. You will meet some of the most interesting people at yard sales. Also keep your purpose in mind. If you were having a sale to clear out make sure you don’t bring anything back in…if the purpose of your sale was to make money don’t give your items away for dirt cheap. Remember  it is a yard sale but you might could make more money on Craigslist or through an antique dealer/action.


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