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20 tips for hosting a successful yard sale
Shop your house for items to sell.
Walk through every room with a laundry basket and grab what you no longer need.
Give yourself at least two weeks to gather and clean items.
Plan sufficient time to prep items. Clean, tidy items will sell faster than ones where the buyer will have to do extra work.
Arrange like items together.
Pick a spot, such as a basement or spare bedroom, as a staging area. Organize according to function: kitchen, clothing, books and music, toys and tools.
Tag your yard sale items right.
Use preprinted price tags from an office supply or hardware store, or ink the price on painter’s tape, which won’t leave a mark or tear paper. If you have an interesting idea about how to use an item or a fun fact about what you’re selling, include that information on the price tag.
Gear up.
Have these essentials at the ready on sale day: tape measure, yardstick, calculator, extension cord and batteries (so shoppers can make sure items work).
Advertise in multiple ways.
List your sale on gsalr.com, a site that helps people plan their shopping by finding sales on a map. Also post in the Garage Sale section on Craigslist, cross-referencing items in special categories.
Get an extra set of hands.
A yard sale is a two-person-minimum job. One person should tend to the checkout while the other helps shoppers.
Make carryout easy.
Have plenty of grocery bags and boxes — anything that will make it easy for shoppers to tote things home. Rubber bands and string are helpful to bundle loose items.
Stock your register.
A day or two before the sale, get plenty of small bills and coins from a bank. Keep money to make change in a tackle box, a cupcake pan or a fanny pack.
Fill a $1 basket to position near checkout.
Shoppers can’t resist a final opportunity to dig for a deal. Likewise, make a “free with purchase” box and include small stuffed animals, children’s books, bouncy balls, bags of loose crayons and other similar items. Young shoppers will appreciate a little token.
Group things as they are in department stores.
Designate sections for housewares, media, clothing and toys.
Hang clothes.
Adult clothing can be the hardest thing to sell, but it has a better chance of moving if you merchandise it well. Use a garment rack, clothesline or ladder.
Cover tables with colorful plastic.
This technique works on the subconscious: shoppers think your items are worth the price you ask. Place items at eye-level.
Display jewelry nicely.
Wrap a section of cardboard with fabric and pin pieces to it to show off small items. Keep anything valuable near the checkout.
Use vertical space.
It gives the eye something to see beyond the tables. And on the tables, create varied levels by using supports, such as small covered boxes. The changes in height force the eye to stop rather than simply scan.
