Great Garage Sales

Did you know that the average amount earned at a one-day yard sale is $380??

Not bad!  The spring is the perfect time to host a yard sale.  So what are some of the best ways to earn more and sell more?  Glad you asked.  Check out some of these top tips from yard sale pros.

1.  Put it all out.   Be ruthless when it comes to figuring out what to sell and what to keep. 
Even your sentimental items can go.  It is really is amazing to think that you may be so attached to an item but once it is gone, it never crosses your mind again.  If you are on the fence about keeping an item, it'll probably sell.

2.  Get organized.  Even though it's a yard sale, keep your items organized - have children's toys in a box or bin together, house hold items together etc...If the sale set-up is really user-friendly, you will likely sell more.

3.  Create a pile of bargains.  Trying to get rid of random stuff? Arrange like items into piles and put unrelated items in bins.  Use signs to play up bargains "Cd's for $1!" "All linens $2!"  Having bins full of various items in bins for customers to pick through makes them feel like they might discover a hidden treasure!

4.  Make it BIG.  If you have friends thinking of sell off some of their things but maybe it's not enough to justify a yard sale, why not team up?  You can use different coloured tags to keep your earnings separate and when a sale has more items to chose from it tends to generate more traffic.  If you don't have enough space on your driveway or front yard trying setting up some additional tables and racks in the backyard.

5.  Advertise.  Sure the handmade signs in the neighbourhood work well but why not use social media?  Facebook is a great and free tool.  Advertise on free websites like Craig's list, kijiji and yardsalesearch.com

6.  Be bold with prices.  Start at double of what you'd like to make on an item - people already feel like they are getting a great deal because it's a yard sale.  If  a series of items belong together then price them out (and display them) as a set i.e drinking glasses or a tea set.

7.  Extras.  Try selling lemonade and baked goods as well - this creates extra earnings and keeps customers at the sale to potentially buy more.