Tips on How to Host a Moving Sale, Garage Sale or Yard Sale
You’re getting ready to move and it’s an exciting time in your life! Moving allows you to pack up and start anew, which means you may have to part ways with some items you no longer find the need for. As you sort through your home, you realize there are more things you should really to get rid of than you had initially thought. A great option for you might be to host a moving sale. Holding a moving sale not only helps you lessen the load, but it’s also profitable! You get say goodbye to old, unwanted items and save up some cash to possibly put into other moving expenses or save towards new furniture or décor for after you relocate. Sounds like a win-win situation, but maybe you’ve never held a garage sale, yard sale or moving sale. We’re here to offer you helpful tips and tricks to host successful garage sales in the weeks or months prior to your move.
6 Tips for Hosting a Successful Moving Sale
- Sell It or Toss It?
As you sort through your belongings and begin to put things in the sell pile, there are a few things you’ll want to consider. Is the item damaged? If it’s an electronic, does it still function? If it’s clothing, are there holes in it? You want to think with the mind of the customer. If you were at a neighbor’s garage sale, would you want a mug with a chip in it or a stuffed animal with stains on it? It might be a better idea to toss those belongings of yours that are damaged or ruined in the junk pile rather than trying to sell them. Items that you decide to sell should be free of significant scratches, tear, fade or any other noticeable damages. Once you’ve decided on all the items to sell at your yard sale, it’s a good idea to give them a thorough cleaning prior to selling. Give items of clothes one last wash and wipe down shelves or chairs of the dust they may have collected. It’s also a good idea to package items that came together such as a DVD player with its remote control. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, so make it look like so! The more appealing you make your items, the more likely they are to sell.
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- Put a Price on It
Determining the price of your items might take some researching. The most important tip is not to overprice. Your ultimate goal is to get rid of your things before your move. You want to sell at a reasonable price and whatever you don’t sell at your moving sale should be donated. Keep in mind that you are selling things of yours that for one reason or another you decided not to hold on to. Refer to sites such as Craigslist and Ebay to determine what similar items are selling for to get a better idea of how you should price yours. Be mindful of the fact that people will not likely be carrying around change, so try to keep items priced at whole dollar values. Price collective items at the same price. For example, if you have a box full of books, mark the box as $1 each or 2 for $1. Make sure all your items are clearly marked with a price tag or indicated with a sign near them. This way customers are aware of the costs without having to flag you down to ask.
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- Schedule and Advertise
Scheduling your moving sale carefully is critical to how much success it will have. Typically, Saturday and Sunday are the best days to hold a moving sale since most people have the whole day off work to spend leisurely. Parents can also bring their children along to your garage sale on the weekends which can drive more sales. Make sure you check the weather ahead of time to avoid a rainy forecast. Rain keeps potential customers from leaving their home or even their cars as they drive by your yard sale. Once you’ve picked out your dates, it’s time to let everyone know about your moving sale! If you don’t raise awareness, people won’t show up. Advertising doesn’t have to be complicated and doesn’t have to cost you much or anything at all! Spread the word on social media and let people know through Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can advertise on the Seattle-Tacoma Craigslist page or make a posting for the classifieds of a local newspaper. Get creative and print fliers to post on bulletin boards in local stores, restaurants or coffee shops. You can create signs to pitch around the neighborhood. There are numerous ways to spread the word, but be sure to ask neighbors and local vendors for permission before you put anything up.
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- Thoughtful Organization is Key
Nobody wants to spend their day digging through a large pile of junk hoping to find what they want. Organizing your moving sale will be beneficial in selling more items. Separate the things you are selling as a department store would. Create categories of items for organization. Kitchenware could all go together, but also separate out silverware, plates, cooking utensils, pots and pans, and so on. Toys, books, electronics, and shoes can all be separated by table or bins. When organizing clothes, you can create distinct piles of women’s, men’s, girl’s and boy’s. Make sure when putting furniture out to sell, they are not in the middle of your layout, but placed on the perimeters out of the way of heavy foot-traffic. When displaying your merchandise to sell, you want to make sure you are doing so in a way that will catch your customers’ eyes. Laying down some decorative or colorful table cloth, hanging up your best items of clothing in racks, laying out toys for kids to play around with are just some ideas you could try out.
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- Fast and Simple Checkout
When closing a purchase, you don’t want to take too long fumbling around for cash or running back and forth to grab change for a customer. A cash drawer or money tin might be a good idea if you have a trusted friend or family-member managing it at all times throughout the day. A better idea might be to have each seller walking around with either an apron with pockets or a fanny pack holding enough change in various bills. You may need to visit the bank prior to moving sale day to ensure you have plenty of ones and fives to make change. Nowadays, with everything being done electronically, you may even want to consider getting a mobile credit card reader or swiper. These devices plug right into your phone for easy access and convenient use. You can make more sales this way from customers stopping by your garage sale with no cash.
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- Keep Customers Happy and Sticking Around
A good way to keep customers sticking around and lingering a bit longer is by offering small amenities and refreshments for their comfort. If it’s a nice, hot summer day, have a table with bottled water, soda, lemonade and snacks available to sell for cheap. Another idea is to put up a tent or canopy to offer customers some relief from the heat as they browse around. As customers finally make their purchases, make sure you have newspaper or gift wrap available for fragile items such as dishware or picture frames, as well as paper or plastic grocery bags so that customers have something to carry all their newfound treasures in. The last thing you can offer your customers is a friendly thank you and a smile, and they might just come back the next day.
