Things You'll Need:
- Unwanted stuff to sell!
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Step 1
The biggest tip I can give anyone who is interested in having a sale is: get the people to your sale!!! Make sure to advertise in local papers and put up simple, clear, and HUGE signs around town. If you live off of the main streets, make sure to put signs with arrows directing people to your place.
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Step 2
When you are prepping stuff to sell, try to label everything individually. People are more likely to look at things a little closer if they know what you want for it right off the bat. Also, keep like item together. Clothes in one area, kitchen stuff on another table, etc. Also, try to check out other sales before you mark your prices, so you can get an idea what different things sell for in your town.
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Step 3
One thing a lot of people forget about when having a sale is having change! Make sure to have lots of 1's and 5's. Look at how you marked your prices. Are you going to need lots of quarters? If anything is marked less than 25 cents, you will also need dimes, nickels, and pennies. A lot of regular garage-salers will have correct change, but you may also have your first customer of the day that only has a 20 dollar bill (or more)! Something I learned the hard way -- have a calculator handy in case someone buys multiple items for all different prices. You don't want to be standing around looking dumb trying to add up everything in your head! Another nice thing to have around, especially if you are selling a lot of little things, is your old grocery bags. People will really appreciate it!
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Step 4
Make people want to hang around and look at your stuff. Put the radio on a station most people like, have some ice water to drink (or even sell cold bottles of water). If you have kids who are interested, have them put up a lemonade/ice tea stand. Make sure you have things out for men to look at also -- old golf clubs, cd's, sporting equipment, fishing equipment. Then if a couple comes together, the woman is more likely to stick around longer if the man isn't begging to go!
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Step 5
Last but not least, be friendly but don't be a salesperson. No one likes to feel pressured! Just a "good morning, nice day to be out garage-saleing!", or "hi there, how are ya'". Make sure to tell people with kids how adorable/cute/etc. their kids are. It goes a long way! Don't be afraid to haggle prices with people. Sometimes they will buy a lot of stuff even if you are willing to go down by 25 cents!
