This is a guide for garage sale sellers. If you are wanting to have a sale and clean out your house of unwanted stuff this guide is for you. It will instruct you how to get buyers like me to purchase your stuff.
Why have a garage sale and what is the purpose?
Garage sales are the last step before your stuff either gets donated to a thrift store(Goodwill, Salvation Army, Church, etc.) or gets put at the curb for trash collection. This is clutter, things you don't use. I have a personal rule that if I have not touched it in 5 years I don't need it. Your goal is to get rid of this and maybe make a little cash at doing it. If you ask too high of a price you will not sell anything. Don't give it away but don't expect 90% of retail either.
Advertising the sale.
You can list the sale in the news paper but lets be frank, nobody reads the paper anymore. News papers are a thing of the past with internet taking over. Craigslist is your friend here. Other online resources can be found with a "Google" search. Any of your professional buyers are going to be using smart phone apps to find your sale.
Putting signs out at the road.
Do not make them small! You need to be able to read them from 100 feet away. Four-Five inch letters are a must. Brightly colored poster board is a real eye catcher. Make BIG arrows pointing to where you live. Where I live we have a lot of canals and dead ends. The easier you make it for people to find you the better the sale.
Hours of operation.
The latest start time should be 8am. When you set up in the morning you should be ready to sell an hour before your start time. DON'T TURN AWAY EARLY BIRDS. You want to get rid of your stuff, don't turn down a sale! Two-Three hours before the sale is a bit much but an hour should be acceptable. If you don't want people contacting you early don't put your phone number in the advertisment.
Pricing Items.
Put price tags on your items. Don't make people ask. A lot of people will not ask if there is no price. It is just basic human nature. If you have a box of baseball caps put a sign with "baseball caps $1. A sign saying DVDs $2 a piece, or whatever. It is a starting point. If you don't put most people won't ask.
Have this all done at the beginning of the sale, the night before. Don't still be pricing things when your sale starts. You want people to walk in and know what you want for this.
Negotiating your price 101.
Don't be offended if someone offers you a lower price than listed. It is not an insult to get a low ball offer. Do not take things personally, this is business. Meet half way. If you have something listed for $10 and some one offers $5, make a counter offer half way at $7.50. If they offer less than that think about it. Do you want to put that item back in your house or donate it? If you want a few bucks take the offer. The offer/counter offer can go several rounds. It is fun for many people, buyer and seller. Bottom line don't get emotionally attached to items.
Having change on hand.
Have a good selection of one dollar bills on hand along with fives and coins. Bottom line is most ATM's are only stocked with $20 bills. Not many people visit a bank these days.
Customer service.
This is the last but most important! How you act and your body language can either make a sale or turn off a customer. SMILE! Say hello and make a little small talk. Comment on the weather or complement their vehicle, dog or whatever. Don't treat these people like they are invading your privacy, you invited them here! A person who is comfortable is more likely to spend money. Stair at them and give them the stink eye and they will be uncomfortable and leave.
Resellers.
I am one of them and there are a lot of them. Some people don't like us because we are buying from you and reselling it online. A lot of people make there money this way. Some come and buy stuff they know. These people you will not notice. Some will be scanning bar codes with their smart phones. Either way these people are giving you money for unwanted items. But bottom line is you want it gone. Don't get offended at the guy scanning bar codes. Be offended by the person being a pig and making a mess. Most resellers are respectful.
Bottom line is if you don't like it, research eBay and sell it online yourself. Do you know how to do the research? Do you like shipping items? Do you have a seller account with a good reputation?
I will say this about people asking to buy old and unused gold
jewelry. Don't sell to these people they will not give you proper
prices for these items. Take that stuff to a Jewelry and Coin store.
They will give you a fair price.
Different Strokes for Different Folks.
Alright this one may be a little bit racy. Different people of different cultural backgrounds act differently. Around my parts we have hispanics of every nationality and Haitians. People of different cultures are brought up differently. Patience is a virtue and that is all I will say about that.
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