Successful yard sales employ a pretty basic formula: great selection + killer prices. Without them, you’ll have a pile of leftovers at the end of your sale, and trust us: it's a lot more fun hauling that stuff out of boxes than packing them back in!
Follow our handy yard-sale countdown, and you'll be moving trash and treasures from your life for fun and profit – fast!
TWO TO THREE WEEKS AHEAD:
• Make the decision to have a yard sale. Mention plans to your neighbours and see if they want to opt in. A bigger sale generates more interest with drive-by traffic.
• Start moving your "inventory" to the garage. Clean and dust articles, then sort them by category.
• If you're selling antique or vintage furniture, spiff them up with a polish: this will net you better prices.
• Start bringing home a box or two every few days from the supermarket or liquor store. These boxes can be used as extra display surfaces (when closed and laid upside down) or can hold loose items.
• Start collecting plastic bags and newsprint for packaging purchases.
ONE WEEK AHEAD:
• Alert your friends and family (leave colleagues and professional contact alone!) via email, Facebook, Twitter or other social networking sites.
• Make announcements on Craig’s List and Kijiji. Update them throughout the week. Note some of the things you'll be selling, like key furniture pieces, sizes of clothing, types of small appliances, other notable finds.
• Advertise in the Thursday and Friday Classified section of your local newspaper. (A Saturday ad is fine for a Sunday sale, but don’t advertise a Saturday sale in the Saturday paper – your sale may be over by the time people read about it!
• Go to the bank and get about $50 to $60 in small bills and plenty of toonies, loonies and quarters.
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