This past weekend, I had yet another garage sale. It was nice to get rid of a lot of stuff I didn't need anymore: clothes our family had outgrown, toys, books, crafting supplies, gifts that didn't hit the mark, and so on.

Over the last 10 years, I have had 5 or 6 sales, and I grew up going to enough sales that my first car (handed down from my mom who took me to garage sales) seemed to veer toward them without warning, as if on autopilot.  So I thought to myself, "Hey Self, why not share with the OS folks what you have learned?"

1. Have the goods. First of all make sure you have enough stuff to have a successful sale. If you don't have enough, ask friends to bring items (plus they may help you the day of the sale) or coordinate sales with your neighbors. More than one sale on your street will draw more buyers.
2. Be Organized. Put all the kitchen stuff together, the books together, seasonal decor together, the office materials together. If you are selling clothes (which for me have never been a great seller) organize them by gender, size, or other easily recognizable  categories. This is part of marketing what you have to your buyers.
3. Get it out! This means you have to get it out of the garage into the driveway or the yard for people to see it.  People won't get out of their cars unless something catches their eye. Don't hide stuff in the house, either. I have a fishtank for sale, but it's up in my bedroom. Whatever.
4. Price reasonably. On my last sale, I had a TON of kids clothes. It would have taken me weeks to mark prices on each and every article, then I would have had to remove the prices prior to donating what was left over.  The lowest quality play clothes were 25 cents, the nicer items were 50 cents, matching outfits were $1, and the items I felt were top quality or still had tags got priced individually. Selling these items isn't about recouping your costs, even if you bought it at Gymboree. It's about handing down to strangers. For a price.
5. Be ready to barter. Some people will pay whatever is marked on the items, but many people want to get a deal. Be ready for this and know if you want to part with your items for less. Remember if it doesn't sell at the end of the day then you have made $0. If someone buys several items, I usually round the price down for them if they ask.
6. Have change on hand. I don't mark any item less than 25 cents. I have been at sales where items are 5 and 10 cents, and I think to myself, what are they getting out of this sale? If you mark items in 25 cent increments, you only have to have quarters on hand for change. I also started with $50 in one dollar bills and 3-4 $5 bills and ran out of ones at one point, but ended up with more than 25 $1s at the end. I have a personal policy of taking only cash at my sales.  If someone doesn't have the cash, I tell them where the nearest ATM is and offer to hold the items. Most people will go get the cash and come back, in my personal experience.
7. Advertise. I have talked to many people who tell me their total sales are less than $100 and their weekend was ruined by all the hard work of the sale. Advertise in your paper and put signs up at the entrance to your neighborhood, the end of your street, or at a nearby intersection, by a stop sign where people can stop to read your address, you get the idea. Don't ever waste ad space by saying "et cetera, misc., cash, no early sales" or similar. These words mean nothing to most buyers.  Be specific in your ad, and consider which items would pay for the ad if they sold. Collectibles, crafts, tools, furniture, be specific about what you have. Also, know what days and hours work for your area. My area typically has Friday and Saturday sales that end early in the day to avoid the heat, but that differs from other cities I have lived in. Watch your paper and go to sales yourself to get an idea about what people are selling and for how much.
8. Be honest with the buyers about any item defects. If not, they are going to bring the items back if they can remember your address. At the worst, you could be the recipient of a flaming bag of dog turds on your doorstep when they figure out the lawnmower they just spent $50 on doesn't work. I have made a lot of money on items that were broken and needed repair, but had no intention of fixing them in the near future. I am always a little more willing to barter on these items. There are plenty of men that come to sales looking for fixit projects as well, so these items can appeal to them.
9. Be realistic. In all likelihood, you are going to be selling secondhand items or items that never found their purpose. Don't expect to make a million dollars off your unwanted items, because guess what? People know you don't want it anymore because it is in your driveway. It's not a vanGogh! Used VHS tapes will not bring $5 each as I saw at a sale recently. Try 50 cents or a dollar each and they will go fast.
10. Have fun! Having a sale is a lot of work. I try to have a strange item for sale like lingerie or thong underwear to wake people up in the morning and get them thinking. It is like having an inside joke all day long. This year, my kids had a lemonade stand out front, which drew a few people out of their cars in the heat who didn't buy anything else. At tne end you will have a little extra money you can put toward something special. Like your bills.