20 Tips To A Successful Fund Raising Garage Sale

We are on our third garage sale for this adoption and I'd like to think I have learned something from the whole experience enough to share some wealth with all of you. So here goes!

These are in no order, some are of more importance than others and I'll say so.

1. Clean your garage and setup the tables before you get anything for the sale. This is important so you can price and sort without having to perform acrobatics around the strollers and the car. 
2. Ask for donations! This is HUGE! If you want a garage sale that will bring in a good amount of money you will need more than just your family's junk. I always took time to sort and price things as they came in so it was done and out of the way. If you have your tables setup you can even put the items where they go for the sale!
3. Choose your weekend wisely. March in Ohio can be 80 degrees and sunny or you could have 17" of freshly fallen snow. We always pick a weekend about a month before a big chunk of our money is due in to the agency. That way if there is still more to collect we can plan accordingly.
4. ASK FOR HELP! I put this in caps because it is SO important!! If you have kids already ask a couple teenagers or grandma to come and watch them during the sale. You won't have the time to be dealing with barterers and a whiny 3 year old. I have a home daycare and thought I could get away with not having to take the day off... Bad idea. Workable but not easy. Also, get people to help you with the sale: setup, tear down, and in three shifts during the sale. This will alleviate burn out in you and give people an opportunity to help you bring your child home (or for whatever cause you are fund raising for).
5. PRICE EVERYTHING! Again, caps mean important. This will help your help be able to help (ha, that's a sentence...). You gotta price even the smallest stuff, like the "everything's a dime" bin individually. You may know that the little pink bear was in that box but your help do not, they also don't know that the pampered chef measuring cups weren't in that box. See where I am going here? Anyway it is always a good idea to price it all. I also add up our potential sales just to get an idea how much money we'll be getting from the sale.
6. Rest up. Get a good sleep the night before and don't do anything too crazy after the sale is over for the day. 
7. Have some food for the people you've asked to help. Even if it's just sandwich stuff and chips. They will appreciate you. Basically be hospitable. 
8. Be ready to answer some intimate questions about you and your adoption. It's good practice for you. Make sure you have some answers to the questions like "what kind of adoption are you doing?" and if you are doing an international be prepared for the "I wish you could adopt the kids we have here" statements. I was taken aback by those our first garage sale. I was not expecting a complete stranger to pass judgement on our decision. It was an eye opener.
9. Check Ebay before you price anything that may be worth money. 
10. ZIPLOCS ARE YOUR FRIEND. Don't be afraid to put all the small parts to something together in a zip bag. I buy a box of the big 2.5 Gallon ones too for stuff with bigger pieces.
11. ADVERTISE! Don't be afraid to put your sale on Craigslist. A majority of our traffic came from craigslist. You can also post pictures of your sale on there so people can see you've got a good sale. We always do a newspaper ad too. Our local paper does one in the paper and one online.
12. Hang up as many of the clothing as you can. It will look nicer and is easier to go through. 
13. Take a sanity day after the sale, we do nothing the Sunday after the sale.
14. LOCK YOUR DOORS. You may be right next to the door of your garage and think no one would dare just walk into your house but they will. I caught one guy walking in and he claimed he thought he heard someone say there was more inside the house. Yeah. Creepy.
15. If you have kids toys you don't want random out of control kids playing with that are not for sale keep them out of sight. We had a van full of kids show up and spend an hour playing in our personal park. They broke a tricycle and popped a ball. I asked the parents to get them to stop playing with toys not for sale and they never did. 
16. Don't stress out. Any sale is better than no sale. If you get stressed out you will talk yourself into failing.
17. Have new batteries for all the battery operated sale stuff and have a plug and light bulbs for lamps and other electronic stuff. People will ask, be prepared.
18. For change we do $40. One $10, two $5, one roll of quarters, and two rolls of dimes. I don't worry about nickels or pennies. You will get some early in your sale and probably never use them to make change anyway.
19. Have good signage. All your signs should match and have big easy to read lettering. 
20. SMILE! Remember you are raising money and what you are doing it for. Let your love for your child be shown through your interaction with the people who are helping you bring them home. 

Phew. That was a LONG post. Hope this helps someone! One last tip, try and sell the clothing and toys and books that don't sell in the sale at a consignment shop. You would be surprised at how much you'll get for them!

I leave you with my furbaby perched atop me like a bird.