A great by-product of spring cleaning every year in many households is our annual garage sale. Many of us experienced this trademark of domestic enterprise that would rid closets of grown-out-of-clothes and toys, old electronics; anything that you can put a price on and a neighbor or passer-by can purchase and enjoy for themselves!

1. Location, Location, Location: We have it! Close to the Cypress College Swap Meet and weekend traffic on Valley View and Lincoln

2. Pricing: We know that it’s hard to part with certain items that are taking up room, but pricing too high because of your affection for the item doesn’t help anyone. Price things reasonable, and that will encourage people to buy a larger quantity, which serves the exact reasoning for the yard sale in the first place: To Clear Things Out!

3. Get cash: Get a roll of quarters, a stack of twenty-five $1 bills, and a few $5 bills. Do this two days before the sale, so that if you forget, you can still get the change on the day before.

4. Bundle Items: Create bundles of similar items to sell in larger quantities. It might encourage people to buy, as it encourages their chance of satisfaction in a single purchase. If you’re selling books or dvds, group them together in fives; even if the customer doesn’t end up enjoying the first book, they have four other chances and a new book to add to their bookshelf.

5. Prepare your staging area: People will be more inclined to stop if you set up shop in your yard or driveway. Some people are reluctant to enter a dark and dreary garage. Make your sale inviting and easy to browse. You can lure customers by placing highly-desirable items near the road.

6. Create Bargain Bins: Everyone loves a good bargain bin! It’s great to sort through merchandise and know it’s all the same price and easy to add up what you’re spending, and the person selling doesn’t have to label every item. Save time and money!

7. Go over ground rules: Make sure that everybody working the sale is in agreement. Be clear on your bargaining policy. (You don’t want your wife to be angry when you sell her rabbit-shaped jewelry box for $2 when she wanted at least $5 for it.) Make sure that everyone understands the importance of never parting from the money. Agree that nobody will bad-mouth the merchandise.

8. Advertise: It is vital to advertise your sale with flyers and ads on…um….PennySaver/Lots of Signs and Banners! Some people live and die for yard sales and garage sales and are looking for sales in their neighborhoods on a daily basis . It will be worth it when you turn a big profit from a very little investment!

9. Fun Stuff: Why not have some refreshments for your customers? Bring out some lemonade, have some bottled water on hand; on a hot summer day, it will help to create a better shopping experience. Have some music playing, and greet everyone just like you’re running your own little store for the day. A happy customer is the best kind of customer!

10. Think like a customer: As soon as you’ve opened and fielded the initial flood of shoppers, walk through your sale as if you were there to buy something. How does it feel? Are things clearly marked? Is it easy to move around? Are your books on the ground in boxes? Or are they placed neatly on shelves or tables? Would you pay $10 for that porcelain cat?

11. Make it easy for shoppers to test electronic items: If you’re selling electrical items, make sure you have an extension cord handy so that people can test them. No smart person is going to just take your word that your television “works great”. They’re going to want to see it in operation. Also, have some batteries on hand so that a prospective buyer can test that old Nintendo Gameboy for himself.