Are you looking to declutter your home and make some extra cash? As we’ve mentioned before, hosting a yard sale is a great way to do both. But how do you get people to come to your sale? Here are some tips on how to promote your yard sale in your neighbourhood.

Talk about your yard sale

Start by letting your neighbours know that you plan to hold a yard sale. Talk to people about it when you’re out and about in the community. You might find that other people want to join in. If there are a few yard sales on your street, it will encourage more people to visit.

Use social media to advertise your yard sale

You can also post about your yard sale on your neighbourhood's social media pages and WhatsApp groups. Mention if you’re raising funds for a charity or a particular cause, too, as this will entice people to support you.

You could also use your town’s Facebook Marketplace to advertise your yard sale, particularly if you’re selling some items with a higher value. Encourage any marketplace buyers to collect their item while you’re holding the yard sale, as they might then buy more things!

Do another set of social media posts the day before and the day of your sale to remind people that it’s happening, too.

Put signs in your front garden to advertise your yard sale

Make your yard sale signs stand out, and put them out about a week before your sale. Use bright colours and large fonts so that people can see the signs for your yard sale from a distance. Be sure to include information such as the date, time, and location of your sale.

On the day of the sale, put signs in a place near your home with high footfall with arrows leading to your yard sale. On a hot day, you could tempt people by selling cool drinks, freezy pops and home-made cakes.

Use flyers to advertise your yard sale

Postcard-sized flyers are easy to print off at home and can be dropped through people’s letterboxes – but be sure to respect any signs saying ‘no circulars’. You could also put your yard sale flyers on community noticeboards in nearby pubs and parks. Some small shops have a board and will display a card for a small fee, and coffee shops might let you leave a few flyers for their customers. Make your yard sale flyer stand out by using bright colours and prominent lettering – you could even use a service like Canva to design it. A list of what you are selling (DVDs, plants, books, clothing, collectables, toys) will also help attract potential buyers.

Preparing your stock for a yard sale

Remember to check your storage unit for items that you might want to sell. It’s not uncommon to forget what you’ve got stored. A few days before your sale visit your storage unit and run your eye down your self-storage inventory to see if there’s anything you’re ready to let go of. It’s also likely that you’ll find things at home to sell. And you might find domestic goods that would be better kept in your storage unit than at home.

After the yard sale

Have a plan for getting rid of your unsold yard sale items. Is any of it good enough to donate? Check what local charities are seeking before you donate, to avoid burdening them with junk. Some of your unsold yard sale stock will inevitably only be fit for the recycling centre, so make time for a trip to the tip. There may be some domestic goods you want to keep for another yard or boot sale – a storage unit is the perfect place to keep these items, and they will all be covered by your self-storage insurance, which is mandatory at a reputable self-storage company. If you’re changing the contents of your self-storage unit, get a quick quote from Store and Insure to check that your self-storage insurance still represents good value.

A quick review of your yard sale

Hosting a yard sale can be a fun way to interact with your community and meet your neighbours. But if you didn’t sell much stuff, ask yourself why that was. Unappealing stock? Poor weather? Not enough passers-by? Consider whether it’s worth trying again another week, or whether you’d be better off holding a boot fair or using social media to sell items. Even if you didn’t sell much stuff, a yard sale is still a useful exercise that gives valuable insights into your personal possessions and helps you to feel part of your community.