I am currently in the process of saving up money to purchase a vintage Winnebago and live on the road for a year. While some people think this idea is crazy, I think it would be incredible and its something I am highly determined to do. However, a 1972 Winnebago Brave is far from cheap, and it also isn’t the greatest when it comes to space. While looking around my bedroom the other day, I became overwhelmed by the amount of stuff I had; my clothes, shoes, accessories and decor items barely fit in my bedroom. I found myself wondering how on earth I would manage getting them all to fit in the limited storage space in my new home on wheels.
I started sorting through my clothes and became shocked as I found shirts and dresses I couldn’t even remember buying, let alone ever wearing. My closet was a sea of shoes never removed from their original boxes, necklaces with tags still attached and purses that still had the paper lining stuffed into them from the stores they were purchased at. In less than five minutes time, my dilemma switched from wondering how I would get everything to fit to how I could possibly get rid of so much stuff. And then it hit me: I would host a garage sale to downsize my closet and earn some money to put toward buying my motor home.
My garage sale, however, did not involve dragging tables out to my driveway and waiting in the heat for cars to come along and have a look. It involved no haggling strangers or selling my items for less than a dollar just to make a sale. In fact, it didn’t even involve leaving my house! How did I manage this? I hosted the sale on my Facebook page.
With over 400 people on my friends list, I had a large audience to sell to. I simply had to upload pictures of each item and name my price. Within an hour of starting to post items, my notification icon was lit up bright red with countless comments and messages from friends wanting to buy items I was selling. Within the first day of selling, I had managed to make $200 towards my Winnebago, certainly not small change to scoff at. Comments kept pouring in, and I could barely keep up with the demand. My virtual garage sale was more successful than I could have ever dreamed it would be, and it barely took any work or effort.
Take a look at your own home. Is it filled with things you could stand to be rid of? If so, I encourage you to host your own Facebook garage sale using these tips and tricks I collected from my own experience.
Announce Your Sale
Don’t simply create a photo album and hope people notice. Announce your sale before you even start uploading photos of your items. I posted a status update about an hour before I started posting pictures stating that I would be holding a Facebook garage sale for those interested. I included a brief list of the types of items I would be selling, and how many total items to expect. The status update was instantly flooded with replies, and many who replied to it went on to become buyers at my sale.
Take the Best Photos Possible
Good quality photos will attract more buyers. Bad photos make it hard for potential buyers to tell what an item really looks like, so they may pass on an item they would have fallen in love with had the photo been better.
Don’t upload the photos to your mobile album or wall photos. I created an album specifically for my sale to make it easy for people to sort through what I had and it kept everything organized. I even created a cute cover for it. My friends and family know about my Winnebago plan, so by using a photo of one as the album cover they were immediately drawn to the sale knowing what the money would be used for. You can easily do the same. If you’re saving for a vacation, use a picture of your destination. If you’re saving for a car, use a picture of the type of car you want to get.
Describe Items Accurately
Just as if you were selling on eBay, describe your item as accurately as possible. For clothes and shoes I included the brand name, size and condition. If the items are new, make sure to state so.
Open it Up to Everyone
I live in Denver, but I didn’t limit my sale to only friends who live nearby. I stated in the album description that I would sell and ship to anywhere in the world so long as the buyer paid for shipping. This ended up working to my benefit, as I had several out of state friends buy $10 or more in items from me. For people living out of state, I simply had them send me payment through Paypal.
Work Out Delivery
I agreed to deliver some of the items to nearby friends, while others came and picked them up from my house. Work out the delivery method with each buyer.
I had a lot of people comment on items stating that they wanted them, but when I asked when they would like to get them there was no reply. Only delete the items from your sale item after you have collected the money and the buyer has received their items. This way serious buyers can still see items they might be interested in.
Keep Updating
As you add new items, post status updates to advertise them. I added an autographed Rooney shirt to my album that would have likely gone unnoticed by someone who had already browsed the photos and assumed what she saw was all there was going to be. A quick update on my end caught her eye, directed her to check it out and five minutes later the sale had been arranged. You want people to continue checking back to sell as much as possible.
