Are you spending more time at home during the pandemic and noticing some items you no longer use cluttering up your space? Holding a traditional garage sale with a virus in the community probably won’t result in a lot of buyers stopping by because they may not feel safe. So, how do you shed the stuff and still make some money?

How about another kind of garage sale? Enter the technology of today, where thousands of potential buyers can see your offerings. Hosting a virtual garage sale or selling online on sites like OfferUp and Facebook Marketplace can be quite profitable. It’s also much easier than moving items around to display, labeling them with price tags, and then getting up at the crack of dawn to sit all day hoping it doesn’t rain and someone buys something.

 

Benefits of a Virtual Garage Sale

Quarantine is the perfect opportunity to declutter your home, garage, and tool shed of items you no longer need. Your castoff maybe someone else’s new treasure. Your efforts can be quite profitable, too. Online sales also hold advantages over the typical at-home, physical garage sale.

One of the most significant advantages is you can attract many more potential customers. You don’t have to wonder if someone driving by and stopping is in the market for a vintage Barbie. Most online shopping sites have their own search box so potential buyers can be directed right to your item.

If someone is looking for a vintage Periwinkle-colored Fiesta dinner plate to replace her dropped one, she can enter the title and there is yours, ready for a buyer.

Another advantage of online sales is that people may be competing for your product. When you hold an in-person garage sale, seldom are there several people standing in line to buy your barstool. Instead, it’s usually just one impulse buyer who shows interest, and that buyer can offer a lower price and you’ll probably accept it. However, online, many buyers are competing to buy your item.

We have some great online garage sale tips to help you succeed in selling items during the pandemic, all from the safety of your home and earn some extra money on the side.

 

Which are the Best-selling Items Online?

Start looking through your house, closets, cabinets, in your kids’ rooms. Take a good look in your garage for items to sell online. Start off with a few quality items that are in good condition and have wide appeal. Do you no longer have a dog, but still have a dog crate? Does your child no longer use that Nintendo? List ’em.

There are certain items that you can feel confident will sell well, especially if they’re sought-after name brands or are in good condition. Some of the best-selling items are:

  • Clothes are a great item to sell online. We all have forgotten clothes hiding in our closets. Time to let them go to a new home.
  • Home décor is especially popular, including seasonal decor items. This would be a great time to sell that ornate frame you received as a wedding gift five years ago and never used because it clashed with your décor. It’ll fit someone else’s home perfectly.
  • Kitchen utensils are in demand because people set up new residences all the time. Items like rice cookers, microwaves, and cutlery sell well.
  • Board games, toys, and bicycles are sought after, especially during the pandemic, because parents are searching for ways to keep their kids entertained and active. Make sure items are clean and in working order. Pump up the bike tires.
  • Tools are popular with budget-savvy homeowners who need gardening tools or DIY construction tools but don’t want to pay full price.
  • Furniture is in demand because people in this pandemic are wanting to change furnishings they’ve grown tired of – and people often move and seek new furnishings. Always clean furniture before taking photos and posting for sale.
  • Shoes, jewelry, and accessories are big sellers, especially if they’re good name brands. Frugal shoppers look for ways to elevate their wardrobe or find shoes a size up for their fast-growing kids. Designer handbags also are popular.
  • Books are a great choice to offer for sale, especially if they’re priced economically.
  • Appliances sell well during the pandemic in part because there’s a long wait for new appliance deliveries. Make certain appliances are sparkling clean and have a power strip nearby so you can show the buyers that smaller appliances work.
  • Exercise equipment sells well online because people in a pandemic are looking for ways to exercise at home. That neglected elliptical could bring some extra change right about now.

 

How to Price Each Item

So, now that you have a pile of potential sale items, how do you figure out how much to ask? Do online research. Look for similar items on local selling sites.

Consult more than one online source for similar items before pricing your own. This price guide is generic and gives you a range of garage sale prices. If you have a specific model of appliance or particular art print, you can do further online searches. Before you post to a certain selling site (For instance, Facebook Marketplace) visit that site and browse the selection and prices of similar items to what you’re selling.

If you believe the item is valuable, you might consider having it professionally appraised.

 

Tips for Selling it Faster

Once you have some items to offer, you’ll want it to sell quickly, right? We have some general tips on how to make sure your items sell faster.

Take good, clear photos of your items

With many online companies, you can post multiple pictures. The better quality and more detailed photos you submit, the higher the chance someone will find it irresistible.

But first, make sure you’ve cleaned the item. It may already look OK to you, but photos will show fingerprints, smudges, dust, and dirt.

Make sure photos aren’t dark and aren’t blurry. Take a photo of the entire item and then take close-ups. You can even take a photo of it alongside a ruler to show the exact measurements.

If there is a blemish or damage to any part of the item, take a photo of that, too, so the buyer has full disclosure. You don’t want the buyer to feel uninformed.

When taking pictures of clothes, try to take pictures of the item being worn. Or, consider investing in a used mannequin to model the clothes.

Consider the background when taking your photos. Choose a color that contrasts with your item, and makes the item pop. For instance, if you’re selling a red kayak, lean it against a blank gray wall. You also don’t want anyone’s foot, hand, or other body parts visible in the photo unless it’s someone modeling clothes. Try to have a clean, uncluttered background. People don’t like to buy items from messy houses.

Write a detailed description of each product

Use clear language and give potential buyers all the details they need to entice them to buy. Is it new or nearly new? Include that. Add things like the brand name, measurements, the age, the reason you’re selling it, and whether it’s from a pet-free or smoke-free home. Don’t forget the price. Do not put your address or other personal information in the ad.

If you’re not the best writer, that’s OK – ask a friend or family member to read or tweak what you’ve written. Sometimes, sellers misspell the name of the item and it doesn’t even come up in a buyer’s search, so spellcheck is your friend. People are more tempted to buy an item if the description is easy to read.

Remember to give the item a title/tag that can be easily searched. Place it in the proper category so it’s visible to as many people as possible.

Add measurements if needed

Be specific. Instead of writing that the desk is 42 by 36 by 20, specify that it is 42″ long, 36″ high, and 20″ deep. This helps the buyer in making a decision whether to buy.

Combine similar items into sets

Do you have a slew of Lego kits? Lots of DVDs? A bunch of kitchen utensils? You may want to lump them together into sets to entice more buyers and reduce your hassles.

Be available to answer questions

Once you’ve posted your item and it’s “live”. When a potential buyer message to ask a question, answer promptly. There’s a chance the person is also looking at several similar items and may make a decision to buy another poster’s item. A quick reply with a detailed answer can leave the potential buyer with a positive impression and help seal the sale.

Be cautious

Take extra care about giving out personal information in your ad. Using the selling app or online messenger is safer than giving out your phone number. If a buyer is coming to your house to pick up the item, don’t put your address on the sale site – message that to the buyer individually.

 

Set Good Selling Boundaries

Before you post the item for sale, write down what your boundaries are. You can expect buyers to haggle for a lower price, and some buyers will try to “lowball” your offer. You have to decide how low of a price you’re willing to accept. Always be polite in your communication.

Buyers may also ask you to hold the item. This is a heavy decision for you because often buyers change their minds and never contact back to state so. So, you’ve turned other buyers down and you’re left with an unsold item. Often sellers make it clear that there are no holds.

Check out these ways to stay safe while selling online.

 

Include COVID-19 Precautions and Requirements

Don’t forget to write any COVID-19 precautions and requirements in your ad. For instance, you can write that you have cleaned and disinfected the item (and then do that). If you’re selling bulky furniture still in your home that the buyer needs to move, you can require that masks enter your home.

Or, you can specify a porch pickup, which is always a good idea for safety. You could also offer to meet someone in a very public place for safety’s sake. Check with your local police department to see if they have any parking lot spots dedicated to online sales meeting places. The CDC has more guidelines for cleaning household items. Follow these guidelines and make note of that in your sales ad.

 

Which Sites to Sell Your Stuff?

Now it’s time to pick online sites to sell your items. There are numerous online sites and apps that let you upload photos and descriptions to sell, remember to protect images from online thefts. You can choose sites to sell locally, like Facebook, OfferUp, letgo, Craigslist, and VarageSale, or if you don’t mind packaging and shipping items and have more niche or valuable items, you could sell them on sites like eBay and Amazon Marketplace. Those selling options involve shipping items.

Facebook Marketplace is a popular selling choice for many. Once you set up a profile on Facebook, you can sell either on Facebook Marketplace or design your own online garage sale album for your own Facebook page. You can also search Facebook for local buy-and-sell groups to join, and then post items on those group pages.

Some sites like VarageSale offer safeguards for payments. Short for Virtual Garage Sale, VarageSale, like Offerup and legto, can be tailored for your town so you can make local sales.

Spend some time on each site and familiarize yourself with how items are marketed and sold before you make a final decision. You can always sell on more than one site and settle on your favorite.

 

Delivery

There are several options for getting your paid-for items to their new homes. One way is to have the buyer pick up the item. You can message the buyer your address, and once the buyer has paid you the cash or you have confirmation that payment has gone through electronically, give the item to the buyer. You might also need to investigate billing software, in case any customer is in need of an invoice.

You also can meet in a public place for safety. Have your phone close by, and it’s always recommended you have a family member or friend with you during transactions at any public or private place like your home.

 

Payment Methods

There are several ways you can arrange for buyers to pay you. There are electronic transfers, and Paypal and Venmo are popular and secure ways to receive payment. You can also still accept cash, although you need to carefully disinfect or quarantine the money due to the pandemic. For more expensive items, be on the lookout for counterfeit bills.

PayPal offers an “on hold” feature that lets a buyer put the money in your account. The funds aren’t released to you until the item is received.

 

It’s Like Cash to Declutter Your Home

Selling items you no longer need not only clears valuable space in your home, but it puts some money in your pocket without the sweat equity that actual garage sales require. Selling online is a win-win situation. The more items you sell online, the more comfortable you’ll become taking photos, writing descriptions, and handling the sales. You’ll be a pro in no time.