Yard Sale Signs

A Look at Signs for Garage/Yard Sales

Every Saturday morning my dad and I spend the early morning together.  We leave at 6:30 a.m. with fresh strong coffee in our travel mugs and go to Circle G, our favorite restaurant for breakfast.  We split the two egg platter.  We love how they fry their hash browns and toast their biscuits.  Sometimes we take a fresh tomato from our garden to go on the biscuits and other times dad brings some hog jowls.    


After we finish our breakfast at around 7:15 we head out in search for some good deals at local yard sales.  We have a route that we take each week that goes by several housing developments.  We depend on signs to draw us to the various garage sales.  Dad and I seem to discuss yard sale signs each week so I thought I would share some pointers that we discuss as we looking for some deals.

When hanging up your yard sale sign, use cardboard backing or something rigid since the morning humidity can curl the paper.  This happens offen and makes it difficult or impossible to be read.  Since Dad drives, sometimes I have time to get out of the car to uncurl the sign so we can read the information.  Many folks keep driving when they encounter a curled sign.  


Limit the words and graphics on the sign.  All folks really want to see it an arrow pointing in the direction of the sale.  All we could see of this sign was Garage Sale.  We were confused by all the arrows and additional information that was included.   Think of the must have information and include only that information in large letters.  You may want to drive by and see if you can read the information without stopping.  Most of the time the customer can't stop to read the sign, they can only slow down a little if traffic permits.

When your garage sale is in a large development make sure you put what I call encouragement signs along the way.  You will need to do this especially if your location is past a turn off for another sale location.  If you have two locations near each other, meet the other folks and agree to promote each other when talking to the customers.


Especially in the summer, it is best that you start your sale at 7:00 a.m. and have everything out by 6:45 a.m.  Most sales do start at 7 but there are others that start at 8 and I have even found some that start at 9.  

Most dedicated deal hunters have a route planned and won't hang around or come back after they leave if you are not ready to sell.  If folks come while you are sitting up, sell to them if your goal is to get rid of your stuff and make a little money.  Make a deal whenever possible since you are never assured that someone else will come and want the item.  People that go to yard sales want to make deals so don't be set on one price.  Be flexible and open to negotiating a price.

Don't expect folks to know where any streets are in your community.  Very often there are signs at entrances that give addresses but no arrows for directions.  The sign to the right says just past the pool but we could not find the community pool since we did not live there.

Remember, less is more.  All you really need is a sign with an arrow.  This is a good sign that lets you know needed information.  You can see that there is a sale, the direction, and the name of the street.  If you put out the signs in the morning and are starting early you don't need a time since folks will assume they can come on when they see the sign. Don't forget to remove the signs at the end of the day!

If you have additional pointers and tips about best practices in directing folks to yard sales, please submit a comment with the information!