When T and I started the adoption process, we were full of ideas of how to raise some money. Here we are, 10 months into the process, and we've failed on most things fundraising unfortunately. We applied for some grants, and didn't get any, we were able to raise some money through raffles, which was wonderful, we threw around some other ideas, but nothing really took shape.
So, in about 3 weeks, we are going to try our next fundraiser. . . a yard sale!
We went around our house and found a lot of stuff we are willing to sell. And there is a lot of nice stuff too! But, with expecting two little ones, we need the space, so we have to get rid of some stuff. Some of the stuff we're selling is Egyptian artifacts that we bought while in Egypt a couple years ago. It's beautiful stuff, but we just need the space. We then asked our friends if they had things they wanted to get rid of, and we had so many friends donate wonderful things.
We plan on holding the sale on May 15th and 16th, and if it's bad weather, we'll reschedule to the following weekend. My biggest fear is that we're going to have all this stuff to sell and no one will come.
I have a little experience in Marketing and Advertising, so we've been trying to do just that! I took out a classified ad in our local newspaper that will run for two weeks. I've been making a ton of signs to put all over the neighborhood (I've made 7 so far and plan on making several more) and T and I plan on walking around to the local businesses and churches to see if we can hang flyers there. And of course we'll advertise on face.book. (What's a sale without advertising on face.book?) ;-)
We're hoping we get a lot of traffic for our sale and that we are able to make some money to cover the cost of traveling to Ethiopia. . . ahem. . . twice.
And here is a sneak peak at some of the things we'll be selling.
(And if I was an organized blogger I'd have pictures, but unfortunately, I'm not)
5 piece bedroom furniture set in mint condition. . . Living room furniture including a coffee table and two end tables. . . outside patio furniture. . . stand alone dresser with built in bookcase. . . vanity with a mirror and a chair. . . table and chair. . . baby clothes and gear. . . jewelry and jewelry box. . . European and Egyptian treasures. . . handpainted Russian tea set that I bought while in Russia. . . dishes. . . movies. . . children's books. . . adult books. . . TV. . . VCR. . . small grill. . . old laptop. . . microwaves. . . AND SO MUCH MORE!
If you live in Minneapolis/St. Paul, or as we Minnesotans affectionately call it, the Cities, plan on stopping by on May 15th or 16th. Just shoot me an email and I'll provide an address for the sale.
And if anyone has any more ideas on how to get traffic to our event, I'd love to hear your ideas.
16 comments:
I really don't have any ideas on how to get more people to come to your sale, but remember about ebay and craigslist to sell items too. So, if you end up with things then, after the sale, then you can try those options.
That is awesome! Our neighborhood hosts a yard sale each year, but we haven't put anything in so far-
I had to chuckle at your word proximities, though "adult books...movies".... haha! When I first read that I was like WHAT?! Ha!!! I mean, of course I know what you mean, but it just sounds sort of "interesting" with those words next to each other!
Oh my gosh! That is hilarious! I just changed the order around a little. Hee hee. :) I of course meant books without pictures but yes, for a minute it looked like we were selling some "interesting" things. :)
Leah this is a great idea. I used the word Fundraiser on all my posters. I wrote out a story on a little sheet of paper with a pic of Cart and I that people could take so they understood why we were fundraising. We had ALOT of traffic. We also had a raffle of some area business prizes. I went to local businesses and received some donations of gift cards that we raffled off. That made is about $100 but it was $100 we didn't have otherwise. I also set out a donation jar and people that didn't buy anything actually gave donations. Post an ad on Craigslist as well. I also tied balloons to each of our sign so that it would draw more attention to my signs.
If you had donations of clothes I wouldn't worry about sorting by size or anything. We sorted by girls, boys, ladies and mens and laid them on a tarp under a canopy and by the time the sale was over it looked like a bomb went off over there.
We set up "areas" like electronics, housing, books, etc...
All I can say is good luck and the more donations you have the better. :)
If you have any questions please feel free to send me an email breen_81@att.net
This sounds like an awesome idea, Leah! I wish I could donate some items, 'cause golly do we have some stuff that needs a new home. My sister and BIL had a yard sale right before they sold their home a couple of years ago, and they made about $700. I hope you guys RAKE it in. :) And spring is the perfect time to host a yard sale!
I LOVE yard sales! I wish I lived closer to you, I would definitely be there. I wish you luck!! :)
I was going to mention craigslist as well. Yard sales can be frustrating, because most people don't want to spend more than a few dollars for anything, so you often don't get the amount you were hoping for. I would try to sell many of your bigger items on craigslist first. It's really easy, and things often sell quickly (especially with photos).
I would recommend Craigslist, too. In fact, I'd list the big furniture items NOW on Craigslist, and then if they haven't sold by the yard sale I'd sell them then. You'll be able to make a lot more that way, I truly believe.
And for some things, like the Russian tea set, I'd really try ebay. There you're able to tell the story of the item and get it to someone who would really appreciate it. Again, if you list it by this weekend and it hasn't sold by your sale...toss it in the sale!
Just some thoughts. I think it's wise to try and sell them BEFORE the yard sale and that way you don't wonder about how much you could have gotten, AND you don't mind negotiating at the yard sale since you'll want that stuff outta there!
Our friends here in Ohio did a yard sale to fundraise for their adoption and raised close to $2,000! That is a plane ticket. Their house isn't on a busy street so they had friends rotate standing out on the busy street that leads into their neighborhood holding a big Yard Sale sign. It seemed to help get traffic. Good Luck!!
I'm friends with the friends of the Busters ;)
I've been selling the leftover yard sale stuff on craigslist throughout the year. Each time, I've made more than we attempted to sell the item for at the yardsale--so think carefully about what you sell where.
Hang as much clothing as possible--it helps sell it, and don't forget to try consignment shops for things that are up-to-date and in great condition.
Good Luck!
Oh please tell me the vanity you are selling isn't the one you posted a picture of in your post that showed it with all of your scaves. I would be so sad.
It sounds to me that you are really going to get the word out on this sale. I wonder if you could have it advertised on local radio? Maybe ask the DJs to give a little shout out? Its worth asking.
I hope the sale is a smashing success! I wish I could be there to donate and help out.
Good luck with your yard sale!
Wow, I bet you'll get tons of people there with all of that stuff. I think people will especially come because of all the big items you are selling (versus a bunch of junk like at most yard sales!). Good luck!!! And you are really killing two birds with one stone by making some more space for your babies!
Do you guys have kijiji or is that a Canadian thing? It's like Craigslist. We've sold lots of stuff on kijiji.
I wished I lived close. I would so be there. Good luck!
I wish I could come to your sale!
I hope it goes amazingly well for you guys. We had a yard sale as a fundraiser and were shocked with how much money we were able to raise.
Can't wait to hear how it goes :)
Post a Comment