How To Do An Estate Sale Yourself: Top Tips for Driving Traffic

When starting an estate sale business, it can be difficult to pull in the initial traffic to drive revenue. Much like any other business, you must build a reputation and make long-lasting connections. To ensure your estate sale succeeds you must put in extra work to earn the trust of potential clients.

As a great low-investment business, estate sale management can bring you a sense of empowerment and stability while also increasing your annual income. Whether you choose to hold an estate sale yourself or hire professional estate sale companies, each approach has its benefits. A DIY estate sale gives you more control and flexibility during the process and allows you to keep all the profits. However, it requires substantial time and effort and may be emotionally draining, especially if the items belonged to a deceased loved one. On the other hand, estate sale companies bring ease, efficiency, and specialized market knowledge, potentially maximizing profits and reducing the stress involved.

But, how do you bring in more traffic to your estate sale? How do you standout from the competition? Blue Moon Estate Sales has put together a list of some helpful tips and tricks to elevate your sales tactics.

How To Run A Successful Estate Sale Company

At Blue Moon Estates, we want our franchise partners to learn, grow, and experience a large ROI. To do so, you must know how to market yourself and the property you’ve been hired to represent. Hiring a professional estate sale service can significantly help in marketing and organizing the estate sale, ensuring a higher ROI. By taking advantage of untapped marketing strategies, you’ll be able to stand out and increase revenue at your next estate sale.

Advanced Item Research

When customers attend an estate sale, they aren’t just looking for a bargain, but an experience. By researching larger or older items before an estate sale begins, you’re able to bring that knowledge to the forefront. Identifying valuable items can attract more buyers, as they are often drawn to the potential for increased profits and the excitement of bidding wars. Checking thrift stores can also help gauge the value of items and leave room for negotiation in the sale price.

One of your jobs as an estate sale franchisee is to become a storyteller. Familiarize yourself with what you’re selling and tell the stories of each object to your customers. In doing so, you’ll become more personable and approachable, not to mention more likely to make a larger sale.

Create Unique Business Cards

Become a memorable face in the crowd when you elevate your business standards with unique and customized business cards. It's no longer enough to provide a business card with your name and phone number on the back—drive your business by standing out.

Start a conversation with your business card. Whether you choose a unique material such as wood, metal, or plastic, or you mold it into the shape of your logo, it's important to keep your business in the back of your customer's mind. Other ways your business card can stand out include:

• 3D elements

• Imprinted logos

• Functional business cards

• Unique shapes

• Unconventional materials

Professional Estate Sale Promoting to Attract More Potential Buyers

Spread the word about your estate sale and bring forth more business than ever before. We’ve compiled a list of helpful tips to implement the next time you’re hired to host an estate sale. Most estate sales typically last for two to three days and require careful planning and logistics to ensure everything runs smoothly.

Effective estate sale promoting is crucial to attract a larger crowd and increase the chances of selling more items. Utilize traditional methods like signs, flyers, and newspaper ads, as well as online strategies such as posting on estate sale websites, community forums, classified sites, and social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Additionally, using Facebook Marketplace can help in promoting the estate sale and selling unsold items. It is also a great platform for checking prices and buying and selling various items, including home decor, artwork, furniture, antiques, vintage, and collectibles.

Use Proper Signage

Surprisingly, a lot of estate sale shoppers stop by just because they saw some signage while driving. Take the time to post large, legible signs on major roadways and proceed to line the route with signs, leading them directly to your estate sale.

Take things to the next level by posting fliers on bulletin boards at supermarkets, local shops and gas stations.

Get Involved in the Community

Community takes care of community. By getting involved in your local community in some way—board meetings, swap meets, social groups, mom-to-mom sales—you'll meet new people who can help spread the word. You never know, they'll likely show up at your estate sale to show support and bring a group of friends with them.

Offer Food & Beverage

Elevate the game of estate sales by providing beverages and light snacks for customers to enjoy. Whether you choose to bake cookies and buy a veggie tray or simply offer bottled waters and various cheeses, your customers will be delighted with the treatment and more likely to stay longer. Lingering estate sale customers allow more opportunity to sell them on the dresser they've been eyeing. 

Keep in mind the placement—you don't want items ruined due to spillage or crumbs.

Use a Unique Attraction

If you're feeling adventurous, you can go big with your memorable moment. Just as some real estate agents attract buyers to a home with over-the-top attractions, the same can be done for estate sales. Inflatable air dancers and large balloons create quick buzz around the neighborhood and among passersby.

Blue Moon Estate Sales Does It Best

When you franchise with Blue Moon Estate Sales, you’re setting yourself up for an abundance of opportunities. Our franchisees collaborate with one another to increase their individual revenue and the collective revenue of all. By leveraging the expertise of professional estate sale companies, you gain specialized market knowledge and access to a large pool of potential buyers, ultimately maximizing your profits. While there is a growing trend of individuals managing their own estate sale, especially among older adults looking to downsize or embrace a minimalist lifestyle, joining the Blue Moon Estate Sales franchise community offers unparalleled support and resources. Learn how to drive traffic to your business, interact with like-minded people, and increase your revenue.

Advertise and Drive Traffic to Your Next Estate Sale

Be unique, drive traffic to your estate sale, and increase your profit. Holding a successful estate sale is crucial, and Blue Moon Estate Sales can help you achieve that. Our community of franchisees, along with our experts, are all ready to guide you to successful business practices. Visit our previous blog to learn about starting an estate sale business and everything you should know. Using price tags is essential to ensure organized displays and facilitate inventory checks.