Negotiations are commonplace at yard sales.  Whether you’re the plunderer(shopper) or the peddler(host) you can expect to haggle. It’s part of the fun of garage sales. And if done well, it can leave all interested parties satisfied.  Bundling is a technique you should consider.

Bundling!

Imagine you’re at the mall. You wander into the bath store for a bottle of your favorite coconut scented body wash.  While you’re sniffing around at the season’s newest scents, you notice that if you buy two products, you’ll get one free.   So, that pear scent that you liked could go home with you too.   Along with that lovely lavender fragrance.  Or, you could stick with the coconut and get a body wash, a lotion and a refreshing body spray.  You’d planned on buying one anyway, but for the cost of one more, you could take home three.  Score.  And into your shopping basket goes all six products.  Might as well. It’s a great deal. And it isn’t like you won’t always need soaps and lotions.

This same technique can apply when you’re pricing items for your yard sale. Or when you’re trying to get the most bang for your buck when shopping at one.

Bundling for Peddlers

If you’re hosting a yard sale, your goals are probably to make some money, to get rid of some things you no longer use, and to declutter your house.  In most cases, once the things you were selling are out on the lawn, they aren’t coming back in. Even if they don’t sell, they’re usually packed up and donated.  So, to make your job easier, try bundling.  You don’t want to have to pack up anymore than you have to at the end of the day.

If you’re selling an old PlayStation, chances are, you’re also selling games.  You’ll probably want to sell your upgraded controllers too.  Here’s where bundling comes in.   If you’re selling the game console and the controllers, you could make the purchase more tempting by throwing in a game or two as well.

It works well for books too.  Maybe you’re selling hardback books for $1 each.  You could offer a deal and say, 6 for $5.  Or the good old buy two, get one free trick.  Either way, consumers are more likely to load up when it feels free.

This same strategy works for clothing, household items, toys, gardening tools, you name it! Look for items that make sense to sell as a set when you’re pricing.

So, when you’re pricing, consider bundling.  The more your customers cart away, the less you have to later!

It works for Plunderers too!

This bundling thing can work for the yard sale shopper too.   Let’s say you’ve found a rocking chair, a juicer and a weed eater that are speaking to you.  Maybe they’re all priced a tad higher than you’re interested in paying.  You make an offer on the rocking chair and it’s not very well received.  The owner isn’t quite ready to come down on the price he’s asking.  With a little bundling, you might can change his mind!  You can sweeten the deal by offering to buy the juicer and weed eater too.  Offer to pay full price for two of the items, if they’ll throw in the weed eater for half price.  Or if you have a motivated seller, you may can do even better than that.  Consider the old advice, you aren’t making a good first offer if you’re aren’t a little embarrassed to make it!

Sellers want to unload their old things.  They want to make money, and they don’t want to deal with the stuff at the end of the day.  So, bundling becomes even more appealing to them.  Give it a try.  And before you know it, you’ll be drinking fresh OJ in your new rocker on the front porch while admiring your freshly trimmed lawn.

Think about packaging items together when you’re making offers or pricing merchandise. You’ll be surprised how beneficial it is to both buyer and seller!