~ Estate Sale Showcasing ~
Services to Expect
Estate sale showcasing is the keystone of a successful sale. Estate Sale Specialists will provide the tools to organize, prep, clean, and display the home contents in order to achieve the best outcome. This involves the real physical labor that goes into a superior sale. If the estate sale services "cuts corners" here, it will be apparent for all to see.
Getting Started, or
"You have to break a few eggs . . . ."
The first step in preparing an estate sale is one of discovery. This can be a (temporarily) messy process, but a rewarding one. Everything has to be pulled out of cabinets, drawers, closets, garage, and sheds. We bring in dozens of folding tables to hold the salable items. This is where the treasures are uncovered. Few things are as rewarding as finding a nice Roseville vase buried in the garage with other pots. (Except finding a Newcomb College vase in a box with cheap decorative knickknacks.) By the way, both are past Estate Sale Specialists finds.
When I explain this chaotic beginning to my clients, I use the old adage: "To make an omelet, you have to break a few eggs." They always get it.
Sort, Organize, Clean
The next step in profitable estate sale showcasing is to sort and organize everything that has been uncovered. For this we provide boxes, clothes racks, and clear plastic zip bags. Similar items will be grouped to determine how they will eventually be displayed. (Do we need a room for linens? Do we need to bring in more tables for glassware?) Things that are broken, stained, badly cracked or chipped will be separated out. They will be tossed or put outside to be sold as a box lot.
Within reason, all items need to be cleaned. Even in the most immaculate home, those dishes that have been in the back of the kitchen cabinet for 30 years will be covered with greasy dirt. I do not care to pick up an RS Prusssia bowl, and then have to search the house to find a way to clean my hands! This has been my experience as a customer at more than one estate sale. I do not intend for it to happen to any of my customers.
After we sort, organize, and clean, the estate sale showcasing shifts into high gear. This is also when be begin the process of
appraisal and pricing
Display and Flow
Professional estate sale showcasing will exhibit the home contents to its best advantage. Estate Sale Specialists provides tables with cloth covers to show off the items for sale. Good jewelry and small expensive things will be displayed in locked cases. Clip-on lights are provided to supplement the house lighting and lamps. It really is important for customers to see what they are buying.
Estate Sale Specialists will move furniture to achieve a smooth flow of customer traffic through the house. There is usually just one door that will be used to enter and exit. We try to place the checkout table so it does not interfer with the flow.
Cecil's years of experience in visual merchandising are used to great advantage at our sales. He arranges furniture, hangs pictures, and places decorative items so they receive prime exposure. This is quite a feat when you realize he also has to coordinate those arrangements with the traffic flow. But the results are always first rate.
The showcasing is complete,
appraisal and pricing
are done. We are edging closer to
estate sale day.
The next step in the process is to arrange some laser sharp
advertising.
Piece of cake!
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