Virtual garage sales are relatively new to Australia but they have been around for a while in America. The main difference to ordinary garage sales is that there is no garage sale day and you do not have to layout your items in your front yard. Advertising is done online only. That's why sometimes virtual garages sales are called online garage sales.
You advertise your sale online, potential buyers see your ad and contact you to find out more, arrange an inspection or to complete a deal. This is very similar to advertising on a classifieds website. The difference is that you do not advertise just one item but a whole bunch of items. Typically these are the same type of items that can be found in traditional garage sales.
On this site you advertise a virtual garage sale just like any other garage sale. An ad lasts 60 days and interested people will contact you on the details, usually email address or mobile number, that you have entered with the rest of your ad. If you sell your items before the 60 days are over, you can stop or delete your ad to avoid being contacted unnecessarily.
There are advantages and disadvantages to having a virtual garage sale. I tried to list some of them in the table below. Please let me know if you know of any that I might have missed so I can add them. Whether someone has a virtual or traditional garage sale depends on their preferences and circumstances. Personally, I prefer virtual sales because I am too lazy to display my stuff in the front yard and I get annoyed when people walk in, touch everything and don't buy anything. If you don't have much time and cannot afford to spend a whole Saturday, a virtual sale might be more suitable for you. If you have plenty of time and enjoy interacting with people then you probably should have a traditional garage sale.
| Advantages | Disadvantages |
|---|---|
| Less time required | No drive-by buyers |
| Does not depend on weather | Not over in one day |
| No offline advertising | Might get emails and phone calls for long period |
| No yard required | Less interaction with people |
| No strain on surrounding amenities by many people visiting at the same time | Need to cancel ad when all items are sold |
| Less risk of upsetting your council or neighbours | Search engine exposure and buyer interest depends on good written ad with lots of details |
| Can attract buyers for specific items | |
| Not limited to maxmimum number of yearly sales as mandated by your council | |
| Can be held with a very small number of items |