Practically everyone and their grandma is on Facebook. In fact, Facebook now boasts over 950 million users logging on in a given month…29 percent more than a year ago. With facts like that, it’s easy to see why Facebook is the most successful social media website in the world. Many businesses big and small have taken notice, making Facebook fan pages a must-have for any aspiring entrepreneur in the year 2012. You're probably thinking: what does this have to do with storage auctions? Well, even you as a storage hunter can use it to your advantage! Here’s why:

Free Advertising

This is the best reason for any business to make a fan page. You have a place to reach out to fans and potential customers without paying a penny! Facebook does offer paid ads that will help boost your reach, but they’re not necessary to be successful on Facebook. Word of mouth, even in the digital age, is one of the best ways to gain a following. If you have a shop of any kind, promoting it is the best way to make sales. How are people going to know to buy from you if they don't know you exist?

Connect with a Larger Fan Base

You may be well known to the antique dealers and collectors in town, but if you’re looking to broaden your horizons and network with people all across the globe, this is the best way to do it! Not only can you find new customers, you can also make new connections. Who knows, if you ever decide to  travel to a California storage auction, wouldn’t it be nice to have a familiar face when you got there?

Show the World What You Got

People on Facebook love pictures. This works great for if you have an eBay store. Share links to products with the community on Facebook to spark interest, and maybe even get people to share the photo with their Facebook friends. The more eye catching the photo, the better! Tread lightly with this, however: if you post too many pictures with a “BUY NOW!” caption, people are going to get angry and assume you’re just spamming them. Nobody likes a spammer.

Get Real and Share Your Stories

Facebook fan pages are a great way to show customers a “behind the scenes” look at what you’re doing. Take pictures of the bizarre things you found in a storage unit, or share a funny joke that the auctioneer told the crowd. People love feeling like the seller they’re dealing with is a real, relatable person, and it will make people trust you more. The more people trust you, the more people will want to buy from you!

Offer Specials, Promotions, Etc.

If you’re running a sale in your shop, Facebook is a great way to let people know. Certain selling sites like Etsy even allow sellers to offer “coupon codes”, which you can share exclusively with people who like your Facebook page. May Facebook savvy users offer free giveaways through Facebook, or offer discounts if a certain amount of people like their page. This is an excellent way to get more traffic flowing through your page—people can’t refuse a bargain!

So storage hunters, if you have a shop of any kind, whether it’s good old brick-and-mortar or online, Facebook is an indispensable tool to build your customer fan base. Whether we like to admit it or not, we’re a society that thrives on social media, and only the smartest and internet savvy businesses survive. 

For some people, "secondhand". Who would spend hours at a storage auction picking through somebody's old unit just to find worthless, used junk? Who would step foot into a thrift store and rifle through old, nasty things that people threw away? Well, all of that is a huge misconception, because secondhand goods are pretty awesome.

With the economy the way it is, more and more people are turning to secondhand goods, and the stigma of "used" items is becoming far less--making storage auctions an even more viable source of product for your eBay store of flea market table. So next time someone tries to belittle you for picking through old storage units, here are some great comebacks that you can use to stop them in their tracks. 

It's Cheaper.
The most obvious and probably best reason to shop secondhand is the price difference. Say your child wants an XBox 360 for his birthday. There's no way you can afford it new....but go on eBay and look at used ones. You'll be surprised at the money you'll save! Som people get hung up on things like not having the original box, or a tiny superficial scratch here and there, but really--if the product works as well as a new one, what's the big deal? The only difference will be the amount of money you spend. And for us, that's a good thing.  
It's Good For the Earth. 
Many people don't realize that by purchasing and selling secondhand goods, you're actually doing the environment a huge favor. All of those goods you found in the storage unit you just won could have easily ended up in a landfill, sitting there for years and taking up more space in our already overcrowded dumps. But by selling and buying secondhand goods, you're keeping all of these perfectly useful goods out of the dumps, and in the homes of folks who might not have that much money to play around with. So not only are you helping the Earth, you're helping your fellow human beings! 

It's Unique. 
Sure, you can go to the mall and buy a brand new, mass produced ACDC shirt that was made in China. Or, you can shop secondhand and get an authentic World Tour tshirt from 1979. It's up to you...but we know which is the cooler option. Secondhand goods can make really great gifts, as well, especially for collectors or people with unique interests. 

It's Fun. 
Most importantly, buying and selling secondhand goods is fun! You never know what you're going to get--it's a brand new treasure hunt every time. You might buy a storage unit filled to the brim with antiques, or maybe vintage comic books, or something completely different. If you keep your eyes open, you can find some incredible things that people just decided to throw out. It goes to show you that the old saying is true: one man's trash is truly another man's treasure.  

So what are you waiting for?! As you can see, the odds are clearly in your favor. Start your storage hunting career today and become a master of secondhand selling!