The Yardsale Blog

We work on a little app called Yardsale. Beautifully simple buying and selling with your neighbors and friends. ♥ Ryan & Ed

[getyardsale]

AFLAC Employee Attempts to Procure WSJ-Featured Duck Lamps

Yardsale was exposed this morning by the WSJ for hawking duck lamps, the perfect gifts for your loved ones during the holidays. So there's that.

Oh, but it doesn't stop there. Amy, the purveyor of said duck lamps got this message: "I'm an AFLAC guy so I will take both your lamps." And it was actually someone who works for AFLAC. "You can't make this stuff up," says Yardsailor Amy. She took the words right out of our mouths.

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John's Mission Treasure Trove

Every now and again a seller joins Yardsale and reminds us how important great photos are for a listing. Having pretty amazing stuff doesn't hurt, either. Our neighbor John is in the Mission District of San Francisco and has one heck of a collection up for sale right now. You can impress your friends while pouring them an unidentifiable drink ("I'll have a clear one, on the rocks!"), spend countless hours staring at an incredibly good looking person during your nightly Edgar Allen Poe recitations, or just get out of town in style for a bit.

There's a lot to like in this collection, but unlike most parents, we admit that we have a favorite. This stovetop espresso machine is a gem we simply haven't seen on Yardsale. You'll have to let us know how exactly it works once you pick it up from John. Deal? Happy hunting, folks!

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This Weekend, Embrace Your B-Side

One More Time by Daft Punk on Grooveshark

"It was all a dream / I used to read Word Up magazine / Salt'n'Pepa and Heavy D up in the limousine." - Paul McCartney & Wings

Wait, that's not right, is it? Sorry. We've been looking through Nadine's eclectic vinyl collection on Yardsale and, well, we got our tracks mixed up. You really can't blame us though. I mean, look at it all! Not only is it a great mix of music (Chemical Brothers featuring Q-Tip? Uh, yes please), it's also selling crazy fast, so don't miss out!

So, where did all this vinyl come from? We caught up with Nadine in between her furious Yardsale listing to find out. "It was the mix of promoting, djing and working as a buyer at a record store which got me access to lots of demos, rare titles and major label records that I wasn't into personally but could always come in handy." Well, that explains Morrissey sitting next to 50 Cent!

Why is Nadine releasing all this musical gold into the Yardsale community, you ask? "This month I've been on a rampage to move everything to digital. I just sold most of my remaining 300 CD's of my 5,000 CD collection this month, and have recycled or donated the rest...to the Friends of the San Francisco Library." Reason #6,439,192 why you're all amazing: awesome taste mixed in with social good. What more could you want?

Be sure to have a look at Nadine's collection right away, you're bound to find something you like. If nothing else, drop her a line in the app and let her know she has awesome taste. We here at Yardsale just have one small request: someone please Björk it like it's hot and mix these two albums together. We would like to have our minds blown. Thanks.

Have a great weekend, folks, and enjoy going analog. :)

**UPDATE: It looks like Yardsale folks are really digging through Nadine's vinyl collection! Be sure to make some offers before all the gems are gone!**

[getyardsale]

Chicken & Waffles, Indian Summers and Vespas

San Francisco Knights by People Under the Stairs on Grooveshark

We love hearing the stories behind the stuff folks are selling on Yardsale. We caught up with Deny, who's selling this beautiful Vespa, and got its backstory: "I got the Vespa a year ago...On one of those amazingly warm Indian summer nights, we cruised along the Embarcadero. We took in the sights: AT&T Park, the Bay Bridge, the Ferry Building, and stopped off at Pier 39." Deny had just moved into the city, and we can't imagine a better way to get a feel for a city than riding around on a Vespa, one we around the office are lovingly referring to as The Silver Bullet. Has a nice ring, right? Look at this beauty and tell us it's not perfect for cruising around San Francisco...

Any story worth its salt mentions good food. Deny didn't disappoint. "I love getting into the side streets and going down alleys in the SOMA, especially zipping over to Little Skillet for their fried chicken and waffles on Ritch Street. It's a tiny window and everyone sits on the loading dock in the alley to eat." Well, we know where we're going for lunch today.

Be sure to give Deny a high five if you see him walking around the city. He probably won't be on his Vespa, 'cause this thing's gonna sell fast.

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The Yardsale Pickers

         We're pretty musical around here. Ryan is teaching himself to play a guitar he got on Yardsale. When Jon isn't learning the Sumerian language he likes to break it down with some jazz piano. Daniel is learning guitar one chord a week, but is currently stuck playing C Minor over and over (didn't that make Schumann go crazy?). Heck, we spend our evenings listening to our designer Mike play the ukulele. It's like Greenwich Village around here.

So, we were pretty stoked to see a ton of guitars on Yardsale lately. For some of you, the end of Summer rolls around and you start thinking, "Well, go figure, my Hall & Oates tribute band wasn't a hit." Don't worry, even Van Gogh wasn't appreciated in his lifetime. So, you pack up the guitar, tear down your Private Eyes band sign, and think of better times (read: 1983). For some of you, though, that "I-can't-go-for-that-no-can-do" spirit kicks in and musical greatness prevails. Years from now, children will read of your band in their history books. Tribute bands for your tribute band will traverse the globe!

Everyone should get a shot at such rock deification, right? With all the guitars available on Yardsale right now, you can. There are some really nice ones, and these are only a select few, so be sure and do a search in your area. Check 'em out, make some offers (evidence of a sweet '80s mustache ought to get you a discount, just sayin'), and we'll see you at the Apollo. We'll be the band called the Yardsale Pickers:

Les Paul Special II ($200) - Springfield, MO

Samick Greg Bennett Ultramatic ($750) - Utica, NY

Blueridge Acoustic ($1,000) - Cambridge, MA

Alvarez RD20SC ($150) - Anaheim, CA

Ibanez Gio30 ($75) - West Oaks, SC

Fender Starcaster ($150) - Buford, GA

[getyardsale]

In Pursuit of Happiness

Hey there, Yardsailors! I’m Daniel, your new Community Happiness Manager. I’ve joined the Yardsale team to help you (yes, you! And you!) get the most magical experience possible with Yardsale. And that’s what it’s all about, right? My job is to make sure your experience with Yardsale is something special at every step of the way, from the moment you open the app to when you go pick up that rad cheetah print adult onesie you got on Yardsale. You’re going to look fantastic, by the way.

Buying and selling on Yardsale isn't only about buying and selling cool stuff. It's really about community. It's about meeting people in your neighborhood who you otherwise wouldn't have. It's about being pleasantly surprised by the kindness of other people. It's about those seemingly rare opportunities when you get to make someone else happy.

        Since we’re going to be spending some time together, how about I tell you a bit about myself? Self-Aggrandizing Lightning Round, COMMENCE!

I come from Whiskey Media, another web start-up, where I wore many different hats, managing customer service, membership relations, advertising and learning all about the interwebs.

While studying political science in college I decided to start an exploratory committee-of-one for a Congressional bid. I’ve since abandoned the website and the election, for reasons I’ll make clear in my post-presidency  autobiographical tell-all.

My love of rap music is eclipsed only by my love for Bluegrass. Figure that one out.

I’ve been up here!

Whenever someone quotes a line from The Goonies, I have to turn on the movie. I guess that’s better than feeling compelled to do the Truffle Shuffle every time. That’d be awkward for everyone.

I love an Internet that is serendipitous, engaging, and full of experiences that border on magic. From an intuitive app that solves a common need, to the personable customer support that's behind it when you need help.

While I’ve been lucky enough to have met and bought or sold from some of you on Yardsale, I really look forward to getting to know each and every one of you. Don't hesitate to text us (at 415-683-6832) or email us ([email protected]) any time you have a question or if you'd just like to say hi. Or you can always talk to us on Twitter.

Behind every item is a unique story. This makes Yardsale unlike buying and selling in any other way. I really look forward to hearing all of your stories, and helping you share them through Yardsale. Talk to you soon.

- Daniel

[getyardsale]

Now Scaling... Happiness

Look, news! We've hired a Community Happiness Manager. We can't describe how much we appreciate all interest, kind words of support, love notes, videos, follow ups, Spaceballs references, and tweets we received from all of you. Can't wait for you to meet the newest addition to the team. More to come soon!

--

TL;DR... We're hiring! Who do you know who is hard working and seriously can't get enough of making other people happy? Oh boy, do we have the perfect role for them.

This last couple of weeks has been quite the ride. The secret that is Yardsale, your favorite way to buy and sell with the nice folks around you, is officially out and now growing at warp speed (or for all you Spaceballs fans, including me, more like LUDICROUS SPEED). 

Unlike bandwidth or server scaling issues, when some of the nicest folks come together to form one of the best communities on the internet, you can't fix it with a few lines of code or by cranking up the dynos on Heroku.

We could probably start auto-replying with canned messages or outsource some stuff, but WE ACTUALLY WANT TO TALK TO THESE PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY (YOU) ARE AWESOME. In fact, we want to talk to them more. That's why we're hiring our first Community Happiness Manager.

Do you know anyone awesome? Go back in time and send this post to them 5 minutes ago.

We love you people, Ryan and the rest of the Yardsale guys 

Your favorite Team Yardsale, on our recent trip to Point Reyes: Ed, Barnaby, Jon, Namit, and me Ryan (behind the camera)

Community Happiness Manager

At Yardsale, we seriously love our community. In order to maintain our rapid growth, we need to support these nice folks to be sure that their experiences using Yardsale are those that leave them excited to continue using and share the service with all of their friends. 

If selected, you'll be working alongside the founders to email, text, call members of the community to create and maximize their happiness. This position is a high-energy, fast paced role, requiring someone with both a glass-half full mindset and the ability to multitask and work incredibly hard to make meaningful and authentic connections with a large number of people. It will include community support, via email, text, IM, phone, and possibly smoke signals, marketing outreach, participating in strategic discussions about Yardsale as a company and product, and other stuff like organizing events. Given that we're a small company, you'll have your hands in everything and the opportunities for growth will be limited only by your desire to work hard and produce results.

Requirements:

Experience in a customer service, sales, marketing, or even retail environment

Super outgoing, positive spirit, contagiously happy and helpful

Super fast emailing, IMing, texting, etc., with the attention to detail necessary to engage authentically and professionally

Excellent writing skills, grammar, spelling

Must be available to work here in the sunny Mission District of San Francisco, during normal business hours (and likely then some--we're a startup and we love this)

College graduate in related field is preferred but not required, for those extremely strong in all other areas

About us:

Yardsale is a fast-growing, year-and-a-half old company which was part of Y-Combinator, a leading startup accelerator program, and is funded by well known technology investors. The company has been featured in TechCrunch, Wired, Lifehacker, UrbanDaddy, Gizmodo, and flamed on Hacker News. ;)

To apply:

Don't send us a boring cover letter. Email us (at [email protected]) with a few examples of times/roles when you went above and beyond for a customer. Be creative! Also include your resume, and (optionally) links to any social profiles that might help us get to know you better, such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, etc. 

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Yardsale, now serving America

Now available across America

From the Mission, to San Francisco, to the Bay Area... to America. Until now, we've been quietly focused on building Yardsale for our neighbors here in the San Francisco Bay Area. Thanks to you, Yardsale has become one of the Bay Area's best kept secrets, spread entirely by word of mouth. The most common complaint we hear is that we're not available in the places that folks hear about Yardsale.

The inspiration behind Yardsale actually came from the old school sites for buying and selling with other people. You see, we'd used eBay back in '99, when there was a really amazing community of individuals who were shipping their items around the country, and writing hand written notes to each other. eBay has since abandoned that community, catering to power sellers and businesses. Today it looks more like Amazon than a service that was built for individuals. Yardsale reimagines the beautiful, simple experience that buying and selling could be, using mobile. And we built it for regular people with closets and garages (not warehouses) full of items we'd sell if it were easier, to recreate the kind of community that we loved about eBay back in its early days. 

Today, we're opening up Yardsale nationwide. We really can't wait to hear what you think. Go ahead, list a handful of items, see how it goes. Meet a neighbor, bring them cookies. And let us know how it goes, and how we can make Yardsale even better for you.

How it works

Since many of you are new to Yardsale, we'd like to take a moment to share how it works. 

List items as easily as posting photos with Instagram. It takes about 15 seconds to list an item. Boom.

No one has ever built an app like this. If you can figure out how we can make listing easier, email us because we'd really like to know. List your item, with gorgeous photos from all angles, in about 15 seconds. If you want to give your friends and neighbors first dibs, we're pretty sure we couldn't have made it easier to share your item on Facebook, Twitter. 

Offers in real time, not flaking

As we started working on Yardsale, what we realized was that only part of the friction of selling to neighbors is in listing the item. Then you get buried with emails from spray and pray buyers. On Yardsale, you get notifications when buyers send you offers. You can haggle back, and generally the deal is done in a matter of minutes and you're texting with the buyer. We leave it to you to arrange a good time for the buyer to pick up the item (or meet you elsewhere), and in most cases sellers ask buyers to pay with cash or Square.

Craigslist, minus the hassle

A surprising number of items sell directly to Yardsale users, but of course because we want to maximize your shot at selling your stuff, we automatically prepare a post on Craigslist for each of your items. We include your photos (no uploading), your item's description, etc., but not your email, that way still you still get all the benefits of Yardsale, by receiving firm offers instead of half-interested emails. You're welcome to modify the post and include your email if you just like spending your days emailing back and forth with people. 

An easier way to list your item for sale on Twitter and Facebook 

As we were building Yardsale, we noticed that an increasing number of people were posting photos of items and offering them for sale on places like Twitter. But if you want to really show off the item with several photos of several items and their location, or if you're like Sam and are selling everything you own to fund your startup, the experience is terrible. 

If you like your friends on Twitter or Facebook enough to give them first dibs on your stuff, we give you a nice web page for your individual items, as well as one for all of your items. There's no easier way to tweet or post an item for sale on Facebook. 

And finally, welcome

To all of our new friends in places near and far, we'd like to offer our warmest welcome to Yardsale. We can't wait to hear what you think about Yardsale and where your experiences using it lead you.

[getyardsale]

So, what's selling on Yardsale

We've been getting asked a lot lately about what sells on Yardsale. We've actually been pretty surprised, since we first started, by what trades hands. There's the usual stuff, stuff we all need, like plasma tvs, furniture, microwaves, blenders, laptops and gadgets, iPhones (because you have an extra one lying around or just dropped one in the toilet, we've all done it) and that sort of thing. The occasional hug, and what have you.

Then some days, along comes... a motorcycle! It's at this point that we're telling ourselves, okay, there's no way someone's going to buy a motorcycle on Yardsale. Right?

Wrong. In a matter of days, Mike S.'s Kawasaki Ninja was purchased by a neighbor and fellow rider, as a surprise gift for his girlfriend. The only word we had for that was rad.

His radness, Mike S.

Photo credit: Screenflicker on Flickr, and what was likely a serious P90X workout

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Jina B. is a designer extraordinaire and one of our favorite Yardsailors. She's responsible for awesome things like Sushi & Robots and Art in My Coffee, as well as having once unleashed a drink robot on the Citizens of Yardsalia. She's not joking about the robot thing.

She's on a roll on Yardsale, having sold her short girl bike, helmet, rad iPhone tripod (yeah, you read that right), complete National Geographic DVD-ROM set, spare can opener, Flash-sponsored pillow, handy flask/card case, Tufte design book, and her MacBook. Baller!

While someone's already snagged her robot and such, if you act fast, you can still have your shot at her cat book, a sweet neck scarf, almost everything you need to make a killer mojito. If you are into design (like we are), you should join the thousands of other people in following her on Twitter @jina.

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These one piece puzzles may look pretty difficult, but if you put your mind to it, we bet you can solve anything.

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This beautiful old mahjong set dates back to the 1920s and is made of bone and ivory.

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The detailing on this antique sewing machine table (antique sewing machine included!) is just incredible. "Use it as a shabby chic desk," suggests Yardsailor Analisa.

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The Fair Oaks Street Fair is this weekend! Five blocks of treasure hunting in balmy 75 degree weather? Sounds good to us.

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Amazing vintage coffee sign! Pair it with these light-up storefront signs and you might be on your way to starting your own cafe.

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It's not the Crate & Barrel Dolores Park picnic kit, but Yardsailor Vanessa's Saturday afternoon party kit should do just the trick with all of this incredible sunshine we've been getting. Just add meat (or vegetables).

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Do you identify as a geek? If so, you may be delighted by this Star Trek: TNG DVD set, or this 3D printed Yoda bust.