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Craigslist Frustration

by spock0149
22 replies
I just had a bunch of ads deleted today in the paid jobs section, and I'm perplexed.

I was posting about 6 ads per day, and today I noticed that they put a 'block' on the name of my site. It comes up:

This posting is being blocked

A block has been placed against: "Mywebsite"

Now, I didn't come here to moan, but to ask "how in the world do Uber and Lyft post hundreds of ads per day??"

Two things that confuse me here.

1. Go to any jobs section on CL and see tons of ads for Uber and Lyft.

2. Here's the weird part. A few days ago I described my site as "The UBER of blah blah blah". I got the same message, that "UBER" had been blocked and I couldn't post an ad containing the word UBER.

So...if my ad couldn't post with the word UBER, how in the world is UBER posting, using the word UBER???

I'm confused.

Here's one of a zillion Uber ads you'll find:

https://losangeles.craigslist.org/sf...137734459.html
#craigslist #frustration
  • Profile picture of the author Riki Stein
    Maybe Uber has a monopoly on the name?

    Sorry this is happening to you!

    Have all your other ads been blocked too (not containing Uber)?

    Someone probably flagged you.
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  • Profile picture of the author Riki Stein
    That's too bad, I'm sorry!

    Is there anyone to talk to at Craigslist - to get it straightened out? You're clearly not a spammer (and was probably flagged by someone - competition perhaps?). Isn't there an option for anyone to flag any ad?
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  • Profile picture of the author Abe Archer
    No doubt they have some kind of monopoly on the name.
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  • Profile picture of the author JC Web
    You were violating the terms of use.

    They clearly state:

    You may post to one category and in one city, no more than once every 48 hours.
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  • Profile picture of the author totalprocessing.net
    Sounds like moaning to me. Regardless, I hope you get to the bottom of the issue and post back here the results for the rest of us.
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  • Profile picture of the author fantrom
    Originally Posted by spock0149 View Post

    Now, I didn't come here to moan, but to ask "how in the world do Uber and Lyft post hundreds of ads per day??"
    Really? Ubers net worth is in the billions... $50B (mid-2015) according to wikipedia.

    They have millions of dollars to play with = infinite resources.

    At this point they can probably buy Craigslist if they wanted.
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    • Profile picture of the author spock0149
      I don't think anyone is really understanding what I'm saying. Here:

      1. The word UBER is blocked on craigslist jobs, which I discovered serendipitously. Namely, if you post in the jobs section and use the word Uber (example, the "Uber of dog-walking") then you cannot post the ad. A Craigslist message shows the phrase to be blocked.
      2. Uber continues to post zillions of jobs per day. Each contain the word Uber.

      2 should not exist because of 1. So they have some way around it.

      Does anyone have and insight?
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      • Profile picture of the author mich800
        Originally Posted by spock0149 View Post

        I don't think anyone is really understanding what I'm saying. Here:

        1. The word UBER is blocked on craigslist jobs, which I discovered serendipitously. Namely, if you post in the jobs section and use the word Uber (example, the "Uber of dog-walking") then you cannot post the ad. A Craigslist message shows the phrase to be blocked.
        2. Uber continues to post zillions of jobs per day. Each contain the word Uber.

        2 should not exist because of 1. So they have some way around it.

        Does anyone have and insight?
        Probably because you are not Uber. They may have informed Craigslist that they intend on defending their trademark and Craigslist is obliging. Do you know in fact Uber is blocked or is it non Uber companies/persons using the name.
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  • Profile picture of the author gbarrows31
    you need to lay off CL for 72 hours.. Im the master on this subject, i even created a whole program on this.. I know what im talking about.. When you do go back dont use the "Word" you think is getting baned for another 24 hours.. But do post an ad though..

    After that 24 hours post and ad in the Small Business section, one like you were when this all started..

    1 of 2 things will happen, you ad with go though and all is good .. go back to your normal posting
    2 of 2 you ad will be ghosted/blocked/banned > in this case you need a new account and start all over.. Best , Best of luck to you..
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    • Profile picture of the author spock0149
      Yeeeeees! Someone who's posting something of value. THANKYOU Gbarrows.

      Yea, I'll reach out to you privately...some help would be muchos appreciated.



      Originally Posted by gbarrows31 View Post

      you need to lay off CL for 72 hours.. Im the master on this subject, i even created a whole program on this.. I know what im talking about.. When you do go back dont use the "Word" you think is getting baned for another 24 hours.. But do post an ad though..

      After that 24 hours post and ad in the Small Business section, one like you were when this all started..

      1 of 2 things will happen, you ad with go though and all is good .. go back to your normal posting
      2 of 2 you ad will be ghosted/blocked/banned > in this case you need a new account and start all over.. Best , Best of luck to you..

      If you do want to know more though.. click my signature :O)
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      Work on Your Terms. Perform Errands for People in Your Community, Get Paid.
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  • Profile picture of the author gbarrows31
    O BTY ... CL will not ban brand names.. because they would have to do it across their whole site.. Just like they will never ban Google Accounts..
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  • Profile picture of the author Rickeydt
    If you used the word uber in the ad coupled with you block site then it would be flagged... also other people could be flagging you because they see as competition. Another thing is uber might and most likely be posting paid ads.
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    • Profile picture of the author rhinocl
      One thing that will help is to understand the flagging system. Here is an example: someone posts an ad for a receptionist. They put it in Gigs. It's not a gig so I am slightly annoyed but I let it go. Their competitor does the same thing except they post their ad 6 times. Since I go through every ad in gigs up to 3 times a day, people like that who over-post make my life difficult, so I flag every one of their posts. So do 30 other people and their ad gets deleted. I doubt you should be posting as many as 6 ads a day as the only people who get away with that are those who are running different ads in different sections and people who are using acquired knowledge to cheat and break Craigslist rules.
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      • Profile picture of the author CapnWillard
        Originally Posted by rhinocl View Post

        One thing that will help is to understand the flagging system. Here is an example: someone posts an ad for a receptionist. They put it in Gigs. It's not a gig so I am slightly annoyed but I let it go. Their competitor does the same thing except they post their ad 6 times. Since I go through every ad in gigs up to 3 times a day, people like that who over-post make my life difficult, so I flag every one of their posts. So do 30 other people and their ad gets deleted. I doubt you should be posting as many as 6 ads a day as the only people who get away with that are those who are running different ads in different sections and people who are using acquired knowledge to cheat and break Craigslist rules.
        When I did a bunch of CL I was the same way. People posting/spamming stuff to the wrong category/too many times = flagfest.
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  • Profile picture of the author MoneyDan
    Banned
    I'd love to know the answer to this one, too. Craigslist is so valuable if you can get it to work in your favor; buyers and free traffic, can't beat it.
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  • Profile picture of the author gcintermed
    For the benefit of anyone else still interested in this...

    Craigslist has an ever growing list of words/phrases that trigger its spam filter. Use one of those keywords and your ad will be blocked automatically. If you post the same ad repeatedly your ad BECOMES spam and eventually gets automatically blocked. They might even block your entire account from posting. You won't know exactly until you experiment...

    Try posting a completely new ad. If it works you're fine. If all ads are blocked then you'll need to set up a new account. In extreme cases, your domain or IP might get blocked. Set up an account with a gmail address and use a different IP/ISP to post from.

    And by the way, Uber posts paid job ads, so they have an account exec and can bypass the Craigslist robots.
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    • Profile picture of the author craigsposterpro
      Originally Posted by gcintermed View Post

      And by the way, Uber posts paid job ads, so they have an account exec and can bypass the Craigslist robots.
      Interesting. I know several clients who post in the Paid Jobs cities. Contrary to what you would think, paying the Craigslist posting fee of anywhere from $25 - $75 per ad does not guarantee a live ad. There is still a risk of flagging even after having paid that fee and that fee is not reimbursed if the ad is flagged. So, not all Paid Jobs ads bypass the ad filters. What account exec are you referring to?
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      • Profile picture of the author gcintermed
        They have real people there. Don't you suppose a company that spends that much in ads gets special treatment?
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