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Using Craigslist for leads.

by mrcouchpotato
21 replies
So a few days ago I was making a post on craigslist for my wife's wedding video business. I place her ads in the Services - Event category.

For fun I head over to the Services - Computer category to see all the latest web designers out there. There's certainly a lot to choose from. I then leave that area and continue checking things out.

I then notice another category in the Services area called Skilled Trade.

So out of curiosity I start looking through it and there were at least 150 ads for plumbers, carpenters, roofers, electricians, handymen, and so on. And these posts were for just a single day.

Now I'm thinking, here's a bunch of "skilled trade" businesses that are advertising. Yeah, it's on craigslist which is free, but it does tell me that these guys have at least some computer skills and understand the importance of marketing on the internet.

So here's my idea. I want to put an ad in that "skilled labor" section with a headline that says something like.....

"Free Mobile Website For Your Business"

Then put a short description and a link to my "mobile website" website. I'm hoping to get myself in front of those 150+ businesses and generate some good leads out of them. My ad is basically targeting the businesses who place ads on craigslist....not for the consumers looking for handymen and such.

But I'm wondering if I would get banned or anything worse for posting a Website Service ad in the skilled trade section instead of the computer section? Has anyone here used Craigslist this way?

Thanks.

Mike
#craigslist #leads
  • Profile picture of the author Steve Solem
    Hey Mike,

    I think that might be a good place to find possible prospects to work with, but I don't think I'd place an ad trying to advertise to the folks who advertise in that section.

    I'm not a huge CL fan, but it drives me nuts when I see ads like that in section where I'm looking for someone to do business with and I almost always report those kinds of ads.

    I know a lot of those guys may not have websites, but I think you may do better to look for them online and contact them through their website or via email instead of competing with them in their advertising section of craigslist.

    Just my POV of course, but might be worth trying this to see how well it's received.

    Cheers,

    Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author thedealmaker
    mrcouchpotato,

    Good thinking on your part.

    And if you offer mobile website design, why don't you just skip on over to the gig's section on craigslist and then look in the computer section.

    You should see people looking for web design services. Answer their ads. From there you could offer them both a website and a mobile version.
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  • Profile picture of the author KeNiQ
    ^ that's a pretty good idea right there
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    • Profile picture of the author joel623
      I spend a lot of time on craigslist and generate a fair amount of business from posting ads on the services computer section for web and mobile development. Yes, there are lot of people advertising in this section. But you will get calls and if you don't answer the phone when they call you, 90% of the time you will not get a voice mail and the person will just go to the next ad.

      I agree with the above post about contacting the skilled trade people directly and not posting an ad in that section. For your plan, that sounds like the best approach.

      In my experience, replying to ads in the gigs section can be a frustrating experience and a waste of time. these people receive about 20 to 30 message per day when they post in the gigs section, from people all around the world offering very cheap rates. You can always post a test ad on the gigs section to see what your competition sends.
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  • Profile picture of the author Newbieee
    Yes i was thinking the same as 1 warrior.

    I would contact them direct through there ad rather than posting there.

    Would it be much better?

    haha
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  • Profile picture of the author atrbiz
    Mike,

    Advertising on Craigslist and responding to Computer Gigs ads definitely works...you get a lot of junk leads from CL but again it's a numbers game (just like cold calling).

    I've already closed over $20k in new business the last year from Craigslist and it's FREE advertising

    Best of luck,
    Ahmad
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  • Profile picture of the author danwilliam
    I just remember golden rule: Don't play games that you don't understand. In my opinion, CL updates their policy all the time. And they are trying their best to prevent all kind of advertising from IM.
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  • Profile picture of the author danielkanuck
    I have a friend who is good with selling on Craigslist. Maybe i will ask him about his opinion on what you are trying to do. I'll get to this soon enough.
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  • Profile picture of the author Not So New
    Personally I think it's a great idea, since most of these guys are checking that section before they post their ads to see what their competitors.

    As long as you ad isn't the same as in another area, you should be fine

    Shawn
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  • Profile picture of the author TWalker
    I just searched the computer section for my entire state and not a single person looking for web design but plenty selling.

    Besides that It was like pulling teeth just to list a simple garage sale last year. Its a scammers and spammers paradise.
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  • Profile picture of the author thanhdat123
    Banned
    [DELETED]
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    • Profile picture of the author shockwave
      Okay, I will first off say that I am by no means an "expert" - this is just my experience.

      I haven't contacted skilled trade section people directly - my thought is that they get pounded all day long by "SEO Companies" overseas, but that is just a theory, I could be very wrong.

      I have posted services in skilled trade like you've suggested and my results usually fall into something along the lines of:

      1. Ad gets flagged. This of course varies from city-to-city. I believe this to be competitors or simply flag-happy pro CL users who make it their mission in life to keep the categories clean.

      2. Or when I do get calls, it's typically from the 1-man show who is already surviving paycheck-to-paycheck and has no real money to invest (I'm talking trades people like plumbers, electricians, carpenters...etc..etc).

      Most (but not all of the time) they try to negotiate with the 'ol "how about if I sell a deal, I'll give you "x" percentage?" --- um, no thank you.

      or

      "how much do you charge?" - of course that depends on what they want.

      If you really want to find people IN YOUR CITY, that are some type of TRADE CONTRACTOR, that HAVE MONEY TO SPEND then target people already spending money on Yellow Pages.

      For instance, I specialize in Video Marketing and Video SEO. So, I just hop on over to big G and type in:

      site:youtube.com "uploaded by yellowpages" + "pittsburgh, pa"

      That little search string should lead you down the path. If you have some SEO skills I would:

      * Offer to rank that video for them.
      * Take a gander at their website - is it optimized?
      * Do they have a Facebook landing page

      In the end, I have found that the biggest hurdle is typically not actually doing the work. It's convincing them to use you instead of the low-baller down the street and getting them to pay you what you are worth.

      There is typically a nice amount of customer education that goes into it as well if they don't already have a website, use social media, or don't really spend money on advertising/marketing. So make sure you take that into account when you are pricing your services.

      My experience has shown that most contractors (especially small ones) have little-to-no budget or want something for nothing.

      Either way - good luck!
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      • Profile picture of the author dtaylor
        Thanks,
        This is good info.

        DTaylor

        Originally Posted by shockwave View Post

        Okay, I will first off say that I am by no means an "expert" - this is just my experience.

        I haven't contacted skilled trade section people directly - my thought is that they get pounded all day long by "SEO Companies" overseas, but that is just a theory, I could be very wrong.

        I have posted services in skilled trade like you've suggested and my results usually fall into something along the lines of:

        1. Ad gets flagged. This of course varies from city-to-city. I believe this to be competitors or simply flag-happy pro CL users who make it their mission in life to keep the categories clean.

        2. Or when I do get calls, it's typically from the 1-man show who is already surviving paycheck-to-paycheck and has no real money to invest (I'm talking trades people like plumbers, electricians, carpenters...etc..etc).

        Most (but not all of the time) they try to negotiate with the 'ol "how about if I sell a deal, I'll give you "x" percentage?" --- um, no thank you.

        or

        "how much do you charge?" - of course that depends on what they want.

        If you really want to find people IN YOUR CITY, that are some type of TRADE CONTRACTOR, that HAVE MONEY TO SPEND then target people already spending money on Yellow Pages.

        For instance, I specialize in Video Marketing and Video SEO. So, I just hop on over to big G and type in:

        site:youtube.com "uploaded by yellowpages" + "pittsburgh, pa"

        That little search string should lead you down the path. If you have some SEO skills I would:

        * Offer to rank that video for them.
        * Take a gander at their website - is it optimized?
        * Do they have a Facebook landing page

        In the end, I have found that the biggest hurdle is typically not actually doing the work. It's convincing them to use you instead of the low-baller down the street and getting them to pay you what you are worth.

        There is typically a nice amount of customer education that goes into it as well if they don't already have a website, use social media, or don't really spend money on advertising/marketing. So make sure you take that into account when you are pricing your services.

        My experience has shown that most contractors (especially small ones) have little-to-no budget or want something for nothing.

        Either way - good luck!
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  • Profile picture of the author Rocket Media
    I've had quite a bit of experience with advertising on Craigslist.

    I have spent a lot of time in the past replying to ads that are posted by people looking to hire a designer/marketer and have had zero success with that (I assume because there's so many people replying to the ads).

    I have spent a great deal of time doing exactly what you said... posting ads in their sections "competing" and offering free designs and stuff. The problem with it is that these people are all broke. They're advertising their company on Craigslist. They don't have the money to put up for marketing let alone an expensive web site.

    Your best bet is collecting the commissions from hosting affiliate programs from these people... but even then they're going to come to you with problems, changes, etc. and it becomes a pain in the ass.

    Literally they are such tire kickers that when you explain to them that it's going to cost $10/month... they give resistance.

    I personally gave up on Craigslist when it comes to offline consulting.
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    • Profile picture of the author P1
      Originally Posted by Rocket Media View Post

      I've had quite a bit of experience with advertising on Craigslist.

      I have spent a lot of time in the past replying to ads that are posted by people looking to hire a designer/marketer and have had zero success with that (I assume because there's so many people replying to the ads).

      I have spent a great deal of time doing exactly what you said... posting ads in their sections "competing" and offering free designs and stuff. The problem with it is that these people are all broke. They're advertising their company on Craigslist. They don't have the money to put up for marketing let alone an expensive web site.

      Your best bet is collecting the commissions from hosting affiliate programs from these people... but even then they're going to come to you with problems, changes, etc. and it becomes a pain in the ass.

      Literally they are such tire kickers that when you explain to them that it's going to cost $10/month... they give resistance.

      I personally gave up on Craigslist when it comes to offline consulting.
      Same here, and when you do get someone interested they stop talking once you as for a percent upfront to start.
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  • Profile picture of the author redcell1
    You could try this but I have to agree with shockwave.
    Some to most of these guys are one man bands that think they can have it all just by posting on craigslist all day. They don't believe in SEO because either they don't fully understand it, have been burned by some hackjob of an SEO guy on craigslist or because craigslist is the only way to market your business <-- Prospect's words no joke.

    You can go for it but don't make it your main source of advertising.
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    Just here to see the shenanigans.

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  • Profile picture of the author Vikki
    Computer gigs section is free and craigs is very much in these days. Its a win win for you business. People are using craigs a lot to generate business and those who are not using it are losing out on potential business.
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  • Profile picture of the author johngrossi
    Craigslist is the number#5 website world wide and the number of unrepresented, highly motivated, and well qualified buyers that check this website every day. Track every step of the process so you know what’s working..
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh MacDonald
      Originally Posted by johngrossi View Post

      Craigslist is the number#5 website world wide and the number of unrepresented, highly motivated, and well qualified buyers that check this website every day. Track every step of the process so you know what's working..
      They aren't qualified. They are cheap tired kickers with no money. Thus why they use free classifieds.
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      • Profile picture of the author shockwave
        Originally Posted by Josh MacDonald View Post

        They aren't qualified. They are cheap tired kickers with no money. Thus why they use free classifieds.
        Agreed Josh....I think that sums up about 95% of my previous rant. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule here and there.
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  • Profile picture of the author netdev
    Yeah I wouldn't bother with that. CL is pretty risky when it comes to that type of advertising, well I mean advertising in sections that don't go for your ad. I'd just put it in the computer section, someone may check it out.
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  • Profile picture of the author Deidra Renee
    I've had success with craigslist responding directly to the person's ad so I don't know how well actually putting an ad up will work. But as far as people saying these advertisers are broke because they're using free ads, that could be true, but you said you're giving them a FREE mobile website right?? I don't think you need money for that lol But it may be a problem down the line if you try to upsell them. But also just because they're using Craigslist doesn't necessarily mean they're broke..they could be advertising other places also and as someone stated above..craigslist is very popular so why not advertise there as well as other places?
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