The end of CraigsList Marketing?

by 69 replies
82
Once upon a time, craigslist was a hot ticket for anyone trying to promote an online opportunity, or even sneak in a little bit of spam to gain some extra exposure... However, it has been getting harder and harder to maintain a steady of flow of traffic on craigslist, due to all the techniques they are trying to use to prevent spammers, such as ghosting, auto-flagging, Phone-verified accounts, and account suspension due to over-active IP addys.

I figure one of two things is going to happen.... eventually it's gonna become such a pain in the butt to post on CL that most people are just going to say "screw it" and craigslist will lose a lot of it's users and general interest... or people are going to just continue finding more vigrous ways to crack the security... and because of it, more posting tools are going to be developed and eventually create even more spam on the site than ever before.

What do you think is going to come of the future of craigslist marketing?
#main internet marketing discussion forum #craigslist #end #marketing
  • I am 1 of those that got sick of CL but my 68 year old father in law loves it to sell all kinds of junk locally.
  • Who cares?

    Don't use it, never did, never will.

    Craigslist was NOT created for the Internet Marketer. It was created for
    Suzie Homemaker who has an old microwave she wants to sell because she's
    interested in that new super duper ramrod 5000.

    Internet marketers have ruined Craiglist, which is why they've had to do
    all the crap that they've done to keep you slime buckets out of their home
    with your spam and biz ops.

    One day, maybe with some luck, Craigslist will go back to being the site
    that it was meant to be.

    Either way, I could care less since I don't use it.
    • [ 9 ] Thanks
    • [6] replies
    • Well, you obviously care enough to put down the people who do use it... I don't really use it much myself, but i've read a lot from people talking about it and thought I'd get some feedback... Either way, you must feel like a real hero going into message boards and blurting out your notions of "Superiority" and all foreseen wisdom because you don't use CL and therefore anyone who markets there must be a scum bucket.


      So... if you really don't care... prove it by not saying anything.
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
      • [2] replies
    • Banned
      lol ... that's putting it bluntly. I've never actually used it to try to send people to "offers". I have used it to offer web design services which is a legitimate use and it was pretty successful.
    • Amongst many other things.......
    • Yeah, the same thing goes for twitter. "What are you doing?"

      Are you serious?

      Most people don't want anyone know what they're doing, now they want to tell the entire world by using twitter. Come on, give me a break.
    • So the OP is a slime bucket?
      What a ridiculous answer.

      The question was:
      NOT:
      Some people here really have me stumped.
      • [ 2 ] Thanks
    • I agree that CL was't made for IMers but I think if used properly it will not ruin CL.

      The problem is with short-sighted spamer who think they are internet marketers.

      I see the same problem with Angela's backlink service. There are some links she warns the board owner is getting upset by the spamers and to make a relevent and repsectful comment before dropping your link.

      But the short-sighted spamers just load the links into some automated program and auto-post some drival and move on. There posts get removed but are going to ruin it for everyone.
  • Yes,

    Craigslist has more than lost its luster among the targeted users.

    Spammers and flaggers have made it not worth while.

    Much of its demise is talked about in the forums on the site, with a very bad taste towards any one selling online.

    I tried to hire some people for my business, the listings get flagged within a few hours of posting.

    All it did was generate unwanted spam to the anonymous address that I was using.

    I found other methods to hire people, but it is sad that its gone the way of FFA pages.

    Mark Riddle
    • [1] reply
    • Banned
      I think it's sad that many Internet marketers give the Make Money Online Niche such a bad name. It's pretty much a group that is despised on most social networks because they overrun it with spam. Craigslist used to be a dynamite site but when you can't use it for what it was intended ... like hiring people ... it's a real shame.

      Just about anything you put up there gets flagged in no time. They're very trigger happy there now and don't seem to care if it is a legitimate listing. What amazes me is that those "erotic" ads seem to live on without getting flagged. Maybe everyone is in the wrong business. lol
  • I have generated a small amount of local traffic....that being said I don't think CL is the marketplace for making any real money with internet marketing
  • To be honest, Craigslist is not the same as it was 2-4 years ago. Before you could buy autoposting software and you could plaster hundreds of ads within minutes. Now Craigslist has made it so difficult that autoposting software needs to be updated everytime Craigslit makes a change. Stay far away from Craigslist. It is not worth your time, money and energy.
    • [1] reply
    • Spammers have ruined the experience of craiglist. At one time craigslist was cutting edge but the fade has come back down to the ground and it is now just a digital version of a classified ad section. No more community.
      • [1] reply
  • I love Craigslist. But I only use it to generate leads for my local business. Sometimes my ads get flagged sometimes they don't. It really depends on which part of the state I am advertising in. I think the smaller areas are not as "Flag happy" as the big cities are.

    I guess it all really depends on how you use it.
  • I totally agree that spammers have ruined craigslist... and for anyone who is wondering or who might be on an "anti-spam" power trip... no, i'm not trying to justify spamming craigslist... I am merely trying to see what the general public thinks about it's usefulness at present time... me personally, I think craigslist has gone down the drain. I also used to use it to promote legit business service such as webapage design... but can't keep an ad live now.
  • Agree with the post above. CL is still a great site when you use it for what it's supposed to be used for.

    The people posting the "make money online" stuff are douchebags, the more they get cracked down on, the better.
  • What internet marketers have done to CL is the perfect example of biting the hand that feeds you.

    CL is still good at what it was designed to be- a local marketplace.
  • I continue to get lots of mileage out of CL. I don't do foamy biz opp or crappy offers though; I use it in my own way and it remains fairly productive for me.
  • Banned
    I can't keep a web design ad live either. At one time I got some very lucrative local projects from my ad. I don't bother posting anymore because it just gets flagged.
  • The more security barriers they put up on CL, the more savvy programmers will find a way around them. IMHO, some marketing just isn't worth the hassle on CL - but some people do quite well. It just depends on what your niche is. If you're willing to put time and effort into getting to know the type of ads people respond to and the type of communities that respond well, I'm sure you can do well with CL.

    It's just like Twitter and many other web services and strategies - what you put into it determines what you get out.
  • I used it and it cost e $25, what a waste that was, never again
  • Aren't we all internet marketers?
    • [1] reply
    • I'm still a newbe, ans as such, I do a lot of mistakes. I guess I'm not the only one. As for CL - didn't work for me yet.
  • MOST sites werent.

    If you dont want opinion, dont ask for them.
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • I was looking for an apartment the other day on CL and responded to an ad. What I received back was from a marketer claiming to own the apartment. He sent me a link to a "lease contract" and then another link to a credit report site.

    The owner/marketer said that in order for me to see the apartment I would need to fill out the "lease contract" (which was an obvious fake) and get my credit report from the site he sent me a link to. Well as you can see the marketer obviously made commissions from people who would pay to get their credit report in order to see the fake apartment.

    I spotted the scam offer because I'm aware of stuff like this but I'm sure most other people are not. I browsed a few more listings for apartments and found several more that were bogus listings posted by marketers. I wonder how many people fall for this stuff.

    CL needs to do everything they can to create a positive experience for the user.
    • [2] replies
    • I can totally relate to this one... it's especially frustrating when someone actually NEEDS a place to live and they just get a bunch of crap in their email box. I think order to post apartments on cl, you should have to provide some kind of credentials or something before you hve access to that area.
      You should have persued it further to try to find out who the owner of the affiliate link was.
      • [1] reply
    • Yup same here. A couple months ago. Got pretty excited about the place then was sent an email to a credit report thing and realized what was actually going on. I was pretty pissed at the time but if you think about it, it's actually pretty clever lol
  • I have been using Craigslist for about a year now, and I only use it to drive traffic to my new sites that I create. As we all know, it takes a while to get on googles search engine and during that period of time craigslist is great. Like the posts above, I get flagged a few times here and there but I only post one ad a day.
  • I've been quite fond of Craig's List in the past. I don't market there, but I have had success in getting things at great discounts. Although, I don't think I'd ever hire a masseuse to come to my residence. I'm more the discounted electronics, coach purses type of gal.

    I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the future changes will be, but I'm sure it will have to do with tightening security.
  • "or even sneak in a little bit of spam to gain some extra exposure..."

    Well assuming, as you have posted that in your original post, that you have participated in that kind of activity in the past, isn't it that which has ruined CL for most people? Seems to be from what everyone is saying in this thread? So therefore, I am not surprised that a few people got a little, shall we say "irked" with you for your post.

    Just an observation..

    Sue
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
  • I'm suprised the craigslist hasnt gotten on the same kind of deal like backpage and just make people pay a few cents per every ad. Most would pay to place ads
  • CL has become harder and harder,however if you can conquer it, there is still money to be made. I am glad however that that little freak is finally going to be shown by the state's atty that he is not God. While he fights the little guys trying to make a living he is blatantly a pimp with the erotic section.
  • Between the CL killer and scammers, I think they are trying different methods to see what gives the best quality control. It will sort itself out eventually.
    • [1] reply
    • Banned
      Believe it or not if you look at CL, and Backpage's traffic stats, in the last few months both are way up. So, I don't think that they are going anywhere. In fact I believe that they are getting more popular, especially as the economy worsens (lots of cheap deals), and the way the market place is shifting away from tradition print advertising.

      Now this is not to say that it is easy to post ads. I for one make a boat load of money from CL, and BP, but I have spent hours upon hours studying, and testing how to get my ads to stick, ect..ect.. For someone who is a beginner, it is not an easy venture. This is why CL has implemented such extreme measures to basically discourage noobs, and people not willing to put in the time to learn.

      There is a lot of people in this forum who talk trash on people who post to CL, which is totally ridiculous. There are certain sections that are great for advertising your business (services, for sale) in CL. If you are not utilizing CL to make sales, I think you are crazy. They get over 100 million visitors per month. Simply convert on .0001% of that traffic and you are sitting pretty.

      Call me what you want, I don't care. I make a lot money from Craigslist, and I sleep well at night. My classified ads never hurt anyone.

      So to answer the question, with the way the market is shifting towards online advertising and marketing, and the way print is basically dying a slow death, CL is going no where, and will only get stronger.
  • Banned
    The problem is that anyone who has a legitimate, NON TOS breaking, NON affiliate marketing use of Craigs list can barely use it any longer as you can see from the posts of someone simply looking for an apartment or someone wanting to post a web design services ad for their local area. Glad you are making money, but it's been made unusable for many.
    • [1] reply
    • Banned
      I totally agree that certain types of marketers, have given others bad names on CL. I for one don't agree with ads which are misleading in any way. For example, I know guys who post in the Apartment For Rent, and Jobs Section with ads saying one thing, and then lead to some junk CPA or affiliate offer. Not cool. And of course you always have the erotic section.

      I understand that it has made it more difficult for legit businesses to post their ads. I hear that from people all the time, about how frustrating it is. Honestly, if you do a little research, it is not that hard to get your ads to stick. PM me and I will help you out if you want.

      Cheers,
      John
  • Their is still a ton of money to be made with Craigslist. Me personally, I've been at it for 3 years and have overcame their obstacles each time. I now post for others as a full time business since it is harder now to just jump right into the CL game. Once you master it though, or find someone who can, your will definitely see some profits come your way.
  • I only use CL for selling junk locally.
  • Spammers have ruined it which is true.

    BUT

    There are still people looking on craigslist so if you can figure out a way to make it all happen without being a typical spammer...is a smart idea.

    Yea I know it wasn't made for internet marketers but if you can come off with the right approach, I think you can make it work.

    I tried it for a while...got flagged but have a new idea how to make it all come together. ;-)
  • "Justifying breaking a site's TOS is just lame...period."

    No, it isn't. Your moral ideals don't coincide with others. Morality is like religion...everyone else is wrong. Just from this thread you can see while there may be majority opinion, there is no consensus. If you don't like commercial disobedience, fair and well. But that's no reason to be snotty. I think you'll find that not everyone is above even a little civil disobedience. Caveat emptor
    • [1] reply
    • I think CL is awesome to use right now because most people gave up trying to figure it out! Less competition, more conversions.........
  • I use craigslist from time to time myself, and while I haven't been flagged since last summer, I usually get people wanting me to join social networks like direct matches and b2b matches I am a member at both by the way, though it is not the only technique I use. I also use traffic exchanges, other classifieds sites (like usfreeads and nw classifieds), youtube, social networking sites, as well as blogspot and word press.
    • [1] reply
    • As an Offline biz owner I was very glad to have CL and Backpage. Without either of them I would have gone broke...sadly there is way too many spammers and scammers.

      I happy to see CL crack down on this even if it makes it a little difficult to do postings.

      Jae
  • Hi Sam:

    Hope you are well. Thanks for an interesting post.

    I have mentioned this a myriad of times on the forum and my view will never change. There is no reason that Craig's List could not have been set up so if you have a product that is universal you aren't limited to 1 add in 1 city for 30 days. Certainly they could make a valid argument that Paul's Pizza in Detroit doesn't need to get free plugs in Atlanta.

    What about the internet market or my books and speaking/writing course? If something is ethical, legal, and with a guarantee they could allow people to post at least 1 add per state.

    Only my thoughts but I feel strongly about their regimentation.

    Have a great Tuesday.
    • [4] replies
    • Craigslist is awesome for the exact reason that you guys are bashing it: The service is intended for a specific purpose and they're diligent in their efforts to keep it that way.

      If you're a spammer, you're not a marketer.
    • I was going to use craigslit, but I didn't was going to get me much traffic
    • I have a ticket website and used CL for local ads here in DC....now use Backpage.com but looking for suggestions....I have the cheapest event tickets around but need exposure and dont have the adv budget yet for gig Google and Yahoo campaigns......my traffic has dropped considerably since CL ads get flagged immediately..help?
      • [1] reply
    • If you don't want discussion, don't post in forums with "discussion" in the title.

      You might also consider the difference between a general observation and a personal opinion. It's a useful distinction.

      At any rate, you've got the logic all wrong. To the extent that they can keep out the automated postings, CraigsList will become stronger and more useful for the people and purposes for whom it was developed.

      I would really like to see most of the people who develop or use most auto-posting software kicked off the net, for terms varying based on how many people have to deal with their auto-posts.

      Automation is a wonderful thing, if what you're automating is useful to the people you're automating it "at."


      Paul
      • [1] reply
  • You know, just thinking about craigslist, is there a good approach to writing catchy ads on there that get visitors, but don't attract flaggers? For example, if you were advertising your website on there, how do you go about doing it? Just curious.
    • [1] reply
    • I don't "advertise my website" per se; I post a pic of a product, ie, windchimes, add a description, then put my website info and people come there to check it out or buy or browse. I had to set up a "commercial" acct; give ph # and answer it to a recording but it's all good, I think that's their way of verifying you're legit! hope that helps.
  • its less effective but it still creates good leads
  • Craigslist was great for all opportunities in the beginning. Spam is what ruined it. Unfortunately those of us who were using it correctly have to pay the price of not being able to use it. Is it a big deal? Depends on who you are asking, I know for myself there are many more ways to drive traffic, get leads and or opportunities rather than depending on CL. By the way about the software to post ads in minutes, be careful, this is something that can take a lot of time. Since CL is always updating, there are making it almost impossible to get this done. Anyway great post...Have a great day.
  • I have sold a car, a horse and found a place to park my RV when I work at a hospital 100 miles from my home. THAT'S what craigslist is for. Now, about 6 months ago I posted an ad for a solar power e-book from clickbank and actually made a sale! then, about 1 month ago I tried to re-post and got e-mailed TOS, oops! So I tried "tiny URL" to cloak affilliate ID; NOPE! again, e-mailed TOS...NO AFFILLIATE MARKETING! However, I also have a little E-commerce store and THAT flies. the site is legit., has products and descriptions. So, it depends on what you're trying to do.
  • hmmm... agreed. I actually just discovered Angela's service and bought several of the older lists (Feb-March '09). A bunch of the sites had cut off allowing "comments" and I suspect that's why. It's a great service and makes me think that I need to jump on the list as soon as it comes out before the spammers ruin the deal.

    As for CL, I actually just started posting ads for an IM niche (finally found a good one) a few days ago. I set up several CL accounts and only post 3 ads per account, all different text. I think only 10% were flagged and removed and I am getting traffic from the others. I guess the key is to not get carried away.
  • Actually, I think that craigslist now is better than ever. Because of all the security measures that they've put in place to minimize spam, there is a lot less marketers.

    The best solution I've found is to outsource my postings. This is a company I've found to post on Craiglist and their prices are very reasonable and they verify the posts went up.

    Check it out: Craigslist Ad PostingService (No, it's not an affiliate link).
  • Fox30

    Why do you need to outsource posting your local listing?

    Is it that tough in your home town too?

    Mark Riddle
    • [1] reply
    • Why outsource? So I can focus on other things and keep growing my business.

      Also, I don't post only locally, I post in several cities at once. That takes time and management.
  • For the most part, actually whole part, I agree with Steve W on CL and internet marketers.

    If an internet marketer appeared on Jeopardy, their dream board would be

    Selling Mom's Soul
    Justifying your actions
    Mom's teeth for gold
    Fake it 'til you make it
    Catchy sigs
    The Long Page
    Forced Continuity
    Earnings screenshots
    Only $27
  • I am an IMer - but IM is not my complete life. Sometimes I want to sit down to a local link and just communicate without putting up with a lot of desperate "my IM business, My IM business" BS.

    I recently have posted a few local posts and I get spammed to bejeebers and back - it's hard to get a real answer. I've also looked for local things and end up sorting through tons of desperate "MY IM business" crap.

    IM can be a great way to make money -- but some things just don't belong in some places. Once most IMers grow enough brains to know where they can post appropriately or who they can contact appropriately, the whole Internet will become a better experience for everyone but the desperate IMer who can't figure out what is appropriate and what isn't. Just because a business is an online business doesn't mean that the business owner can excel if he/she has no more intelligence than your usual pet rock.

    If it gets your panties in a bunch because you can't post your IM business on Craigslist - maybe you should think about whether it belongs there or not.
    P.S. "But, I wanna get rich real fast" is not a legitimate reason when a website's TOS says otherwise.
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    The end of CraigsList Marketing?

    Once upon a time, craigslist was a hot ticket for anyone trying to promote an online opportunity, or even sneak in a little bit of spam to gain some extra exposure... However, it has been getting harder and harder to maintain a steady of flow of traffic on craigslist, due to all the techniques they are trying to use to prevent spammers, such as ghosting, auto-flagging, Phone-verified accounts, and account suspension due to over-active IP addys. I figure one of two things is going to happen.... eventually it's gonna become such a pain in the butt to post on CL that most people are just going to say "screw it" and craigslist will lose a lot of it's users and general interest... or people are going to just continue finding more vigrous ways to crack the security... and because of it, more posting tools are going to be developed and eventually create even more spam on the site than ever before.