(My Original Blog Post: Web Design Muskegon MI)
Web Design Muskegon MI
Looking for a web design agency in Muskegon Michigan? The good news is that Area Web Solutions is located in Muskegon, MI right here in West Michigan. We have been in business since 2005 and have done work for various business types including Fruitport Township.
Just because we are located in West Michigan, this does not limit who we can work for. We have clients all over the US right now. Whether you are located in California, Boston or anywhere in between, we will work with you closely every step of the way as though you are local business, in order to get the results that you expect from a premium web design agency like ours.
We have prepackaged and custom design plans to fit your needs. Our rates are affordable and the work is unmatched. Many of our clients have come to us to have their website done right after bad experiences with other designers. Yes, there are people out there that will build a website for nickles, but the term, "you get what you pay for", really rings true with web design. If you want it done right the first time, call us. If you want to pay twice, call the other guy, then we'll be hearing from you soon anyways.
Contact us or call 231-747-9531 today!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Answering Advertisements on Craigslist
(My Original Blog Post: Answering Advertisements on Craigslist)
Craigslist is an online community which has a great deal to offer to both individuals and business owners. Some of the features on Craigslist include sections for community events, activities and news, personals advertisements, discussion forums, housing opportunities, for sale items, services offered, small business advertisements, jobs and resumes. While some of these sections such as the discussion forum and parts of the community section exist exclusively for the purpose of exchanging information or ideas, other sections such as the personals, housing, sale, services, job and resume sections provide the opportunity for users to respond to advertisements for more information or to make a purchase. In these cases uses should exercise caution. This article will focus on specific precautions which should be taken when answering advertisements in the personals, housing and jobs sections of Craigslist.
Answering Personals Advertisements
The personals section of Craigslist can be a great place for individuals to meet platonic friends or potential romantic partners. However, it can also be a location for predators to prey on unsuspecting victims who do not realize the threat of danger which may exist with meeting online partners in person.
One of the simplest ways to avoid potentially harmful situations is to never agreeing to meet someone in a desolate location. Initial meetings should take place in busy, public locations to minimize the potential for danger. Predators are much less likely to attempt to harm you in a public location. Additionally, it is wise to not travel to a secluded location with someone you don’t know until you are positive they do not intend to do you any harm.
Precautions should also be taken to avoid giving out personal information such as your address to those you meet online. The Internet affords a certain degree of anonymousness and some unscrupulous individuals can take advantage of this to mask their true identity.
Answering Housing Advertisements
The housing advertisements on Craigslist offer opportunities for those who are seeking housing situations such as rental of a housing location, roommate opportunities, sublets or house swaps. Care should be taken in all of these opportunities to ensure the person you are working with does not have any ill intentions towards you. This can be done by carefully screening all potential roommates or others who might be using your house or apartment.
When selecting a potential roommate it is important to verify the individual is trustworthy and able to pay the rent. It is also important to seek out an individual with living habits similar to your own to avoid the potential for conflict.
Answering Job Advertisements
Craigslist is an excellent location for finding exciting new career opportunities. There are many different job advertisements in a variety of different categories. These job opportunities include full time, part time, telecommute and contract positions. The downside to answering job advertisements on Craigslist is the advertisements are often placed anonymously. Those who place the advertisements are given the opportunity to either use their own email address for candidates to respond or to have candidates respond through an email address generated by Craigslist. Therefore, candidates do not always know who has placed the advertisements. For this reason care should be taken when responding to these advertisements to avoid supplying specific contact information. Candidates are instead urged to supply only an email address when responding to advertisements.
Craigslist is an online community which has a great deal to offer to both individuals and business owners. Some of the features on Craigslist include sections for community events, activities and news, personals advertisements, discussion forums, housing opportunities, for sale items, services offered, small business advertisements, jobs and resumes. While some of these sections such as the discussion forum and parts of the community section exist exclusively for the purpose of exchanging information or ideas, other sections such as the personals, housing, sale, services, job and resume sections provide the opportunity for users to respond to advertisements for more information or to make a purchase. In these cases uses should exercise caution. This article will focus on specific precautions which should be taken when answering advertisements in the personals, housing and jobs sections of Craigslist.
Answering Personals Advertisements
The personals section of Craigslist can be a great place for individuals to meet platonic friends or potential romantic partners. However, it can also be a location for predators to prey on unsuspecting victims who do not realize the threat of danger which may exist with meeting online partners in person.
One of the simplest ways to avoid potentially harmful situations is to never agreeing to meet someone in a desolate location. Initial meetings should take place in busy, public locations to minimize the potential for danger. Predators are much less likely to attempt to harm you in a public location. Additionally, it is wise to not travel to a secluded location with someone you don’t know until you are positive they do not intend to do you any harm.
Precautions should also be taken to avoid giving out personal information such as your address to those you meet online. The Internet affords a certain degree of anonymousness and some unscrupulous individuals can take advantage of this to mask their true identity.
Answering Housing Advertisements
The housing advertisements on Craigslist offer opportunities for those who are seeking housing situations such as rental of a housing location, roommate opportunities, sublets or house swaps. Care should be taken in all of these opportunities to ensure the person you are working with does not have any ill intentions towards you. This can be done by carefully screening all potential roommates or others who might be using your house or apartment.
When selecting a potential roommate it is important to verify the individual is trustworthy and able to pay the rent. It is also important to seek out an individual with living habits similar to your own to avoid the potential for conflict.
Answering Job Advertisements
Craigslist is an excellent location for finding exciting new career opportunities. There are many different job advertisements in a variety of different categories. These job opportunities include full time, part time, telecommute and contract positions. The downside to answering job advertisements on Craigslist is the advertisements are often placed anonymously. Those who place the advertisements are given the opportunity to either use their own email address for candidates to respond or to have candidates respond through an email address generated by Craigslist. Therefore, candidates do not always know who has placed the advertisements. For this reason care should be taken when responding to these advertisements to avoid supplying specific contact information. Candidates are instead urged to supply only an email address when responding to advertisements.
Affordable Advertising on Craigslist
(My Original Blog Post: Affordable Advertising on Craigslist)
The advertising on Craigslist is certainly affordable. In fact there is no fee for the majority of posts made on Craigslist. Craigslist began as a non-profit organization but in 1999 it was converted to a for profit organization. However, operating costs are supported by charging nominal fees for help wanted advertisements placed on the San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York City Craigslist websites. Additionally, there is a fee for brokerage apartment listings in New York City.
The vast majority of those posting advertisements on any of the Craigslist over 300 websites are not paying a fee to do so. This definitely makes posting advertisements on Craigslist to be worthwhile from a financial standpoint. While the advertisements are free care should be taken to post these advertisements judiciously because although there is financial loss, poor posting can result in a loss of time and resources if it leads to poor profit potential.
Why Craigslist is Free
Although the founder of Craigslist, Craig Newmark, was approached in 1997 about the possibility of running banner advertisements on Craigslist to generate a profit, he made the decision to keep Craigslist as a noncommercial website. Even after Craigslist was converted to a for profit organization commercialization did not infiltrate the website. The points listed in the Craigslist mission statement demonstrate why Craigslist has remained noncommercial:
* Giving each other a break, getting the word out about everyday, real-world stuff
* Restoring the human voice to the Internet, in a humane, non-commercial environment
* Keeping things simple, common-sense, down-to-earth, honest, very real
* Providing an alternative to impersonal, big-media sites
* Being inclusive, giving a voice to the disenfranchised, democratizing…
* Being a collection of communities with similar spirit, not a single monolithic entity
Advertising on Craigslist vs. Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is another type of marketing which many business owners find to be both worthwhile and affordable. For many the appeal of affiliate marketing is the affiliates are not compensated for their efforts unless the business owner sees some type of gain from the advertising. This gain may be in the form of website traffic in the case of pay per click marketing, in the form of sales in pay per sale marketing or in the form of potential leads when a website visitor performs a specific action such as registering with a website or signing up for an offer.
While affiliate marketing is very appealing there are others who prefer advertising on Craigslist. The advantages Craigslist offers to advertisers is, of course, that the advertisers never pay for their business advertisements and the community receives a great deal of website traffic already so driving traffic to the website is not a concern.
Why Free Is Not Always Better
However, there are some specific instances where free advertising is not the best type of advertising available. Consider a product or service for which Craigslist does not have an appropriate category. In this case advertising on Craigslist may not be worthwhile because although the advertisement is free, it is also not likely to receive a great deal of attention from members of the target audience. In this case, advertising on Craigslist may be a waste of resources.
Another example of an instance when Craigslist may not be a great advertising option is when the market is already saturated with competitors’ advertisements. In this case it can be difficult to sway customer loyalty so it might be more worthwhile to pay for advertising in a less crowded market.
The advertising on Craigslist is certainly affordable. In fact there is no fee for the majority of posts made on Craigslist. Craigslist began as a non-profit organization but in 1999 it was converted to a for profit organization. However, operating costs are supported by charging nominal fees for help wanted advertisements placed on the San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York City Craigslist websites. Additionally, there is a fee for brokerage apartment listings in New York City.
The vast majority of those posting advertisements on any of the Craigslist over 300 websites are not paying a fee to do so. This definitely makes posting advertisements on Craigslist to be worthwhile from a financial standpoint. While the advertisements are free care should be taken to post these advertisements judiciously because although there is financial loss, poor posting can result in a loss of time and resources if it leads to poor profit potential.
Why Craigslist is Free
Although the founder of Craigslist, Craig Newmark, was approached in 1997 about the possibility of running banner advertisements on Craigslist to generate a profit, he made the decision to keep Craigslist as a noncommercial website. Even after Craigslist was converted to a for profit organization commercialization did not infiltrate the website. The points listed in the Craigslist mission statement demonstrate why Craigslist has remained noncommercial:
* Giving each other a break, getting the word out about everyday, real-world stuff
* Restoring the human voice to the Internet, in a humane, non-commercial environment
* Keeping things simple, common-sense, down-to-earth, honest, very real
* Providing an alternative to impersonal, big-media sites
* Being inclusive, giving a voice to the disenfranchised, democratizing…
* Being a collection of communities with similar spirit, not a single monolithic entity
Advertising on Craigslist vs. Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is another type of marketing which many business owners find to be both worthwhile and affordable. For many the appeal of affiliate marketing is the affiliates are not compensated for their efforts unless the business owner sees some type of gain from the advertising. This gain may be in the form of website traffic in the case of pay per click marketing, in the form of sales in pay per sale marketing or in the form of potential leads when a website visitor performs a specific action such as registering with a website or signing up for an offer.
While affiliate marketing is very appealing there are others who prefer advertising on Craigslist. The advantages Craigslist offers to advertisers is, of course, that the advertisers never pay for their business advertisements and the community receives a great deal of website traffic already so driving traffic to the website is not a concern.
Why Free Is Not Always Better
However, there are some specific instances where free advertising is not the best type of advertising available. Consider a product or service for which Craigslist does not have an appropriate category. In this case advertising on Craigslist may not be worthwhile because although the advertisement is free, it is also not likely to receive a great deal of attention from members of the target audience. In this case, advertising on Craigslist may be a waste of resources.
Another example of an instance when Craigslist may not be a great advertising option is when the market is already saturated with competitors’ advertisements. In this case it can be difficult to sway customer loyalty so it might be more worthwhile to pay for advertising in a less crowded market.
Disadvantages Of Using Craigslist.org To Make Money
(My Original Blog Post: Disadvantages Of Using Craigslist.org To Make Money)
There are disadvantages to using craigslist.org to make money. Although it can be done, and the chance of actually losing money is limited, craigslist.org only reaches a small percentage of customers. This is fine if what you are doing is limited to your location, however if you are selling products, this is a very limited area to do so.
The first disadvantage of using craigslist.org to make money is reach. Although millions of people visit this website, all of those visitors are distributed among 450 locations. This is where craigslist.org is lacking. You are not supposed to post your ad in more than one location at a time. If you are selling widgets, and you want to sell a lot of widgets to everyone, everywhere, then craigslist.org will be very limiting to you.
Another disadvantage of using craigslist.org to make money is that there is no protection for the seller. Many auction sites have procedures in place to make sure that both the buyer and seller are protected from unscrupulous individuals. Craigslist.org has no such protections. You make contact with a potential buyer or seller and hope that they will not rip you off. You do not know if they are legitimate or not and you have no idea if they are a dangerous criminal or not. Online auction sites remove the person interaction by means of shipping the item to a location. On craigslist.org you usually have to either have a buyer come to your home, go to a seller's location or meet in a public place somewhere. Meeting someone is fine if the item is small. However if you are selling a projection TV, it may be more difficult to get it to the local diner.
Craigslist.org does post a notice explaining how to keep safe from fraud. Their intentions are well meant and in this case you get what you pay for. Craigslist.org is free. Most auction sites have fees. In this case it seems that you are paying for an additional level of safety and security. On an auction website there is recourse if someone passes you a bad check or if someone offers to pay you via PayPal and then reverses the payment. With cragislist.org there is recourse only through law enforcement for a bad check or through PayPal. Your chances of recovering payment is not good. You will be out the money and the product.
Another problem with craigslist.org is if you are trying to promote your business. There are many businesses that will keep reporting your ad as being in violation of craigslists.org's rules and regulations or that it is spam or even that it infringes on some else's copyright. In certain categories it can be nearly impossible for a new business to post an ad. For example, posting an ad for carpet cleaning services in the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area can be next to impossible. I know of one particular company that finally had to contact Craig Newmark directly in order to get a problem resolved.
Now that you know all about the disadvantages of using craigslist.org to make money you can decide for yourself if it is worth it. Although the ad is free it takes a lot of time to write, post and constantly delete and repost your ad so that it stays on the front page. Is it worth it? Only you can decide for yourself.
There are disadvantages to using craigslist.org to make money. Although it can be done, and the chance of actually losing money is limited, craigslist.org only reaches a small percentage of customers. This is fine if what you are doing is limited to your location, however if you are selling products, this is a very limited area to do so.
The first disadvantage of using craigslist.org to make money is reach. Although millions of people visit this website, all of those visitors are distributed among 450 locations. This is where craigslist.org is lacking. You are not supposed to post your ad in more than one location at a time. If you are selling widgets, and you want to sell a lot of widgets to everyone, everywhere, then craigslist.org will be very limiting to you.
Another disadvantage of using craigslist.org to make money is that there is no protection for the seller. Many auction sites have procedures in place to make sure that both the buyer and seller are protected from unscrupulous individuals. Craigslist.org has no such protections. You make contact with a potential buyer or seller and hope that they will not rip you off. You do not know if they are legitimate or not and you have no idea if they are a dangerous criminal or not. Online auction sites remove the person interaction by means of shipping the item to a location. On craigslist.org you usually have to either have a buyer come to your home, go to a seller's location or meet in a public place somewhere. Meeting someone is fine if the item is small. However if you are selling a projection TV, it may be more difficult to get it to the local diner.
Craigslist.org does post a notice explaining how to keep safe from fraud. Their intentions are well meant and in this case you get what you pay for. Craigslist.org is free. Most auction sites have fees. In this case it seems that you are paying for an additional level of safety and security. On an auction website there is recourse if someone passes you a bad check or if someone offers to pay you via PayPal and then reverses the payment. With cragislist.org there is recourse only through law enforcement for a bad check or through PayPal. Your chances of recovering payment is not good. You will be out the money and the product.
Another problem with craigslist.org is if you are trying to promote your business. There are many businesses that will keep reporting your ad as being in violation of craigslists.org's rules and regulations or that it is spam or even that it infringes on some else's copyright. In certain categories it can be nearly impossible for a new business to post an ad. For example, posting an ad for carpet cleaning services in the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area can be next to impossible. I know of one particular company that finally had to contact Craig Newmark directly in order to get a problem resolved.
Now that you know all about the disadvantages of using craigslist.org to make money you can decide for yourself if it is worth it. Although the ad is free it takes a lot of time to write, post and constantly delete and repost your ad so that it stays on the front page. Is it worth it? Only you can decide for yourself.
Affiliate Marketing Through Craigslist
(My Original Blog Post: Affiliate Marketing Through Craigslist)
Craiglist is an extensive online community which has a great deal to offer to users of this community. With approximately four billion page views per month it should come as no surprise that Craigslist can offer a wealth of financial opportunities to savvy Internet marketers who know how to capitalize on the popularity of this website. Affiliate marketing is one of the ways knowledgeable Internet marketers can expand on the profitability of their websites. Craigslist provides wonderful opportunities for both ecommerce website owners seeking affiliates to market for them as well as those who are in the business of affiliate marketing who are looking for new opportunities to market for another business. This article will provide an explanation of affiliate marketing and will also provide information on how Craigslist can be used to either find affiliates or affiliate opportunities.
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is essentially a marketing campaign in which the business owner only pays the affiliate based on performance. Unlike conventional marketing campaigns where the business owner pays for the advertising regardless of the results produced by the advertisements, in affiliate marketing the business owner only pays when a specific result is achieved. Affiliate marketing usually takes place in the following three forms:
* Pay Per Click
* Pay Per Sale
* Pay Per Lead
In a pay per click affiliate marketing campaign the affiliate places a coded link on their website and each time a visitor to their website clicks through the link to the sponsor’s website, the affiliate receives a sum of money. The amount of money they receive is based on an agreement between the sponsor and the affiliate. This amount can be cents, dollars or even a fraction of a cent. In a pay per sale campaign the affiliate is not compensated when the visitor clicks through to the sponsor’s website unless they also make a purchase when they click through this link. Again the amount of money the affiliate receives will depend on a pre-determined agreement and may be a specific amount or a percentage of the sale. In a pay per lead program the affiliate receives monetary compensation when a visitor clicks through the affiliate link and performs a specific action such as registering at the sponsor’s website or requesting additional information.
Using Craigslist to Find Potential Affiliates
Business owners who are interested in finding affiliates to promote their website may use Craigslist for the purpose of finding these affiliates. It may seem logical to post affiliate opportunities in the jobs section of Craigslist but it is important to note this is against Craigslist’s job posting policies. Review of the policy for posting jobs on Craigslist will verify these requirements. Therefore those who are interested in finding affiliates will have to take advantage of other areas of Craigslist to find affiliates.
Visiting discussion forums related to your business may be one way to find potential affiliates. However, when using the discussion forums, care should be taken to avoiding spamming the discussion forums with links to sign up for your affiliate program. Such spamming techniques are likely to not be taken seriously by potential affiliates and may incur more severe penalties by Craigslist moderators. The best way to find potential affiliates is to make logical contributions to discussions and get to know other participants offline or to include a link to more information on your affiliate marketing program whenever you post.
Using Craigslist to Find Opportunities for Affiliates
Those who generate a profit from acting as an affiliate for others can find new affiliate opportunities through Craigslist. Although posting these opportunities on the job boards are prohibited it is possible for advertisements of this nature to appear either because the original poster was not aware of the restrictions or because they deliberately ignored the restrictions. These types of advertisements are likely to be removed when discovered but they may exist for a short time without being noticed.
Those who act as affiliates can also find potential leads by placing advertisements in the services section or the resumes section. They may also find potential leads by networking with those in the discussion forums.
Craiglist is an extensive online community which has a great deal to offer to users of this community. With approximately four billion page views per month it should come as no surprise that Craigslist can offer a wealth of financial opportunities to savvy Internet marketers who know how to capitalize on the popularity of this website. Affiliate marketing is one of the ways knowledgeable Internet marketers can expand on the profitability of their websites. Craigslist provides wonderful opportunities for both ecommerce website owners seeking affiliates to market for them as well as those who are in the business of affiliate marketing who are looking for new opportunities to market for another business. This article will provide an explanation of affiliate marketing and will also provide information on how Craigslist can be used to either find affiliates or affiliate opportunities.
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is essentially a marketing campaign in which the business owner only pays the affiliate based on performance. Unlike conventional marketing campaigns where the business owner pays for the advertising regardless of the results produced by the advertisements, in affiliate marketing the business owner only pays when a specific result is achieved. Affiliate marketing usually takes place in the following three forms:
* Pay Per Click
* Pay Per Sale
* Pay Per Lead
In a pay per click affiliate marketing campaign the affiliate places a coded link on their website and each time a visitor to their website clicks through the link to the sponsor’s website, the affiliate receives a sum of money. The amount of money they receive is based on an agreement between the sponsor and the affiliate. This amount can be cents, dollars or even a fraction of a cent. In a pay per sale campaign the affiliate is not compensated when the visitor clicks through to the sponsor’s website unless they also make a purchase when they click through this link. Again the amount of money the affiliate receives will depend on a pre-determined agreement and may be a specific amount or a percentage of the sale. In a pay per lead program the affiliate receives monetary compensation when a visitor clicks through the affiliate link and performs a specific action such as registering at the sponsor’s website or requesting additional information.
Using Craigslist to Find Potential Affiliates
Business owners who are interested in finding affiliates to promote their website may use Craigslist for the purpose of finding these affiliates. It may seem logical to post affiliate opportunities in the jobs section of Craigslist but it is important to note this is against Craigslist’s job posting policies. Review of the policy for posting jobs on Craigslist will verify these requirements. Therefore those who are interested in finding affiliates will have to take advantage of other areas of Craigslist to find affiliates.
Visiting discussion forums related to your business may be one way to find potential affiliates. However, when using the discussion forums, care should be taken to avoiding spamming the discussion forums with links to sign up for your affiliate program. Such spamming techniques are likely to not be taken seriously by potential affiliates and may incur more severe penalties by Craigslist moderators. The best way to find potential affiliates is to make logical contributions to discussions and get to know other participants offline or to include a link to more information on your affiliate marketing program whenever you post.
Using Craigslist to Find Opportunities for Affiliates
Those who generate a profit from acting as an affiliate for others can find new affiliate opportunities through Craigslist. Although posting these opportunities on the job boards are prohibited it is possible for advertisements of this nature to appear either because the original poster was not aware of the restrictions or because they deliberately ignored the restrictions. These types of advertisements are likely to be removed when discovered but they may exist for a short time without being noticed.
Those who act as affiliates can also find potential leads by placing advertisements in the services section or the resumes section. They may also find potential leads by networking with those in the discussion forums.
How To Make Money On Craigslist
(My Original Blog Post: How To Make Money On Craigslist)
There are many advantages of using craigslist.org to make money. The fact that this website reaches over 450 different communities and that almost every type of ad is free, there is very little reason not to post items and services for sale. Exactly what are the advantages of using craigslist.org to make money?
The answer is very simple, it is free and easy to do. That's all good and fine, but we really should elaborate. First of all, anyone who has a valid email address can post an ad. This makes joining very easy. All you have to do is upload a picture if necessary and write a good ad. You can post just about anything on craigslist.org. From services and items for sale, to real estate and cars, and even job postings (although there is a charge for this in 10 cities), you can find anything and sell just about anything that is legal for sale.
Selling items and services on craigslist.org is a great way to add extra income. It does not take a lot of effort and you can bring n a decent amount of money selling off your old and unwanted items. Some people also run their own business off of craigslist.org. Are you creative? Can you fix cars? Cars are bought, fixed up, and sold for a profit. Creative people sell quilts, crafts, and other items they have made. Yard sale junkies sell this weeks finds. It is all free, fun and profitable. This is the main advantage of using craigslist.org to make money.
Another advantage is that it sure beats having a yard sale. With a yard sale you are stuck there all day, the weather may or may not cooperate, and you might have undesirables shopping around in your front yard. With craigslist.org, you can be contacted via email. You choose who you wish to deal with. Your personal email address can be hidden and there is an option to have all inquiries go through a craigslist.org email address that gets forwarded to you. Protecting your privacy is important and selling through craigslist.org is more private than holding a yard sale.
Safety is another consideration, especially for single women, single moms, or women whose husbands may be out of town for extended lengths of time. Holding a yard sale can put you at risk if there are no other adults around. You do not want to broadcast the fact that you are there alone or alone with kids. Craigslist.org removes that situation. Only people that you invite come to your home. You can even agree to meet them at a local McDonalds or some other public place, thus keeping your actual residence private. This is a huge benefit over a yard sale. Personal safety should always be a primary concern. Safe and almost anonymous versus having droves of people come to your home. That is one of the many advantages of using craigslist.org to make money instead of a yard sale or classified ad.
Craigslist.org is free to use for buying and selling items and services. Online auctions sites cost you money. So does posting an ad in the local newspaper. Anytime you can promote a business or sale for free it is a good thing.
Now that you know about the advantages of using craigslist.org to make money, why not give it a try. Pad that bank account and start saving for a better car or perhaps just keep it for a rainy day. Whatever you use it for, you should consider giving craigslist.org a try.
There are many advantages of using craigslist.org to make money. The fact that this website reaches over 450 different communities and that almost every type of ad is free, there is very little reason not to post items and services for sale. Exactly what are the advantages of using craigslist.org to make money?
The answer is very simple, it is free and easy to do. That's all good and fine, but we really should elaborate. First of all, anyone who has a valid email address can post an ad. This makes joining very easy. All you have to do is upload a picture if necessary and write a good ad. You can post just about anything on craigslist.org. From services and items for sale, to real estate and cars, and even job postings (although there is a charge for this in 10 cities), you can find anything and sell just about anything that is legal for sale.
Selling items and services on craigslist.org is a great way to add extra income. It does not take a lot of effort and you can bring n a decent amount of money selling off your old and unwanted items. Some people also run their own business off of craigslist.org. Are you creative? Can you fix cars? Cars are bought, fixed up, and sold for a profit. Creative people sell quilts, crafts, and other items they have made. Yard sale junkies sell this weeks finds. It is all free, fun and profitable. This is the main advantage of using craigslist.org to make money.
Another advantage is that it sure beats having a yard sale. With a yard sale you are stuck there all day, the weather may or may not cooperate, and you might have undesirables shopping around in your front yard. With craigslist.org, you can be contacted via email. You choose who you wish to deal with. Your personal email address can be hidden and there is an option to have all inquiries go through a craigslist.org email address that gets forwarded to you. Protecting your privacy is important and selling through craigslist.org is more private than holding a yard sale.
Safety is another consideration, especially for single women, single moms, or women whose husbands may be out of town for extended lengths of time. Holding a yard sale can put you at risk if there are no other adults around. You do not want to broadcast the fact that you are there alone or alone with kids. Craigslist.org removes that situation. Only people that you invite come to your home. You can even agree to meet them at a local McDonalds or some other public place, thus keeping your actual residence private. This is a huge benefit over a yard sale. Personal safety should always be a primary concern. Safe and almost anonymous versus having droves of people come to your home. That is one of the many advantages of using craigslist.org to make money instead of a yard sale or classified ad.
Craigslist.org is free to use for buying and selling items and services. Online auctions sites cost you money. So does posting an ad in the local newspaper. Anytime you can promote a business or sale for free it is a good thing.
Now that you know about the advantages of using craigslist.org to make money, why not give it a try. Pad that bank account and start saving for a better car or perhaps just keep it for a rainy day. Whatever you use it for, you should consider giving craigslist.org a try.
Craigslist for Beginners
(My Original Blog Post: Craigslist for Beginners)
Although Craigslist has been around in one form or another since 1995, there are still some who have no idea how to use Craigslist. These individuals are missing out on a wonderful opportunity to be a part of a growing and continually evolving online community. This community is an excellent resource for finding information, finding jobs, finding friends or dates, making purchases, selling items or discussing important issues. This article will provide a brief introduction to each of the major sections on Craigslist.
Community Section
The community section of Craigslist is very useful for finding a great deal of local information. This may include activities, events, activities and lost and found just to name a few. This is definitely the section to check out if you are looking for things to do or see in a particular area.
Personals Section
The Personals section is where individuals can meet platonic friends or romantic partners. This section is set up with a number of different categories making it possible for both heterosexuals and homosexuals to find potential dates. The personals section is restricted to users over 18 years of age.
Discussion Forums
The discussion forums provide a location for individuals to voice their opinions, answer questions or otherwise exchange information. This section is divided into a number of different categories to make it easier for users to find others who share their interests. Certain categories allow users to post without logging in while other sections require users to log in before posting.
Housing Section
Craigslist’s housing section offers a variety of options related to lodging. Users of this section can find apartments or homes available for rent, sublet opportunities, potential roommate situations, house or apartment swaps, real estate sales, vacation rentals and even storage, parking and office space for rent or sale.
For Sale Section
The for sale section of Craigslist is largely self explanatory. Like most sections, it is divided into a number of different categories. Each of these categories describes the types of items which are offered for sale within the category. Additionally, there is a wanted section where users may post advertisements seeking to purchase particular items. Not all of the items listed in the for sale section require a fee to be paid to receive the item. Some of these items are available for free or in barter situation.
Services Sections
In the services section, service providers may place advertisements for the types of services they offer. Advertisements should be placed in appropriate categories but if there is no appropriate category the advertisement may be placed in the generic small business section.
Jobs Section
The job section is by far the most extensive section on Craigslist. This section is broken down into a number of different categories to make it easier for users to search for potential career matches. Users may find full time as well as part time opportunities in this section as well as telecommute positions and contract positions.
Gigs Section
The gigs section is similar to the jobs section but advertisements in the gigs section are supposed to refer to one time only opportunities as opposed to ongoing work. For example advertisements for volunteer staff needed for a one day event should be placed in the gigs section while advertisements for full time staff positions should be placed in jobs.
Resumes Section
The resumes section enables job seekers to post their resumes. The key to getting noticed in this section is to use a catchy headline for the resume. The resumes are not divided into different categories making it difficult for users to search through these resumes.
Although Craigslist has been around in one form or another since 1995, there are still some who have no idea how to use Craigslist. These individuals are missing out on a wonderful opportunity to be a part of a growing and continually evolving online community. This community is an excellent resource for finding information, finding jobs, finding friends or dates, making purchases, selling items or discussing important issues. This article will provide a brief introduction to each of the major sections on Craigslist.
Community Section
The community section of Craigslist is very useful for finding a great deal of local information. This may include activities, events, activities and lost and found just to name a few. This is definitely the section to check out if you are looking for things to do or see in a particular area.
Personals Section
The Personals section is where individuals can meet platonic friends or romantic partners. This section is set up with a number of different categories making it possible for both heterosexuals and homosexuals to find potential dates. The personals section is restricted to users over 18 years of age.
Discussion Forums
The discussion forums provide a location for individuals to voice their opinions, answer questions or otherwise exchange information. This section is divided into a number of different categories to make it easier for users to find others who share their interests. Certain categories allow users to post without logging in while other sections require users to log in before posting.
Housing Section
Craigslist’s housing section offers a variety of options related to lodging. Users of this section can find apartments or homes available for rent, sublet opportunities, potential roommate situations, house or apartment swaps, real estate sales, vacation rentals and even storage, parking and office space for rent or sale.
For Sale Section
The for sale section of Craigslist is largely self explanatory. Like most sections, it is divided into a number of different categories. Each of these categories describes the types of items which are offered for sale within the category. Additionally, there is a wanted section where users may post advertisements seeking to purchase particular items. Not all of the items listed in the for sale section require a fee to be paid to receive the item. Some of these items are available for free or in barter situation.
Services Sections
In the services section, service providers may place advertisements for the types of services they offer. Advertisements should be placed in appropriate categories but if there is no appropriate category the advertisement may be placed in the generic small business section.
Jobs Section
The job section is by far the most extensive section on Craigslist. This section is broken down into a number of different categories to make it easier for users to search for potential career matches. Users may find full time as well as part time opportunities in this section as well as telecommute positions and contract positions.
Gigs Section
The gigs section is similar to the jobs section but advertisements in the gigs section are supposed to refer to one time only opportunities as opposed to ongoing work. For example advertisements for volunteer staff needed for a one day event should be placed in the gigs section while advertisements for full time staff positions should be placed in jobs.
Resumes Section
The resumes section enables job seekers to post their resumes. The key to getting noticed in this section is to use a catchy headline for the resume. The resumes are not divided into different categories making it difficult for users to search through these resumes.
Advertising On Cragslist
(My Original Blog Post: Advertising On Cragslist)
Advertising on Craigslist is worthwhile for just about any business offering products or services. Whether these products are offered through ecommerce websites or physical stores, the business owners can see financial gains through advertising on Craigslist. Firstly unlike other advertising opportunities there is very little risk involved in posting on Craigslist. With the exception of job postings and housing postings in specific markets, advertising is free on Craigslist. Users are asked to agree to the terms of service of the community and are expected to follow specific guidelines when posting advertisements but there are no financial obligations to those placing advertisements on Craigslist. This means those who post advertisements do not have to be concerned with whether or not the advertisement they place will meet their expectations in terms of sales generated.
Reaching Potential Customers on Craigslist
Another reason why posting advertisements for products or services on Craigslist is so worthwhile is the likelihood of reaching a large audience of potential customers. A review of the Craigslist fact sheet reveals pertinent information regarding the amount of traffic the website receives. According to this information Craigslist receives approximately four billion page views each month with ten million people using Craigslist each month. From these statistics it is clear that advertisements placed on Craiglist are likely to receive at least some attention from potential clients.
With so many visitors using Craigslist each month the advertising possibilities are limitless, however, there are no guarantee any of these visitors will be interested in your products or services. Like any marketing campaign, your advertisements on Craigslist must be intriguing, informative and in a location where you will reach your target audience.
Finding Your Target Audience on Craigslist
We’ve already discussed the number of visitors using Craigslist each month but the key to taking advantage of these numbers is to target your advertising in a way aimed at reaching your target audience as opposed to a wide audience of individuals who have no specific interest in your products or services. It is much more worthwhile to reach a small audience of those with a keen interest in your products or services than to reach a much larger audience of those who are not interested. Those who have an interest in your products or services are your target audience.
The key to reaching your target audience on Craigslist is placing your advertisement in the most appropriate locations. Craigslist has a specific section for businesses to advertise their services. This section is broken down into a number of categories. Those who are in the business of computer repair would be wise to place their advertisement in the computer section as opposed to the automotive section because individuals looking for computer help will naturally migrate to the computer section. It may sometimes be appropriate to place an advertisement in more than one section. This is acceptable as long as it does not cross the line to spamming the section.
If there is not a specific section for the products or services offered by your business there are a couple of options. Business owners can place an advertisement in the section for small business advertisements where it might be found by those doing a search in this section. Alternately the business owner can contact Craigslist to suggest the addition of a new category. They might be willing to oblige if they believe this category warrants an addition.
The Difference between Advertising and Spamming
Advertising on Craigslist is one thing but spamming is quite another. Placing an advertisement in an appropriate section of Craigslist is acceptable; however, placing the same advertisement in nearly every section of Craigslist websites for a number of different geographical regions is considered spam. Spam is ineffective for a number of reasons. First of all potential customers who see a particular advertisement in a number of different locations are likely to recognize the spamming techniques and be less inclined to patronize this business. Also, if Craigslist detects the practice of spamming they may delete all of the postings and could potentially ban advertisements from the individual in the future.
Advertising on Craigslist is worthwhile for just about any business offering products or services. Whether these products are offered through ecommerce websites or physical stores, the business owners can see financial gains through advertising on Craigslist. Firstly unlike other advertising opportunities there is very little risk involved in posting on Craigslist. With the exception of job postings and housing postings in specific markets, advertising is free on Craigslist. Users are asked to agree to the terms of service of the community and are expected to follow specific guidelines when posting advertisements but there are no financial obligations to those placing advertisements on Craigslist. This means those who post advertisements do not have to be concerned with whether or not the advertisement they place will meet their expectations in terms of sales generated.
Reaching Potential Customers on Craigslist
Another reason why posting advertisements for products or services on Craigslist is so worthwhile is the likelihood of reaching a large audience of potential customers. A review of the Craigslist fact sheet reveals pertinent information regarding the amount of traffic the website receives. According to this information Craigslist receives approximately four billion page views each month with ten million people using Craigslist each month. From these statistics it is clear that advertisements placed on Craiglist are likely to receive at least some attention from potential clients.
With so many visitors using Craigslist each month the advertising possibilities are limitless, however, there are no guarantee any of these visitors will be interested in your products or services. Like any marketing campaign, your advertisements on Craigslist must be intriguing, informative and in a location where you will reach your target audience.
Finding Your Target Audience on Craigslist
We’ve already discussed the number of visitors using Craigslist each month but the key to taking advantage of these numbers is to target your advertising in a way aimed at reaching your target audience as opposed to a wide audience of individuals who have no specific interest in your products or services. It is much more worthwhile to reach a small audience of those with a keen interest in your products or services than to reach a much larger audience of those who are not interested. Those who have an interest in your products or services are your target audience.
The key to reaching your target audience on Craigslist is placing your advertisement in the most appropriate locations. Craigslist has a specific section for businesses to advertise their services. This section is broken down into a number of categories. Those who are in the business of computer repair would be wise to place their advertisement in the computer section as opposed to the automotive section because individuals looking for computer help will naturally migrate to the computer section. It may sometimes be appropriate to place an advertisement in more than one section. This is acceptable as long as it does not cross the line to spamming the section.
If there is not a specific section for the products or services offered by your business there are a couple of options. Business owners can place an advertisement in the section for small business advertisements where it might be found by those doing a search in this section. Alternately the business owner can contact Craigslist to suggest the addition of a new category. They might be willing to oblige if they believe this category warrants an addition.
The Difference between Advertising and Spamming
Advertising on Craigslist is one thing but spamming is quite another. Placing an advertisement in an appropriate section of Craigslist is acceptable; however, placing the same advertisement in nearly every section of Craigslist websites for a number of different geographical regions is considered spam. Spam is ineffective for a number of reasons. First of all potential customers who see a particular advertisement in a number of different locations are likely to recognize the spamming techniques and be less inclined to patronize this business. Also, if Craigslist detects the practice of spamming they may delete all of the postings and could potentially ban advertisements from the individual in the future.
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