Craigslist – All you need to know

There are few people who are aware of online classified advertisements but have not heard of Craigslist. Craigslist is a network that joins various online communities that feature free classifieds. For almost anything anyone requires, Craigslist can be used to find it. For houses, rentals, jobs, personals, selling or buying, resume services, discussion forums, communities etc., Craigslist has classified advertisements for all of them.

Craigslist was started in 1995 by Craig Newmark. Initially, it consisted of an email distribution list of friends and also featured local events held in the area of San Francisco. In 1996, it became a web based service. It became a for profit private company in 1999 and expanded to other cities in the United States.

• 2000 – Craigslist spread to Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland, New York, Seattle, Washington, D. C., Sacramento and San Diego.
• 2001 - Craigslist spread to Austin, Atlanta, Vancouver and Denver.
• 2004 – Amsterdam, Paris, Bengaluru, Tokyo and Sao Paolo were accessed by Craigslist.
• 2008 – 500 other cities in 50 countries across the world were included in the Craigslist business.

As of now, in 2009, Craigslist is present in more than 570 cities worldwide.

What does Craigslist do?

It earns revenue from paid advertisements in the cities it is present in. It is one of the most popular websites across the world and has more than an average of 20 billion page views in a month. As per Alexa, it is the 22nd most popular website in the world and ranks eighth among websites in the United States.

Every month, Craigslist receives more than 40 million new classifieds. No other website or other medium of advertisements in the similar line of business even come closer in terms of number of new ad listings. Craigslist is also one of the most popular job listing sites in the world and receives more than 1 million new job listings in a month.

Craigslist, as it can be seen from the previous few sentences, is the most popular advertisement medium in the world. You will have entries in Craigslist for every conceivable product and service that you can think of. Craigslist gives you a great opportunity to find products and services locally and buying them without any hassle.

Craigslist is slightly different from other online websites in the sense that it does not help in the transportation of goods from one city to another if the buyer and seller are not located in the same city. People who make the transaction are expected to take care of the transportation too. Hence, Craigslist marks its presence in so many cities in the world so that products and services can be procured locally.

When you buy or sell something in Craigslist, it is a possibility that you never come face to face with the seller or the buyer. However, like any other business, it is good to maintain a positive relationship with other Craigslist users you have done business with. Craigslist follows some universal rules and etiquette.

• When you are contacting some other Craigslist user through phone or email, make sure that you are polite.
• When it comes to haggling for a product or service, Craigslist is not the place to be. Yes, it does help when you haggle but don’t overdo it. If you think that the seller is asking too much for a product, then ignore that seller and move on to other sellers. They are plenty of them available on Craigslist.
• When you don’t get a response from sellers, don’t go after their life. Contact them once and let them know about your interest in their product. If they get back to you, well and good. If they don’t, then move elsewhere.
• If you are Craigslist, then be prepared to finish the transaction quickly. Craigslist users prefer customers who choose fast and settle the deal fast. Don’t spend too much time deciding or you may create a bad name for yourself.
• Make a lasting impression by adding a thank you after you conclude a deal. You never know when you may need to contact the same seller again.

As with any other online shopping website, you as a buyer need to keep your eyes open when you are looking to buy something through Craigslist. Buyers and sellers converge on Craigslist from all over the world and there are bound to be some frauds among them. However, when you know the following tricks, you will find it easy to track a fraudulent seller.

• Improper local language – There may be sellers who will claim that they are present in your city when they are actually located in some other part of the world. Some of them will converse in improper local language. When they speak in an improper local language or use wrong grammar and spellings in their email, you may want to check them out before you make a payment.
• Mail option – Some sellers will tell you that they cannot deliver the purchased item locally and can only send it through post. Craigslist encourages local buying and selling. You may want to purchase a product from another country or city but do that at your own risk. Check for the authenticity of the seller before you make the payment. The seller might just vanish after taking your money.
• Car shipping frauds – Craigslist, through its website, continuously warns its users that car shipping cases are likely to be scams. If a seller tells you that he or she will transport the car and take care of the transportation charge, beware! The seller may give you an excuse that they are going out for a vacation and so on. Since they dangle the carrot in front of you, you may think you are getting a great deal. But the whole deal may be a scam.
• Preference – Some sellers may say that they have multiple buyers vying for their product and they are going to offer it to you on a preferential basis. Back out immediately. Craigslist sellers sell on a first come first serve basis and no one has time to analyze buyers and create their favorite list.
• Wire transfers – Another warning from Craigslist states that wired transactions are scams. Some sellers may give you a story and tell you that they are facing some problem with their bank and can only accept wired money. Don’t even think about it. You may want to pay by cash, cheque or Paypal.

When you are aware of these issues, you are bound to have a wonderful experience with Craigslist. You may like an item on Craigslist and then pay a visit to the seller to see the item and even buy it. There is no need to travel unnecessarily.

Craigslist is also open 24 hours a day and you can browse through your product requirement right at the middle of the night. You can also haggle to an extent and get a good deal by comparing prices of similar products. There is also a free section in Craigslist which you may want to browse through.

With so many advantages and a worldwide reputation, Craigslist is certainly a great place to visit and shop from. Check it out and get the beat deals for yourself.

Tags: Craigslist