Questions about Craigslist

[Mr__Bill]

Having an account will allow you to delete the advert and then repost it to move it up in the listing, and do this without retyping it all in. Only the pictures have to be re-uploaded.

You will get a lot of -bot- replies asking you to click on a link or to reply with your real e-mail. They usually are obvious but a pain. I have taken to asking for a phone number that I can use to call they back or I will post a phone number and say that I am only accepting phone calls and that all e-mail goes to spam. Any time I feel it's necessary to respond with an e-mail I use a throwaway e-mail account that I will stop using when the spam gets too heavy.


Bill
any one need a freestanding gas fireplace/heater? I have on on Craig's List

[natausch]

No no, nothing absurd live I've been robbed after someone purchased a tool from me, but the run-around can be quite long.

I shouldn't complain because I've purchased a significant amount of my bench/stationary tools on CL including BT3000, Delta JT 37-190, Ryobi AP1300, Craftsman 12" Band Saw, and 12" Delta DP and odds and ends like a set of CMT panel bits for $20. Last but not least I managed to purchase around 300bf of 1C and FAS Walnut, Cherry and Maple for $400.

All of them have been for a song and when I was able to get the Home Depot deal on Jointer, Band Saw and Drill Press off the old tools went by Craigslist.

In the end I made a small profit on the three tools I sold, in fact bringing the new money out of pocket for upgrading three tools to $25.

Don't get me wrong, I've really benefited from Craigslist. However, if I add up the amount of time spent negotiating viewing times, gas and time spent going to view a tool that isn't the same one in the picture and dealing with scammers I'm not 100% I've gotten as good of a deal as I think I have.

I guess I'm a bit negative on it because I'm starting to get the "not going to work out" on what was listed as a TS3650 but I'm starting to doubt the actual tool is even a ridgid.

[Mrk67mark]

Include pictures! I won't even look at an ad if it doesn't have pics. Just my 2 cents.

[WoodTherapist]

natausch, that is a relief – glad to hear you haven’t been held at gunpoint or anything. I agree that it can take a bit of time but considering the cost avoidance, it has been more than worth it for me. Seems like one of your concerns, and a big concern of some others posting here, is scammers. Maybe I have been lucky but I have not had much of a scammer problem. I can’t see that I’m doing anything different that most others here. For what it is worth, I don’t post my email address or phone number. It doesn’t seem to hinder the process for legitimate buyers and sellers.

mrk67mark, that is an excellent point. I think pictures are a must for a successful ad. And for Pete's sake, rotate them so they are not sideways. It amazes me the number of pictures that are posted sideways.

[drillman88]

I bought my Tablesaw from CL and we rescued a Basset hound through them as well. Both of these went well. I have not sold anything through CL but have sold some through a local weekly trader classified.
There is always a 90% idiot factor when dealing with these type of sales. 75% of the responses have no clue as to what you have or what they want, 10% know what they want but dont have the money, 5% of these will call and want to look but will not show up when they are supposed to or give you the runaround about pricing.
I have sold some things quickly and some take a while. As long as you are patient things will work out.

[gnal41]

A couple of years ago we moved from our old house (41 years) to our present house and during the move we unearthed quite a few unneeded items. My daughter suggested CL and it has been a very useful tool. We have sold over forty items on CL and most went without a hitch. I had just a few no-shows and some Spam. In our case, CL went very well on items we had for sale and also for the few items we purchased. Even though CL is thought of a local buy/sell exchange, I have sold a few items several states away.

These worked well for us:
- good pictures of the item for sale in an uncluttered setting
- use a throw-away email address
- cash is king
- have all your questions answered before you meet buyer or seller
- first come first serve

[cabinetman]

Craigslist charges $25 each for jobs listings in the six largest markets. It's $75 each in San Fran.

So, that's their only source of revenue?
.

[LCHIEN]

Ebay owns 28% of Craigslist. Outbid Google for it. Its not about revenue, its about corporate value and name recognition.