Is Craigslist a Viable Marketing Tool?

The word Craigslist conjures up different things to different people. The question arises is it really a viable marketing tool? The answer is yes and no, because it really does depend on what you want to advertise and who your market is.

Craigslist works well for

• A local market: you can only advertise in a local area and you are not allowed to do multiple listings. When you advertise you will be reaching only one city in one state in the USA.
• A broad market: if you are looking for a broad market then this a great way to advertise. You advertise to people who are interested in different things but have found your ad by its classification, so they are targeted but not in a very specialized market.
• Certain items: certain items are categorized and you will do well with these products. However some are not categorized and you may not do as well with these.
• Services: I have had quite a bit of luck with these. Craig’s list works well if your service has a pretty broad market. fir example Yoga, writing services etc.
• Job wanted: this is the original purpose of Craigslist. If you want to hire someone or want to get hired you will find this works well.
• Real estate and renting rooms are popular and do well
• Local businesses will also stand a good chance of doing well. This is because you can pinpoint a certain city and state, which is ideal for local offline businesses.

It does not do well for:

• A global market: because you are limited to only placing local ads you will not reach a global market. For some businesses this will not reach very many people in their market.
• Niche markets: because the ads are usually targeted to a broad local market niche markets do not do as well.
• Some products: some products do not do well on Craigslist. You will need to experiment with different products. If you cannot categorize them you may not want to advertise them.

The good news is that Craigslist is free to advertise so you should give it a try, especially if you are targeting a local market. You should also experiment with certain products and services. Craigslist is a viable form of advertising and as mentioned will cost you nothing. It is simple to sign up and submit your ad. So why not give it a try today and see what works. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.