Article Treasure Cove

While online classified ad sites such as Craigslist are popular, newspaper advertising continues to be the most effective way to reach quality readers.

Craigslist is a mostly free classified advertisement site. Begun in 1995 by Craig Newmark, the site has grown to include 550 cities and 50 countries, according to the company’s website. While residents of large cities have their own dedicated sites, smaller communities across the United States have been overlooked by online classified sites. Unless you live in or around a larger metropolitan area, Craigslist is not an effective tool for selling items or doing local recruiting. newspaper advertising and free weekly shopper papers are still the best classified advertisements for people who want results.

• Even in this technological age, not everyone has a computer and those who do still may not have heard of Craigslist or is comfortable doing business online. But they likely read the local newspaper and pick up their free weekly shopper papers each week. If they are looking for an item or service in their community, they will look in the newspaper or in the free weekly shopper papers.

• Craigslist ads can be “flagged.” This means that someone, for any reason, can mark your ad as miscategorized, prohibited, or label it in a variety of other ways. Many times the classified postings are removed from the site without notification to the advertiser. Once your ad is in a newspaper or pennysaver and other free community papers, it cannot be removed!

• WIth Craigslist, you have to set up an account. This not only takes time but leaves your personal information on a server somewhere where it could be sold or accessed by hackers for improper use. Compare this to a quick email or phone call to a local newspaper or reputable agency who will assist you in a personal manner and safeguard your private information.

• You won’t be spammed when you run newspaper classified advertising or classified in a pennysaver and other free community papers. To Craiglist’s credit, you can run your ad blind and not include your email address or phone number. This will help minimize the possibility that your personal information will get into the hands of people who will bombard you with unwanted and unsolicited advertisements. Still, there is a risk of getting unsolicited email no matter how you place your ad.

If you wish to have your classified online, many newspapers and pennysaver and other free community papers also have websites. More and more print publications are posting the ads online at no additional charge, or for a small fee. Craigslist does not offer a tangible print publication!

Craigslist is not the only site offering free classified ads. New sites are appearing every day and some are catering to smaller communities. Some communities are creating their own online classifieds. Still, when it comes to selling, buying, or looking for a job in your local community,newspaper advertising or free weekly shopper classified advertising is the best way to guarantee that the people you wish to target will see your ads.

To learn more about the many opportunities that are available nationwide in newspaper classified advertising contact AdvertisingResults.com