Online Selling Practices - Craigslist etc. Rant!

[aczlan]

I believe they charge for employment ads as well in some cities.

I looked it up and here are their charges:

All craigslist postings are free, except for:
1. Job postings in SF Bay Area—$75 per job per category (e.g. 1 job in 2 categories is $150).
2. Job postings in the following areas—$25 per job per category (e.g. 1 job in 2 categories is $50):
Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Central NJ, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Fort Myers, Hawaii, Houston, Indianapolis,Inland Empire, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Long Island, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Hampshire, New York City, Norfolk, North Jersey, Oklahoma City, Orange County, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Raleigh, Richmond VA, Sacramento, St. Louis , San Antonio, San Diego, Seattle, South Florida, South Jersey, Tampa, Tulsa, Vancouver BC, Washington DC.
3. Brokered apartment rentals in New York City—$10.
4. Therapeutic services in the United States—$10 (reposting of live ads $5).
5. Tickets by-dealer in the United States—$5.
6. Cars/trucks by-dealer in the United States—$5.

Aaron Z

 

[Sprinklerman]

If a deal on craigs looks too good to be true , I go on onecraigs.com and look for the same thing , when I see the same pic and same add in 5 different cities , its a scam. Or when something is for sale in annapolis and there is a picture with mountains in the background , another sacm . When in the reply is a phone number with an out of state area code ,many states away , its a scam .


Here is a reply I got today from an add

can you spear me your time to join me at McDonald this noon 2pm eastern timeGMT-5 if you can not meet up now you can talk to me or my son on nasirabu105@gmail.co now so that he can talk to you further concerning the lowest price we can afford

Sent from my personalized C Spire Galaxy S 4


He doesnt know where I live , there are 6 mcdonalds within 5 miles , I am in the eastern time zone , Really ? The lowest price you can afford ? what free?

 

[xzcVAbc5]

When in the reply is a phone number with an out of state area code ,many states away , its a scam .

Not always. Mobile phones move around the country and change addresses without changing phone numbers. It is something to watch though.

 

[Sprinklerman]

Not always. Mobile phones move around the country and change addresses without changing phone numbers. It is something to watch though.

True , but when they go along with a 2 year old 45 hp kubota tractor for $3500. it makes you wonder

 

[aczlan]

Not always. Mobile phones move around the country and change addresses without changing phone numbers. It is something to watch though.

Ayep. I have family members who have cell phones with 4 consecutive numbers with an area code of where they were in 2004. They keep them (even though they have lived in 2-3 states since) because they are memorable and easy to remember.

Aaron Z

 

[Gittyup]

True , but when they go along with a 2 year old 45 hp kubota tractor for $3500. it makes you wonder

If it's too good to be true, it's not true. I don't even read this ads. I just flag for removal.

 

[xzcVAbc5]

Here's a perfect example of a bad CL ad.

1) No details
2) Parked in tall grass
3) Phone number does not include area code. In this case it's probably 785 or 913.
4) No price

I wish Frank luck on selling that POS.

 

[DavesTractor]

Another annoying deal is a brief listing on a highly modified vehicle with the phrase "too much to list". Oh really? Words are free on CL, in reality it should say "too lazy to give details".

Another annoyance would be some fairly special piece of equipment or car with a description that we must see it to believe it....with no pictures. Come on folks, pictures are free and we want them.

Another pet peeve is when buying vehicles and the seller only talks about the stereo system, and goes on and on about every detail of it. Never mind that we don't know what engine or transmission or how many miles....but by golly, it's got big sub-woofers.

The good news about all the poor sellers is that with a little effort you can be a much better seller than average and have better results. Clear complete details, good pictures, good contact info and you are golden.

And "brakes" stop a car, not "breaks". And "except" and "accept" are not the same. And there is no such thing as an automatic "transmition".

And going on about not wanting spam....does that really help?

 

[Garandman]

I had one instance while selling a tractor that needed work, person called basically telling me all he would pay for it was scrap price, and got rather nasty with me when I told him he was nut's.I basically told him to quit wasting both of our time and to go pound sand. About an hour later all heck broke loose on my phone,for about two and a half hour's the dang thing wouldn't quit ringing to the point I couldn't even make a call. I finally noticed all of the call's coming in had a Texas area code and I couldn't figure out why when I am in E Ok/W Ar area. I finally asked one of the caller's why they were calling from Tx ? I guess the loose term here "Gentleman" took my ad and listed it in the free section in Dallas/Ft worth area..

....And you had his # as well....

Last summer I put my Subaru WRX up for sale on CL. Three young men drove it, all of whom lived and worked in the suburbs. All three said they didn't think they could handle the clutch in rush hour traffic. I'm 61 and live in Boston. Wimps.

If you want real fun, try selling a motorcycle on CL. I had a Harleyt Roadster and a guy called me up and said he'd pay asking price and would be there in a couple hours. Then he emailed me that his wife wouldnt let him buy it. I sold it on eBay so I wouldn't have to talk to any more wannabe HD owners. A school teacher from Maine bought it, and showed up in full HD uniform: black tshirt, jeans, black boots, a bandanna - and a pickup. :laughing:

Listed a pristine, low mileage Suzuki SV650SF for the asking price of $4,000. The first three to contact me offered $2,500 to $3,000. The 4th guy emailed that he was a new rider, heard this was a good choice and the price seemed reasonable. Sold it to him, rode it to his house, and threw in a cover and some armored riding gloves.

 

[xzcVAbc5]

Another annoying deal is a brief listing on a highly modified vehicle with the phrase "too much to list". Oh really? Words are free on CL, in reality it should say "too lazy to give details".

The one that makes me laugh every time I read it is "Invested $XXXXX. Must sacrifice $YYYY."