Advertising on CL

J

JBs

New member
is advertising on craigslist effective? has anyone had any good experience with it in the past?



i am planning on putting a few details (not the car ones lol) and prices, then a link to my site.



thanks
 
CL is the biggest bargain shopping that is for free. You better be willing give the lowest prices in order to compete with the low ballers.



The only thing I did great with on craigslist was selling heavy equipment
 
rydawg said:
CL is the biggest bargain shopping that is for free. You better be willing give the lowest prices in order to compete with the low ballers.



The only thing I did great with on craigslist was selling heavy equipment
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Yup, honestly is your work like the work that's advertised on CL?
 
You need to decide if Craigs list users are your target market. They sure arnt mine.



If your not sure run a few test ads. It is free so you have nothing to lose.
 
^^^^^^ all said and hold true for the majority...but then there are other who understand what detailing is if you talk to them on the phone...



I placed an ad and 2 hours later got a call, talked a bit, set prices, and booked three of their cars for my original prices, not lower ones!



time placing the ad: 10 min

profits: over $600



worth it...yep!
 
We have a an ad on there and get lots of emails back. They never complain with price and we have even got multiple of referrals off of it.
 
I have approximately 275 to 300 cinder blocks for sale. They are standard 8"x8"x16". They cost about $1.75 plus delivery fees if you buy them somewhere else. I'm asking $1.00 per block.



You pick them up and move them yourself.



Please don't waste my ****ing time with those endless emails. These are plain old cinderblocks, for **** sake. You don't need to do an engineering study on the feasibility of using these ****ing things as building material. That's what they're for, you ****ing idiots. Now listen, we're all busy people here. You want the blocks? Come get the ****ing blocks and give me 1 dollar for every block you take. How ****ing hard is that? You don't have to tell me what you're building. I don't give a ****. I just want to get these ****ing things off my property. So if you want them, get the the **** over here with some money and take them. The next ****ing moron that emails me with "I'm building a blah blah blah, and was wondering if..." The answer is NO. Come get the ****ing blocks and build it yourself. If I knew how to do masonry, don't you think I'd be using the blocks myself instead of selling them for half ****ing price? What the **** is wrong with you people? The next one of you ****ing *******es that emails me with some sob-story ******** is getting his email address added to the North American Man/Boy Love Association list.



You want the blocks? Come get the blocks, and don't **** with me!
 
Craigslist is probably the best return on investment (time and money) among all advertising options.



You can separate yourself from the entry level detailers by:



1. Including a professional looking logo.

2. Providing many before/after photos of your work

3. Providing a picture of your work rig or shop...even yourself.

4. Providing testimonials

5. Posting your ad to the top of the list every day. This is critical--after two days, your ad is buried and ignored.



I know detailers who book $1k - $5k off Craigslist monthly depending on the season.
 
BradUF said:
I have approximately 275 to 300 cinder blocks for sale. They are standard 8"x8"x16". They cost about $1.75 plus delivery fees if you buy them somewhere else. I'm asking $1.00 per block.



You pick them up and move them yourself.



Please don't waste my ****ing time with those endless emails. These are plain old cinderblocks, for **** sake. You don't need to do an engineering study on the feasibility of using these ****ing things as building material. That's what they're for, you ****ing idiots. Now listen, we're all busy people here. You want the blocks? Come get the ****ing blocks and give me 1 dollar for every block you take. How ****ing hard is that? You don't have to tell me what you're building. I don't give a ****. I just want to get these ****ing things off my property. So if you want them, get the the **** over here with some money and take them. The next ****ing moron that emails me with "I'm building a blah blah blah, and was wondering if..." The answer is NO. Come get the ****ing blocks and build it yourself. If I knew how to do masonry, don't you think I'd be using the blocks myself instead of selling them for half ****ing price? What the **** is wrong with you people? The next one of you ****ing *******es that emails me with some sob-story ******** is getting his email address added to the North American Man/Boy Love Association list.



You want the blocks? Come get the blocks, and don't **** with me!
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I love it!! MAN THAT IS SOOOOOOO FUNNY!!
 
mirrorfinishman said:
As a professional detailing business owner, couldn't you think of better ways of advertising your business without maintaining a direct association with scams and fraud?
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That's really a very narrowminded view of things really. I bet there's a ton of scammers and frauder on this site as well. Ebay is the same way but it's hugely succesful. I don't care what fashion of life you decide to live in there will always be scammers in all of them. Heck Good ol George W holds the most prestigious Job in the nation but I wouldn't trust that idiot scam artist with my kids piggy bank. I honestly think if your smart about it craigs list could prove a very valuable and useful marketing tool. It's not very often anymore one can get anything free anymore. Take advantage of it..
 
I understand the point Frank is trying to make, however, I agree that there are frauds present in every type of advertising media. I think the point is, your potential customer's draw conclusions from your advertising. If you do a cheap looking ad in a pennysaver type of media, you are not going to attract desirable customers.
 
I don't think posting on there could hurt but only if you make it clear you wont do a full detail for 50 bucks.
 
brwill2005 said:
I think the point is, your potential customer's draw conclusions from your advertising. If you do a cheap looking ad in a pennysaver type of media, you are not going to attract desirable customers.
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A wise man once said; show me who your friends are and I will show you who you are. As a detailing business owner, you only get one chance to create a reputation. When you get your name out there in the right places you will begin to form the image of what you want your detailing business to represent in the marketplace and in turn you will begin to attract the clients you desire. Hey, it is much more fun creating an image that is in close association with the advertising and marketing methods used by other successful small business professionals.
 
Yea but to me that seriously sounds like your trying to seperate yourself from common people making it sound like your better than someone else. I personally hate it when I get snubbed down on. I am no better than anyone else that walks this planet and I refuse to treat other people like they are less of a human being and not worth my time or efforts. If you're all about the hoity toytie upscale snub your nose at society because they make more money than the rest of soicety so be it... For me I'd much rather support my own community where I was born and raised. Anyone with a $500 car to a $5,000,000,000 is welcome at my shop and you will always be treated the same regardless. And before you mention that those upscale people would try to shy away seeing how I cater to the cheap side of society is pure bull. I do quite a fair share of the cavaliers and civics and I also have quite a few clientels with Mercades SLR's Vipers, Lexus and the such. And they all come back because I treat them all with the same respect.
 
Jake- In no way is anyone trying to put you down. Frank strongly believes in targeting the higher end detailing market. Obviously, what market you target depends on your geographic location. I always treat all of my customer's the same, however, I would much rather detail nice cars that are always kept in nice condition, as opposed to cars that have been trashed for years and years. I also do not like to deal with people that do not value quality auto detailing, and unfortunately certain advertising media attracts those types of customers.
 
Jakerooni said:
Yea but to me that seriously sounds like your trying to seperate yourself from common people making it sound like your better than someone else.
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Actually, you have got it a bit backwards Jake. I am not trying to separate myself from the common people. Plenty of my clients drive everyday cars. What I have been successful in doing is keeping the image of my detailing business separate from many of the other car care businesses out there. Especially the people who mass market and think they can be all things to all people. Like I said before, it is all about the way you advertise and market your business that will separate your business from your competition and help you attract the clients you desire.
 
brwill2005 said:
Jake- In no way is anyone trying to put you down. Frank strongly believes in targeting the higher end detailing market. Obviously, what market you target depends on your geographic location. I always treat all of my customer's the same, however, I would much rather detail nice cars that are always kept in nice condition, as opposed to cars that have been trashed for years and years. I also do not like to deal with people that do not value quality auto detailing, and unfortunately certain advertising media attracts those types of customers.
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Exactly, most people with a Honda Civic drive their car 30k miles before an oil change and never wash it and if they do it they make sure to install swirls.
 
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