How to Stop Getting Flagged on Craigslist – Small Business …
Craigslist’s classifieds service can be a valuable tool in any small business owner’s advertising exposure plan. According to Craigslist, the site experiences monthly traffic of approximately 50 billion page views. Accidental and malicious flagging, though, can cause difficulties. As flagging is performed by Craigslist’s automated system and staff, and other users, you can’t permanently stop all flagging, but you can take certain actions to limit it. Follow Craigslist’s Guidelines Ads are often flagged because they fail to meet Craigslist’s Terms of Service and other guidelines. For example, Craigslist doesn’t want you to post about auctions, bidding or business opportunities involving multi-level marketing, club membership recruitment or up front investments. Ads offering prohibited items, such as weapons, alcohol, tobacco, drugs or hazardous materials are also flagged. Additionally, Craigslist requires that you post in the correct category. Post ads for services under the “Service Offered” option and job opportunities under the “Job Offered” or “Gig Offered” options. To post about an employment-related event, such as a job fair, use the “Events” option. Stop Spammy Behavior Craigslist warns users that it won’t tolerate spam, such as identical or almost identical ads posted in multiple geographic locations, or at the same time, in one area under different categories. Pick one local city or area and one category for your ad and wait at least 48 hours between each new ad posting. If you need wider coverage, Craigslist states in its FAQ that you should take the ad elsewhere. Additionally, never post a phone number containing an odd combination of text and numbers, such as phone number “5five5-one21two. ” Craigslist flags this activity because spammers use this method to try to stop its automated system and staff from detecting their ads. Change Ad Format and Wording Use of text formatting that is too commercial often results in flagging. For example, limit use of ALL CAPS and symbols in the post title and ad text, and sales language meant to coerce, such as “BUY NOW! ” or “Call NOW! Offer ends TODAY!. ” Additionally, triple-check the wording you use to present your service and remove any language that makes your ad seem deceptive or unclear. Ads with similar wording to other user ads are also often flagged. Review the ads in the Services Offered sub-category where you originally posted your ad and then rewrite your ad as needed. Report Flagging Problems Craigslist recommends that you ask other users in the Help Forum (link in Resources) to review and offer advice about a flagged ad before contacting the company. If you still believe a flagging error occurred, use the “Contact Us” form (link in Resources). Pick “Harassment/Flagging” and then “My ad was flagged off and it abides by the terms of use. ” Provide all requested information and then click “Send Email Message. ” Some Craigslist posters flag their competitors’ ads. If you believe a competitor flagged your ad, obtain the posting ID beneath one of his ads and enter it, along with his name and contact information, in the “Describe the Issue” section before you submit the form. Disclaimer Information in this article applies to Craigslist as of November 2013. References Resources Writer Bio Based in Southern Pennsylvania, Irene A. Blake has been writing on a wide range of topics for over a decade. Her work has appeared in projects by The National Network for Artist Placement, the-phone-book Limited and GateHouse Media. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Shippensburg University.
5 Strategies to Prevent Getting Flagged on Craigslist
The Costs & Benefits of Craigslist Advertising
There’s no question that car dealers see huge benefits from advertising their inventory on Craigslist. Dealers who post their new and used cars on Craigslist can successfully drive direct traffic to their website and gain leads from telephone calls and online contact forms. But Craigslist marketing can also cost you: dealers have to find time to manually post their cars and optimize how regularly they re-post. Preventing listings from getting flagged is another major problem for many managers, and it becomes costly for dealerships to repost ads on a daily basis. On top of getting your posts flagged and removed by random Craigslist users, you also have to be wary of competitors who may use black hat tactics like a program to automatically flag Craigslist posts. To avoid having your Craigslist posts flagged, follow these best practice strategies.
Strategy #1: Spread Out Your Craigslist Posting Over Several Days
Depending on your target area, every one of your posts stays live between 7-45 days. For dealerships with a large inventory of cars, it’s best to set up a schedule to spread out your Craigslist posting over several days. This practice regulates the frequency of posting, and prevents flooding Craigslist with your posts, which is often the key reason why listings are flagged for removal or “ghosted”. When a post is ghosted, it means Craigslist receives the listing but does not post it live on the website. A post can also get flagged or ghosted if you list a car that already has a live ad, so it’s best to keep track of your vehicles over a period of time before you post it.
Strategy #2: Post Less Than Your Full Inventory
If you’re trying to post your entire inventory on Craigslist, then your posts will most likely get flagged. Smaller car dealers can get away with listing their entire inventory on Craigslist if they have anywhere between 20 to 100 cars and distribute their posts across different areas and over several days. Larger auto dealers using Craigslist will need to patiently post a fraction of their full inventory during each period, and list a maximum of 80% of their used inventory.
Strategy #3: Use Multiple Unique IP Addresses
Craigslist automatically monitors the IP addresses of where posts originate, so if they notice that too many posts are coming from the same IP, then those listings will get flagged for removal. Craigslist does this to prevent one person from spamming their site with too many ads at once. Many car dealers at single locations only have one IP address to work with, so using the same IP address to post on Craigslist is often the cause of flagged posts. To aggressively advertise on Craigslist, you will need use multiple unique IP addresses. You can do this manually, or make use of an automated Craigslist posting service to do it for you.
Strategy #4: Post At Random Times and Strategize for High Traffic Days
Aggressive competitors from the same area may try to use an automated Craigslist flagging program to have your listings taken down. But to use these programs, they’ll have to find and insert the specific URL of the listing into the program. When you post early in the morning or late at night, you make it more difficult for people to directly target your posts. You can post at random times before high traffic days like Friday, Saturday and Sundays to avoid getting flagged by competitors. This also helps you target the days when many customers are on Craigslist searching for cars.
Strategy #5: Use Non-Identifiable Text and Vary Your URLs
The only way an automatic flagging program works is if it has your Craigslist post URL. Others can find your Craigslist posts by doing direct searches for your dealership’s name in the body of your listings. If you include your dealership’s name in either a URL or text-based content within your posts, then those listings have a chance of getting targeted by anyone trying to flag your posts. Instead, use image-based templates that include your dealership name, phone number, and location. Car buyers searching for specific car models can still see everything in your ad, but make it harder for anyone specifically trying to search for your dealership.
The Complete Solution: Using an Automated Craigslist Posting Service
These five strategies can dramatically decrease how often your Craigslist posts are flagged. The longer your listings stay live, the less time you spend posting each and every car in your inventory. Auto dealers that have a large inventory will naturally see higher costs to listing their cars on Craigslist, because it takes more time to deploy these strategies to make sure your posts stay online. For this reason, many large dealerships have chosen to pay for Craigslist posting services. The best Craigslist posting services are systems that help make sure most of your inventory is posted without getting removed or ghosted. Larger dealers who want to optimize selling cars on Craigslist often find that these distribution services are more cost-effective compared to manually listing and monitoring posts one car at a time.
Autofusion only posts on Craigslist for car dealerships.
6 Ways to Avoid Ghosting on Craigslist – Knock CRM
It is undeniable that Craigslist is an essential channel for multifamily property managers because it is a free channel that prospects regularly visit as they look for new apartments. However, it may not seem so “free” when leasing agent time is spent posting and that post is flagged or deleted by Craigslist – a practice known as “ghosting. ” When a post is ghosted, your ad will be visible from your account but will be hidden from public view. Unfortunately, when it comes to posting to Craigslist, there are many things completely outside of anyone’s control. Ghosting happens to be one of them, but we have pulled together some helpful information on how to avoid this. Please keep in mind these are just tips and there are no guarantees – but this will give you the best shot of your posts being seen by prospects! Things to be aware of when it comes to Craigslist flagging and moderation: There is a very active moderation community on CL. These are Craigslist users that review posts, looking for any content that (they perceive) violates the Craigslist terms of use: There are paid services that specialize in flagging posts (their goal is to flag all posts so only their customer’s posts are the only ones left! ) Craigslist utilizes their own manual and automated moderation tools. The exact methods they use are private, but see tips below There is a wide belief that users who have their posts flagged and removed have a lower flagging threshold in the future. This makes it very important to prevent getting these 6 suggestions to avoid your craigslist posts being flagged. 1. Don’t post the same/similar unit more than once per 48 hoursYou are only able to post to the same city / category once every 48 hours for the same item. If the price range is close / identical, it could be perceived as posting the same item. 2. Don’t post repetitive content. This includes:The same body of the ad, including a description or special. You should also avoid posting the same set of photos. Just re-arrange the photo orders, and don’t use more than 8-10. 3. Don’t promote your community, instead promote your unitCraigslist is a marketplace to buy and sell, not advertise. So, ads that aren’t specific in what they are selling, or if there is a “bait and switch”, a post may get flagged for removal. 4. Don’t use spammy or salesy wordsWhile such language doesn’t violate Craigslist Terms of Use, spammy language is often cited as a reason for community moderators to flag posts. 5. Don’t leave out key informationWhile there are no rules on what is required in an ad (other than what is required in the posting process), community moderators often flag posts that are not descriptive of the item (unit) being offered. 6. Don’t over-stylize your adsThis includes using multiple font sizes, bold fonts, underlined fonts, italics, and unnecessary capitalization. While stylizing ads doesn’t violate Craigslist Terms of Use, over-stylized posts may be perceived as coming from a template, which may attract more nclusionFollowing these six steps will give you the best chance of your posts being seen by prospects looking for a new apartment. If you want to learn more about how to better optimize Craigslist content to improve conversion within the channel, check out our post on how to Up Your Craigslist more tips like these, sign up for Knock’s newsletter.
Frequently Asked Questions about why do ads get flagged on craigslist
Why are my Craigslist ads being flagged immediately?
Craigslist automatically monitors the IP addresses of where posts originate, so if they notice that too many posts are coming from the same IP, then those listings will get flagged for removal. Craigslist does this to prevent one person from spamming their site with too many ads at once.
How do I stop getting flagged on Craigslist?
Follow these 6 suggestions to avoid your craigslist posts being flagged.Don’t post the same/similar unit more than once per 48 hours. … Don’t post repetitive content. … Don’t promote your community, instead promote your unit. … Don’t use spammy or salesy words. … Don’t leave out key information. … Don’t over-stylize your ads.
What happens if your Craigslist post is flagged?
Free classified ads sufficiently flagged are subject to automated removal. Postings may also be flagged for removal by CL staff or CL automated systems. Millions of ads are removed by flagging monthly, nearly all of which violate the CL terms of use.