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Since 50% of your revenue comes from Craigslist, it's without a doubt the most useful marketing tool in your bag. I have found that posting about 7 ads a day is the "sweet spot" in terms of getting phone calls without getting too many flags. Craigslist is monitored by the community which means that if someone doesn't like your posting, they have the ability to flag it. Flagging means your post is removed but you still have access to Craigslist. You will get about 4 flags a week. Sometimes, you will get someone with a bug up their butt and they will flag all 7 of your postings for that day (usually by a real estate agent). Don't take it personally. Eventually, they will give up because they will discover that you intend to stay for the long haul. If you are flagged by a Craigslist staff member you need to contact me immediately!
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| Log into Craigslist |
| Create an Account |
If you don't already have an account, click here to create one. |
Verify Log In
(upper right corner) |
Craigslist will keep you logged in for about 2 weeks so you can usually skip the process of logging in. |
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| Find Properties to Post |
- Log into the remote data base (button labeled "Open Remote Data Base"
- Navigate to your area.
- Click on "Craigslist Posting"
This script brings up properties that are active AND properties that haven't been posted in the last 5 days.
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If you get this message, don't panic. It just means that you don't have anything to post. Hit "Continue," go drink a beer and come back tomorrow.
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Click on the button "Post"
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- The data base will launch your browser and open the posting section of Craigslist Rentals.
- FYI - I found that posting in the "Real Estate for Sale" section is a waste of time.
- Put the curser in the body of the posting aka "Posting Description"
- Paste the contents (ctl V or fn V on your keyboard)
- Scroll to the top of the body.
- Copy & paste the amount, headline, cross street and then select the number of bedrooms as shown above.
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- Scroll to the bottom of the posting page.
- Select "Do Not Show any email..." This will reduce the amount of spam you get. Your email will appear in the middle of the advertisement.
- Leave Address & Cross street blank. Already taken care of.
- Select Cats & Dogs to get more prospects
- Select "Add Images"
- "Browse" to the artwork I provide you with (example below)
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- Type in the secret phrase they have garbled up
- Hit "Continue"
You will get a screen "Congratulations - blah blah blah" click back to Filemaker and repeat! |
| Trouble Shooting |
| The "Front Page" picture doesn't appear. This means your primary photo link is not correct. You will need to go to the web site to find the link to the primary photo of the property. Once you have the link, go fix it in the data base and then go back to Craigslist and edit your posting. |
| Craigslist claims you have a duplicate posting. This happens frequently with properties that are on the same street or have similar profiles. One of these days I will figure this problem out. I suspect this is an unsolvable problem as Craigslist frequently changes their algorithms to detect duplicate postings. In summary - nothing you can do. |
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| Tips |
Headlines. You need to know that the headline in the data base is the same headline used in Craigslist. This means your headline can't be too long. The data base attempts to keep the string short but my system isn't perfect, you may have to shorten your headline to make it fit Craigslist. Try to make your headline unique "beautiful floors, great paint scheme, park nearby" and avoid generic "Gorgeous home with 3 bedrooms." In fact, don't put anything in the headline that will be noted in the property summary.
Inactive Properties: You can cheat a bit by posting "Inactive Properties." Just be prepared for pissed off and/or disappointed callers. To post inactive properties, navigate to the property you want to post, click on the craigslist tab and follow the same procedures. |
| Post new properties immediately. If you don't get activity within a couple of days, this tells you the property is marketed incorrectly. Usually the price is too high. Put in your calendar to follow up a week after posting. You need to keep your seller informed of activity. |
| Check read new properties. I take a second look at the Craiglist posting on a new properties as it gives me a different look at the property. This is where I find most of my mistakes. Common mistakes are the property is in fact a town home and its listed as a home. Another common mistake is forgetting that it has a pool. |
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