Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Second hand Furniture moving costs

When selling furniture items and heavy or bulky items the transport costs may sometimes put off potential buyers. Beds, washing machines, and lounge sets are difficult items to transport no to mention the damage they may incur when being transported. One solution to this is to advertise all of these goods at the same time, and plan one specific day or weekend that these items can be delivered to cut down on transport costs for both buyers and sellers. These costs are usually covered by the buyer of the goods or furniture.

Friday, August 7, 2009

Online Shoppong with classifieds

A different way of shopping or browsing for your favorite items rather than going shopping at your local mall is to try the internet, which can yield many great bargains if you know where to find them. People are spending a greater part of their time online, and more households have access to the internet, many people are deciding to sell their items or products online with the use of classifieds. Online classifieds are very appealing to anyone who wishes to sell something quickly and without using conventional advertising methods or selling. This provides a new need for bargain hunters to pick up great items at sometimes very cheap prices. Online classifieds provide cost effective advertising mediums for anyone to sell their products and services online, and for bargain hunters the ability to find great bargains online anytime anywhere.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Old records sold through online classifieds

A few days ago I was trying to clean out my shed and came across some old records from the 70’s and 80’s. They are still in good condition and I had an old record player which seemed to work after being in a box for 8 + years. I didn’t realize how much the records were able to fetch until I went online and checked out some prices on an auction site and some major classifieds. Quite amazing was the price range, from one dollar to around forty dollars for some abba greatest hits records and the beetles. I decided to test the waters and advertise a few of these records on some classified sites. I have had a few enquiries and possible leads to sell some of them. The online classifieds are just cost effective and you really can’t loose when you’re able to advertise things for free. House hold goods

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Selling Textbooks online

Current university students will be looking to sell their textbooks from the semester that has just finished through classifieds, notice boards, and bookshops. Classifieds have always been one of the easiest ways to advertise your textbooks online and advertise cost effectively without having to pay fees and commissions. There are several classified sites in Australia and other countries. Some Universities and colleges have their own specialized classified sites where students can advertise and sell their second hand books. This has a downside, you can only advertise your books to students who use that service or site and maybe missing opportunities to sell to other students from different schools that may use the same books. A good site to advertise your textbooks is gopost classifieds.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

University Textbooks online

During the next few months one of the most popular ads we will be seeing on classified notice boards, classifieds websites and newspapers will be the ads relating to second hand textbooks. These become quite common during the end and start of the year and midway through when the second semester starts. With some student starting exams and close to finishing, it is now the best times to start advertising the textbooks that you don't need anymore. This is particularly important if the books that you want to sell are for next semester subjects. Remember to use different advertising channels such as notice boards, community new ads, or online classifieds such as gopost.com.au which is a free online classifieds site that allows you to buy and sell online without any commissions.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Its getting close to exams for Universities

It's that time of the year again when Uni students are under pressure and spending long hours in the library studying hard. At the start of this period it is always good to think about selling your books for the next semester. Start your advertisements off early to gain better chances of selling them
textbooks online

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Selling pets and considerations to have.

When people try and sell their pets they should have several considerations before deciding to sell them. The first and most important should be in finding an acceptable person or family that will be able to take care of them and provide them a nice and comfortable home. The second should be any government or agency registration of the pets. This could include information contained on a micro-chip that is on the dog or cat. The last consideration should be providing the new owners of the pet with the appropriate information on the your pet's feeding habits, toys, and regular activities. These considerations are important to ensure your pet has a smooth transition into his new home.
Buy online

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Mobile Phone classifieds

On several web classified sites I noticed a large number of ads selling mobile phones. These ads are mainly from private sellers who have are trying to sell these handsets. A number of potential issues are important to keep in mind when looking at these ads and deciding to purchase one of these handsets from any classified or auction site. Firstly you must check that the handset can be used in your country and desired network. Some of these advertised phones are locked onto one network or have been bought overseas and sold in another country for a profit. The next major issue is if the mobile phone has been stolen, this may raise ethical and moral issues such as supporting crime. Stolen phones may also be traceable by police or communication industry authorities, and could lead to trouble for the buyer. It is highly important that before to deciding to purchase a mobile phone from any classified ad or auction site, that the origins of the phone be known as well as the reason for the sale of it. At times this may be difficult or sellers may lie and not properly communicate these things to potential buyers. Caution must be exercised when deciding to purchase a second hand mobile phone, as the buyer may face potential legal or moral issues after the purchase has been made.

Car Classifieds

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Garage sales

After reading the local newspaper over the weekend, I noted a few garage sales in my residential area. One of these ads caught my attention due to the ingenious idea that the seller had utilised. He had posted an ad advertising his garage sale but had also put a website reference URL to a classified website where he had advertised most of his big ticket items such as a bar fridge, tumble dryer and queen size bed. This is a great idea as the seller can expose his higher priced items to more potential buyers and he can potentially attract more people to his garage sale. This also allows him to post pictures up on the web where anyone can first have a look at the items as well as a detailed explanation of each item, which is better than a brief sentence or line describing these items in a newspaper classified section. This was a great example of how to use both print and online classifieds together as an effective marketing tool.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Different Item prices in classifieds

Recently I was trying to sell an old mountain bike through classifieds. I advertised this bike both in my local newspaper and in a few online classifieds, all were free sites, but had a fair amount of readers and traffic.
I tried to advertise my item with different prices between print classifieds and the online classifieds. The difference in price ranged from ten to about fifty dollars; the bike was worth around three hundred dollars. After a few hours of posting my ad on these online classifieds, I had already received eight responses to all my different ads and their different prices. Two days later my newspaper classified was published and I received only three responses even though the newspaper classifieds had the lowest prices for the bike. I exchanged some emails with potential buyers from my web classifieds that had the higher advertised prices, including some pics. I then emailed the interested people from the lower priced advertisements and told them that I had offers closer to the higher advertised prices. They all responded back and one way or the other submitted a better price offer, after exchanging more details about the bike through emails. I was then able to sell the bike at the highest price of just over three hundred and fifty dollars.
This example illustrates that classifieds are able to be used to gauge or negotiate an appropriate market price for an item. It can also be used as a bargaining tool for a seller in a similar way to an auction site. This technique also allows sellers to advertise to different group of readers and demographic markets as some users will prefer newsprint over online media classifieds. This also allows the seller to be in control of the transaction price by having multiple offers to select from.
online classified

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Unused airfares advertised in classifieds

I was searching through an online classified site yesterday and noticed that there was an advertisement for a round trip flight from Sydney to Los Angeles. With regarding to “second hand” unused airfares, one must be very careful what is being offered. Most airlines don’t allow or have strict policies regarding name changes once the flight is purchased. And payed for and swapping the name on the ticket can be a costly task or not even possible in some cases. After seeing the classified ad I assumed the ticket was to fly with a major Australian carrier. So I proceeded to the carrier’s website where I scanned through all the conditions of each fare type. The conclusion of all the conditions was that name changes weren’t allowed on any fare not even first class. This is a good example of an ad that could potentially be fake or fraudulent. Before buying something online or inquiring about an item it is best to know exactly what you want, any legal limitations or risk in purchasing the item, and why the seller is selling the specific item. It’s always best to do some research in order to prevent being left short.
Look through classifieds

Monday, May 11, 2009

Advertising on auction sites

Further to my previous post, it is possible in a way to use Auction sites to set up a virtual mini store through which to introduce your products into the marketplace and advertise your brand.In an auction site depending how this is done and the popularity of the site, this may yield mixed results. with a classifieds sites you can expose your brand and product much more freely in different categories without having te sell anything.
classifieds

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Auction sites vs Classifieds

Auction sites allow users to sell their items through an auction online. This provides some benefits and some pitfalls as the transaction of goods and money is partly done online in some cases and can lead to bad experiences of buying things from overseas sellers and not receiving the goods or receiving different or faulty goods. This is one of the trade-offs from being able to quickly buy or sell things online, versus advertising goods and services in a conventional manner on a classifieds website. The advantage of the classified site is that you can provide your preferred contact details and set a price at which your are willing to sell your item. There are many auction sites around some even specialize in a certain region, on some sites you can trade all over the world such as e-bay. Auction sites serve only as buying or selling mediums. Classified sites are more personal advertising mediums and spaces to place your ads to buy an sell goods and services. As I have mentioned in previous posts classifieds can be used as part of an effective marketing strategy, and not just to buy and sell things online.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Analysis of a bad classified

I was scanning through a couple of free online classifieds today and happened to find the following ad in the general section of one of the sites:

Free pets to a caring home family

We are looking for a caring family to adopt a cat and a small Maltese-terrier dog. They are vaccinated and have been taken care of. They must live in separate areas of your house as they quarrel when together. They dog is going to doggie classes and has reached level 2. If you are interested please contact us on #### ####.

I did laugh when I read it I have to admit. What an ad, I hope the advertiser did get a response, even though I doubt anyone would be interested.
When one is selling or offering something, although honesty is the ethical approach, one should be careful in not discouraging potential buyers. The advertiser in this case wants to be honest and express what really the case is but he could have worded it a lot differently. The title of the ad isn’t the best either, it even sounds slightly funny. Maybe something along the lines of Pets seeking a caring home would have been a good alternative to the title. Another pitfall that people can fall into is included information that isn’t the most important or appropriate to grab a buyer’s attention. Although the advertiser’s mistakes seem logical now after reading the ad a few times, people still make these common mistakes when writing their ads.

classified ads

Friday, May 8, 2009

Selling University Textbooks

University textbooks are one of the most common advertised items on classified websites, specially the sites used by students. One of the major drawbacks with used textbooks is that they may become outdated very quickly. Every year it seems like you "need" to buy the new edition. This is just a way to generate more income for publishing houses. The bulk of the new editions only have a few new pages or one new chapter in them and different exercise problems (sometimes). This new edition frenzy also creates a bi backlog of unsold books which are related to one another, the only difference being their publish date.
For those students trying to sell their books after having used them and not wanting them this backlog creates a serious problem as first there is an extraordinary supply of the "same" textbooks on the market, and chances are that next year's class will use a newer edition. How can students advertising their books on second hand classifieds have a chance of selling their old books?
The answer lies in being able to harness the efficiency of online classifieds and other advertising mediums. One strategy could be to start selling your books just after you have completed your exam and advertising them in many places. Most students only advertise their second hand books on bulletin boards or only on A4 flyer posters pasted around the campus. Like any business the best results from marketing and advertising is by using a number of mediums to reach your target audience or buyers. Use the bulletin boards specially the ones near the lecture halls where the class is to be taught. Use online media as much as you can. Some of the best advertising results can be achieved by advertising on free classified websites. These websites can either be specialist textbook websites or general classified sites such as gopost, which is free to use and has a great university and general audience:gopost online classifieds. Use university related blogs and even social websites where you can interact with potential buyers. I have seen so many people try and sell their books without any success mainly because of how they have advertised them. Many didn't even know what classified websites were out there, and some suggested they wouldn't sell anyway!
The advice from my experience is that the more you advertise your books through different mediums, the more exposure you will get and the higher the chance of selling your books. Take advantage of free mediums such as online classifieds and social sites, remember hard work does have rewards and selling your old textbooks is no exception.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Free Advertising Methods

For small business owners, one of the major concerns about either succeeding or failing in a new small business venture is heavily reliant on their marketing strategy.
There are many advertising channels that can expose your business or product to the right consumers or buyers with minimal outlay. Some of these channels include:
Community Billboard Ads
Newspaper classifieds
Online classifieds
Trade magazines or community magazines
Specialty websites or classifieds
Using all or most of these channels can prove to be a success with minimal outlay or tight marketing budgets.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Hobby products advertising on classifieds

I was recently talking to hobby modelist who I have known for a few years. I enquired about his model airplanes and found out that he was in the process of selling some of his designs and models. His main advertising strategy consists of hobby fairs, and online specialist websites. I suggested him to use free classifieds and auction sites as means of advertising his products. He has just recently started this new advertising strategy through classifieds, and has already had many enquiries and interests. I will post further updates relating to his results from classified advertising

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Hobby incomes

Following on from the previous post on people making other income from trade jobs in their free time or from odd jobs on weekends, a recent scan of some classifieds both print and online has found a variety of art crafts and hobby toys being sold by amateur craft makers and hobby enthusiast. There are a few websites dedicated to art crafts and hobby items where people are able to sell their crafts and hobby stuff by paying a small commission. The most cost effective ways to sell them is through free classified sites such as gopost.com.au or ozfreeonline. These classified websites allow you to post ads for free and they have a decent audience and traffic who could be potential buyers or consumers of your products.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Earning an income from your free time.

Many people are making a little extra income on top of their regular jobs through weekend or day-off trade work. Some of these people might work during the week and on the weekend they are able to do odd jobs such as painting, lawn, plumbing or even handyman jobs in their free time. This is now becoming common among shift workers who work rotating shifts and/or have lost shift hours due to the economic downturn giving them more free time. In many cases these odd jobs are sourced through word of mouth or other forms of free advertising, such as local classifieds, ad boards or online classifieds. This is another great way to make money in your free time and use free classified advertising to your advantage.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Job advertisements drop

Job advertisements across major job classified sites have seen a substantial drop. Many job sites only have a handful of jobs for several professions. The best thing to do in these cases for job seekers is to check them twice or three times a day for new job postings, and have your resume and cover letters ready. Another good idea is to make a list of potential companies you would like to work for and check their websites regularly. Job classifieds are only experiencing a decline momentarily as business sentiment is at low point in the current business cycle. The best is to keep committed to your job hunt and check the classifieds on a regular basis.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

job classifieds

Job classifieds are seeing a sharp drop in ads due to the economic downturn, but they are still a good source for job leads. Job ads have shrunk everywhere from newspaper classifieds to online classifieds.The most popular papers and online sites have few ads and many visitors making it hard to compete for a chance at getting the job advertised. The best type of classifieds in order to minimize the competition for a job is the smaller independent classified sites where companies can post vacancies without any costs. Smaller companies often use these sites and they sometimes receive less applications than the big advertisers, making it a worthwhile effort to scan these job classifieds or regular classified sites.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

recent clssified activity

There has been an increase in users to online classified websites within the last 6 months of the year. Could this be mainly due to the downturn in economic activity?
Are users turning those unused items items in the garage into cash by selling them online? If the classified ad market is telling us anything, is that there has been a surge in classified ads in the last few months, specially the free classified sites which are seeing a boom in demand from one off sellers and new sellers. This change in the use of classified ads also coincides with the move away from print classifieds we have seen in the last year.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Classified prices

There are many places to post classifieds, and not surprisingly all have different costs in placing a classified ad. Some classifieds are paid such as print classifieds in newspapers or specialty publications. The cheapest alternative is now the online classified providers. Most classified websites offer a wide range of different classified services, such as paid and free ads. In the past few years there has been more free classified websites come to the market and lower overall classified advertising costs. This is a win for consumers who are looking to sell items quickly and want exposure to different markets both geographically and demographically. Free classifieds are becoming much more popular and will continue to win market share in the market for classified ads.

Sunday, April 5, 2009

Classifieds

A classified is another form of advertising which does not require a large amount of money and is quite effective. There are different advertising media that can be used to put up classified ads. Some of these are; newspaper, radio, magazines or even just printed flyers/posters. Having a classified ad posted in these types of media is considered the best way to gain public interest in the goods or services offered through these classifieds. All of these media types are exposed to the public every time, although to different market segments.

The classified ad can range from a few words or sentences to brief paragraphs. The best way is to keep it as short as possible as long as the ad is able to convey the important message to the audience. In order for the classified to gain the attention of a correct targeted audience, the correct words, structure and placement have to be used.

Flyers or posters that include classified ads are also an effective media to relay messages to the public. Again, make sure that the posters are located in the correct place where the targeted audience is most likely to come across the advertisement. It is also important that the chosen location has a lot of traffic from the target audience to make the advertising effort worthwhile.

A free online classified Site: Classifieds