'Net Features : classifieds

What's New With Noah (Classifieds)?

Pete Prestipino — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 21:05:00 GMT

I've always had a special place in my virtual heart for classifieds. Perhaps it's my frugal nature or how with a caring and careful eye they often reveal many interesting insights into the state of the Web and the world in general.

As the U.S. struggled out of the dire straits it entered starting last September (today is actually the anniversary of the Lehman Brothers collapse), Website Magazine published an article on how to "Roll Your Own Craigslist" - a profile of three exceptional classified software solutions that would enable anyone to start their own targeted classified website.

I had the opportunity to speak with Steve Taylor this week, developer/owner/founder of Noah's Classifieds and one of the software solutions mentioned, about the latest version (4.1.1) of Noah's Classifieds. Some interesting features were added recently but in my opinion they pale in comparison to what's coming up in the future for Noah's Classifieds.

New additions include a WYSIWYG editor (which can be assigned to the admin and the end user), ReCAPTCHA, a PCI-compliant shopping cart in CartManager, and "Send to a friend" capabilities. Taylor also mentioned that Noah's is also more SEO friendly as the titles influence the permalink structure.

Noah's Classifieds has always been on my list of solutions to to watch but its' future enhancement are what will forever separate it from its competitors. Upcoming enhancements include adding Facebook Connect and Google Friend Connect and the ability to import classified listings from Oodle through their API. Users will also be able to add new listings from their Noah's installation directly to Oodle - call it "distributed classifieds" if you will. Big things are coming for Noah's and for the $199 perpetual license it's certainly worth considering.

User Experience, Erotic Services & Online Classifieds

Pete Prestipino — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 01:06:00 GMT

A survey commissioned by Kijiji.com, eBay’s local classifieds site, revealed some interesting factors that users consider before visiting an online classifieds site.

Three in four U.S. adults (75%) said they prefer to buy or sell items from a Web site that does not host erotic ads or adult services, and more than half (53%) of consumers said they would prefer that a family member use a site without such listings.

Top attributes Americans are looking for in an online classifieds site include free listings, a safe experience and good deals, according to a survey conducted by Chadwick Martin Bailey1. The positive qualities in demand are not surprising considering the variety of reasons consumers opt not to visit online classifieds sites such as apprehension that ads may be misleading or fraudulent (36%), email address might be spammed (28%), getting a computer virus (26%) and classifieds ads may have adult content (24%), according to the Kijiji survey.

However, nearly three-quarters (74%) of Americans are more likely to use a classifieds site if it has a customer service team that focuses on monitoring and removing fraudulent and offensive ads. Kijiji addresses these concerns and is dedicated to providing an easy-to-use, family-friendly and safe experience through safeguards such as community (such as Kijiji's Community Watch program), technology-based measuers such as fitlers and posting delays, site-based/policy measures (prohibiting personal ads or erotic services for example), and of course community based features.

Do you believe the survey? Does the presence of erotic ads and adult services dissuade users (or you) from visiting (or revisiting) a website? My gut says no but what do you think?

craigslist Booms in Recession

MaureenA — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 19:00:00 GMT

Demand for classified sites has increased dramatically, according to a report released by Hitwise. Its report showed visits to classified sites increased by 84 percent in one year. Numbers increased the most between December 2008 and February 2009. To highlight the demand for craigslist visits, Hitwise divided the data into two categories: craigslist sites and all other classified sites. The category for all other classifieds was mostly flat throughout the year while craigslist's numbers increased rapidly. The report notes that craigslist visits increased 90 percent, while visits to all other classifieds grew 22 percent.

Heather Hopkins, senior online analyst, Hitwise, reports that craigslist users are typically from higher income households, but the data from this report suggest that lower income households are now turning to the site for resources.

Are you part of the increased traffic that helped craigslist boom 90 percent?

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