Phase I - Choosing a city, category, and specification

1. Choose a product/service/person to advertise.
2. Choose an area (ie California) to post in.
3. Go to www.Craigslist.org and choose the city you want to post in.
4  Click Post post to classifieds
5. Choose a category to post in job gigs housing for sale / wanted resume services offered personal / romance community event
6. Choose a final specification (for Services Offered here is your selection) automotive services computer services creative services event services financial services household services labor & moving legal services lessons & tutoring real estate services skilled trade services small biz ads therapeutic services (non-erotic) erotic services
7. You may be asked to choose a Neighborhood at this point (SF and NY), choose the appropriate area to post in.
* Make sure to choose a category that matches your ad, otherwise the craigslist community or the craigslist staff will remove your ad.


Phase II - Building your Craiglist Ad

1. Once you choose a city, category and specification. you will reach the Craigslist ad posting page.


2.  The Craigslist Ad

The Title “Posting Title” is the first Field that you type in. This Field is the on that will be seen most often and is used to get people to click on your ad. Make sure that you have a catchy title.

The Location “Specific Location” is the location that you are posting from. Many posters use this field for Phone numbers and websites. Be sure to include http://www. So that it is a live link.

The Body “Posting Description”  Here is where you describe your product/service/etc to the buyer/customer. The body is what will cause the customer to call you, email you or click through to your website.

How to insert a photo/logo/image

Inserting an Image to your ad: To put a picture in an ad you must have the picture online somewhere. (you may use a free site like myspace.com or flickr.com to upload a photo) Then “Right Click” on the photo and in Internet Explorer you click “Properties” a window will pop up. The Address (URL) is what you are looking for. Highlight the URL and Copy (Crtl+C). Then go back to the Craigslist Ad Body. TYPE in <img xsrc= and then add the URL of the Picture (ie <img xsrc=http://www.tristarmotorsed.com/images/logo.gif>  finally you must add the closing mark and your final product looks like this...

<img xsrc=http://www.tristarmotorsed.com/images/logo.gif >

Making the image HOT: Adding a “Click Through” the click through is adding a few codes to the image we just made. First add <a xhref=” to the Body of the CL ad. Then type in the exact URL of the website that you want to send people to. http://www.gotplates.com , then place that in “Quotes” after <a xhref=”http://www.gotplates.com”  and add the close to it > then insert the picture from above and add </a>. The final product should look like this...

<a xhref="http://www.gotplates.com"><img xsrc=http://www.tristarmotorsed.com/images/logo.gif ></a>


The Email Address – This is your email address or any email address that you want to post to. You can post adds to This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it if you like, but you want to make sure that you are posting these ads to people/email addresses that will post your ads.

Email Encoding -  3 options – the email you use, an anonymous CL email, or no email I choose No email most of the time. The choice is yours.

3. The Completed Craigslist Ad


Continue to the 5 letter verification page.

4. The Craigslist 5 Letter verification  page - Craigslist uses a 5 letter verification page to eliminate computer automated ad posting which would overwhelm craigslist with spam.

This is how the 5 letter code looks

5. Enter the five digit verification at the bottom of the page



6. Terms of Use - You must agree to the terms and conditions. The most important part of the terms and conditions is that you must wait at least 48 hours before posting the same ad.


ACCEPT the terms of use

7. Craigslist will confirm that they have your ad.


8.  Craigslist will then send you an email with instructions on how to post an ad.

9. Open the email, and click on the link. The link will take you to a publishing page.

10. Publish the ad and the page will turn Green


11. You have now posted a craigslist ad. Click the link to see what your ad.

You can use the Craigslist Auto Poster   to post ads quickly in multiple cities.