How to Advertise Your Vacation Rental on Craigslist with Success

Craigslist is one of the most visited websites in the US right now, leaving behind Twitter, LinkedIn,  Bing and many others.

 

Needless to say, that's a lot of visitors, 10 million every month according to some estimates, to a website made famous by offering free classified posts to the masses.

 

From browsing through Craigslist Forums,it becomes pretty clear that property owners have a generally mixed view of Craigslist as a marketing platform.

 

One of the biggest problem owners cite is spam and fraud as reasons not to use Craigslist. But, there are plenty of owners at the same time who have used Craigslist for this purpose with great success.

 

O2F Craigslist ad Posting Service has, for many years, posted Vacation Rental listings for many of our clients with great success, along with many other types of Craigslist ad Posting Services offered to other clients.

 

Based on our experience, O2F Craigslist ad Posting Service is sharing with you these following steps to advertise your vacation rental on Craigslist with great success!

 

Step 1: You need an account on Craigslist, so create one!

 

While you don't need an account to create a free classified post, it's better to create one so you can repost and renew your classifieds.

 

Step 2: Select your authentic location on Craigslist!

 

Because Craigslist has been designed as a local service (hence the name classifieds), only post to the region closest to your vacation rental.

 

Otherwise, you will be violating Craigslist's terms of services by posting to multiple geographic locations and your account can get  blocked from the system because of this very reason.

 

Depending on your location, there are predefined locations or you may have the option to write-in your own location (i.e. in San Francisco these are neighborhoods like Soma or the Financial District).

 

Make sure to fill all this in as it appears next to your title on the search listings page and will help you attract renters.

 

Step 3: Create a title that entices at the first glance!

Always fill in the rent, number of bedrooms and square footage as this gets added to your title and is used as filtered criteria for Craigslist search.

 

Be sure to highlight key features of your unit like a hot tub, swimming pool, or location close to key attractions. If you have a seasonal rental or availability during a popular event, include that information in the headline as well.

 

Try different headlines to see what generates the most inquiries. Craigslist users have the option to search the title only (vs. the entire post) so experimenting is critical, as our experience has revealed to us as a reliable Craigslist ad Posting Service.

 

Step 4: Write the description by yourself and your own call-to-action!

 

You don't want to put all of your information into the listing body, but you have to put enough to generate interest and get the user to click on your call-to-action. Include the basics (# bedrooms, # bathrooms, square footage, and location), a list of top amenities, a short description, and, most importantly, a link back to your website for more information.

 

Try a few call-to-action links – one at the top and bottom of your post (i.e. contact the owner, inquire now, check availability).

 

Don't forget to include your contact information directly in the post itself. Include your phone and email address for the best results.

 

If you allow pets, be sure to check off "cats OK" or "dogs OK" so your listing doesn't get filtered out when potential renters search for pet-friendly properties.

 

Step 5: Uploading images is a must!

 

Craigslist post allows you to publish up to 8 photos as a standard . Make sure to maximize your listing potential by uploading all 8 images allowed by Craigslist.

 

Step 6: Confirm, Renew, Repost!

 

Once you have put up your post on Craigslist, make sure that your ad has gone live after about half an hour.

 

Some cities on Craigslist expire your ads in 7 days. Mostly, however, an ad stasys live for 45 days.

 

So you have to renew your ad every 48 hours to make it go on top again. Because those are tha ads that get the most clicks, the ones on top!

 

After your ad is 30 days old, you will have to repost it. That is why having an account is necessary so you repost your ad link with ease. Otherwise you will have to dig through your email account to find the particular link from over a month ago!

 

Step 7: Avoid phishing. Stay away from fraud at all costs!

 

While Craigslist might seem like an easy target for a phishing or fraud scam, you can protect yourself in many ways and still profit from the great opportunities provided by Craigslist as a massive advertising platform.

 

Phishing is basically when someone to steal your login details so they can pose as you and learn confidential information about you and your renters, especially bank and payment details.  

 

The easiest way to avoid phishing is to not click on any link that asks you to log into your Craigslist account. Always log into your account by visiting Craigslist directly.

 

Many scams involve inquiries from users very far away, often in another country, or ask for wire transfers, cashier's checks, or money orders as forms of payment. You can avoid would-be scammers by following a couple of common-sense rules:

 

• Never give out financial information like your bank account number or eBay/PayPal info

• Never wire funds via Western Union, Moneygram, or other wire service

• Do not accept cashier's checks or bank orders – banks will cash them and then hold you responsible when the fake is discovered weeks later

• Do not accept over-payments – scammers send fake payments and ask you to refund the difference

• Be careful of last-minute reservation requests that don't leave you enough time to confirm payment validity

 

Visit us at website to hire us for your rental listings and other services! We promise we won't disappoint!

Source : articlesbase.com