Craigslist PSA

[kenny]

To post an ad on CL you must agree to their terms and conditions.
One rule is, you may post only one ad for any one thing.
Of course as others post newer ads yours drops down, then to page 2, then pg 3, then pg 4, but every 48 hours CL allows you to bump your ad back up to the top.
You can keep doing this for 45 days.

I realize everyone on PS is a law-abiding upstanding member of society, but since people vary some are selfish buttheads.
Buttheads post THE SAME AD over and over in one sitting, perhaps thinking it grabs more eyeballs, and the hell with everyone else's ads.
Buttheads are special, you know.

It looks like this:


Let's say you are selling that white propane gas tank right after Butthead's 8 identical ads.
You are not happy that Mr. Butthead's 8 ads are forcing your ad down into the abyss more quickly.
And there are lots of Buttheads doing this.
Not nice Mr. Butthead. (of course a woman would never do this)

Well, guess what you can do.
Click on their ad, then click on FLAG at the top.




This makes that ad vanish and it feels so good it must release endorphins much like orgasm or chocolate.

After doing this to 7 of butthead's 8 ads (I'm nice so I leave him his allowed single ad) people see this, keeping your ad higher on the list longer.
Fair is fair.



So, what say you?
Is this okay to do, or not?
Am I being the butthead?

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Does the "who cares" option mean who cares about whether the butthead is doing this or who cares whether your a butthead or not?

I guess if you have an ad on CL and you feel some sort of vindication by flagging someone's ad then so be it.

If you are just flagging this ad with no ad of your own posted then I don't see the point.

Actually either way I don't see the point in spending time to flag someone's ad but as you say "people vary".

 

[minousbijoux]

Huh. I wouldn't bother. I would just find a better site to advertise my stuff.

 

[kenny]

Does the "who cares" option mean who cares about whether the butthead is doing this or who cares whether your a butthead or not?

The latter.

If you are just flagging this ad with no ad of your own posted then I don't see the point.
Actually either way I don't see the point in spending time to flag someone's ad ...

The point is preventing your ad from unfairly dropping into the abyss 8 times faster than Mr. Butthead's 8 ads.
Another point is you can be seen as being penalized for following the rules, while Mr. Butthead gets ahead by breaking them.
Of course, I'd only bother doing this if I had an ad up - which I do, and it's not that tank.

Point #2 is ads near the top get more eyeballs than ads lower, and on back pages.

 

[kenny]

Huh. I wouldn't bother. I would just find a better site to advertise my stuff.

CL is free and local.
I love CL, warts and all, for things that are easy to sell locally such as a guitar in Southern California.

I'm old and have a house and large garage full of crap (actually some of it is pretty nice crap) that I no longer need, use, or want.

 

[Rfisher]

Can you really get rid of someone else’s ad by clicking a button? Once?
Or does it disappear from just your viewing?

 

[kenny]

Thanks for the good question.

I'll check on my SO's puter.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Eh, people break rules all the time, that's their business not mine. Life isn't fair either and crappy people do crappy things to get ahead all the time.

I would just find a different marketplace rather than put the effort into flagging all these ads to get mine on top. An example is Facebook Marketplace, even if you shun it like I do, you could setup an account with limited info just to sell. There is also Craigslist on Facebook and by posting in the Markeplace you can post in a multitude of other places at the same time expanding you arena of potential buyers.

 

[kenny]

Eh, people break rules all the time, that's their business not mine. Life isn't fair either and crappy people do crappy things to get ahead all the time.

Yes, others breaking rules is their business UNTILL it affects me.
Then it becomes my business.

Person A's right to swing their arm ends at my nose.

I'd rather have my skin peeled off, get covered with salt and be left in the sun in the desert than spread my legs and bend over for Mark Suckerbeger.

But yeah, people vary so go ahead and be on Facebook.

ETA, sorry StephanieLynn, my anger is not against you personally, just against how these Data Whores are becoming zillionaires stealing and selling our personal info.
But again people vary and clearly billions of people are either ignorant of this or don't care or both.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

I'm not on Facebook, I post under my husband's account for the record.

Also it was just a suggestion to try to be helpful, so much for that!

 

[kenny]

Sorry SL.

I'm an A-hole and in a bad mood.
Whaaa.
Several very bad things happed today.

Wish I could just close this thread.

I need to watch some escapist film somewhere.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

No apology needed. Facebook is not everyone's thing and it's not mine either and that's why I don't have an account.

I hope tomorrow is a better day for you.

 

[arkieb1]

I'm the wrong person to ask because I sometimes have serious rage against the vendors that post 10+ ads of their stuff at a time on Loupetroop..... I report them over and over and over again because it pisses me off that much....

 

[telephone89]

I would assume it just removes it from YOUR view, and someone at craigslist head office (do they have one?!) reviews the flags at some point.
But I don't think flagging someone for breaking the rules is being a butthead! I do this often in one of my facebook groups. There are specific rules when you join, and I constantly see people trying to break them. So I flag them, and after a certain # of flags they get removed haha. *shrug* follow the rules and you stay, doesn't seem like a big deal to me. Or maybe I'm a butthead too