Classified sites provide a variety of services to individuals, businesses and employers, and are often uniquely positioned to act as a nexus between parties that might not otherwise connect with one another, and due to their low cost and the potential exposure they provide, the classified ad site continues to gain in popularity, especially as trying financial times often necessitate the removal of the middle man from the buying process. If you are looking to maximize the potential of your classified site, there are a number of important considerations you need to make.
Step One – Find an Untapped Niche
You should pick a niche which is untapped, but has enough monthly searches to guarantee enough traffic to get you started. Building a large directory for every niche and location is a waste of time, but if you focus on one particular niche or a specific area (especially where you have already identified a strong need), you have much better chance to outrank those giants. For instance, you have a chance to rank.
Step Two — Take Time with Content Creation
When you start to create content (including categories, custom fields locations, and other necessary pages), it can start to feel that it is cutting into time best spent elsewhere, but this is a myth that you should dispel from your mind very quickly. Although time-consuming, this is an integral stage and once you’ve laid out content carefully and diligently, you’ll have a site people will want to visit.
Step Three — Monetize Your Site
Featured Ads
Featured ads are one of the most prevalent forms of site monetization out there. The biggest classified as companies such as Kijiji in Canada will often have an enormous number of users — with each one of them posting a large quantity of ads in an attempt to saturate their own micro-market. When a user wants to stand out and promote their ads beyond traditional ranking, pay a fee to get their ads distinguished from the rest. Classifieds owners see featured ads as one of the major and most effective tools to grab the reader’s attention — and it generates income because the users pay for the premium space.
If a user is already taking the time to post classified ads online they are likely to invest a little more to make sure their ad truly stands out, and because someone posting an ad typically wants that ad to reach an interested user, they are likely willing to pay a premium.
Pay to Post
With so many free classified sites to choose from, it can be strange to ask users to actually pay for something they could otherwise find for free somewhere else. But, pay to post can be quite appealing especially if:
- You’re targeting a niche no one else has access to
- You already have a large and diverse database of users regularly visiting your site
- You have a specific sub-category or group of sub-categories you know will benefit your clients
Through some creativity, you can help maximize your ad’s exposure by optimizing its presence, as long as you keep the above recommendations in mind. Be aware of your users, your potential clients, and the necessary benchmarks listed here, and you’ll be well on your way to curating a fantastic classified website in less time than you think.
