Classifieds plug-in. PLEASE get rid of.

[particleman]

Those of us that have been on here a while, how does the activity on the classifieds compare now to how they did when they were in the old forum style? Seems like I remember the classifieds being pretty active back in the day. Now I rarely browse them. An active classified section can be a real boost to a site, I personally don't like the setup now either. I do understand the benefits though, but if significantly less people are using it then is it really a good thing?

 

[ucmj22]

Da form

I like the but hurt report, but any former military will really enjoy filling out one of these

 

[qmr55]

Fred I'm guessing you are using PhotoPost? While it has its downsides it probably is the best Classifieds mod for VB. I agree with ProWraps but then again I see the upside to having the mod. Have you ever heard of microClassifieds? Not sure if it's still being supported but it's worth a shot looking into.

 

[AnotherSignManiac]

I like the but hurt report, but any former military will really enjoy filling out one of these

haha i like that one a lot more!

 

[Fred Weiss]

Those of us that have been on here a while, how does the activity on the classifieds compare now to how they did when they were in the old forum style? Seems like I remember the classifieds being pretty active back in the day. Now I rarely browse them. An active classified section can be a real boost to a site, I personally don't like the setup now either. I do understand the benefits though, but if significantly less people are using it then is it really a good thing?

The old style forum based classifieds were a total pain in the butt to administer and were regularly abused by member replies. That some members may not be aware of site features outside of the forums like the classifieds, reviews and photo gallery doesn't negate their value or effectiveness. We had lots of members who were unhappy with the commercial clutter in the Active Threads when we had the forum based classifieds.

 

[Fred Weiss]

Fred I'm guessing you are using PhotoPost? While it has its downsides it probably is the best Classifieds mod for VB. I agree with ProWraps but then again I see the upside to having the mod. Have you ever heard of microClassifieds? Not sure if it's still being supported but it's worth a shot looking into.

She quit supporting microClassifieds more than a year ago and it was not well executed to begin with. The fact is that PhotoPost Classifieds is the only working solution out there other than simply using a forum category. It is far from perfect but is still much better than a forum based classified.

 

[Flame]

Not to get on the bandwagon mutiny here or anything... but I agree with ProWraps. I love classifieds sections, but simply can't jive with the current one, and find it impossibly difficult to navigate, so thus never check it out. Not to mention it's practically hidden.

 

[Charlie J]

yeah.. i'll have to go with pro wraps on this one.

i know the threads mean more moderation, but honestly i've looked at the classifieds maybe once.

+1

 

[Bigdawg]

The current system (as Fred pointed out) is the only workable solution that doesn't require a TON of supervision and administration. I have been absolutely AWOL in that area so that just leaves Fred to handle the admin stuff and Brad to help him. There are only so many hours in the day and as much as I love y'all... not all our members are disciplined enough to not post inappropriately in the ads.

So the benefits - including the increased SEO exposure outside of the forum board - far outweigh the PITA factor. If you want to promote your ad more or open yourself up to member comments then post a thread linking to your classified and don't complain when the posts detract from what you are trying to sell.

But that's just my opinion.

 

[Flame]

So the benefits - including the increased SEO exposure outside of the forum board - far outweigh the PITA factor. If you want to promote your ad more or open yourself up to member comments then post a thread linking to your classified and don't complain when the posts detract from what you are trying to sell.

But if people aren't actually looking there... is anything even really selling? Just curious, as it seems so far, no one even goes there. So why even have a classifieds section?

 

[Bigdawg]

I don't know who sells what Flame. I really have been MIA as far as the backend of the board has been for a little while now. I do know the classifieds show up in search results.

But I think the bigger problem I hear is that the location of the classifieds here on the forum pages isn't prominent enough for people to easily find them. I mean in reality - they aren't going back to a forum page, so what would make the software we are going to use work better from other's prospective? Within the parameters of that specific software?

Is it a more prominent link? Rearranged differently? I don't know the answer, because I know where they are and have used them. Not committing Fred to making any changes, but I would be curious as to how you (meaning everyone) would do it differently using this specific software since it is not a choice.

 

[Fred Weiss]

But if people aren't actually looking there... is anything even really selling? Just curious, as it seems so far, no one even goes there. So why even have a classifieds section?

Let the figures speak for themselves:

Statistics

Members 22,052
Active Ads 89
Comments 26
Views 54,321
Items Sold 213
Value of items sold $433,342.62

Just because you've had some kind of negative reaction to an addition that greatly enhances our ability to handle classified advertising is not a reason for me to discontinue it. The facts are that people are looking there so your mistaken conclusion may be in need of rethinking.

The link to the Classifieds is displayed in sixth position in our Main Menu. The original point made in this tread was that the OP thought placing an ad was confusing and difficult. You have said it is difficult to navigate which I find difficult to comprehend. I mean click on For Sale and read the ads. What is difficult about that?

 

[ucmj22]

Let the figures speak for themselves:

Statistics Members 22,052 Active Ads 89 Comments 26 Views 54,321 Items Sold 213 Value of items sold $433,342.62

Just because you've had some kind of negative reaction to an addition that greatly enhances our ability to handle classified advertising is not a reason for me to discontinue it. The facts are that people are looking there so your mistaken conclusion may be in need of rethinking.

'Nuff said. I havent looked at them, but I wouldnt have concluded that no one was...

 

[qmr55]

Fred, can we add a link to the classifieds on the nav bar? Have seen this done on other forums before also I've seen them make the classifieds button yellow or some other color to better catch the users eyes.

 

[Flame]

Just because you've had some kind of negative reaction to an addition that greatly enhances our ability to handle classified advertising is not a reason for me to discontinue it.

Hey just giving you some honest critique here, I'm with ProWraps, it sucks. If you don't want to change it, fine. Better have brought it up then to have not said anything at all. Best of luck

 

[Joe Diaz]

All I know is that the 15" Roland Plotter sure looks like a nice piece of equipment. I hope someone buys it. wink wink

 

[Colin]

The current system is the only workable solution that doesn't require a TON of supervision and administration.

Why is it that the other system "requires" all that supervision? (I mean that as a sincere question which I may very well be ignorant of).

 

[petesign]

I like the but hurt report, but any former military will really enjoy filling out one of these

I am keeping a stack of these behind the counter. This is AWESOME. LOL.

 

[Bigdawg]

Why is it that the other system "requires" all that supervision? (I mean that as a sincere question which I may very well be ignorant of).

Because it is open to posting. And the posts aren't generally all that nice. Then there is the administrative end of charging for and deleting expired ads by hand and then policing the pages. All time consuming.

 

[Gino]

I can see where ProW is coming from, but I don't see anything wrong with this method and if it's easier and better, I don't understand the gripe ??

I know for a fact, I've answered in some of those earlier threads, usually for the betterment of the OP, but I have seen where people badger and call out or put down people trying to sell something... or the particular item being sold. That doesn't help anyone. You might come back with it's a heads-up kinda deal so the potential buyer will be informed before making a bad buy, but usually it's made from members who don't even look at the category they're in and just answer as if it's just some dumb thread and give senseless reviews where they don't belong.

This seems safer for the person selling. I would imagine if one sees a real threat could alert the bossman and have a real discussion.