flag craiglist ads

Why do you even look at those ads?

What good will it do? Are cheap underpaying customers something you are interested in?

actually i look at them to see what they are paying

Better get used to it. They have multiplied 10 fold around here lately. Guess what the number one selling item is at my local sign store! Magnetic signs for handymen and contractors. The guy said they have had even more start up contractors come in than landscape people starting up. Seems like everyone out of work at the moment is either a contractor or landscaper.

I'm as much as 3x the prices they're quoting and I can't touch their prices if I tried. I been sitting at home for the last 5 months on me ass. I ain't working for less than it costs to run my business.

Flag? You've lowered yourself to their level.

sorry kent wrong,only lowered myself if i work for their prices

Why would you feel the need to muzzle others? Let people be free to offer their lousy services. I always thought my work can speak for itself.

d+jhomeservices said:

sorry kent wrong,only lowered myself if i work for their prices

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First, do you compete with Craigslist contractors? If you do, that's mistake #1.

Second, do you really want a majority of your customers finding you on CL? With that said, I will admit that I have run CL ads for sheds a few summers ago. It got me through that slow summer, but I didn't cheap out or low ball my prices. I sold as is, no haggling. Sold 10 sheds that summer. But I would never seek CL as the major source of my clients.

Third, you are lowering yourself. Flagging is to be used for specific reasons and low ball hack competitors is not one of them. You are abusing CL TOS, plain and simple.

Craigslist is not your father's yellowpages.

d+jhomeservices said:

sorry kent wrong,only lowered myself if i work for their prices

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You are right. Since you are bothering them for no reason except they are lower price than you, that makes you the lesser person.

Two words:

Why

and

bother?


Besides, I love CL. All the Wal-Mart Electrics on there make a great selling point for me.

Kent Whitten said:

You are right. Since you are bothering them for no reason except they are lower price than you, that makes you the lesser person.

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I look at it like this.


By flagging unscrupulous nationals/regionals I'm saving another "contractor" from certain screwing over.
In that sense I am looking out for the well being of my fellow man.


The golden rule says do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
I wouldn't want some one allowing me to stumble into certain screwing over.

BPWY said:

I look at it like this.


By flagging unscrupulous nationals/regionals I'm saving another "contractor" from certain screwing over.
In that sense I am looking out for the well being of my fellow man.


The golden rule says do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
I wouldn't want some one allowing me to stumble into certain screwing over.

Click to expand...

But as long as they are compliant with CL TOS who are you to flag their ad? Who appointed you to judge unscrupulous contractors?

We're all self appointed to do something. You must have missed the webinar.

TNTSERVICES said:

But as long as they are compliant with CL TOS who are you to flag their ad? Who appointed you to judge unscrupulous contractors?

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I know one when I see one.

BESIDES is we were to go look in the other contractor sections of this forum we'd see a whole lot of bitching about what you guys consider to be unscrupulous folks calling themselves contractors.

No need to act like the p&p section is any different.

BPWY said:

I know one when I see one.

BESIDES is we were to go look in the other contractor sections of this forum we'd see a whole lot of bitching about what you guys consider to be unscrupulous folks calling themselves contractors.

No need to act like the p&p section is any different.

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You know one based on your own criteria, but who is to say that you are correct in your assertion? I never said anything about the P&P section versus any other section. You P&P guys need to get over your sections versus everyone else. I didn't even look at the section this thread was listed under.

So you are basically saying that because we give our OPINION on contractors her on CT is the same as flagging a competitors ad so that it will get deleted on CL? That is a stretch brother!

This conversation has nothing to do with P&P, but about ethics and abusing a tool on CL. Let's keep it on topic and off the chip on your shoulder.

BPWY said:

I look at it like this.

By flagging unscrupulous nationals/regionals I'm saving another "contractor" from certain screwing over.
In that sense I am looking out for the well being of my fellow man.

The golden rule says do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
I wouldn't want some one allowing me to stumble into certain screwing over.

Click to expand...

I didn't see anywhere that we were talking about nationals or regionals. He said contractors, so I was going with that. Maybe I mistook the intended recipient of said flagging.

However, if one is here to "round up the posse", then yeah....as you know we have a problem with that. Very thinly and somewhat indirectly , we are talking about price fixing.

I have no problem with giving everyone a "heads up with this industry" but I do when it comes to singling certain companies for no reason except they don't like their prices. Imagine a group of people doing whatever it takes to deter the op from operating his business. I would be pissed.

BPWY said:

I know one when I see one.

BESIDES is we were to go look in the other contractor sections of this forum we'd see a whole lot of bitching about what you guys consider to be unscrupulous folks calling themselves contractors.

No need to act like the p&p section is any different.

Click to expand...

I don't like it anywhere on the forum. We make a judgment call on borderline posts, but I assure you, we take off many posts like this. Especially the "look at this CL post". It's very redundant and really serves no purpose at all.

Except for the first time posters, we usually let it slide for the most part. If someone has one or two posts and is ripping into a company, we remove it. We might not get everything, but we try our best.

TNTSERVICES said:

You know one based on your own criteria, but who is to say that you are correct in your assertion? I never said anything about the P&P section versus any other section. You P&P guys need to get over your sections versus everyone else. I didn't even look at the section this thread was listed under.

So you are basically saying that because we give our OPINION on contractors her on CT is the same as flagging a competitors ad so that it will get deleted on CL? That is a stretch brother!

This conversation has nothing to do with P&P, but about ethics and abusing a tool on CL. Let's keep it on topic and off the chip on your shoulder.

Click to expand...

Now my head hurts and its your fault. :laughing: :laughing:

I'm too tired and sore to keep arguing. No body is changing their opinions so its best to just drop it.
I am not conceding that you are right and I'm not saying you are wrong. Just drop it before Kent closes the thread.

BPWY said:

Now my head hurts and its your fault. :laughing: :laughing:

I'm too tired and sore to keep arguing. No body is changing their opinions so its best to just drop it.
I am not conceding that you are right and I'm not saying you are wrong. Just drop it before Kent closes the thread.

Click to expand...

I'm not going to drop it. You guys are abusing the flagging tool on CL. It's pretty simple. You have been self appointed to to mess with your competition in a vain attempt to thin the herd. Unfortunately what you don't realize it is an exercise in futility and takes only a few minutes to create a new post on CL.

When I did sheds, I had a competitor do the same doushe bag thing that you guys are doing. If you don't think that they will put themselves out of business on their own, then you don't think highly of yourself.