Classifieds

[rpiereck]

Can we have the classifieds as part of the forum? I think it works better that way. All the forums I know that have busy classifieds have them as part of the forum. Ours is detached and we don't see the traffic in there. I think I have posted stuff there but never saw a reply, question, or anything.

[nordwulf]

Those forums are probably a lot bigger than SaabWorld is. We probably only have 20-30 active, participating members or so?

I never look in forum-style Classifieds on other forums anymore because:

• often pointless discussions. Send a message to the seller if you have a question.
• threads get bumped because of the discussions
• 99% are old/expired/sold ads, impossible to search through
• no structure so it is difficult to quickly see price, mileage, model, transmission type and so on. You sometimes have to read the entire thread to get all information that should have been provided in the first post.
• moderators should delete or mark old/sold ads but that never happens

Classifieds software is better because:

• easy to search. For example, in our system you can search for "9-5 manual" and you'll see a list of all 9-5 with a manual transmission for sale
• ads expire and removed from the system after a certain set period
• very easy to upload pictures
• advertiser is asked questions like price, transmission, VIN etc so buyers don't have to ask for that information
• Qiuck overview with thumbnail of cars for sale (i.e. Saab for sale - SaabWorld Marketplace)
• You can ad ads to your Watch list to review later
• You can see all items listed by a certain seller
• Better SEO

Forum-based Classifieds suck... But perhaps I am the only one with that opinion.

[rpiereck]

I think Classified type forum could perhaps drive more people to the site. TSN, SC, FOOR, SAAB Net, UK SAABs, SAABcars.de have forum classifieds. Also NASIOC, Jeep Forum, Ultimate Subaru, The Forester Forum, etc. I think it is almost a standard feature of automotive forums. SC (I know that's taboo here) has both, a marketplace and a forum type classifieds. I am one who would prefer a forum type classified, maybe in addition to a market place. If the problem is admin staying on top of it I can volunteer as a dedicated admin to the classifieds if we get them. There are tools that allow for better management of classified forums, such as breaking down into sub forums for specific cars (NG900, 9-3, 9-5, etc), as well as enforceable forum rules (not BUMP! posts; list of mandatory ad info, etc). I think it's manageable and gets more exposure inside a forums than as an outside tool.

What's SEO?

[nordwulf]

SEO is Search Engine Optimization. Each ads gets indexed by Google and hopefully shows up in searches.

Most of the forums you mentioned are forums with some added functionality. I didn't want to follow the same format as the other sites and add more features like good Classifieds software, image galleries, blogs, garage and so on. Not sure how successful it is among our members and visitors but at least it is something different.

I was actually thinking of switching to a more professional Classifieds software with even more features like Noah's Classifieds - The Ultimate php E-Commerce Classified Ads Website Application Software on the Web

[nordwulf]

Comments for the ads have been disabled. The problem is the person that placed the ad doesn't get an email notification when a comment is posted and nobody really checks those comments because it is so separate from the forums.

I still like the Marketplace as it is right now (just sold me 17" Aero wheels and tires and got a great deal with my wanted ad for winter wheels/tires). But if there are more who think a marketplace forum section would be better, perhaps that is something we should at least try.

[nordwulf]

I have been developing a new forum-based solution for the Marketplace in the last week. This should give us all advantages of having the Marketplace in the forum while still keeping some of the features from the previous classifieds software. Namely:

• easy to search
• very easy to upload pictures
• advertiser is asked questions like price, transmission, VIN etc so buyers don't have to ask for that information

The For Sale sections will have a fixed layout so it easy find out all important information. When you click New thread in those forums, it will take you to a form where you will have to fill out information like price, location, model, trim level, description and so on. Some fields are mandatory, others are not. Some fields are dropdowns like state/province for North America and Countries / Currency for Europe.

The thread titles for the Saabs For Sale listings are automatically generated so this will give a uniform list with the year, model, trim level and location for the car. The thread titles have a prefix of either For Sale or Sold. When a new listing is submitted, it will automatically default to For Sale. When a member replies int he thread that it has been sold, a moderator will have to modify the original post and change the pre-fix to Sold. This way, it will still be available for future reference.

I am copying most of the recent ads from the old to the new marketplace. It all has to be done manually and takes a bit of time. North America is pretty much done and I am still working on the Europe and Oceania section. It all took quite some time to develop and test but I think it will be the best way forward so I hope you like. Suggestions are always welcome as SaabWorld is your site.

[nordwulf]

I am one who would prefer a forum type classified, maybe in addition to a market place. If the problem is admin staying on top of it I can volunteer as a dedicated admin to the classifieds if we get them.

You have been promoted to Marketplace manager. In addition, your salary as a SW manager will be doubled!

[nordwulf]

There are now thumbnails in the marketplace forum lists for Saabs and Part for sale so it is easier to quickly see what the ad is about. It automatically grabs the first attached image in the post to use for the thumbnail.

When you scroll down to the bottom of the list, you'll see the thread display options where you can filter the results. For example, show only the items that are still for sale, posted in the last month and list by thread start time in descending order.