Craigslist Update — Search Relevancy

Craiglist Search Relevancy is a Thing of the Past

In August 2017, Craigslist updated its search algorithm to make WHEN you post the single most important factor in getting eyes on your ads. Some of the primary methods posters have used for years no longer provide any benefit, and your 2-week old post will NOT be on the front page anymore no matter the content.

If you are not aware of and using this change to get leads, this is not a “nice-to-have” suggestion that you can take or leave, but a very powerful insight that every Craigslist ad poster should make sure they are taking advantage of as soon as possible.

What Changed in Craigslist Prioritization?

Simply stated, a change was made at Craigslist so the newer the post the higher the rank on search results. It’s that straightforward. There is no secret insight into Craigslists inner workings, just most recent goes higher.

Is It For You?

If you post ads on Craigslist, you should be maximizing your lead generation. Visibility generates leads and the chronology of posts now impacts visibility more than ever. That means posting almost every day and posting multiple times per day is the new rule, not once a month in a bulk post.

How to Take Advantage of the Changes

Posting throughout the month on multiple days and spreading posts over the peak hours of those days increases your search placement and, in turn, lead generation. One goal used by dealers is to take the inventory planned for posting and divide it up into slices of time for the most powerful and effective use of their marketing spend.

How AutoSweet Helps

Our development team has released SweetSpot™ so our clients can take advantage of this opportunity. You can post when your customers are online, multiple times per day, and multiple days per week to maximize visibility. To get your ads set up in SweetSpot™ just call 614-908-2818 and select option 1 and we’d be glad to help.

Below shows what an example grid would look like.

What it Means for Leads

AutoSweet clients using this tool are already seeing a dramatic increase in results. We chart daily lead flow and can watch the uptick as soon as SweetSpot™ is activated.

In the example below, the line represents the date SweetSpot™ changes were made and to the right, you see the increase in leads.  It can be that dramatic.

What’s it Cost?

Like many of our improvements to SweetClassifieds, this one comes at no additional fee…it’s just part of AutoSweet’s powerful inventory marketing platform for our dealers. Our partnership with dealers and commitment to continuous improvement keeps SweetClassifieds best-in-class in digital marketing.