Many people focus on search engine optimization and social media when they are marketing online and sometimes the free classified advertisements are overlooked. This is a huge mistake. You don't need to worry about search engine optimization or be overly focused on keywords when you place a free advertisment online. If people are looking in the classifieds, they are already thinking about buying something. Sometimes, they are curious, but often they are closer to buying something when they check out craigslist than when they look at their twitter direct messages or facebook profile. There are a few things that you must do if you want to be successful marketing on craigslist and backpage or any of the other free classifieds online.

Make sure that you post your advertisements frequently. Optimal posting is 30 to 40 advertisements 3 times per day. While this may sound like a lot, the reality is that your advertisement will be behind someone who posts minutes or hours after you. You take a chance of it not being viewed by people who only look at the first three or four advertisements.

Where should you post your advertisement?  Craigslist.com, Backpage.com are the top rated online classified advertisement sites online.  However, you will need to create multiple accounts and change your IP address after every few ads that you place.  Craigslist only allows 3 advertisements to be placed from the same IP address.  This can be done by using a different computer or unplugging the modem and plugging it back in to reset the IP address. 

Create unique and different advertisements. While your product may be suitable for everyone, not every marketing technique resonates with everyone. A college student and a retiree may both be looking to make money online, but you would definately speak differently to a college kid than someone who is in their sixties or someone who was recently laid off.

Use pictures to catch their attention. Your ad copy may be great, but it has been proven that pictures are effective in making a sale, so jazz your advertisements up with some relevant pictures.  Try to have at least fifteen images.  The problem with only having a few banners is that you would be placing the same picture ad over and over again. 

Keep your advertisements short and sweet. You want them to visit your website or landing page, so don't try to sell them too much on your product in the advertisement. You just want to capture their attention so that they click on your link to find out more. While it may be tempting to tell them every single benefit of your product all at once, stick with the essentials. You don't want to lose their interest before they even sign up.

Do your homework before you start selling a product. Find out if there is a high return rate and whether the popularity has enough momentum to be worth your time. As a newbie to internet marketing, I made the mistake of chosing a product that was taken off of the market only a couple weeks after I started promoting it. My efforts creating advertisements and posting them were absolutely wasted.