Advertising Your Business: Craigslist

A Simple, Free Place to Advertise

There are many places you can advertise your window cleaning business (or any service-based business) to start getting clients.  A great free place you can advertise your services is on Craigslist in your local area.

My craigslist ad is one of many places that attract customers to my business.  If you live in Canada you can also post a free ad on Kijiji. Creating an ad on these advertising platforms is pretty simple. These instructions will be for posting on craigslist.  If you’re posting on Kijiji.ca the step will be similar.

This article is mainly for newbies/beginners who have not done this before and would like to learn how to create a simple ad on craigslist that will attract customers to their business.

First, Create a User Account

First, you will need to create a user account. All you need is an email address and a password to create one. Go to craigslist.org and select your continent/country. Then select the territory where you live. Next, click on “my account”, then click on “sign up for an account.” Finally, type your email and create a password as it requests and voila! You’re ready to create an ad.

Next, Create an Ad

Be sure you are logged into your account first. Next, you want to find and click on “post.” Select the category and then click “continue.” Select the nearest city and click “continue.”

Now you can begin to fill in all the information for your ad. You can type your phone number and name for people to be able to contact you by phone. You can also select whether you want people to be able to email you directly or go thru the craigslist system to avoid spammers. (I personally choose the relay option.)

Next, fill in the following areas with your ad content:

  • Posting Title: What people will see initially. (Be sure it’s short, clear and to the point to grab their attention.)
  • Specific Location: Cities you want to focus on getting customers in.
  • Posting Body: The main content of your ad people will read (if they click on it).  Be sure to add very specific words (keywords) related to your services, so people will find your ad when they search for specific services.  Another good thing to share in the body is positive reviews from some of your customers.  I also share an abbreviated form of my website address here. (without the www. or http://) example: windowcleanersecrets.com

Click “continue”. Now it’s time to upload some pictures. I highly recommend adding pictures to your ad to get noticed more. In my business, I take before and after pictures and add them here. When you’re done adding images, click “done with images.”

Now you get to preview your ad before publishing it. You can go back and edit it or you can click on the “publish” button to finish the process.

You’re done. Your ad is now on Craigslist.

Get the Word Out

A way to get more exposure for your ad is to share it on social networks. Post a link on your Facebook timeline or business page. Share it on a blog post on your website. Share it on your LinkedIn profile, on your google+ page, on twitter, etc. You may wish to email it to friends, family, neighbors, etc. who may be potential clients someday.

(Just do this once when you first create your ad and not repeatedly to avoid being ‘spammy.’)

If you enjoyed this article, please comment and/or click on the share buttons below to help me get the word out. Thanks for your support and for reading. Now go grow your business, my friend.

William R King


William King

William currently lives in the Greater Vancouver area of British Columbia, Canada with his wife Natasha and cat Noah. He has been cleaning windows professionally since 2004. William has worked for multiple window cleaning companies as both an employee and a subcontractor until he committed to building his own business in 2012. His business has grown since to provide a very nice income for the family. Natasha manages the office and accounting of the business as it continues to grow. With 28+ years of experience in the cleaning industry, William's intention with this website is to share his experience and knowledge with people who would like to learn how to create their own window / gutter cleaning service business.

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6 Responses

  1. krangara says:

    Hello William

    Honestly, I hadn’t thought of Craigslist as a platform to advertise your services! Thank you for this beneficial tutorial! #HUGSSS

    And, yes, advertising should not end with this one site. Take advantage of your presence on social media! #LOVEit

    Thanks again, dear

    BEST wishes
    Kitto

  2. Dr Wixy says:

    Hadn’t even thought about Craigslist. Thanks for planting that seed and for the easy to follow directions.

  3. William, thanks for such clear instructions on how to create a Craigslist ad. Although I got my last vehicle through a Craigslist ad, I’m not sure I’m brave enough to actually submit one. There are still too many scary stories swimming around in my head. One day…

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