Who provides their phone number on craigslist?

I've got a few craigslist ads out there, and I'm not getting *anything* on them. I mean nothing--not even the Nigerian prince emails. I'm wondering if I shouldn't post my phone number, using the "Ate fore heaven" style. I'm wondering if the emails just aren't getting through to me.

Anybody post their phone number on craigslist? Do the spammers eat it up? 

Oh, FWIW, my items are priced appropriately. My first thought was that they were way too high/low. Nope, right on the low end of the average offerings. 

I put my phone number in Craigslist ads. The phone number gets a few bits of spam while the ad is up, but not much, and the spammers didn't seem to have stored the number for later spamming. Most of the calls and texts have been real people - sometimes with absurd lowballs or trade offers, but no worse than email.

Masochists

Email only for me.  Maybe use a google voice #?  That way its not your real phone # and you can turn it off once you've sold the item...

You can post your number so that it can only be seen after clicking the blue "reply" button. That makes it available to people, but seems to really cut down on robo spammers. Of course, people have to know that the number is there or be smart enough to figure it out. Then again, maybe that's a good thing?

If you want to maximize visibility, you can put your number in the body of the ad, but you do open yourself up to all kinds of things at the same time.

Perhaps it's regional? I include my number with every ad and check the texts ok box. 

On my last 50 cl transactions I was called 4 times and emailed once. The bulk were handled via text.

I recently sold a set if Mustang wheels via CL. I placed my number in the proper CL location. 

I got one, is" it" available text (twice from the same) but the other was a 28 yr old buyer and we completed the whole thing via text.  The younger they are,the less likely they are to dial. 

I do with the spelling and numeral combination in the body of the ad. ( Three 0 Nine, etc.) I have gotten a few spam calls, but unless the number is in my contacts, I don't answer anyway.

I mention that I prefer texts or emails and say that if they call, to leave a message and I will call back. So far, no one has left a message, all texts or emails through CL.

I've got a couple of items on there now and haven't gotten a bite on either. Last item had 6 people interested and sold in 3 days. You never know what will sell quickly and what will sit around for a while.

Good Luck!

I put my number in my ads. Lots of texts a few phone calls and only one spammer guy who left me three voicemails about him brokering the sale of my challenged priced car. 

Agree that posting your number and allowing texts is the best way to do CL business.

I always put my number and "text ok" button. With one exception recently I've had zero interest in any of my ads. And the spam. Still get spam.

i put my cell number in the body of the ad using "seven 3 4" as my area code, and i include the number in the contact info with "call or text" because i occasionally sell stuff that someone old as berkeley like me might be interested in.

I included my # when I listed the Vette. I did get two spam calls from a TX number telling me “We have buyers searching for a car like yours”.

It ended up selling through FB Marketplace, after a month+ of flakes. 

I rarely put my number, when I do it is text only. 

Maybe that is why I have a hard time selling stuff on craigslist. One time years ago I had a car up on craigslist for a few months. Eventually I put my phone number on it. I got a call from someone who took a look at it and said that they had wanted to look at it sooner but couldn't figure out how to contact me. I guess they didn't have email or know how to find the contact info. 

Dusterbd13 just picked up a set of wheels for me in Charlotte. I've been trying to contact the seller for about a year as he kept renewing the ad. He had email only as his contact but apparently wasn't getting mine. The one that finally worked was when I changed the subject line which I guess got past the filters. Was a lesson to me to always include my number. 

I always include my number. I get some spam calls but not a lot. I do get the occasional 2am text but again not often. People just don't email as much as they used to, especially young people.

I put my number as my only contact.

I get more problems on other sites compared to CL.

It actually hides the number in the body of the ad if you just type it normally too, so you have to click "show contact information" to see it. I usually use my number, and if it's a car I will get a few spam calls and texts, for other stuff not so much. 

I renewed my ad for my truck, this time adding my cell number to allow texts after reading this thread, and have already had text replies. Thanks for the insight! 

I always put my number in via the CL interface. I don't seem to have any trouble selling things, but I'm usually pretty realistic about their value. I think everything I've sold has gone via voice call and not text when I think about it.

EvanB said:

I rarely put my number, when I do it is text only. 

Maybe that is why I have a hard time selling stuff on craigslist. One time years ago I had a car up on craigslist for a few months. Eventually I put my phone number on it. I got a call from someone who took a look at it and said that they had wanted to look at it sooner but couldn't figure out how to contact me. I guess they didn't have email or know how to find the contact info. 

 

I noticed an ad for an interesting car the other day but it said "texts only, absolutely no phone calls."  I thought the seller had eliminated a large portion of the potential buyers, namely us old geezers who don't have texting phones.

I do not put my phone number in because first I want to weed out the flakes......

then I  call them back on my  tablet phone whose number changes every few months ,  but accepts texts , 

Seems most people want to text ,  I hate it but its the "new" world

I get 5 -10 junk mail calls a day already on my home phone , I really do not want to put my home number out for scammers  / number collectors to put on "the list"

And yes there are people that collect and sell "the list" of live contacts for marketers to call.....

And if you are not sure if your ad is working you can send yourself an email thru craigslist , 

and then there is "Craigslist Ghosting" and other games Craigslist's computer does

californiamilleghia said:

Seems most people want to text ,  I hate it but its the "new" world

I don't mean this as an insult at all and am genuinely curious - but why hate texting? You're on here, communicating via text. Email is via text. What's wrong with text messages? Lots of people bag on them, mostly older folk, but have no problem communicating via the written word elsewhere. I don't know why texting in particular has some sort of taint to it.

I was hot to trot to buy another disco last weekend. I included my cell in the reply to dude’s ad via email, and told him to feel free to call or text me if he had 5 minutes to talk. His response was:

”You can email.

Sent from my iphone.”

After 3 or 4 emails back and forth with hours in between, I decided against fooling with driving 3 hours round trip to meet a dude who refuses to give out his number, even after I gave him mine.

dculberson said:

I don't mean this as an insult at all and am genuinely curious - but why hate texting? You're on here, communicating via text. Email is via text. What's wrong with text messages? Lots of people bag on them, mostly older folk, but have no problem communicating via the written word elsewhere. I don't know why texting in particular has some sort of taint to it.

I don't hate it, but it seems to me that it's still much easier to communicate with the spoken word when doing something like trying to buy a car.  Also, not everyone has a smart phone, or even a cell phone for that matter - so if a seller says texts only, they've eliminated all those people from potentially buying.