TECHNOLOGY TIP - EMBEDDING YOUTUBE AND OTHER VIDEOS IN YOUR CRAIGSLIST AD

For real estate agents, Craigslist is an invaluable marketing tool. However, it isn't exactly technologically advanced platform, visually pleasing or even user friendly.  It does, however, generate leads. As with any marketing medium, it is important to differentiate yourself from your competition.  The text ads offered by Craigslist offer little visual appeal.  Craigslst ads created using html code - whether cutting and pasting html from Postlets or your ActiveRain blog or some other html editor - are more visually appealing and project a more professional image.

Despite the title of this post, Craigslist doesn't support embedded YouTube or other videos.  If you attempt to embed a video, Craigslist simply strips it out  of your ad when it is posted to the site.

However, there is a simple solution.

• Step 1:  Take a screenshot of your YouTube video
• Step 2:  Upload the photo to your favorite photo hosting site. 
• Step 3:  Using your preferred html editor, upload the photo and then create a link to your YouTube video URL.
• Step 4: Cut and paste the code into your Craigslist ad.

The code should look something like this: <a href=”[insert YouTube URL here” rel=”nofollow”><img border="0" src="Insert Photo URL here" width="480" height-"295" </a>

By following the steps above, your Craigslist ad has the look and feel of an advertisement with an embedded video.  As a result, you have distinguished your advertisement from those of your competitors on Craigslist.  More importantly, you increase the likelihood that the ad reader will watch the video.  An embedded video (or even a pseudo embedded video) is more likely to be watched than a video linked to the ad by a hyperlink.  The method described above is effective because the ad reader is accustomed to clicking on the start arrow to see a video.  The second advantage offered by this method is that it captures the ad reader.  By clicking on the image, the ad reader is then taken from the Craigslist site to the site where your video is hosted.  If your video is hosted on your YouTube channel, website or blog, you have increased the likelihood that they will view other videos or information from your hosting site.

To see an example, visit:  http://stlouis.craigslist.org/reb/1828371425.html

INTERESTED IN SELLING YOUR HOME IN ST. LOUIS USING?  Contact Ryan Shaughnessy at PREA Signature Realty at 314-971-4381 or by e-mail to Ryan@PREASignatureRealty.com to discover how to use technology to more effectively market your home for sale.

 

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PREA SIGNATURE REALTY

PREA Signature Realty is a full service brokerage located at 1709 Park Avenue in the Lafayette Square neighborhood of the City of St. Louis.  PREA Signature proudly serves the following city neighborhoods:  Lafayette Square, Soulard, Benton Park, Benton Park West, Downtown Loft District, Forest Park Southwest, Central West End, Tower Grove East, Tower Grove South, Compton Heights, Shaw, The Hill, Dogtown, Carondelet, Holly Hills, St. Louis Hills, Dutchtown, and the Other Historic Neighborhoods of the City of Saint Louis, Missouri. 

The opinions expressed herein represent the opinions of the author only and do not reflect the opinions of PREA Signature Realty.  All photos and written content were produced by PREA Signature Realty.  All Rights Reserved - PREA Signature Realty (2009).  This content may not be reproduced or reprinted, except for Active Rain re-blogging, without express written permission of PREA Signature Realty.

For more information, visit our website at www.PREASignatureRealty.com or contact Ryan Shaughnessy at 314-971-4381 or send an email to Ryan@PREASignatureRealty.com.