Facebook Marketplace

[Motormike]

I just don't get Facebook Marketplace.  Maybe someone here can answer a simple question about it.  I have been unable to find the answer to this question anywhere on line:  How long does a Marketplace listing run? (without some action being taken by the person running the listing, ie: renewal)  I've been looking at motorcycle ads, mostly Harley Davidson, and see ads listed for 20 weeks, 21 weeks, etc.  So are those current ads of a bike unsold for months or just someone too lazy to delete his "forever" ad?  If the latter, it would seem to make Facebook Marketplace pretty useless.

[Dirk_S]

Not exactly the answer, but I recently began receiving automated queries from Marketplace, asking if I’ve sold an item and wish to renew after having it listed for only a few weeks. Not sure if that’s a new thing for all Marketplace users or not.

[Bisbonian]

I recently had one run for a few months with no refreshing done by me. They just get further and further back in the search queue I think.
Sold the stuff yesterday, so the ad was still available.

[ozarquebus]

Here ye is my humble opinion on FBM.

Facebook Marketplace doesn't really work right, but is complex and weird. Its primary emphasis is to force people to browse over lots of different things besides what they want on the concept that they will become interested and buy something that they would not have otherwise wanted. Its built to distract you from your focus to sell more BS.

Mysterious algorithms control the search results. These are contrived according to live market research and may be AI driven.
 Many ads are 'promoted' and may come up on top regardless of your search parameters and will jump categories.
Usually changing your search parameters will have no effect. Its pretty much like search parameters don't work.
For example, I have seen recently listed bikes come up in my area on the initial default opening browser screen, then been unable to find them again when trying a specific search.
Looking to buy:
I have found the only way to effectively canvas the majority of good bikes popping up in my area is to quickly scan the initial screen down for about 3 pages, looking only at the tag line under bike ads that is sooner than the last 24 hours. It appears that all the recently listed bikes will be interspersed among all the "over a month ago" ads on the first three pages or so. After that, almost all are "over a month ago". Bikes that have a mileage tag lines are dealers. The AI learns what your search preferences are and will throw a few tantalizing things out for you over time. The AI is smart enough to know that if you search for a GUZZI, that it should show you all touring types motorcycles in your future searches.
 
After that I do the same thing in Vehicles category,
Then do it in Motorcycles category,
then do a specific search for Guzzi.

 I don't look at the pictures of the bikes unless it passes the initial triage above. It takes some visual discipline to do it quickly.

If I do this every 24 hours, I think I catch 'em all.

Selling:
Facebook Market Place from a seller's point of view works very well in spite of being so messed up for searching. It produces such a huge number of views that the defects are completely overshadowed by sheer volume of exposure.

[Motormike]

Sounds like way too much effort for me.  So, basically you have absolutely no of knowing if a bike is still for sale except to contact the seller?  Hundreds of ads, most weeks if not months out of date=epic fail! 

[ozarquebus]

motomike,
Seems like most of the old ads are still good when I have messaged them. The problem usually is the seller.

[AJ Huff]

Isn't Facebook Marketplace made up of local buy/sell groups. My experience is that each group is responsible for it's own listing rules. Some admins are better at enforcing removal of ads than others. Some are automatic too I believe. And it is ultimately up to the seller. I think it's two weeks when I would get a notice asking if my item was still available.

-AJ

[dxhall]

I’m one of the only people in the US who isn’t on Facebook.  How do the Facebook classified ads compare to Craigslist ads?  Do I need to join the Facebook mob?

[Lannis]

I’m one of the only people in the US who isn’t on Facebook. 

Actually, there are a whole lot of us.

I do all my banking, much of my buying and selling, LOTS of communicating, and a bunch of other stuff on line, and I've never found any reason to sign up for Facebook.  Same for a bunch of others I know.

Google and Gmail are bad enough for tracking you, selling your info, and trying to direct your life.   I don't need another major entity pulling that on me.   

Lannis

[pyoungbl]

I have used Craig's List as well as Facebook Marketplace.  The former has turned into a spam and scam platform.  List something and you can count on a bunch of scammers offering to pay with a cashier's check once you provide some identifying information as well as your banking information.  Basically, let them vacuum your bank account.  CL also brought out the lowball tire kickers.  FM gave me more serious offers and no tire kickers.  I sold two obscure brand motorcycles and got full price for each, cash, no jerking around.  I also sold some high end camping gear for asking price.  You can pay a small fee to bump your listing back up in the queue.  Your listing will also tell how many people looked at the listing.

Peter Y.

[Mayor_of_BBQ]

I’m one of the only people in the US who isn’t on Facebook.  How do the Facebook classified ads compare to Craigslist ads?  Do I need to join the Facebook mob?

only value I see in Facebook is keeping a link going between yourself and distant friends/family (interstate people, HS friends, distant family members, people you want to keep track of but dont want to call on the phone regularly)

I had it from the earliest days (back when you needed a university email address to sign up), but turned it off 10 years ago...  I haven't missed it. If I want to talk to people I can reach out via phone, email, and text...  I don't need to spend my days getting pissed off about my 3rd cousin's political posts, look at pics of people's children, or join a group for other cat owners in my city...

Only thing that bothers me is how many organizations & businesses think having a facebook page is the same as having a website, so those can be hard to see. If I was really dying to see something that was only on FB, I can look thru my wife's account... I can only remember once in the last 7 years I bothered to do that.

[Shorty]

I have used the FM to sell motorcycles, guitars, household items. Most of them sold in a day or two. Yes, I have recieved a half dozen requests to see if an item was still for sale, with no response back after I replied in the affirmative. That may easily have been because it is easy to trigger the "Is the item still for sale?" button by accident while scrolling down the pages. It cost like 3 bucks to highlight the ad for a few days. So far, it has worked well.  I have not seen too many bargains of late, maybe people are still too scared of "the Chinese plague" to  face strangers. Maybe people are better off on average than previously believed, and not desperate to sell things.

[Siamese]

I used Facebook Marketplace to buy a sailboat.  The overall experience is pretty much the same as Craigslist.  One difference is that the items for sale are not categorized, so it's important to use good search terms. 

With Craig's you can look at various cities and regions for a particular item.  Facebook has what I consider to be an advantage in this regard.  Put in a search for Moto Guzzi, and the bikes closest to you will display first.  As you scroll down, the search becomes geographically wider and wider.  I find that considerably handier. 

Like Craig's, it suffers from human beings.  There's no avoiding stupid.

If I were buying or selling, I would use both Craig's and FB.   

[BRG-BIRD]

Actually, there are a whole lot of us.

I do all my banking, much of my buying and selling, LOTS of communicating, and a bunch of other stuff on line, and I've never found any reason to sign up for Facebook.  Same for a bunch of others I know.

Google and Gmail are bad enough for tracking you, selling your info, and trying to direct your life.   I don't need another major entity pulling that on me.   

Lannis

Add me to that list as well, absolutely refuse to join Facebook

[Rough Edge racing]

I an not a FB regular but have bought and sold items on Marketplace including a two motorcycles. I have no problems using their format...and because you have some knowledge of the seller/buyer it's got  some creditability...

[LowRyter]

I’m one of the only people in the US who isn’t on Facebook.  How do the Facebook classified ads compare to Craigslist ads?  Do I need to join the Facebook mob?

At least two of us.

[Wayne Orwig]

I’m one of the only people in the US who isn’t on Facebook.  How do the Facebook classified ads compare to Craigslist ads?  Do I need to join the Facebook mob?

I tried a few times, on a few online sites, to sell my camper.
Never got any interest, other then bogus emails and such.

I put it on Facebook, and again, not interest, for about a week. Then suddenly I got three or four people interested. Then nothing for a few weeks. I think I had to 'set' something to show it was still for sale, and 'boom', three or four interested people again. One of them sent me a deposit, and he came to get it a month later. He was from Canada.

So, yea, you can get a pretty large audience. And I got more responses then I had anywhere else (I admit to not pushing hard anywhere though). And the responses where almost all legitimate. The other places I posted it, got almost all bogus replies. On Facebook it is more difficult to hide who you really are (but it can be done).

Oddly, on Facebook, the interest in it appeared in bursts. So however they prioritize things can bump it up or down on the list.

And no, I still have little idea how to do it. I need to get motivated and put a bunch of things on there to get them moved out of here.

[John Ulrich]

I put a $7,500 cycle on both.  3 days later the new owner (who saw both ads) rode off with it and I had a stack of cash in my pocket.  Easy peasy!

[fotoguzzi]

I put a $7,500 cycle on both.  3 days later the new owner (who saw both ads) rode off with it and I had a stack of cash in my pocket.  Easy peasy!

so your Gold Wing is gone?

[John Ulrich]

so your Gold Wing is gone?

Yup, as much as I loved it, it was used twice in '18 and after the first ride last spring it was time to send it away..... use it or lose it!