Question about the Forum Marketplace

[Susan Mouw]

Just a quick question for everyone.

How is the forum marketplace working for you?  Do you find what you're looking for or is it difficult to search?

I'd like to hear your thoughts on the marketplace and what features and functions could make it better?

[Susan Mouw]

OK, let me ask this a different way.

Would you like to see something more along the lines of a classified ads format, with separate categories, etc?

[Sharon Yorks]

It would be interesting to see what you mean by a classified ad format. It is kind of odd that not many of us use this Market Place section any more than we do and I'm not really sure why we don't. Huh! 


FOR SALE - I have several chicks left from a March 19th hatch and some from an April 3rd hatch. For local pickup only since they are too old to ship now. I'm also selling hatching eggs. Please call 330-416-8419 for pricing, availability, and specifics.

[Susan Mouw]

Here is a demo of kind of what I'm talking about.  This particular demo is for a third party software solution for classified ads, which i wouldn't use (costs money, overkill for what we want, I can manage a simple php script to handle it, etc)

http://market.open-classifieds.com/themes/demo/ocean.html

This would give several added benefits to what we now have in the forum marketplace:
1.  Categories, so we can sort, search, and find items that we are looking for, instead of scrolling down through hundreds of listings that we aren't.
2.  Listing times, so ads run for a specified time, then drop off if not renewed.
3.  We could charge non-members to run ads and generate income for the club.
4.  SEO (search engine optimization), so if someone is using Google to find blue wheaten Ameraucanas, and you have an ad in the classified for blue wheaten Ameraucanas, it will show up in a search.

[Sharon Yorks]

Awesome idea! I think something like that would have the potential to help with ABC growth, too. If you decide to do that, I will advertise there to help get the ball rolling. 

[Susan Mouw]

I had planned on starting work on this these last couple of weeks, but work demands have kept me from several projects (this, the online store, letters to the hatcheries, etc).  One of my clients is a CPA and, of course, this is the busy season. Hopefully, things will settle down in another week and I can get some of the fun stuff done.