On the visual appeal scale, the craigslist website is mediocre at best. But in terms of sheer mass usability it's off the scale. craigslist is an extremely powerful classified advertising tool used by millions of visitors each year. Like the wayward traveler tuning into a cities radio stations for news, It tunes in to the classified happenings of cities around the globe.

Craigslist was founded in San Francisco by Craig Newmark inthe mid 1990's. A small and personal organization, craiigslist operates with a relatively tiny staff reminiscent of a small town newspaper. From this small cadre of dedicated individuals, it provides a classified service for people around the globe. Since its beginnings, it has dedicated it's self to being a gate way of community information serving a grass roots following.

Craigslist has a simple approach to advertising, bridge the gap between the haves and the have not's. The no nonsense approach has endeared craigslist to users of all walks of life. Its classified reach is huge, stretching around the globe touching people in countries from Argentina to Vietnam. Wherever you are, chances are you can find a catergory that will help you find a job, a car, a place to live and maybe even someone to live there with you.

At first, the site seems cluttered and unfriendly to use, but the standard interface is quick to learn. In seconds its users find them selves surfing for local community information effortlessly. The standardized interface is the key to the usability. A list of links always directs users to the same categories of classified advertising.

Between geographic locations, the only perceptible difference you see in craigslist is the location banner showing what city the site is "tuned" to. Simply select a city of interest and it provides connections to people looking to sell, rent or buy or what other activities the user may be interested in for that specific area.

Because of It's content rich approach to supplying information to the masses, it enjoys one of the most visited sites around the globe for classified advertising. It has become a de-facto standard in communications between users and consumers of community style goods. A visit to craigslist is like opening up the Sunday papers classified advertisement section in any part of the world. For any community you have a need in, there is a craigslist to bridge the gap between what you need and who has it.

Additionally, online marketers have utilized the forum-based website to generate large incomes for themselves. This occurs by taking advantage of the high traffic volumes on the website as well as taking advantage of the great customer resource tools for guaranteed success. This free to use website has helped many individuals make a fortune off of studying and using a website created to bring people together.