HTML Edited Ads

How do you feel about ads that are edited by HTML to make the font bigger, different colors, links added, etc.? Is it a good thing, or a turn off?

I guess it kinda depends. For a business or service I kinda expect a professional company to have a more professional presentation such as an HTML ad with pics of examples of work, sales, specials, etc. If were jjust talking about someone sellign an old dresser I don't think it's necessary and could possibly see it turning some people off as everyone on craigslist wants bargains and maybe they see a professional ad and think its a store or think it will be priced higher becauese of that or think you may not be as willing to bend on price because of that.

To me it's a turn off. I figure if they have to fluff the ad up, then the items isn't good enough to sell itself.

To me it's a turn off. I figure if they have to fluff the ad up, then the items isn't good enough to sell itself.

Its not really a matter of fluffing the ad, I think for service industries its a more professional presentation and even a chance to show examples of their work in addition to what you can do with a regular listing. For businesses or people who list alot having an ad format you can just plug in item specific details into saves time. For example I could write an ad from scratch or I could have a template with my contact info, address, etc and all I have to do is plugin a few pics and description vs writing an entire ad from scratch

Its not really a matter of fluffing the ad, I think for service industries its a more professional presentation

We are talking about Craigslist ads here. The people that shop on CL aren't looking for quality ad layouts, they're looking for deals.

I tried HTML edited ads for 2 weeks, got zero hits. Changed back to standard ads, made like 15 sales this week. The market has spoken!

I tried HTML edited ads for 2 weeks, got zero hits.

Right, because the buyers interpret that as a business ad instead of a Joe citizen selling something out of his house. Selling is a psychological game.