4 ms·

I would really like to know what kind of return they made on their investment.

aresant 11y ago
They bought the stake for $12 - 15m in 2004 when CraigsList sales were estimated at $7m/yr (1) Today CL's sales are estimated to be ~$335m and doubled year-over-year (2) (1) http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/EBay-buys-25-stake-in-Craigslist-Ex-employee-2701651.php http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/EBay-buys-25-stake-in... (2) http://www.wsj.com/articles/ebay-sells-craigslist-stake-back-to-craigslist-1434730678 http://www.wsj.com/articles/ebay-sells-craigslist-stake-back...
- smitherfield 11y ago
  Craigslist has no advertising on their site and doesn't charge for listings except for a few small sections of the site in major metropolitan areas (the funds from which they use for their business expenses). I think it speaks to the state of the bubble we're in that one of the "blue chip" internet companies has a business model of "be an ultra-speculative investment as long as possible." Of course Amazon too, but I'd say Craigslist is a more extreme example.
  - rezistik 11y ago
    One is running ecommerce the other is running local commerce.
  - hayksaakian 11y ago
    This is coming from personal experience so take it with a grain of salt: Craigslist is an insanely valuable source for lead generation in recruiting, and car sales. I run a recruiting company and craigslist is the best source of applicants by volume and return on investment (cost ($) per applicant). Having observed them closely, they are not ignorant to this fact. When specific cities or sections grow more popular they begin charging fees. Their biggest boon has been a recent change to charge car dealerships 5$ per post. Car dealers pay because only months earlier they were paying for black hat solutions to post for 1-2$ per post.
    - karterk 11y ago
      Interesting - what candidates do you recruit using Craigslist?
      - hayksaakian 11y ago
        Sales positions. car sales, insurance sales, real estate sales.
      - colechristensen 11y ago
        I was recruited to my first sysadmin/devops/etc. position through craigslist; similarly I encouraged a family member who quickly found a construction engineering position.
      - cft 11y ago
        We recruted an MIT graduate for a programming position via CL.
      - NDizzle 11y ago
        Honestly, I'm not interested in working for a place that doesn't use craigslist.
      - mikedb 11y ago
        There was analysis recently of the 'on demand' players craigslist lead gen spend. https://tryzen99.com/blog_posts/on-demand-is-in-demand https://tryzen99.com/blog_posts/on-demand-is-in-demand
      - elcct 11y ago
        chemists, sales persons, security, pilots... ;)
    - yeukhon 11y ago
      FWIW, if you ever watched hot girls wanted (a documentary film) you will learn that a lot of "porn stars" were recruited via craiglist. It was a very interesting documentary to see how many people would actually use craiglist to find opportunity.
  - blumkvist 11y ago
    >except for a few small sections of the site in major metropolitan areas Yeah... the most lucrative 20% of the volume...
  - tomasien 11y ago
    How can you say that in response to a comment saying that Craigslist made $335 MILLION and doubled revenue year over year? I mean sure perhaps dispute the underlying facts (they seem rock solid to me) but if making $335,000,000 in revenue is somehow the sign of a bubble then... i don't know what to say.
philip1209 11y ago
Along those lines - when/if are they are they required to disclose it as a publicly-traded company?
- colinbartlett 11y ago
  I believe they are only required to disclose financials of it in their next quarterly update if the transaction has a "material" impact on the business. Which is open to a lot of interpretation but generally has come to mean that the information would have an impact on whether the average shareholder would buy or sell the stock. This is why you see Apple buy dozens of companies quietly without disclosure all the time. Because most purchases would not really change whether the average person invests, if for no other reason than the sheer size of Apple.

They bought the stake for $12 - 15m in 2004 when CraigsList sales were estimated at $7m/yr (1) Today CL's sales are estimated to be ~$335m and doubled year-over-year (2) (1) http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/EBay-buys-25-stake-in-Craigslist-Ex-employee-2701651.php http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/EBay-buys-25-stake-in... (2) http://www.wsj.com/articles/ebay-sells-craigslist-stake-back-to-craigslist-1434730678 http://www.wsj.com/articles/ebay-sells-craigslist-stake-back...

smitherfield 11y ago
Craigslist has no advertising on their site and doesn't charge for listings except for a few small sections of the site in major metropolitan areas (the funds from which they use for their business expenses). I think it speaks to the state of the bubble we're in that one of the "blue chip" internet companies has a business model of "be an ultra-speculative investment as long as possible." Of course Amazon too, but I'd say Craigslist is a more extreme example.
- rezistik 11y ago
  One is running ecommerce the other is running local commerce.
- hayksaakian 11y ago
  This is coming from personal experience so take it with a grain of salt: Craigslist is an insanely valuable source for lead generation in recruiting, and car sales. I run a recruiting company and craigslist is the best source of applicants by volume and return on investment (cost ($) per applicant). Having observed them closely, they are not ignorant to this fact. When specific cities or sections grow more popular they begin charging fees. Their biggest boon has been a recent change to charge car dealerships 5$ per post. Car dealers pay because only months earlier they were paying for black hat solutions to post for 1-2$ per post.
  - karterk 11y ago
    Interesting - what candidates do you recruit using Craigslist?
    - hayksaakian 11y ago
      Sales positions. car sales, insurance sales, real estate sales.
    - colechristensen 11y ago
      I was recruited to my first sysadmin/devops/etc. position through craigslist; similarly I encouraged a family member who quickly found a construction engineering position.
    - cft 11y ago
      We recruted an MIT graduate for a programming position via CL.
    - NDizzle 11y ago
      Honestly, I'm not interested in working for a place that doesn't use craigslist.
    - mikedb 11y ago
      There was analysis recently of the 'on demand' players craigslist lead gen spend. https://tryzen99.com/blog_posts/on-demand-is-in-demand https://tryzen99.com/blog_posts/on-demand-is-in-demand
    - elcct 11y ago
      chemists, sales persons, security, pilots... ;)
  - yeukhon 11y ago
    FWIW, if you ever watched hot girls wanted (a documentary film) you will learn that a lot of "porn stars" were recruited via craiglist. It was a very interesting documentary to see how many people would actually use craiglist to find opportunity.
- blumkvist 11y ago
  >except for a few small sections of the site in major metropolitan areas Yeah... the most lucrative 20% of the volume...
- tomasien 11y ago
  How can you say that in response to a comment saying that Craigslist made $335 MILLION and doubled revenue year over year? I mean sure perhaps dispute the underlying facts (they seem rock solid to me) but if making $335,000,000 in revenue is somehow the sign of a bubble then... i don't know what to say.

philip1209 11y ago

Along those lines - when/if are they are they required to disclose it as a publicly-traded company?

colinbartlett 11y ago
I believe they are only required to disclose financials of it in their next quarterly update if the transaction has a "material" impact on the business. Which is open to a lot of interpretation but generally has come to mean that the information would have an impact on whether the average shareholder would buy or sell the stock. This is why you see Apple buy dozens of companies quietly without disclosure all the time. Because most purchases would not really change whether the average person invests, if for no other reason than the sheer size of Apple.