The Craigslist Atlanta

Craigslist Atlanta is in the first place a centralized network of online urban communities. It was developed to feature free classified advertisements; some are ads for employment, housing, personals, for sale or wanted properties, services, community, events, gigs, and resumes categories. There are also some forums that are sorted by different interesting topics.

The Background

The Craigslist Atlanta was developed in 1995 by Craig Newmark for the San Francisco Bay Area. The idea stemmed from the observation that people on the net, the Well, and Usenet are helping one another in friendly, social and trusting community way. With that, Newmark decided to form something similar for local San Francisco events. Soon, the new innovation became the word of mouth, and the popular demand is what led to the addition of new categories on the list. Thus, the list expanded and became large enough to demand the employment of a list server, which required a name. The friends and cohorts of Craig Newmark started calling it "Craigs list", and the name since then stuck. It is worthy to note that today's Craigslist Atlanta was once renamed listfoundation.org for a brief period of time in 1999.

Since the development and introduction of the Craigslist Atlanta, many people questioned its purpose and why it has drawn a lot of interest from the people. Well, Craig Newmark once stated that the Craigslist Atlanta primarily works for the reason that it gives the masses a voice, a sense of community trust and even intimacy. Other factors he cited are consistency of down-to-earth values, simplicity, and customer service that are all shown by the Craigslist Atlanta.

After first being approached about running banner ads, Craig Newmark decided to keep the Craigslist non-commercial. In 2002, however, the staff of Craigslist Atlanta posted mock banner ads throughout the site as an April Fools joke.

The Expansion

After the incorporation in 1999, the Craigslist Atlanta expanded into nine more cities in 2000, four each in 2001 and 2002, and fourteen in 2003. As of the month of October this year, the Craigslist had formed itself in approximately 150 cities in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Continental Europe, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Asia, Israel and Brazil.

It is also interesting to know that the Craigslist Atlanta in recent year operates with a staff of 18 people. Its only source of revenue is actually paid job advertisements in selected cities. Also, the Craigslist has been serving three billion page views every month for more than ten million unique visitors. And, although the firm does not disclose financial information, a number of journalists have guessed that its yearly revenue approached $10 million in 2004.

The Nonprofit Foundation

Craigslist Atlanta started the Craigslist Foundation in 2001. The foundation is actually a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that assists the emerging nonprofit groups get established, gain visibility, attract the attention of potential donors, and enhance the abilities and knowledge needed for long-term success. Today, the Craigslist Foundation welcomes charitable donations, and rather than directly funding organizations, it produces and provides face to face events and offers online resources to help grassroots groups get off the ground and make a big difference on their own.