Kijiji

Kijiji

www.kijiji.ca

What is Kijiji?

Kijiji is a popular Classifieds website in Canada. It enables Canadians to connect locally and across Canada to exchange goods and services. You can use Kijiji to browse and post ads, and to send and receive messages with sellers and buyers. Viewing, posting and responding to messages is free. An email address is required to exchange messages.

Kijiji Facts:

 15 million visitors each month

 Over 150,000 new ads posted daily

 One third of Canadians use Kijiji at least once per month

 'Kijiji' means 'village' in Swahili

A wide variety of goods and services are available through Kijiji, including computers, furniture, tools, clothing, electronics, appliances, cars, real estate, jobs, pets, community events and more.

Getting Started:

Register with Kijiji (optional)

1. Go to www.kijiji.ca and click on “Register” in

top right corner

2. Fill out the registration form

Exercise: Registration

-If you have an email address, register now following the steps outlined below.

- If you do not have email, practice filling out the form using a fake email address.

Searching in Kijiji

Whether you are buying or selling on Kijiji, you will want to browse the ads posted in your chosen category. Browsing ads for items similar to the item you are trying to sell will help you to determine a price. You will also learn about popular searches in each category.

Steps for Searching

 Start a search for a "patio set" in the main search bar, and choose the category "buy and sell."

 Use the panel to the left of your search results to refine your search, changing the category of your

search, the location of the seller, the type of ad, and limiting the price range.

 Find an ad you are interested in, and click on it to get more

information. Most sellers will post several pictures which you can view and enlarge from the ad's main page.

 Within the ad, you can see when the ad was posted, where the seller is located, and also see other ads from this seller ( see "View poster's other ads" located under the poster contact information.

Quick Fact:

You can subscribe for a "Kijiji Alert" to receive a daily email update with the latest ads in your favourite category.

Replying to Messages

 If a number is listed, you can call the person who posted the ad (go to “Click to show” to see the phone number).

 When sending a message, enter your email and your name. Listing a phone number is optional.

 Type your message and enter the verification code.

 After you click “Send Email”, you will get a green confirmation message that your email has been sent.

Posting an Ad

 To begin the process of posting an ad, click on the link in the upper right of the Kijiji home page that says “Post Ad FREE."

Exercise: Replying to an Ad - Practice browsing ads - Click on a few different ads and practice entering a reply message

- Look for the poster's phone number, if available

 Next, you'll see a list of the categories into which Kijiji separates its ads.

 Each main category ('buy and sell,' 'real estate,' 'jobs' etc) contains sub-categories: for example, 'cars & vehicles' is broken down into 'classic cars,' 'auto parts & tires,' 'automotive services,' etc.

 Be as specific and accurate as you can when selecting a category in order to ensure that users looking for items like yours will be able to find your ad easily.  When you post an ad, it is

automatically placed at the top of its category and will remain there until another ad is placed in the same category

Exercise: Practice posting an ad

- From the Kijiji home page, click on "Post ad FREE"

- Browse the categories and choose one where you will post

- Follow the steps on the following page to create your ad

Verify or change the category your ad will display in

Enter your headline here

Promote your ad for a fee (optional)

Uploading photos will get you more responses

Email and map address are required fields Brief description of your item here

 After you have created your ad, click on "preview" to see how your ad will look.  Once complete, click on "post your ad."  If you do not have a kijiji account, Kijiji will send an activation link to the email

address you provided. Check your email, find the message and click on the link. Your ad will be activated and you will be brought to a Kijiji page with this banner:

 This message indicates that your ad has been successfully activated. Other Kijiji users will shortly be able to see your ad when they search for related terms, and they can contact you by sending you a message via email (though your email address is not visible to them).

 Also included in the activation email from Kijiji are links you can use to view, edit, re-post and delete your ad.

Deleting and Re-posting

 Deleting: Ads are automatically deleted after 60 days if they have not been manually deleted by the poster before then. You are notified by email a few days before your ad expires.

 Re-posting an ad extends its life by an additional 60 days, and brings your ad back to the top of its category.

Ways to improve your ad if you are not getting responses:

 Ensure that your ad is listed in the correct city and category  Ads with pictures are viewed far more often than ads without  Be clear and precise within your ad title and description

 Do a price comparison: search on Kijiji for other items in the same category to get a sense of the typical price range for the item you're selling

Managing your ads

You can monitor all of your posted ads and track how many visits each one has

received from the “My Kijiji” tab on the upper right corner. To edit or repost ads, use the links provided to you by email as part of your posted ad confirmation.

Safety Tips

Kijiji.ca does not review ads before they appear on the site, so use good judgment when reviewing and replying to ads. Here are some tips to ensure your safety :

 When buying or selling, you should meet in person to see the product and exchange funds. Meet in a public place with many people around, such as a coffee shop.

 Use cash to pay for items purchased on Kijiji. Do not send money by wire or mail, or use payment services such as PayPal, eBay Motors Purchase Protection Program, Bidpay, Western Union or Money Gram to purchase items from Kijiji.  Kijiji International Limited, eBay, and PayPal do not offer secure payment

systems for items purchased through Kijiji. Any message or website that

suggests otherwise is a scam. Some scammers will use an official-looking logo in their communications, but do not be fooled by this.

 Never give out personal or banking information (e.g. social insurance number, bank account number) over the Internet. Also be wary of posters promising large sums of money for your assistance.

 Inform Kijiji of suspicious activity in ads, emails, or among any members of the Kijiji community. In case of illegal activity, contact the police and Kijiji staff.

This work is licensed under an Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 license. You may share and adapt it for non-commercial use if the original is cited. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ca/)