Craigs List Craig Speaks to us

I participated in an interesting discussion with Craig's List Craig Newmark about what's happening at Craig's List at tonight's SD Forum event.

We learn a few figures that may be new to the rest of the world??

1.7 billion page views per month
7 million unique visitors per month
77 cities and they're adding others, when 'in the mood' to do so. Interesting comment.
They have more interest then they can keep up with.

I met Craig for the first time at the last Web 2.0 Conference in San Francisco. Then, and sadly now, I still spend a lot of time on Craigs List searching for not just a house to live in, but perhaps more fortunately searching for a graphic designer, a web expert, an assistant and a media relations pro.

A few things worth noting from tonight:

He compared Scott Adams on organizational behavior to the way they do business. He says, "sometimes instinct and experience is a better way to run a business," after saying that "we don't have a business plan." They view themselves as a community service and their agenda is all about 'helping people.' Their 'numbers' are growing almost purely by word of mouth and I got the feeling he was very proud of the fact.

A few questions from the audience:

What about social networks?
C: Live Journal and Six Apart are looking at that, i.e., friend of a friend and referrals, building communities. We have thought about it, and think its important but just haven't gotten to it yet.

What about RSS? Where do you see that taking you?
C: RSS poses server load issues and we have to get smarter about it. Everyone is jumping on the RSS bandwagon so we're there too. It's a smart way to get the word out to a lot of people.

What about citizen journalism?
C: Big believer in it and I think what Dan Gillmor is doing is great and also recommend his latest book.

What has your biggest challenge been since starting Craigs List?
C: Chasing after the bad guys and....how do we deal with them. Whether its scammers, spammers, people who post ads for things that don't exist, etc. We need to do more self policing and also reward people who help chase down the 'bad guys' for us.

I found it amusing how many times he said things like "I or we fanticize a lot about....and my instincts tell me to or about, etc..." He's definitely more of an instinct 'guy" than a business plan kinda guy. Loved his wit and great sense of humor.

And then there's the greatest line of the night: After John Stewart's appearance on Crossfire, 'as far as I'm concerned, he's the 'most trusted name in journalism.'