Is There a "Best Time" to Run a Craigslist Want Ad?

In spite of what we have been told by the media, unemployment is incredibly low and I have found it difficult to find quality people for my business. I have used several avenues including radio, classified ads, and (of course) Craigslist. Craigslist has an amazing reach and the success stories surrounding it are numerous. I, on the other hand, have had very little success with it. Until recently.

Over the last several months, at the end of a long business day, I would sit at my computer and put up a Craigslist ad while watching TV. Most of the time I received little to no response. Today, I ran an ad just before my radio show began and before an hour was over I had several responses directly related to the advertisement.

So what made the difference? Unemployment is almost identical to what it was a couple of weeks ago when I ran an a very similar advertisement to what I submitted today. I thought about it and I think the major difference is timing. My earlier ads often began to run at around 9 PM, when the last thing people want to think about is their employment situation. By the time morning came and people began to look, my advertisement was buried under others who chose to do their ads through out the evening. Today, this ad came out right in the middle of the business day when people are most hungry for new opportunities. It is simple common sense and something to think about the next time you put an ad in one of the country's best sources for making connections.

For a copy of the free report, "Why Your Marketing Isn't Working," email Info@HoustonBusinessShow.com and put "marketing" in the subject line.

Kevin Price is Host of the Houston Business Show (M-F at 11 AM on CNN 650) and Publisher of the Houston Business Review. Hear the show live and online at HoustonBusinessShow.com. Visit the archive of past shows here.

I Want to Play -- Er, Work -- at Google

Fortune Magazine's annual list of the best companies to work at was topped by Google and the difference between this generous company and others (even those on the list) is huge The following is a short list of some of the great things about life (and work) at the search engine giant:

* free gourmet meals from several different restaurants

* the ability to do your laundry, at no cost

* a place to drop off your dry cleaning

* one can get an oil change and get a massage all onsite

* one can enjoy a huge game room

* work is such a comfortable place that it is sometimes difficult to get Google employees to leave the office

This last item is a plus for the company and the "payoff" to Google for its generosity. The company has employees who don't have to be told to work over time, they are glad to do it in order to meet the company's objectives. Not only are employees pleased to work there, thousands are eager to get hired (with 1,300 applications coming in daily to chase down about that number of jobs available each year). People are well aware of the fact they have a really good thing.

I think Google is a great place a work and an excellent example to businesses around the world. They choose to do it, not merely for altruism, but to make it one of the most competitive companies in the world.