Fogster: The Weekly's new online marketplace Fogster: The Weekly's new online marketplace (January 14, 2005)

by Jeb Bing

T oday marks the start of an exciting and, I believe, unprecedented new concept in merging the traditional role of newspaper classified advertising with the powerful capabilities of online classified postings. We've named it Fogster.com, a new online service that is the result of many months of brainstorming and design by a team of employees whose challenge was formidable: Create a new paradigm for how a community uses newspapers to buy, sell, barter, look for things and give stuff away that takes full advantage of the capabilities of the Internet.

For the last few years, newspapers have experienced a steady migration of classified advertising to Web sites that offer free or less expensive ads. This exodus has been most visible with employment advertising, the mainstay and biggest profit producer of most daily newspapers. But the growth of online classified sites also began drawing other kinds of ads out of newspapers, including the ads placed by individuals wanting to buy or sell merchandise, automobiles or look for housing.

Now through Fogster.com, the Pleasanton Weekly offers our readers an easy combination online-and-newspaper solution for buying or selling a used bike, TV or car, finding a reliable employee, or making sure many others in town know about your upcoming garage sale that you've planned for weeks. This system, focused on Pleasanton, combines the immediacy of the Internet with the proven and targeted effectiveness of newspaper advertising. Instead of needing to call or e-mail us with your ad, you are now able to simply go to our Web site at PleasantonWeekly.com, enter your ad and it will be "live" for others to see within moments. In addition to the free online posting, you'll get a free headline ad in the Weekly on the following Friday. For a small charge, you also have the option of running a longer ad or including a photograph in the paper, or running the ad in one or more of our other newspapers: The Pacific Sun in Marin County or the Palo Alto Weekly, Mountain View Voice or Menlo Park Almanac on the Peninsula.

In short, we've made it super easy for you, our loyal readers, to place your ads online and in the Weekly free, and at the time of your choosing. The newspaper gets your ad in front of people in Pleasanton who may not be actively searching online, and Fogster organizes the online postings for those who prefer that marketplace and well beyond Pleasanton.

Of course, there are other options out there, such as Craig's List, which many of us have used. But I believe most people prefer dealing with their neighbors when buying or selling "stuff." It's more convenient, often more trustworthy and reinforces the notion of "community." And nothing is more effective than newspaper advertising for reaching a geographically targeted audience that may not be actively looking for a job or for something to buy.

For more information on how Fogster.com works and placement specifics, please turn to "Pleasanton Marketplace" on page 28. I think you'll like Fogster, an easy name to remember when going online. I'm just as confident that you'll use and enjoy the amazing capabilities of this new classified system.

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