How to Create A WordPress Classified Ads Site Like Craigslist
Nowadays WordPress can be used to create any site possible using its vast array of plugins. So why not a WordPress Classified Ads site?
In the ever-evolving market of Classified Ads site, there are still places left blank. Where you can start & grow your business to a sustainable position. But how do you do that exactly? With people from all over telling you their own process of creating a classified site within minutes if not seconds.
That's why we thought why not tell you a process that is easy to apply to your already existing WordPress site. And that too with your favorite frontend solution for WordPress, WP User Frontend.
What Is A Classified Ads Site
Classified Ads Site is a website where people can sell their product no matter what category or buy something from other people. They might need to register or not register depending on the policy of the ads site.
No product is owned by the administration of the ads site. They are all owned by the people who post them. And the most interesting part is it doesn't just have to be a product. People can post ads about jobs, real estate and so on.
Fun Fact: Craigslist is one of the most popular classified ads site in the world resulting in a whopping 50 billion page views per month.[Source]
Create A Site Like Craigslist Using WP User Frontend Pro
You might be wondering how can you create a site like Craigslist using a frontend solution plugin for WordPress. It's not that hard to be exact.
Using WP User Frontend Pro along with other needed plugins you can create a WordPress classified ads site for any purpose in a matter of minutes. Though you would need some other plugins, WP User Frontend Pro is the main component that will help you to make an ads submission form, ads/profile editing form, registration form and more for the frontend.
What Are The Initial Plugins Needed
At first, you need to make sure you have all the necessary plugins you would need besides WP User Frontend Pro. The two most important plugins are the Custom Post Type UI and Search & Filter plugin.
Note: You need to have your own WordPress theme, WP User Frontend Pro, other subsidiary plugins for the complete website to look like the official demo. Also here we have used plugins that are updated regularly. If you have any plugins of your choice that has the same functionalities feel free to use them on your site. Everything should work just fine.
Go to the wp-admin → Plugins inside the demo site to check out what other plugins we have installed.
Here we will try to show the three most important aspect of a classified site which is Advertisement list,
Step By Step Guide
Create Custom Post Type For Your Advertisements
Go to your wp-admin→Plugins→Add New directory and search for Custom Post Type UI. Install & activate the first plugin that comes after the search result shows up.
After that go to the Custom Post Type UI plugin menu and select Add/Edit Post Types. You will need to fill out the form to set how you want your post type to be.
Note: For reference, we created an advertising post type.
Then in the Add/Edit Taxonomies, create a new taxonomy and select the Attach to Post Type to the post type you previously set. We selected advertise here but you can set it what post type you created before.
After properly configuring these settings you should be able to see an Advertise post type in the menu section. That is where all the ads on your site will show up. you can edit them, delete them from there.
It behaves just like a completely new post type. You can create a new advertisement from the backend, see/add the tags for your post type, see/ add the post categories and so on.
Create A Registration Form
Now no WordPress classified ads site is complete with a registration form. Luckily, you don't need any fancy plugin other than WP User Frontend for this. Go to wp-admin→User Frontend→Registration Forms and create a new registration form of your choice for your website users.
Copy paste the Registration and Profile shortcode on a registration page and your users will be able to register on your classified site no problem. If you want to learn more about how you can create a registration form and what are the things you can customize check them here.
Tip: Don't forget to enable anyone can register from the
wp-admin→Settings→General
Create Add New Ad Form From Post Forms
Now comes the most important part of this process. The form your users will use to post their ads. No matter what it might be we are pretty user the vast functionalities and field types of WP User Frontend will be able to handle it.
Go to wp-admin→User Frontend→Post Forms→Add New
Add the necessary fields you want for your WordPress classified ads site and then go to the settings tab. In the Post Settings→Post Type menu, select the previously built custom post type that you created.
This will make sure your form and its submissions are typed as an advertisement.
Pro Tip: Don't forget to play with the other settings like redirect to a certain page, settings comment status to enable, submit restrictions to pending so you can review those ad posts, payment settings and more.
You can learn more about post forms and it's settings from here.
Create The Required Pages
What good are a WordPress classified ads website if you don't have all the needed pages like accounts, post your add, my adds for all the ads you registered users posted, etc. For that, you need to add shortcodes for each page to the pages you create in the Add new page menu.
Go to wp-admin→Pages→All Pages→Add New
You can find all the shortcodes from the WP User Frontend Shortcodes menu.
You need to create the needed pages to make your WordPress classified ads site properly. The most basic pages you will need are
- Registration Page: The page that lets your users register to your site
- Login Page: Where your users' login using their credentials
- Post Your Add Page: Page, where the form for the post add form is
- My Adds Page: The user dashboard where he/she can see all their add post
- All Ads Page: The front page of the site where all the ads by your users will be shown
All the necessary shortcodes are available in the WP User Frontend Shortcodes menu. Also, you can find them in the official demo.
Where Does The Admin See All The Ads That Are Posted?
All the ads that are posted on your site can be viewed from the custom post type menu that you created previously. You will be able to see the Ad title, who posted them, what category the product belongs to and the publish date. There is even an option to manually edit, delete ads.
Now It's Your Turn
This is just a glimpse of what can be done with WP User Frontend Pro on your WordPress website. You can refine the process more to your own liking and use your favorite plugins alongside this one.
Use WP User Frontent's Payment module and subscription pack features to create a paid WordPress classified ads WordPress site. The limit is your imagination.
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