Craigslist Concept: Better Shopping Experience for College Students

Design Challenge: Create a better shopping experience for students who want to buy furniture on craigslist
keywords: #customer-facing #categorized-ads-platform #students #large-item-transaction

Part 1: Research
Hypothesis
Many students don’t have access to very convenient transportation. The logistics of transporting furniture will be a challenge.
Students are very price sensitive.
Students usually want to get things done fast because they are very busy with other stuff.
There are a lot of information on Craigslist, and it takes a lot of time and effort to find what you need.
Craigslist has a reputation of being “unsafe”. Safety will be a primary concern for the student.

I interviewed 15 students from different colleges about their experience using Craigslist, finding furniture, or both. I outline a summary of the problems that students run into when buying furniture. I also outline the positive and negative feedbacks I received about using Craigslist.
Buying furnitures
It usually takes a long time to reach the seller. There are also many ambiguities involved, such as the time, location and means to transact.
Most interviewees do not have their cars on campus. They would only purchase furniture when the seller is willing to deliver.
Most interviewees found their furnitures through on-campus “Dump-And-Run”(stuff donated by other students). Many of them are skeptical about online furniture finding because the seller’s identity is unverified.
Using Craigslist to find furnitures
Users generally like that there are a lot of options out there, but some expressed that they wish the information is more organized.
The process of finding gems in the midst of many bad options brings some users satisfaction.
The primary concern of most users is how far away the seller is, and whether they are willing to help with picking up.
Many expressed the frustration of the unpredictability of the process—it can take from few days to one month to complete one transaction.
Many wish that they can bargain the price, but they know bargaining will lengthen the process and the seller might not respond.
Some experienced Craigslist users travel in groups in cars, reaching further sellers and also ensuring safety.
There are still many scams on Craigslist.
Many frequent users of Craigslist wish that Craigslist’s interface could be improved.