Online classified advertising is another oft-overlooked area of Web promotion. While online ads certainly haven't gained the popularity of their print counterparts; at least, not yet, they are nevertheless an effective method of communicating details about a product or service on offer to those who have yet to visit your site.

Classified advertising guides are generally organised into a range of categories similar to those seen in newspapers. The ads themselves also represent those seen in papers and trade publications, in that they may include a title, descriptions and both offline and online contact details. A number of classified ad sites also categorise ads based on nationality or state, which is more beneficial to people offering localised products or services.

While Free-4-All link lists are successful at driving untargeted traffic to your site, classified ads allow potential visitors and/or purchasers to gain a brief understanding of the products and/or services on offer at your site prior to visiting. This sort of advertising is perhaps more beneficial, therefore, in generating sales rather than bulk impressions.

We've listed more than 300 classified ad sites within the categories below. It's worth your while to test their effectiveness in regards to your particular site.