I'm a bit perplexed. I've been designing websites, promoting affiliate programs, and pumping my own businesses through sites like Craigslist, eBay, MySpace, and countless others for years. However, with each day, they get more and more restrictive on exactly "what" you can use their sites for. These companies have become so large and so restrictive that MANY people have literally lost everything they had due to their dependance on them. Ebay has become "GreedBay", Craigslist now blocks EVERYTHING, and MySpace has begin blocking dozens of the custom script sites that helped them become so popular. While I understand some of their reasoning, it's become literally impossible for the person that doesn't have a huge marketing budget to make it. People seem to forget that they reason these sites make millions per month, is because of the "little" people like us. At what point do we start to shift our loyalties elsewhere? Remember when you could actually make a living on eBay? Or when Craigslist actually WANTED all of your ads posted? Or when MySpace wasn't littered with corporate ads? Bottom line, it's time for US, the people that generate $20 Million a month for these companies that would gladly crap on you for a buck. With my latest site, I want to get back to what the internet was initially meant for......information, the people, and being FREE. Everything on the site will be either free, or resaonable priced right down to the advertisements. PM me for details
It's their site... their rules. I wouldn't want a bunch of spammers on my sites either. Promoting products is one thing but there's always people who completely go overboard. I like the script you're using though! ;-)
That's a great idea, but if it makes it big like Craig's List did then you will inevitably face the perplexing question of monetizing it. If you don't and don't take advantage of it while its hot someone else will come along and make something very similar, monetize it and then use their new money to out market you and take away your market share. This happens all the time. This is exactly what Google did to Alta Vista and all the other search engines. A website is easy to make and if you make something popular like Digg.com or Prosper.com, you will inevitably get tag alongs, copycats and mishmashers whom will steal your business and your readership if you let them.
Most of my myspace accounts got banned simply for having my web address under my display name. Unlike most of the spammers accounts, there was real person behind my accounts. Not to mention I never directly referred anybody to my websites.