How to set Google Alerts for your message board

Tired of countless ad-board views every day in search of the perfect auto, electronics, or other classifieds for sale? There is a simple alternative for Google users that will filter the results and send them directly to your email. Read below to learn how to set up Google Alerts to alert you when an item you're looking for is up for sale.

Steps

Set up a Google Alert for Craigslist Step 1

Step 1. Open the Google Alerts site

You can set up Google Alerts to alert you when new search results appear that match your query. These results will be sent to your Google account email, or to your news feed.

You can find the Alerts page by writing www.google.com/alerts in your browser's address bar.
You will need a free Google account to create alerts.

Set up a Google Alert for Craigslist Step 2

Step 2. Enter your search term

Enter the subject about which you would like to be notified. For example, if you are looking for new ads for a Honda Civic, write honda civic in the "Search term" field. Try to be as straightforward as possible to get as many results as possible.

If you want to exclude a word from your search, use the minus sign in front of the word you want to exclude. For example, "antique chair".
Remember that a broad query like "car" may produce more results than you need, while a more precise phrase like "Ford Focus sapphire blue" might, on the contrary, yield too few.
If you want the search engine to only search for exact words, not including various pronunciations and synonyms, place your search query in quotation marks. For example, "Ford" in quotation marks will exclude the words "Fort" from the search results.

Set up a Google Alert for Craigslist Step 3

Step 3. Enter your classifieds site

After entering your search term, enter the message board address for your city. Make sure to enter the exact name of your city, otherwise you will receive ads from all ad sites in a row.

To enter a message board search address, enter site: city name. Name of the site. Instead of the words "city name" and "announcement site name" enter the name of your city and the address of the classified site.
For example, if you are looking for ads for a Honda Civic in Moscow, on SomeSalesSite.ru, your search query will look like this: honda civic site: Moscow. SomeSalesSite.ru. On the right, you will see a preview of the matching results.
If you're not sure which classifieds site to use, look for the one that is most popular in your city and meets your needs.
You can create different alerts for different sites if you are looking for ads for multiple cities.

Set up a Google Alert for Craigslist Step 4

Step 4. Adjust search parameters

After setting up your search query, use the drop down menu below to set various parameters. Use the settings below to make sure you get all of the possible results.

Result Type - Select "All". This is necessary to get results from message boards.
Language - Set the language you want to search in.
Country - Setting an ad site for your city will refine the search location. If you do not need goods from other countries, then select your country. If you are interested in an offer from abroad - put "All countries".
Send Frequency - Set how often you want to receive alerts. By default, you will receive them daily, but if you want to receive the latest results as they become available, select “As new results arrive”.
Quantity - Select "All Results". Make sure to select this option or you will not be notified of every ad that appears.
Shipping - Choose either your email address or News Feed. If you select a feed, the results will be added to the newsletter, which can then be read by an RSS viewer.

Set up a Google Alert for Craigslist Step 5

Step 5. Save the alert

Once all the parameters have been set, click the "Create Alert" button. You will receive updates at the selected interval to the email address or feed you set. You will be sent to the list of your Alerts, where you can create new ones or change the current ones.

Advice

An alternative way to find Google Alerts is to go to the Google page and select "More" from the horizontal list of search options in the upper right corner of the page. When the drop-down menu appears, scroll down and select "More suggestions from Google." Then scroll down to Specialized Search. Select Alerts. You will be taken to the Google Alerts page

Warnings

Make sure notifications from Google don't end up in your spam box.
Don't look for alerts on "www.googlealert.com." This is the address of a non-Google paid service called Giga Alert.