This is something I’ve been meaning to say for awhile now. There has been a few times where I noticed on the forums people freaking out over receiving a 4 stars. I think we need to stop thinking 4 stars is horrible. In my opinion 3 stars and under is terrible. 4 stars is not bad at all. From what I noticed when people receive that it’s usually from something so small so it’s not a big deal. It’s not a deal breaker. I just find it crazy when people whine and post like it’s the end of the world. How could a HO give me 4 stars I cleaned and now no one will accept me etc.
If I was a HO I wouldn’t think it’s a big deal if I saw that. If a sitter had lots of 3 stars or lower multiple times I would consider that a red flag.
I don’t know I just felt like posting this because some people are too hard on themselves with reviews. I read post from here, and other Facebook pages of sitters feeling nervous or angry when they don’t receive 5
If you aim for 5 stars and get 4, it is upsetting. In my opinion.
We got a review that marked us 4 on tidyness even though we definitely left it cleaner than we found it.
We checked the listings subsequent reviews and found that the HO had given 4 stars for tidiness to a later sitter, who like us, had completed a 3 week sit. The shorter sits, were all given 5 stars for tidiness.
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We suspected that the HO marked longer sitters 4, to keep them on their toes. To effectively, get more of how we left their home.
But an average cleaner like me would not apply if I saw that.
The problem as a sitter to get 4 stars is that it decreases the success rate of applications, especially for the more competitive sits. So when you are into those, that is a bit of a disaster.
I think the expectation of 5 star ratings or nothing from the HO (or sitter is ludicrous), i don’t know of any situation where insistence on maximum grading is the normal.
For example, if going on holiday, and a 4/5 star review is left for the place you intend to stay, do people then think its not entirely not suitable?
Unfortunately this is the situation we find ourselves in though, we will be seriously reconsidering at renewal time.
For me I think of a 5* review as indicating a minimum standard has at least been achieved by either side, it’s indicative for me that all T&Cs were met and that descriptions were honest and transparent on the HO side. For the sitter it means they did their part as expected ….
Less than 5* indicates to me anyway that somebody dropped the ball or reneged on what was agreed….the impact of that is indicated by how many stars are dropped.
@BonnyinBrighton I agree completely.
Most sitters put their heart & soul into a sit and take it personally if any stars are dropped unexpectedly. The odd time we’ve had a star dropped (especially for cleaning when we know we left the home pristine) it really grates. Its usually for very petty reasons like putting something back in the wrong place or ice box freezing up etc Reviews are so important for sitters and we work hard to build our reputation so that future hosts will have confidence in us. Minor things should be overlooked imho and nentioned privately if necessary. The sitter, or host, should not be punished publically for unimportant things.
In broad terms, I agree, 4 stars are fine. However, as @Lokstar says, we really do put our hearts and souls into a sit, it becomes a matter of pride and love for the pet. So it absolutely grates when we receive a 4 star. Only once did we receive a 4 star for pet care, come on! The dogs got into a tiff the day before the owners arrived, while we were all napping together - dogs and humans. I mean come on, how on earth were we supposed to combat that??? And a tiny chicklett died - we were warned it hardly had a chance, so again, was that our fault? The 4 star rating for pet care bothered me for a good long time afterwards, even though we got a 5 star overall. It’s just because we really fall in love with the pets and give them so much attention, so a 4 star feels like a slap in the face. Over time the hurt fades and now I just shrug about that incident. But it did hurt.
We always try to go “above and beyond” so 4 stars would be a slap in the face…and if we saw that a homeowner regularly gave 4 stars, always finding something wrong, I would be hesitant to sit for them. In a system where you live by reviews and ratings, where someone with a perfect rating will be chosen for a coveted sit over a lower rated person I can well understand how upset people get, especially if they don’t think it was deserved.
I’ve yet to get fewer than five stars, but I expect that I eventually will, odds wise.
I consistently take good care of pets and homes, so I figure if a host ends up less than five-star satisfied, it will mean they had unrealistic expectations and/or we miscommunicated. And I’ll live.
I don’t go above and beyond, which I think is unnecessary for sits and makes it more likely that you’ll be disappointed with reviews. I figure, if you enjoy going above and beyond, do it for yourself and don’t expect hosts to necessarily appreciate it.
The stars are a complement to what the review says. It is way more important to see what is said (and not said) in the review. I’ve read many reviews (on THS and other platforms) where the letter of the review does not match the rating, one way or the other. I always make it a point to read reviews with low ratings and I often find that the reviewers have unrealistic expectations or are severe on things that the person or thing reviewed had little to no control over. For example a resort given a bad review because the weather was bad during the vacation. It’s important to be able to read between the lines. Unless the reviews raise serious concerns I wouldn’t be deterred by a lower rating for a sitter.
