I am a published author so I’m hoping my website will show who I am more than Airbnb. I lived in Airbnb for two years straight so have some good feedback but one problem landlord so won’t be using that.
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Regarding business links and other stuff. As a host, I do look at linkedin when it’s there and find it helpful in establishing trust by showing me something about the person in the real world. I’ve seen commonalities. For instance, many of my sitters work in tech. My spouse works in tech so sometimes thats a good start. But I might be turned off by a real world business profile, especially if it involved some further service a sitter was trying to sell eg animal photos, decluttering services, cleaning, etc.
Agree with others that if you’ve done two sits and don’t have reviews, that would be a red flag for sure. I think people here can be very helpful in giving a perspective if you’d consider sharing your profile. I don’t think you are at any disadvantage being a solo sitter or being older with the exception of certain situations that might involve a lot of physical labor or very strong dog, etc.
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Just checked out your business page. You don’t have a link that goes to your profile, so I can’t offer any help. Your business page tells me about you as a writer. I’m a published writer as well. That is not what makes me an ideal petsitter or housesitter. When I look for petsitters I’m looking for something in the application and in their profile that immediately makes me feel my pets will be safe with this person.
Agreed. Especially if someone is self-published via Amazon or affiliates or small imprints that folks wouldn’t consider significant in the publishing industry, it’s not likely to help. Being published isn’t a big deal nowadays, because many people self-publish and make little or no money from it. At least two of my past hosts were published authors, aside from their day jobs.
If someone were to be impressed by authors, they might enjoy having someone famous sitting for them if they were a best-seller. But personally, I’ve worked in two industries with many authors, including NYT best-sellers. Would I care about that if I were choosing someone to sit my dog and home? No, because how does that reflect on what kind of caretakers they are? Unless maybe you wrote about pet care or home care.
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We completely agree with you @HappyDeb It does sound like it is a ‘no focus’ attitude and more just sending out the same message to 40+ people hoping someone picks them. Definitely have a welcome message with your application that is catering to that specific ad…mention their names, the animals names, when you will be in the area, why you would be good for the sit, etc.
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Your advice is very helpful since like you I have no real base for local sits that people are telling me to get. Looks like I will have to apply to unattractive locations first. And it is the lack of reviews that is the only problem.
I’m not sure what you mean by business page? On TH? My profile?
Not completed sits yet. I am convinced it is solely to do with the lack of reviews and fact I don’t apply to sits less than a week since no real base city. Yes my references mention past pet sits and housesits and my photos include me caring for street animals and shelter animals and working with a veterinary nurse. Nothing wrong with my profile. It is the increased competition and lack of reviews. Thanks
I’m not trying to impress but just show it would be easy to track me down through my company or if you will publisher so can be trusted. I’m not a scammer. Im self employed in … That’s all I meant.
If you’ve got experience working with shelter animals and such, I’d suggest focusing on that. Imagine what would make hosts feel confident about leaving their beloved pets with you and their home to your care.
Normal hosts won’t focus on whether they can track you down after you’ve theoretically done something terrible. And even if someone could track you across borders, what consequences could a host exact realistically?
If a host is focusing on that sort of angle, they’d be better off hiring a professional sitter with insurance or bonding. And you as a sitter would be better off not sitting for someone so untrusting, because that doesn’t usually bode well for sits.
Many nomads are successful sitters and they’re not offering ways to track them down as part of their profiles or applications. But they are producing profiles and applications that build trust. And all of us sitters started without reviews. It sounds like you’ve at least got some good references about helping to care for pets.
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The members here have mentioned some very good points:
- Don’t mention wealth or that you are well off to afford hotels and travel. A major put off. Also, your business page links aren’t really relevant and could be off-putting too. You can mention you are a nomad worker, so you can travel with ease…but I wouldn’t put your business links on your profile.
- We started out just like you (with only references). Apply for a local sit. Mention to the people you can meet in person for a before sit meet and greet.
- Make sure you have pictures with you interacting with animals. Not just solo travel pictures.
- In your intro, mention the homeowners by name. Say how cute each animal is and mention there names as well. Bring up your experience with X breed and X animal. Mention that you like taking walks if they have dogs. Mention your time in the area. Etc. DON’T put out a generic message like “I am available for these dates. Thanks”. Off-putting. Be specific. It makes you stand out.
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I suppose there exist direct flights som Mexico to Canada and to the UK. But there are still problems with border checks. Do not mention petsitting. And even then, you are likely to get more scrutiny at the UK border than me on my Dutch passport.
@Maggie8K already mentioned Nomador. There I sometimes see sits on St. Martin or in French Guyana.
@lollykaiser Are the 2 sits you have booked soon? Hopefully that is the case and you will soon receive 2 reviews to set you on your way. Definitely be applying for Christmas/New Year sits if you are available as there are many listed, especially in the UK, where you wish to sit.
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@lollykaiser We have edited your profile link here so it now reflects correctly.
Just started a few months ago and have had several sits:
- Personalized application mentioning the pets by name and something you read in the profile
- Only apply for new or low application sits that are last minute or very soon.
- Try to stay close to your home.
- It’s like a job interview; why should they choose you.
Good luck!
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That was difficult for someone in Mexico, but it should work once one is in the UK.
I did a trip through England this spring. After I had arrived in the country it was not difficult to get a string of relatively short sits. There are so many THS members there! I had a long gap between the first and the last sit that I had confirmed from Sweden, so that was a bit risky, but it worked out exactly like I had wanted.
When I was there, I had set my location to Cambridge, so that the HO would not rule me out because of where I lived.
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If you say so. For your having submitted nearly 40 applications with such a low success rate, something clearly is not working.
I have had a look at your profile and you wrote this under Experience: “I used to stay in Airbnbs but have switched to hotel apartments for a more reliable experience. I was a homeowner in Kelowna BC Canada from 1998 until 2021 and became knowledgeable about the care of an older home. I heated with wood most of the time and took on students so was a landlord too.”
Your mentioning that you were last a homeowner in 2021 may give HOs the impression that you are homeless and just looking for a place to stay. It may come across that you are only interested in travel and not so much as to the care for their pets / homes. Since many of them think that is what sitters look for anyway, it would be off-putting to them. And the line about “heating with wood…” is confusing.
Also, when you mention, “For my age” and “Too old to party!” may create an unwarranted bias towards ageism.
You came to the forum seeking advice and you were given great advice / suggestions by experienced sitters.
Of course, you can take it or leave it and keep doing what you are doing.
Please, let us know how that works out for you.
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I am a single sitter, females, mid-50s. I actually think this works to my advantage. People can see that I have raised children, owned pets and homes, kept a responsible job, etc. I am quintessentially reliable. I get almos every sit that I apply for, but that’s because I pick them very carefully so that they are in line with my experience. For what you say, you are applying left, right and centre with very little focus. Until you have a few good reviews in your profile, I would focus on that. Do last minute sits near home and ensure you get a good review. After that, spread your wings
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Agreed.
I’ve not referred to my age. It’s not necessary, since our sitter profiles automatically include them. Plus, hosts can decide how responsible I am based on other stuff I mention in my profile and applications.
Show, don’t tell. Like if you’ve done X, that’s >showing< if you mention it and it reflects on being responsible. Just saying you’re responsible, by contrast, is less believable. That’s just >telling<.
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True. Some things are irrelevant and do not need to be mentioned in one’s profile. More importantly worth mentioning though is “What is the “why” of why sitters want to sit?” Is it only for travel? Is it for the love / care of pets? When the “why” is answered, does it show a genuine and sincere interest in the caring of pets?
I began my THS journey a month after my dog passed away. I missed having my bestie dog and in my first application, I wrote that “I missed having my bestie and THS gave me a way to continue my love of caring for pets”. I know my “why” for sitting. It is all about the pets. Traveling and meeting new people are just the added bonus. As I have said before, I sit because I want to—not because I have to.
Profiles and applications written by sitters are either attractive or non-attractive. What makes a sitter’s profile / application stand out and be more attractive than the others?
When sitters can answer their “why” in their profiles / applications to the satisfaction of potential and future HOs, then maybe that is something where they will stand out from other sitters and help them in securing sits.
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