You can’t force anyone to reply.
I have done this as an experiment: Mentioned in a friendly way in my application that I apply for multiple sits and move on quickly, depending on hosts’ response time. When I’ve done that, I got quick response, but of course can’t tell whether that was cause and effect.
Check out previous threads like this one: Response Times for Applicants - #18 by Lilywize
Personally, I withdraw my application within 48 hours if a host doesn’t get in touch. I consider speed of communication part of my criteria for hosts.
And there are plenty of hosts who reply promptly, by contrast. Like I withdrew my application for a sit last week and quickly found a significantly better sit, with a host who replied immediately, saying they were very interested in me sitting. We’re now confirmed for a sit.
Some hosts have commented in this forum that they’re busy, so they lag in replying. Lots of people — including sitters — are busy. And no one is obligated to wait on anyone else. As a sitter, you also get to choose which hosts to potentially partner vs. not.
I was looking at listings last night and noticed that a sluggish host had posted dates — I’d withdrawn from another of their listings maybe a year ago. (They’d read my application without responding, so I’d withdrawn. Then they immediately replied to say they were sorry to see me withdraw.) This time, I just skipped their listing. I noticed that it had low applications.
Some hosts probably end up with fewer applicants over time, because some sitters will skip them, knowing that they’re sluggish. That can be especially problematic for hosts in locations that aren’t popular.