Finding a sitter X months in advance

Owner Questions, Advice & Chat
1

Hi there,

We’ve had one successful sitter visit stay so far and she gave us a glowing review, however we’re really struggling to find someone to stay for our sit in late October.

Is this still too far away to panic about?

Thanks

2

Hello @mrc85 and welcome to the community forum. The short answer to your question is ‘yes’; it is too early to panic. There are many variables currently making it so that many sitters are looking at the next month or two when planning. However, some are booked into 2023. The variety of sitters is endless.

What can be helpful for you is that it’s never too early to ask for constructive feedback about your listing from forum members. I would suggest you embed your listing in your forum username/profile.

Francine
Volunteer moderator :canada:

1 Like
3

I wouldn’t panic at all if it were a several day to week long sit. If it were a several week or longer sit, then I’d definitely be putting out invitations to sitters if I had the posting up for a week or two with no (or no viable) applications.

4

Thanks Francine, I’ll get that setup!

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5

No reason to panic 3 months in advance, but I think it’s a good time to start looking. We’re booked until January now, but we used to plan 2-4 weeks ahead. There will be the right sitter for you as well somewhere out there.

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6

Thanks for the tips all, we’ve been frantically looking, but I think we need to broaden our search criteria. 12 invites sent out so far and none available, which must be bad luck!

Just on a sidenote, the search UI on the browser version of the site is awful. Location, dates, pet type and reviewed/vetted really isn’t enough. On the app, you can search by gender (or couples) and age. Not only that, but some sort of mechanism to flag sitters youve already invited, along with a SORT BY (which is a very standard function in web design, speaking as a systems developer).

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7

Hi @mrc85
I want to suggest that you add the link of your listing here onto your forum profile. Here is the way to do this, as this will give you extra exposure here.

https://forum.trustedhousesitters.com/t/procedure-how-to-add-a-listing-to-a-forum-user-profile/17258

I have also emailed you from membership services as this is the best way to boost your listing and keep in touch with our membership services team to help. Please do look out for that email.
All the best
Therese

8

12 invites aren’t much. New sitters without reviews will be more likely to accept. I think the only invitation we ever accepted was our very first one!

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9

I’d say the same as @BruceT - if it’s a longer sit then I’d start inviting. We’re booked almost solidly until early Jan. Be great to see the profile too :+1:

10

All the sitters will say not to panic in this situation. As a home-owner, I say it depends on how easily you can make alternative arrangements or re-arrange your travel.

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11

Ive had a quick look at your profile and suggest you re-order your photos. Currently your first photo (the one that browsing sitters see) is your hallway - lovely though the tiles are, it’s not the most engaging photo :smiley: How about moving the one of the two cats by the door to the front. Would it be possible to get a better photo of the sitting room (focused on the seating area rather than the dining area)?

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12

@Timmy - thanks, I think we’re going to need to expand our searches and be less specific!
@Cuttlefish - profile now added to bio!

Cheers

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13

This is one of my minor aggravations, pet owners posting sits too late. We have booked most of our travel in August through Airbnb because no sits were appearing in the locations we wanted to visit. Now they are trickling in.
I don’t think you can be too soon for some sitters. I wouldn’t panic yet, you live in a beautiful part of the world and your sit looks amazing. I’m sure the perfect person/people will come along soon.

14

@mrc85 You are getting a good range of feedback from forum members. One caution I would make when working with photos is to check what you’ve done, after you’ve made any changes. Search your listing on the website and the app, to see what sitters will see when searching.

For your thumbnail (first) photo, aim for landscape (envelope-shaped) layout. If you use portrait format, sometimes the system crops the very feature you’re trying to highlight. Look at any full search page and you’ll no doubt see what I mean. :slightly_smiling_face: