This is just a thought, from a highly experienced pet sitter, for possible consideration by pet owners.
Of course pet owners are absolutely entitled to make their decisions about prospective pet sitters based on any criteria they wish, but I would make a plea that owners might consider reading all applications received within a day or two of posting, and making a decision based on treating them all equally, rather than offering the position to the first suitable candidate whose application is received. Of course many, if not most, pet owners do this anyway, but for those who donât, please do bear in mind that not all pet sitters receive listings at the same time, and that time zones etc. can affect how rapidly a pet sitter is able to submit their application, especially if they want to send a thoughtful, personalized message. Just a thought â but of course itâs always up to pet ownersâ preferences. Thank you!
Good point! Iâm also a seasoned sitter and just applied on a local house sit last night and sent a thoughtful and personalized message to the homeowner but received another âapplication declinedâ without any personalized message. This is the one thing that really irks me and I know it does other sitters - I think itâs a total lack of courtesy to just hit that âdeclineâ button.
Hi Annette, I can certainly understand your concerns. I am a homeowner, and found out today that as soon as I send a note confirming a sitter, a decline notice is automatically sent to all other applicants. In our case, we are currently traveling, and confirmed the sitter late in the day. When today I went to reply to others that we had filled the position, I noticed that they had already been sent a decline notice. I still replied to everyone individually, but I felt badly that they received a simply decline without an opportunity to send individual message. I suspect this is done because some HOâs donât reply individually, but as a HO who always sends individual responses, I found it quite alarming!
Because it feels so unpleasant to get that Declined message, when I get an invitation to sit, I send a personal note back to the kind HO who thoughtfully invited me but do not click on Declined at all. It could feel like a slap in the face. After they have chosen a sitter, I get the *Declined/Sorry you were not successful * (or whatever that message says),
but it doesnât bother me in that situation.
Is there a fb page of this name? I shall look! I too, am v v disappointed when Iâm declined out of hand yet the total number of applications is fewer than 10. A more personal approach is warranted. Someone on this forum suggested a few months ago that the THS system be set up so that HO could not âreject allâ but their chosen sitter until and unless the message box to the unsuccessful applicant sitters was completed.
@PassportSoulmates I am appalled that the system automatically sends âapplication deniedâ this facility should be removed. I had assumed that it was the HO simply pressing a button rather than having the courtesy to reply to an application.
@ELNF Same here! I assumed the HO was pressing a âdeclineâ button.
@PassportSoulmates so glad you posted this as I didnât realize that was the process. As a sitter, that âdeclinedâ message feels extremely cold, especially after putting effort into a personal application. As as HO, I would be mortified to have applicants receive it before I was able to reply to them personally.
@Angela_L A suggestion for TH - this message could be a more positive user experience by changing the wording and offering more transparency into the process.
Instead of using negative wording like âdeclinedâ, soften the blow by simply telling the sitter that the homeowner has confirmed another sitter.
It should also be clear that this is an automated message and not rudeness on the part of the HO, which is how it currently comes across. I think this little change would make that message much less unpleasant for the applicant to receive.
@Lindsay@Angela_L
I do agree with Lindsay - a much better idea!
Application declined makes you feel that you werenât good enough but without any explanation why
@ELNF@Lindsay@PassportSoulmates thank you for tagging me in this conversation, I have also received this message, which has been made less âfinalâ since it was introduced.
An update in response to all of your comments, I am having a conversation with @Katie_Mc and checking on the declined âSorry, this time itâs not meant to beâ. timing trigger and will follow up when I have some news to share.
Thank you again and we do appreciate our memberâs feedback and suggestions on this and all other aspects of your membership.
Thank you for sharing this information. Those of us who are not homeowners on the site do not see the options you have, and I had no idea this was the setup. @Angela_L and @Ben-ProductManager, surely options could be set up for the HO? For example: âDo you want to send a standard message to all applicants (and then give them the option to create it or use a generic one), or would you prefer to respond individually?â That seems like an easy programming fix to me.
@LTD and whoever originally suggested this, itâs a good idea to require HOs to write a personal note to each of the other applicants before being able to confirm their chosen sitter. This would also deter HOs from allowing 50+ applications to accumulate before making a decision.
I personally donât think the homeowner has any obligation to respond to everyone who applied, especially with any sort of âpersonalized messageâ or feel like they should read through every application before deciding, unless they feel they want to do either. There are so many opportunities on hereâdonât get too attached to any one of them, and if you donât get picked for one, no biggie, moving on.
And as for changing the âwordingâ of the messages so people donât feel badly about not getting picked? That is kind of silly I thinkâŚitâs nothing personal.
I certainly have not been accepted for every sit for which I applied --great, personalized introductions, very detailed profile and over 20 excellent reviews. I canât imagine any HO would look at all of that and think my husband and I were âbadâ candidates, but for whatever reason, we werenât the ones. I donâ think it is so much a process of ârejectingâ who you donât want but rather âchoosingâ who you do.
I think a lot of people take ârejectionsâ way too personally. HOâs can only choose one person, and who knows what draws them to the person they pick, what they are looking for. Maybe the person had a really good reason to be in the area, like an event or having family nearby. Maybe they have a similar hobby or occupation as the HO and they felt a connection. Maybe the sitter looks like their favorite cousin and there was some sort of subconscious âdrawâ to them.
We actually get picked for the majority of sits for which we apply, and I think this more relaxed attitude about it definitely helps.
Overall, I think people need to come at this from a more detached space and not take anything personally. Whether itâs a message from a homeowner on a housesitting site or anything else in life, the less we walk around feeling like people âoweâ us something, the happier we will beâŚthat is my experience anyway!
I agree that some folks take ârejectionâ too personally but I do not believe changing the wording is silly. Iâm making the suggestion to update it from a practical perspective.
Iâve spent the last decade working in online marketing & conversion rate optimization so I canât help but pay close attention to the user experience with any service that I use. In my line of work, the goal is always to give the user the best, easiest-to-navigate experience and make them feel valued.
These types of small but thoughtful updates benefit everyone. You and I may have thicker skin than some, thatâs ok. Changing the copy to be more thoughtful doesnât hinder our experience, it only improves it for other users, and is one of those little things that add up to contribute to THâs bottom line in a positive way. Happy users stick around (pay subscription fees) longer.
I think words do matter, and to ask that THS consider modifying its wording is neither unreasonable nor silly, in my opinion. I have no problem with not being chosen, or with the word âdeclinedâ. However, THS is hearing from many that âdeclinedâ is jarring (my word), so hopefully members services will take note. For example, perhaps being told that someone else has been chosen would be a gentler and more appropriate wording, rather than being declined.
Hi @Lindsay and @Snowbird âŚthanks for your thoughts. It really wasnât the suggestion I was talking about, but more the idea of why it would be necessary in the first place, and silly wasnât maybe the best word to use! Being on the forum, it surprised me to see how personally people take this whole thing and itâs a shame some end up feeling badly or thinking something must be âwrongâ with them if they didnât get selected, or seeing the wording of the notification as some sort of affront. Iâm a big believer in energy and things happening as they are supposed to. If there is a lot of negativity around this whole processâfeeling badly about not getting picked, pondering why the owner didnât want them or being annoyed they arenât getting acknowledgment for their applications, I think that creates a vibe that closes them off to other opportunities and having an easier time aligning with the sits that are best for them! Once those applications are in, just let it go and see what happensâŚthere are so many opportunities and no âcompetition.â Itâs just about finding the right matches!
I donât take the rejection personally at all if Iâve havenât been chosen for a sit. We recently got confirmed for a sit before the homeowners even personally emailed us. What is annoying to me is that âcommon courtesyâ and âmannersâ donât prevail when a person hits the âdeclineâ button and Iâm not the only one that feels like this. A blanket one email can be sent to all sitters who applied on a sit so there is no need to reply to each individual sitter that applied. Mind you Iâm from another era - weâre seniors so I still appreciate people who have courtesy and manners.
I understand your position as youâve expressed it here. My opinion is that I can never say that I was perfect for the sit as I have no knowledge of the other applicants. My reaction may be disappointment, if itâs a sit I was particularly hoping for, but thatâs about it. I also always take the position in life that everything happens for a reason.
I applied for a sit and was declined which is unusual for me so I asked why. I was advised to put my reviews in my application message.
I have have over 30 five star reviews!!!
There is no way I could do that and wrongly assumed that HOâs would actually look at profiles. Apparently not.