Hello
I’ve recently joined this, and feeling really disappointed. I spend my ages doing an advert and adding lots of photos. I’m looking for a sitter in October half term for our 2 gorgeous dogs- jackapoo and Italian greyhound - in a beautiful cottage in a Dorset village, not far from the sea. I can’t see if anyone has even looked at the advert but certainly there have been no offers. It’s been several weeks now and I just feel a bit like the £109 that I paid was a rip off. Had expected so much more. Is there any advice that anyone can give? Maybe I’m doing something wrong 
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Hi there,
Sorry to hear that you haven’t found success yet. You’ve definitely come to the right place for help though, so don’t panic 
It’s great to hear that you have put effort & thought into your listing. Sometimes, sitters just aren’t available for your dates and location, but more often than not it comes down to how attractive your listing is, what it expects, and what it offers a sitter.
A good place to start for forum members to help you is to link your listing to your forum bio so we can view it and give feedback. Here’s how: How to add a listing or profile link to your FORUM profile
You can also give this blog a read to make sure your listing is on the right track.
Hope that helps!
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Hi. Welcome! Sorry you’re feeling jaded. Could you perhaps post a link to your listing?
Hi @Pipkin It sounds like a lovely sit - Dorset is a beautiful part of the country. If your dogs are used to children and you are able to open the sit up to families I would thought that someone would jump at the chance of a change of scene over the half-term break, complete with gorgeous pets.
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Welcome @Pipkin. Dorset is an amazing part of the UK. Maybe there’s a few things that can be changed to help you attract some sitters to apply. If you could link your listing to your profile then I’m sure you’ll get a few suggestions.
I did a search for Dorset dog sits in October and I can’t see your listing.
Perhaps you could add a link?
There are many experienced members on the forum who will be happy to offer advice if needed.
You can also use the spyglass at the top of the page to search for ‘finding sitters’ as the question has been asked many times before.
For example If there is insufficient relevant information in your listing many sitters would just move on as we have to ‘apply’ to ask any questions.
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I have also tried to find it. Have you made a listing and/ or have you also published the dates you need a sitter for?
I can’t see your listing either so am wondering if you have taken it down.
As others say, link it here and we can give our advice how to improve it if necessary.
Here’s how to do that:
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This has peaked my interest so I did a very thorough search of the entire area and even further afield. I definitely cannot see any listing that even closely resembles yours. As others have said, try to link your listing to this Forum so everyone can help you further. If you can’t do it, let a moderator know and they will do it for you.
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Thank you all so much for your replies. I’ve just contacted customer services and apparently it’s been bumped to the top now!
I’d really value any feedback- I’ve tried to be as flexible as possible 
Edited to remove attached listing link from post as per the Community Rules
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Hi @Pipkin
I have now attached your listing to your Forum profile as requested.
I took a look for you. Your listing is overall very friendly, warm and welcoming, and you have nice pictures. However, it could do with more detail. Here are some suggestions for you:
1: Aim for a short, exciting title in less than 8 words, as sitters can’t see more than the first 7 - 8 words of a title in a listing’s preview before it cuts off. Try something like: ‘Discover a seaside Dorset village with 2 dogs.’
2: Your intro is very short and autobiographical. Sitters don’t really want to know your interests, they’d rather know straight away what’s on offer and why they should choose your sit. The blog I posted earlier should help you with your intro.
3: Your home and location section requires much more detail. You have talked a little about your home, but add more description and talk about where a sitter will sleep and how big the bed is. You have not mentioned anything at all about the local area, which gives sitters little reason to sit for you. Remember that the intended sitter audience of THS are non local travellers. So tell them why they should come to Dorset. Describe:
- What is there to see & do?
- How close are you to the beach and local amenities?
- What is on offer here, and why should someone choose your sit?
- Can the dogs go in the car with a sitter on adventures?
- You also have not mentioned if your car is available to sitters or if they will need their own?
4: Your responsibilities section is okay but sitters often want to know:
- How long can the dogs be left for?
- When is the walk?
- What are the dog’s personalities like? Are they good with other dogs and how do they behave on walks?
Many sitters also do not want to sleep in the room with a dog, so consider if this is absolutely necessary or if you can offer for the dog to sleep elsewhere.
Hope that helps!
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As an observation, and I’ve tried it a dozen times now, if anyone has ticked “dog” in their search criteria under “pets” - the listing doesn’t come up. When I removed dog and left “all pets”, the listing shows. So if someone just wants to sit dogs and they have ticked the dog pet box, the listing isn’t showing. Gremlins 
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Hello @Pipkin and welcome! I know the area well as used to live in Tarrant Monkton so can vouch for its’ Dorset charm! Listing looks okay if a little sparse. A few things to add would be how long the dogs can be left alone so sitters know how much freedom they have to explore. Where do you walk them - village, woods, lanes - on or off the lead? Also a picture of the shower would be helpful. Less pics of the dogs & chooks as two each is plenty. As there’s no accessibility by public transport and no offer of a car that limits your pool of people quite a bit. Could you offer to collect a sitter from a train or bus station in the listing and host them the night before? Is there a village shop and/or could groceries be delivered so that if you do attract a homebird then they can just relax for the 6 days with your pooches even if they don’t have transport? Is there a pub in your village or that you can walk to as that would add to the appeal? Few more bits of crucial info & it will be a great looking sit. But importantly @ziggy is right - no dog sits are showing in Dorset for your dates (hence no applicants). @Sam_F can you check please. #youhaveplentyoftime
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@Cuttlefish and @Sam_F, try searching the listing with “dogs” only and then search with “all pets” and you will see what I mean.
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Don’t be disheartened, your in gorgeous location, you have a lovely home, and very cute pets! But you need to add more into the text part of your profile, as that is what sitters will read to see if it suits them before applying, so take the advice of @Nagy26 and @Cuttlefish and tweak the text part of your listing.
Yeah - Dorset is a beautiful area, so tell sitters why they should go stay there! Sitters don’t necessarily know anything about Dorset and your town at all, so you really have to describe & sell it! 
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Somebody please try what I suggested earlier, just so I know it is an actual problem and not me going crazy 
Hi @Cuttlefish @ziggy and thank you for tagging me.
I have looked at the sit and have tested it. Yes, if you only select dogs in the filter then the sit will not be visible because the sit also includes poultry. If you select dogs and poultry from the filter list then the sit becomes visible. I have made Tech Support aware of this issue.
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I found your listing now. The vibe of it is warm and friendly.
As a sitter I like to know
How can I get to your home (nearest train station/ airport. If not bus, how can I get to you? Can you pick me up? If not it will probably be more local sitters, which will limit your search pool).
How can I get groceries? Any shops/ pubs or the like? How far/ how long to go? If very rural, is delivery possible, or could you organize a trip to the store on pick-up?
How long can the pups be alone?
Sitters like to know (and see) where they will sleep (incl bed size), kitchen and bathroom.
Many (incl me) don’t do sits where we share bed/ bedroom with pets. Is it something you do yourself, something that is preferable - or is it necessary?
That was what I thought of.
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