I’ve worn a rut in the top of my head, from scratching it. I’ve seen so many reviews which have either been five-star overall, but have chopped a star in one category, with no explanation.. Or have marked every department 5-star - but given 4 stars overall. Again, with no explanation.
I’m a sitter and it makes me uneasy if a previous sitter has marked a sit down. But it may well have been over something that wouldn’t bother me at all. Or it may even be an accident. It would just be megaextradoubleplus useful to know. And it’s so easy to give a polite, factual reason (“Communication was good during the sit, but slightly slow beforehand” or whatever) - no need to be Mr/Ms Nasty.
Tbh, I did this once: marked a sit 5 overall but dinged a star each off of cleanliness and communication. Left a bit of text snuffling around the issues that were problematic, that I thought would make it possible for a Sitter to read between the lines.
It was my attempt to give a subtle heads’ up to future Sitters without totally bashing the Host, who was pleasant overall and had some extenuating circumstances. But I didn’t want someone else to have to walk in to it blind, like I did.
I agree with that. The other day I saw a sit marked down in the ‘hospitality’ category but the written review was so positive. You are right that some context is helpful as like you said, the issue may not be something that would matter to you.
I can recall doing at least a few sits where the host was marked down in one category or another–not consistently, usually just one review– and I didn’t find any issue in that area when we sat for them. My main criteria is the vibe I get overall from the listing and when communicating with the host prior to confirmation, which was always good. So in these instances I wasn’t overly concerned about these ‘imperfect’ ratings.
One thing I will say though is if there is just one category marked down or just the overall rating, there is always the possibility it is a mistake. Awhile back a host mistakenly rated me 4 stars in a category and she requested it be fixed. I can see from many posts in the forum, mainly from sitters, who talk about being marked down but don’t seem to ever follow up with the host about why as they probably feel uncomfortable doing so. And if there is no follow up, an incorrect rating will obviously stand.
Now if a host was consistently marked down for cleaning in particular, that may give me pause. But even then I would still consider doing the sit if it was short-term, like a few days gap I am trying to fill.
I wish the platform would ditch the ‘angst-ridden’ star system completely, and instead ask a series of questions that would reveal far more about not only the sit itself, but also about both reviewer and reviewee.
The exact same thing happened to me, 5* in every category but 4* overall. I contacted the host to ask if it was a mistake and, if so, could she ask THS to change it but if it wasn’t a mistake could she let me know what I could have done better so that I could offer an improved service in the future. She was mortified that she’d accidentally clicked 4* and it was duly changed.
Absolutely fair enough. And generally, I can barely see two lines without reading between them. But the reviews I’ve been looking at recently gave no hints whatsoever. It’s been “Whoop-de-dooo! This sit was BRILLLLANNNT!!” … Followed by four stars. Glup??
This is a really interesting subject. I feel experienced sitters and home owners can get a “read between the lines” sense with docked stars even without explanation. Other than the hospitality rating (which can be hugely subjective) the other categories are fairly binary. We have docked stars in sub categories in the past and normally we explain why with “heads ups” to future sitters. Is the system perfect? No, but like airbnb, restaurant reviews etc it’s pretty much as good as it’s going to get.
Why not identify what the cleanliness and communication issues were? If stated in a straightforward, factual manner - and sandwiched between the positive aspects of the sit, the HO then knows exactly how they can improve, going forwards, and future applicants can consider the importance of flagged issues to themselves, or potentially address the issues during a video call. That way, everyone can benefit.
Well, not really. I’ve just been looking at one review where the sitter spent four sentences raving about the gig.. But took a star off for Pet Behaviour. Which implies anything from “The dogs were badly-behaved nightmares” to, “the dogs stole my slippers once”. Likewise, the mystery star docked for Cleanliness (which you see a LOT) with no explanation. A missing star can suggest that the whole house was so filthy you couldn’t actually see the carpets, or it might just mean the kitchen surfaces hadn’t been sluiced down with disinfectant prior to the sitter’s arrival.
Why remove a star and hope we merry band of psychics will figure it out, when you can politely explain the reason? Or at least, hint at it? And merely not mentioning the subject doesn’t count, because you can’t cover ever-y-last-thing and it may just have been omitted for no reason at all.
The two examples you gave provide more than enough information for me to make an informed decision (without the need for me to be a psychic ) of if I want to choose the sit or not. I don’t need to know if the skirting boards were dusty or if the dog grabbed a slipper the dinged stars would be more than enough.
If it were a coin toss and we still liked the sit we would just ask the home owner and see how they respond.
In respect to how we review home owners, I’m quite happy that our review combined with the ratings we give would give any future sitter enough to make a decision by.
I have a friend who’s a relatively new THS host. She lives in a chaotic household with multiple children and animals and it’s never squeaky clean. In fact it’s generally pretty messy and grubby. All of her 5 or 6 sitters have dinged her stars for cleanliness (fairly). She has no trouble getting more sitters because of the honesty. If you’re looking for pristine then this isn’t the sit for you. Her last sitter emptied and cleaned out the entire fridge and sent her photos She wasn’t quite sure how to take that! #honestyisthebestpolicy
I couldn’t think of a way to say “the refrigerator & toilet were super-gross and I spent a full day cleaning them before I would use them” without publicly humiliating the hosts, who were decent people. THEY already knew it was dirty, or would do, based on the difference when they returned. And I felt the comments I did leave, along with the stars, were a good compromise that would clue potential sitters that it was something to ask about. And as people note, these things are also subjective.
Ultimately it’s a balancing act, isn’t it? We often make friends with our hosts/sitters, but want to be kind & honest with both them & with future hosts & sitters, without also sounding overly picky which might limit our own future prospects.
In the end, I felt it was a good balance, vs leaving 5 stars and saying nothing as everyone had done before me.
(Insert HO’s name) is a warm and welcoming host and I really appreciated the delicious home-cooked meal she provided. The home is in a wonderful location…. blah de blah…
I’ve dinged a star for cleanliness because, although the rest of the home was clean and tidy, I found no space had been left for me in the fridge and it had not been cleaned out. The bathroom had also not been prepared for my arrival so I spent several hours cleaning. I realise that everyone has different ideas regarding cleanliness, so this may not be an issue for some sitters.
It must be said that the pets, Pinky and Perky, were wonderful and I thoroughly enjoyed taking them out and about with me, blah de blah…
Thanks to (insert HO’s name) for inviting me.
By sandwiching the negative between positive aspects of the sit, you’ve been fair and honest.
We’ve had occasions where we’ve felt it necessary to do this, and on one occasion the HO’s response was that she’d been busy prior to the sit but would be sure to do better for the next sitter, which was of course a great response (and I’m pretty sure she’d have addressed those issues for the next sitter).
A fair review gives the HO a heads up about how to improve and gives other sitters straightforward info so they can make an informed choice about whether or not it’s a good fit for them. As for other HOs reading reviews you’ve left, hopefully it will make them realise that you’re someone with clear expectations relating to cleanliness, so anyone who has a filthy loo or a fridge which is incubating listeria won’t invite you to do their sits. Surely this is a win/win situation?
Thanks. I appreciate we all have different ways of doing this, & factor in our different personalities. I believe the text of my review did give future sitters enough information to let them know that cleanliness might be an issue to ask about, or to pass on the sit if they’re fastidious. I simply didn’t feel the need to be blunt or extremely detailed about it. (I’m not comfortable quoting my review here as I like to keep my socials separate from my public profiles.)
Reviews are an imperfect system; we navigate them the best we can, taking the reasons I mentioned into account.
I completely agree. There’s also the possibility that it’s a mistake. The only time I “read between the stars” is when there’s a pattern followed by different reviewers because then chances are that at least one of the many reviewers might have standards similar to mine. Otherwise I consider reading the stars is out of my ability, I’m not an astrologer.
I have 52 reviews. 50 of them 5 star, 2 of them 4 star.
the first 4 star was my first ever sit, and I am ok with that, as I wasnt fully sure what was expected.
however the more recent one, I did message the owner and ask her what this was all about. She told me that it was because the bird feeders were not full and the squirrel feeders were empty!
I was there to look after the dog, not the wildlife.
I had filled the 4 squirrel feeders with Hazelnuts, twice during the week, but this was not enough. I had also refilled bird feeders a few times, and fed them scraps, but this was evidently not enough.
Petty.
I did use my right to reply to her review and mentioned in it something that she would have preferred I had not said.
I recently had a sitter who was a 5 star at looking after my dog, but was less than perfect at communication and cleanliness in my house. I automatically did the 5 star rating from the Trusted email because of the care of my dog, but then lowered the score on the other issues.
Rather than mention the grottiness of my house (that had been immaculately clean on the sitters arrival), in the review, I lowered the stars. Instead I emailed the sitter and mentioned that they should not leave dirty floors, grease splattered stove and backsplash and grungy sink and shower etc when leaving a sit … hoping that it would help for their next sit. They were the loveliest people, but obviously had no respect for the lovely environment they walked into.
I simply mentioned the great care of my dog in the review, hoping other home owners would read between the lines based on the lower stars in the other categories.
Inter-line and omission interpretation are certainly useful abilities when reading reviews. And if something like less than perfect cleanliness wasn’t a big deal, it seems perfectly fair just to make a lukewarm remark or say nothing and let readers draw the conclusions.
But I’ve read a LOT of comments along the lines of “The place was filthy/dogs behaved horribly/ there was no WG and no guidance etc etc….. But I left them a straight five-star review because they were Lovely People/ I didn’t want to seem mean.”
I’ve done it myself. A lot. I find it very hard to be even slightly critical of people I’ve come to know. Especially when it almost certainly means kissing goodbye to any further sits with them. But if everyone gets five stars for everything, regardless, what value the star system? To my mind, its primary function is to pass on information. If it becomes a tick-5-star-box formality, it might as well not be there.
I also have to ask, @kathyl, would “the loveliest people” show so little respect for your home?
I recently had that happen. I’ve been a petsitter since 2017 and only had 6 star reviews. I did a sit where the owner gave me 4 stars for self reliance but 5 stars for everything else including the total. I was totally caught off guard as self-reliance is one of my strong points. I commented on it but never heard from the HO. Most likely it was a mistake. I just decided to forget about it.
overall but dinged a star each off of cleanliness and communication. Left a bit of text snuffling around the issues that were problematic, that I thought would make it possible for a Sitter to read between the lines.
) of if I want to choose the sit or not. I don’t need to know if the skirting boards were dusty or if the dog grabbed a slipper the dinged stars would be more than enough.
She wasn’t quite sure how to take that! 
I appreciate we all have different ways of doing this, & factor in our different personalities. I believe the text of my review did give future sitters enough information to let them know that cleanliness might be an issue to ask about, or to pass on the sit if they’re fastidious. I simply didn’t feel the need to be blunt or extremely detailed about it. (I’m not comfortable quoting my review here as I like to keep my socials separate from my public profiles.)