Looking for honest feedback on my sitter application

Sitter Questions, Advice & Chat
1

Hello everyone,

I wanted to ask for some honest feedback on one of my applications. I’ve had several recent declines for sits in Portugal, Spain, and Mexico City, and while I completely understand that hosts have many applicants to choose from, I’m wondering if there’s anything I could be doing differently. I’ve completed multiple sits and have received a mix of reviews, including some really excellent ones, and I also speak four languages — Albanian, English, Spanish, and Portuguese — which I thought might be helpful when applying for international sits. I’d love to hear from hosts and experienced sitters: does this application feel too long, too generic, or is there anything you would change, remove, or add? I’m genuinely trying to improve my applications, so I’d really appreciate honest feedback.

(Hi!

My name is Dxxxx. I work remotely as a therapist with children with developmental disabilities, which gives me the flexibility to travel. I’ve had cats throughout my life and currently have a cat of my own, so I’m very comfortable caring for cats with different personalities and routines.

I’d love the opportunity to look after (pets names). I’m responsible, reliable, clean, and respectful of other people’s homes. I would make sure they’re fed according to their routine, have fresh water, clean litter boxes, and plenty of attention and playtime while you’re away.

I’ve completed multiple pet sits and have received excellent reviews from previous hosts. I’d be happy to keep you updated with photos and messages during your time away.

If you think I might be a good fit, I’d love to chat more and hear about (pets names) routine.

Thank you for considering my application! :blush:

Dxxx)

2

I think it sounds great - personalised and to the point. The only suggestion is that you might need to explicitly explain what will happen with your cat when you are away petsitting. Perhaps a potential HO might think that you aim to bring your cat with you.

Good luck!

3

To me it sounds like a template you send to everyone and just put in the cat’s name. It sounds like it can be sent to any cat host on here and no personalization to the individual cat you want to sit for. It sounds too generic for my taste. I also worry that you say you have a cat but don’t mention what happens to your cat when you travel. Do you live with your parents, a roommate, etc. if you don’t care about the welfare of your cat how can you care about mine.

I always reference something they say about the pet. An example would be, “ I see Fluffy likes to fed between 6 to 7 am which fits my early bird schedule and we can enjoy breakfast together followed by us both sitting in the lanai as I also like to birdwatch early am.”

4

It’s fine but very bland and generic. Like SeniorSitter1 mentions, including something that indicates you read the listing and why it fits you (beyond just you like cats). Either you speak the local language, or you’ll be home most days and can manage multiple feedings, whatever it may be. But something that stands out.

5

-I think it’s not an optimal application, because you are informing the home owners about yourself and not how you can help them. How you benefit them.
Yes you have a lot of things going for you, but how do the things you mention translate to how it will benefit them, their pets and home.
-You don’t mention their pets in the first paragraph, which is something I have been told is a big plus to have by a home owner, as it will come across as a generic message you send to everyone. (even if it is later in the text)

  • If you are confident in your abilities of being a house sitter, why does it come across as if you are not… “if you think”. Tell them right out, I know we will be a great match and can we have a chat this week sometime.

This is what I would say.

All the best :slight_smile:

6

If you have to tell someone you are responsible, reliable and clean, you’re probably not. It would be a given you would be those things in my house as an adult. If you try to just convince me before showing me, that is a red flag to me.

7

How would someone show you that you’re all those before the sit? I’m confused!

8

I think I’d start with my plans to be in their location and why I’d be there anyway despite doing house/pet sitting…. that shows a commitment to travel plans/costs. Do they need to know your job? Simply remote online worker Is sufficient and mention you’d need fast internet speed.

9

If others gave you 5 stars in cleanliness and other categories, that is all they need. I like people who are humble and don’t need to prove anything. It makes you sound young when you have to tell them those things.

10

@HouseSittersGuide I find it interesting that we have a different take on this wording. I use similar wording to the poster, in that I say that, after reading my profile, if they think I might be a good fit, to contact me.

I don’t see how I can know that we will be a great match. To start with, I have yet to have a (video) chat with them. The outcome of any follow-up to my initial application may determine for one or both of us that the sitter (or I) would not be a great match.

Ironically, if I was an owner (or if I’m receiving an unsolicited invite) that choice of wording would be a turnoff for me as I’d see it as somewhat arrogant. No disrespect to you - just we all view things differently and, as I said at the start, I find that interesting. :thinking:

11

good point

My sign off is,

Once again, Thank you for providing this opportunity, and we really would love to have a chat and see if we would be a good match for this house sit.

but I still think in this instance it stands, the sign off message reads like “could you please consider me” as opposed to, “lets talk”. And I think a person confident in their abilites is usually more confident.

Thanks for pointing it out

12

The reviews should reflect those qualities, I wouldn’t rely on your statement in an application message.

13

Good advice here.

I always try to pull something out of this listing to talk about the pets. Sometimes that’s hard because listings oftentimes don’t tell you much about the pets personally. I look to the reviews for this info too. If there is a cute picture, I mention it. It tells the HO that I have read their listing and that I’m enthusiastic about the individual pets.

I always say something that connects me to the area of the sit - like that I have lived there before or have visited. I want the homeowner to know that I know my way around.

If you know the local language, tell them.

HOs after want to know your motivation about coming to their location. You can say that you have read a lot about the area and are interested in the culture - something like that tells the homeowner that you understand where you are going.

14

I agree with others that it is too generic. The only personalization is the name of the pet. I would add more to show that you have read the listing, e.g. “Fluffy is exactly the same age as my cat, who i miss when I travel” or “I’m happy to see that Fluffy likes being brushed, because I love brushing cats. Win-win for both of us!”

As a HO, I always like the sitter to explain why they want to visit my city. If you live very far away, that’s even more important. Even better if you can say, for example, “i already plan to be in Lisbon for a conference in July and hope to see more of Portugal after that”

Also, you mention that only “some” of your reviews are excellent. I’d work on burying the bad ones with more good ones. If you are applying to a very popular destination, you are competing with people who have no negative reviews.

15

The reviews you have received are probably the most important part of your application .

If there has been a consistent theme of anything negative it would be good to address how you plan to improve in your application .

For honest feedback please attach a link to your sitter’s profile to your forum profile .

16

Regarding working remotely, I suggest phrasing it such a way that explains how it will benefit the pets (being home a lot)

If you’re going to mention having cats in the past, I’d mention a specific number.

Regarding your current cat, definitely need to explain what his living situation will be while you’re gone. As currently written, any HO will assume that the cat is traveling with you, and ones with multiple applicants won’t make the effort to clarify with you and will instead just proceed with another sitter.

All that being said, it’s currently a fine introductory message for a sit with low/medium applicants.

17

This is nice but it’s generic and any HO can tell. If you’re going for a competitive market, you must tailor your intro to the listing of the HO. Mention something about why you can handle all the responsibilities and tie it to your strengths and experience. If you have bad reviews you MUST address them in the review response or else in your intro. As a HO nothing makes me decline faster than someone with problematic reviews. Many sitters have 5 stars across the board many times over. That’s the competition. Why would we pick someone with less if we can get all 5s.

18

I would make the application shorter and include more specific points about the pets. Even simple things like “I’m a big cat lover” (if they have a cat) or “I work from home, which means Barky would get lots of love and attention and during my breaks, I love walking, especially in dog company” (if they have a dog)

Like others have mentioned, it’s good to be specific about the listing too, like “I’m an early riser and happy to supply breakfast to princess Poppy at 7 am” (I like to use humour as that’s my personality - be yourself too I think)

19

@Denisagjjn

When applying for a house sit, it helps to explain why you want to visit the location and what you plan to do during your stay. Sharing your reasons for choosing the area and your intended activities gives hosts a better sense of who you are and why you are a good fit for their home. It also helps to build rapport from the outset, which is an important part of successful house sitting and establishing trust with your hosts.

20

It’s interesting how we all feel differently about what works best.

In spite of those differences, there’s consensus that the application has to be more personalized. It’s important to mention that the pets’ specific needs are going to be met; all pets need to have food and water, mentioning that gives no information and doesn’t even prove that the applicant has read the listing. That’s paramount for the host because the WG is a longer document and is expected to be thoroughly read, understood and followed.

I think everyone, including me, agrees that it might be a good idea to address the issues raised in the “not so good reviews”. I think it works against you trying to pretend they didn’t happen.
In the introduction you say you

But in your application

If hosts feel led to believe your review history is excellent and then find out it isn’t, they won’t go any further unless they don’t have other options.
If you can explain why those reviews were not perfect and what you can do to change that, then that’s different.

Regarding

There’s no consensus there, I agree with @Snowbird it doesn’t work against you. I use a similar approach, slightly different, though. I say “if you think we can be …” I use “we” because I am not begging to be chosen, I want this to work for both parties and having a chat will benefit us both. I use “can” instead of “might” because, although English is not my first language, I feel “can” is more positive, it focus on exploring the potential of a positive match, while “might” sounds more random, more like a coincidence.

In this thread, there seems to be general agreement about explaining the reasons for your interest in the location but just a few hours ago I was surprised to see another HO say they are not interested in knowing that.

You must have noticed too because it’s in your previous thread.

As you can see, there’s no one size fits all but I always go with what feels true to me and will show naturally in a video chat.

Good luck!

PS. I also find it weird that you don’t mention your own cat by name. Maybe it’s just me?