Low Applications Limbo

We have a lovely, clean house in a beautiful rural setting. Our dogs are well behaved and easy to care for. That is said with the realization that every HO feels that they’re home/pet/sit is ideal no matter what the actual circumstances are but ours truly is :smile! We have found several sitters on this site that have sincerely loved us and want to do a repeat. I consider the desire to do a repeat to be the best indicator of a good sit for both sitter and HO. We really do our best to be very welcoming and generous. Our prior sitters are all unavailable for an upcoming sit in December —probably a bad time of year to land a sitter even though the sit ends before Christmas. We find ourselves now in “Low Applications Limbo” which feels like a scarlet letter even though I see many other sits in that bucket that look to be attractive. Don’t see how the “low applications” badge helps us in any way. Feeling frustrated but still hopeful…?

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if you change anything to your listing, a word, add a picture, etc. it should get back to “New” and to the top of the list. Do this as many times as you need until you find the perfect sitter for beautiful Echo and Olive!
by the way, you are right, Low application does nothing for you. Best of luck for finding sitters, and don’t worry, you still have 2 months!

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Thank you!
Will definitely do that.

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I agree that badge is not helpful, and may be detrimental, to finding a quality sitter. Sitters will interpret it many different ways, from “they are desperate so I have a good chance” to “what is wrong with this sit”. Neither benefits the HO.

@sharose Your sit is certainly appealing to me. But I know the UP and its wonders, most people probably do not. It probably just looks like a long way from an airport to many. I have commitments in Dec, otherwise I would be interested. I’ve favorited you for future opportunities. Good Luck.

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I wonder if you might want to reword a bit if you’re still struggling. It does sound like a nice sit but 4+ walks a day starting at 6am might put quite a few people off. Is it really the case? I’ve found most dogs we sit struggle when we try to follow the guidelines for how far their walks should be!

With that many walks it doesnt really sound like they can be left for any length of time? Maybe specify that too?

Because it’s a free trade it has to make sense for the sitter as well. Your place looks gorgeous though so hopefully the right person will come along!

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Wow, I will have to re-read our post. We don’t do 4 long walks starting at 6am….???
Not sure how you got that impression….
Thanks for pointing that out.

Your listing says four walks, two of those shorter.

And yes: “They are then good until 6 or 7am when they have their first outing.” I think it is cold and dark then in Michigan in December.

Edit: Now it says “in the mornings” - that sounds so much better! Sweet dogs, beautiful home, this should attract sitters.

I read your listing and wouldn’t jump on a sit for dogs requiring 4 walks a day. I tend to like sits that invite families so that may be something that attracts more sitters. Love your pups! My friend has the same breed and she is the sweetest dog ever.

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I have changed the post.
The first outing between 6 and 8 is just a brief potty walk. We never walk in the dark. It is actually light early in the day but gets dark around 5-6pm that time of year. Thanks for your feedback.

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I think the 4 walks a day are as much if not more for the human owners entertainment/exercise than the dogs. They don’t need it. We just provide it and they don’t mind.:joy:

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@sharose your home and dogs look amazing. It makes me want to book a ticket to the US :joy:

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Thank you❣️

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Hopefully those edits will help! Other info people might find useful is where the dogs sleep and if they can be left/how long for. There comes a point though where honesty is the best policy! Might take longer to get a sitter but youll know they’re the right fit when you do.

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I’m not sure this is true. She’s changed the listing in the last 24 hours, but it isn’t showing up as new.

@sharose You have one applicant. If they are suitable, then you should proceed with speaking with them and seeing if they are a good fit before they are snapped up by someone else. If they’re not, you should politely decline, delete your dates, and then re-post the dates so that the listing shows as new (this will definitely make it show as new). New listings don’t have the scarlet letter low applications badge so keep doing this every time it shifts from new to low applications if you haven’t found anyone.

Can you offer your car to make the sit appealing to sitters who could fly in but don’t want to pay for three weeks for a rental car? You’re limiting your pool if you’re only open to those with cars willing to drive to that part of the US in December.

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Thank you!

I saw that too and was confused. Did they change it? I saw she modified something in the text but the listing remains as low application. Maybe now, once your listing falls into the dreaded low application category, it stays there? Or maybe by adding a photo?
Not too sure anymore :woman_shrugging:t2:

@Nadia111 @sharose As @meow has said, owners need to remove their dates then re-list them to make it New again, not just make a change like a couple of words or a new photo. Let’s know @sharose if this works.

Yes, I was hopeful that the simple word/picture change may work but it did not.
I did re-list, tho, and that does work…

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Great news @sharose. I hope you now receive more applications.

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Yes! It’s new again :smiling_face:
Hopefully you find the perfect person soon !

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