Need help with our listing

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1

Hi,

I would love to get advice on how I could improve our listing:

We’ve been on for about a month and have had a little interest but no one for our vacation in late October and I’m getting worried about finding someone.

I think I will contact sitters who have saved our listing, as well as local sitters in hopes of piquing someone’s interest.

Any suggestions welcome!
Thanks,
Monty

Edited to remove listing in the main body and add to forum profile as per forum guidelines

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Hi @Monty0
I’ve had a look at your listing and it looks fabulous, although I can’t help you it would certainly be an experience. There’s so much of interest in the area by the sound of it.
A few things that come to mind. Firstly I would reorder the photos, putting the animals first and delete some photos of the living room as there are quite a few duplicates.
You mention that Bodhi has 3 walks a day, which might put some potential sitters off. However, you offer use of your car which is great so can Bodhi travel in the car and explore with the sitters? If not, how long can he be left alone while the sitters go out?
I’m guessing a car is needed to get to the nearest supermarket. Is that the case? If so, how far away is it?
You mention that Bodhi makes you feel safe. That might put sitters off, especially single sitters like me.
The fact there is no tv might put some off, however for many that could well be an advantage. Do you have a radio?
There is a well for water. Presumably you don’t have to take a bucket out and collect the water……
You can contact sitters who have saved your listing but they should have been informed already that you have posted some dates so they obviously can’t help. Don’t waste your time contacting other local sitters.
I’m sure other people will have some ideas. Good luck!

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Hi, Just a quick review, but things that popped out to me:

  • How long can your doggo be left alone? You mentioned that skipping the mid-day walk for a day trip would be ok but I’d be more specific about time away limits as you mention a lot of things to do in the area, but a mid-day walk would limit that a lot.
  • Do you have high speed internet? Being so rural and rustic people may be concerned about speeds, especially considering many people will work while there. You might do a speed test and either add a screen shot or mention it in the listing.
  • How much time will the watering take? Is it daily? How much time will the chickens take? Do they need to be put to bed at night/let out in the morning?
  • Will the house need any maintenance? Most people are not going to know what’s involved in a more rustic property mentioning a well may have them picturing cranking a bucket up and down. Similarly most people won’t know what earth bermed is and if that means any work for them. “Homestead” to me indicates a lot of daily work to maintain, as does 80 acres.
  • I’d consider changing your title to something a bit more targeted by mentioning the hiking and wine region instead of the homestead and acerage.
  • I’d consider removing the pic of the cat on the pillow as that might turn people off. But if your pets will expect to sleep in the bed you should mention that because many people don’t want that.
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I’d make the title more punchy, using some of the words from your intro:

‘Sustainable house in the woods on the Pacific Crest Trail’. Sitters will only see the first few words anyway, so it’s really not necessary to mention the animals in the title as we can see those from the symbols and in the body of the listing. Searches will also identify which are involved.

I’d leave the home pic as the first but suggest re-jigging your wording a bit. As sitters, we’re looking for info about the home first and want to find that info quickly, so I suggest that needs to be sharp and more immediately apparent. There’s a lot of info in your listing - which looks great - but some sitters won’t be inclined to wade through it all unless you’ve already got them hooked.

I suggest beginning the ‘Home and Location’ section with the first sentence of what is now your second paragraph: ‘Our 80-acre secluded homestead …’, then add the paragraph: ‘Our house has a woody home-made feel…’, then add the ‘tiny house’ paragraph. Now add the rest of the home info.

The paragraph beginning: ‘Our dog and cat are affectionate…’ should go in the ‘Responsibilities’ section.

I suggest expanding on this sentence: ‘We walk him on our trails daily and he helps us feel safe.’ You allude to sharing your property with quite few different wildlife species but don’t state what they all are. These two sentences together do infer there is potential danger, so sitters may be put off by that. It’s something you should perhaps detail a bit better.

Being on an 80 acre homestead and not being able to let a large dog off-lead would be off-putting for us, but many other sitters might be okay with it. Is Bodhi’s recall negligible? Also, the specified 3 walks per day basically tethers sitters to the home and though this is something we don’t personally mind, especially when the place offers something very different - which yours does - this might be limiting your number of applicants. How long can he be left? Can he go out in the car with sitters, as they go out and about? You say you ‘can accommodate a day away’ but does this mean you’re happy for sitters to leave him alone for a day, or that you have friends or neighbours who will take him? Does it mean you’re only happy for sitters to leave the homestead for one day during the sit? Be more explicit, so there’s no room for misunderstandings.

Are the hiking trails through your property public rights of way? Do you see many other hikers? I’ve had to google ‘earth-bermed’ and I suspect many sitters won’t bother doing that, so if you want to include it, it’s possibly worth explaining that it means the structure has soil is against the walls.

Wishing you luck!

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Thanks for the great suggestions! I’m thinking it through and will make some changes soon.

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Bodhi is a beautiful dog! Including a car for your Sitter is a smart move.

You live in a gorgeous area, and this would be a very interesting Sit opportunity for anyone who wants to explore Southern Oregon.

You might want to state average high and low temperatures at that time of year in F and C, for reference. Overall, the weather is mild.

How far is the drive from there, to the mighty Pacific Ocean?

Flights to the Medford, Oregon airport usually include a brief stopover in Portland, Oregon. You might want to mention which airlines fly to Medford.

Good luck!