Hi, We are in South Portland, Maine and recently joined to both sit and host sitters. I replied to two listings in hopes of securing a sit, in Dec It has been almost 24 hours and both listings state 'unread"
Is there something that I am not doing correctly.
As we are also to schedule a sit at our house, I have been keeping my eye out ( ok, almost constantly) to see if there is any interest in our listing
Any suggestions? Thanks so much!
Hi @PattyBfromMaine and welcome.
You will need to link your house owner and sitter profiles to your forum profile to attract feedback. Sorry I donāt know how to do that but someone will be along soon to help you out.
24 hrs isnāt unusual for a message to remain unread - especially in a differentiate zone. Hang in there and keep applying for anything that is a good match 
Hi @PattyBfromMaine , AS @Twitcher says, You will need to link your house owner and sitter profiles to your forum profile to attract feedback. - here is a guide on how to do that
Maybe the HOs read the message on the app, in which case it will still show as āunreadā on the website. One of many bugs and differences between the app and website experience.
As for your Christmas listing - I wouldnāt panic yet as people can apply up to the last minute. I know you probably want to secure a sitter earlier, but it could be later. Since you offer a car, I would put that as the first words in your headline. People only see the first few words on the website, and āChristmas in Maineā is redundant because that is obvious from the thumbnail. Instead, you could say āCar included, easy catsā or something else informative.
Finally, the main photo is seasonal but maybe a little bleak. I would be more drawn to a photo of one of the cats (especially Lorelei on her back!)
Thank you!
Thank you for the feedback. I will correct. =====
Hi @PattyBfromMaine,
I have a few pieces of advice about your sitter profile. First off I would work on trying to get more references. Right now you only have one and these are what HO heavily look on especially with a sitter that is new to the site. I would recommend including more photos of you two with pets. I see a photo of you two and your daughter and then the pets separately but HOās I think like to see sitters with the pets.
The rest of the details on your profile sound pretty good, I am not sure if your daughters age or Americorps details would be necessary to shareā¦you could simply say your daughter is 18 now and will most likely not be joining you two on house sits. I would also start with the details that you two have fostered animals and maybe give more insight on what those pets were like, did they have any special needs? I think itās always good to include what you do for work? As well as link Airbnb or linked that way other HOās can see you have other reviews there and that you two are professionals. None if this is necessary Iām just thinking of ways it could help your profile look desirable to HOās.
Iām tagging @Snowbird because sheās absolutely the best with helping give advice on what makes people profiles pop. First, do start with getting more references. I am not sure where you are looking for a house sit but many MANY sitters find success by getting their first couple of sits locally to get reviews and then they are able to go searching for other sits elsewhere once they have they much needed first review under their belt. Do check out our blog too for more tips and advice as you get started. Itās a wealth of resources just as going though the topics here on the forum.
I hope this helps and I hope you get your first sit soon!
@Kelly are you trying to coax me out of forum retirement? 
@PattyBfromMaine as sitters, the āsomethingā you are doing that is quite common is being somewhat unrealistic about turnaround time for responses from all owners, and your expectations for securing a sit so quickly. Not all owners will be able to respond within a day. Many sitters applied for far more than two sits before confirming their first sit. 
I agree with @Lassie about changing your title. Hereās what shows right now:
This is your first marketing tool. Use it wisely. You donāt need to mention a date change as chances are sitters didnāt see the first one. If they did and they were interested but couldnāt do the initial dates, they would favourite your listing. If they did, then theyād be notified when you changed your dates. Also, stay away from using capitals as itās seen as shouting. Itās not a favourable way to get noticed. 
I also agree about changing out your first photo for something that will pull at the heart strings - one or all of your pets. Make sure to not use photos in portrait mode as they donāt display well.
Some questions I would have, if I was considering your sit:
always
@PattyBfromMaine Great feedback from others. Yes, to all their clarifications, such as whether your daughter will be with you, etc.
One question I didnāt see asked is about the basement bedroom. I hope I am not misinterpreting your listing, butā¦ Are there windows in the basement or is it dark? Also, a basement can be cold, so, wondering if you can make a basement bedroom sound more attractive? As sitters, we would not choose a sit in which we sleep in a dark basement room.
Thank you so much for your feedback. So, I guess I made some assumptions because in Maine if you say finished basement it is heated. So yes I will change that. We have 3 heat zones. Also our master and first floor guest room, with queen memory foam pull out is available for sleeping. I will clarify.
So, we have been offered and accepted a sit ( thanks to all of your great suggestions) I am wanting to block out those days on my calendar and canāt figure out how to do that. Could someone help me?
If the sit has been agreed and confirmed it should automatically block out those dates on your calendar.
Yay! Congratulations and how exciting! May it be everything you wished it to be.
Once the sit is confirmed, accepted etc, the calendar will update automatically and the sit dates will be greened out.
Congratulations @PattyBfromMaine thatās such great news if you need any help, tips or advice preparing for your sit just ask on the forum and search the website blog for some great articles ā¦ and would you like to share with us what furry friends youāll be keeping company and where you are sitting?
Well done 
