New member - open to feedback on listing!

Welcome & Getting Started
1

Hello all,

After looking through the forums and exploring other people’s listings, I took the leap and joined. I love the idea of this; we used to use couchsurfing.com and similar sites and I like mutually beneficial exchanges that help people travel.

I’ll be making a sitter profile soon, but for now I would appreciate any feedback or suggestions on my listing. (Hopefully it is in my profile, assuming I added it right). More pet pictures? Too many? Good honest take on our dog?

There are so many picture-perfect high end homes listed here I feel a little intimidated with our cute older 1945 bungalow… not sure why someone would choose us instead of an updated place with landscaped yard, whirlpool tub, etc, and a “loves-everyone-go-to-the-dog-park-and-take-long-walks-every-day” golden retriever or something… but I’m hopeful!

I love the pictures people have of their pet in their homes, but we’re not home now and, apparently, I take way more pictures of our dog when we are in Alaska. It doesn’t seem right to use a picture of Lucy running through a pond in front of mountains when she will really be napping or chasing squirrels in a dry Texas backyard.

Question – the house photos are mostly from when we first listed our home as a furnished rental for the summer. We cleared out almost everything for the professional photographer to take the photos. Over the years, we don’t pack up so much of our stuff anymore, so the house looks more lived in. It’s arranged a little differently too, and we have some awesome new artwork.

But we are at our summer jobs in Alaska now so I can’t take new pictures till we are back home in October. Since we need a Thanksgiving sit, I don’t want to wait that long to post. Also, since the past summer has been brutal in Texas, I expect the backyard is pretty dead.

I’m not misrepresenting the house, it is still as cute as all the pictures. I figured I would talk to people individually and explain what might be different from the pictures. If someone really wanted to be assured of a lush green lawn, for example, or a very sparse looking place rather than intriguing knick-knacks and books, they could always change their mind.

Does this sound like a good approach? Or should I add more of this info to the listing?

1 Like
2

Your listing is beautiful but I do believe your feels to give a current and accurate description are valid. Share any current photos and explain the situation just as you have here, which really says a lot about who are. Which in my opinion is pretty cool.
All the best @Scratch

3 Likes
3

Welcome @Scratch
Your listing and photo’s look good. I’d flip the photo’s around so the first is of your house. I’d also like to see a photo of your bathroom.
Sounds like an experienced sitter for Lucy would be best due to her issues that you correctly mention.
Good luck.

4

Your listing is great! Sounds like an interesting neighborhood, and I much prefer your type of home/neighborhood to a fancy mansion! Your description of Lucy is really good. I would want to know how long I can leave her home alone (i.e. 4 hours, 6 hours) just in case the Sitter wants to spend a day touring. Also, does Lucy enjoy car rides? The fact that you include a car is fantastic!

I agree with others that a mention of the inaccuracy of the photos is a good idea.

5

Do you have someone looking after your house that could take current photos?

6

If I didn’t accept a sit already for that week, I would apply in a heartbeat. Your home looks absolutely love and Lucy is gorgeous. I think it will definitely be appealing to a lot of sitters. For me personally, the house is the last thing I look at. What I find more important is how you sound in your profile, how much is written, the pet(s) and the location. I sit alone so I don’t need a mansion; all I need is a bed and a pet and I’m good. I’m sure you’ll get heaps of applicants. I saved your profile in case you need another sitter for a later date =).

7

Thanks all for your feedback! I did include a note about the pictures. I don’t think it’s necessary to take new ones – they are accurate enough, I just wanted people to know there is some more stuff in the house. (It looks better, IMO) And that there may not be grass. In case that mattered.

I also care a lot about what people write. My profiles tend to be long, so I was trying to keep it a bit shorter. But I lean towards people who give more info about themselves too, so I can get more of a feel for them. If they don’t have the patience or interest to read through a profile, that’s okay but they probably aren’t just who I’d want for a sitter. It’s like the “hey I’m coming to Austin, can I stay at your place?” messages I’d get on couchsurfing… from people with profiles that said only “I love traveling, going new places, and meeting new people.”

I’ll save your profile, Wendy! You never know when our next travels might be.

1 Like
8

Good point about car rides, touring – but in Texas, car rides are better discussed case by case. It can get very hot here, to the point where you can’t leave a dog even for five minutes with the windows open. If someone is interested, we can talk about it and I can see how I feel about whether they really understand it or not. I’d rather cast a wider net, and if something specific doesn’t work (like, Oh I wanted to take the dog and do a 10 hour road trip) then at least we got to talk!