New to THS - what am i getting wrong?!

Fortnum & Mason in London, UK. Established 1707 and Known for their extraordinary hampers. Absolutely marvelous shop.

The HO could explain about the decor and paintball in the Intro.

From what I’ve gathered, I’m not able to list on the forum as that’s what the website is for? I’ve added the link to my profile on here though. If I don’t have any success soon, I will put in on the last minute sits page.

thank you!

1 Like

Correct. You can’t put your own listing on here, just make the changes and relist it and it should go to the top of the search page for your area is another bonus :raised_hands:t3: Yes, support plus social will list on when it’s a last minute within a week starting sit. Best of luck @Zoe5

Hi @Zoe5
Looks a great sit. Agree with others in that I’d have your cats as the first picture. Your cats are adorable.
I’d be interested in your sit but I have 2 confirmed sits that cover September.
Good luck.

Thanks, I’ve added a bit about public transport / prices. Unfortunately not willing to do any interior design alterations, so what’s on the walls stays lol.

1 Like

Thanks, most helpful! I’ve spent this morning making lots of changes. Wasn’t sure how to get the cat pics as cover photo so downloaded one on to the home part and chose that for the cover - hope it works!

1 Like

I’ve added a section with bus / train info and prices, as well as a link to bus times. Thank you!

Your new first photo is adorable!!! Purrr-fect!

Your listing now reads really well! Good luck attracting a sitter!

2 Likes

Oh, of course!! You should never have to change your decor for anyone. For every “me” who gets weirded out by a certain thing, there are 100 normal people who don’t!! :rofl:

2 Likes

As a sitter looking at this, I think the advert has way too much info. I’d prefer to see something more concise. I don’t think you need that many photos. Just a 5-10 really beautiful ones of your cats and your home.

A lot of the info listed can be discussed further down the line, such as what to recycle, picking up poos, etc. These are all things that a sitter knows will be required of them. But if you list them all in your advert, I think it can come off as a little - not controlling - I can’t really think of the right word. But it’s just a lot to digest for someone reading the advert is all I’d say.

I’d prefer to see photos without filters on as well. Maybe think of this as like a house listing on Rightmove. You want high-quality, clear images to make your home look comfortable and welcoming.

1 Like

I think your listing is pretty good and complete. I am different than other sitters and my eye will always be attracted by a kitchen pic or living room picture (don’t ask me why) as a first picture. I guess it really depends on people. You can alter your ad every day and every hour if you wish. You can play with picture order and see what works best. Know that every time you make an adjustment, it will come up as New, which is what you want. I know it’s not fun, but it is September, it is in 2 weeks, it is in the UK which is a very competitive “market”, so it might be good to update your listing multiple times.
I would go to “find a sitter” and filter on Bedford. Once you have the list of sitters, you’ll see the ones with the most reviews pop up first. Go straight to the last ones that have 1 or 2 reviews, and message them all (if you haven’t done it already) inviting them to sit. Tell them it would be great to get another review, to do a sit in their area. That’s how we started, and today we have more than 40 sits under our belts because we started somewhere close.

The UK has a LOT of competition, so you might need to “work” at finding a sitter more than if you had a listing in NYC or London as these destinations are very touristy.
I would keep the amount of pics you have, I love to see a lot of pics, but I guess it depends on everyone.
The most important for me is that the pics of the kitchen (do you have a coffee machine? that’s a big seller, take a pic!), bathroom, bedroom and office space are clear. If there is clutter, or it looks dirty, I’ll navigate away from a listing, but your house looks really well maintained, so will attract people who need an uncluttered environment.
I hope this helps!

1 Like

Hey there! I definitely agree with others - you give way too much info. Here is how I would re-work your profile (I do this because I enjoy it and I like helping people) :slight_smile:

Title: 4 cats in Bedford; the perfect place to relax, explore and sightsee!

Intro:
Hi there! We’re a married couple in our (e.g: 40’s)_ taking our first trip since before COVID. We both work from home at our place in Bedford, just 45mins North of London. We have 4 rescue cats that require low maintenance care. Bedford is a quiet and peaceful town, with neighbouring Milton Keynes offering plenty of attractions!

Home & location:

We have a 4 bed semi-detached house within walking distance to local amenities (Sainsbury’s & takeaway shops 5 min walk away). We have Netflix, Apple & Sky TV for your enjoyment, plus fully equipped, large kitchen, 2 office spaces and on-road parking if required. Our place is accessible via public transport, with direct train links to London. Boxend watersports park is also within walking distance, offering a variety of different water activities such as stand-up paddle boarding and water-skiing!

Responsibilities:

Our cats are all rescues, who have endured a lot in their lives. 2 of the cats are deaf, and one of these deaf cats also struggles a little with mobility (wonky back legs) but she is fine and doesn’t require any special support or attention. They are all very affectionate and love a good cuddle. They require feeding morning & evening, and litter trays to be cleaned when necessary (2 of the litter trays are self-cleaning). 1 cat has meds, but it’s simply added to her meals. They have a cat-flap to access the backyard, but aren’t allowed out the front of the house. They can be left for ____ hours during the day so you have plenty of time to explore the area!

Hope that helps you! All of the other details can be explained once you’ve found a sitter. People reading your current profile would likely stop half way through, because it’s just too much nitty gritty info. Best of luck :+1:

5 Likes

Why “45 minutes north of London”? That has nothing to do with where they are, especially as the public transportation that would get them to London isn’t easily accessible, and sitters aren’t likely to want to drive into London and back.

Even if if they did, with a 90-minute round trip, how long could they reasonably explore London? They’d have plenty of time to explore the actual area of Bedford and maybe Milton Keynes, but London is irrelevant here. Spending time in a city that’s nearly an hour each way is not feasible with 4 cats to attend to (one needing meds twice a day), making it pointless and even misleading to mention London at all. Why not Cambridge or Oxford?

Depends on what a sitter wants to do. It might be worth knowing about 45 mins to London if you’d want to go there before or after the sit. That kind of info is useful for people who are unfamiliar with countries or regions. Like I picked a U.K. sit based on a compelling headline. It was properly labeled for the name of its village. I’d never heard of it and there was zero chance I would’ve chosen it, if not for the headline indicating its proximity. It turned out to be a great experience.

2 Likes

This sit is closer to Cambridge than London, so maybe sitters may want to explore that area? Or Oxford? Before or after a sit in England, you can go pretty much anywhere, though. Not just London.

But regardless, a sit with 4 special needs cats wouldn’t allow for enough time away to spend a couple of hours’ travel time, plus exploration time, in a city some distance away. Also tack on the time spent getting to and from Bedford station if going by train (another 20 min. by taxi).

Mentioning London in this listing (which the HO hasn’t, BTW) is very misleading. It would be unfair to both the sitter and the pets. The sitter can’t feasibly explore London without leaving the pets alone for longer than they should be.

My advice would be to include a photo of the front (outside) of the house, don’t go into details about the dog (not relevant), and you don’t need so many photos of the cats. No need to mention paintballing etc, you can tell people on video chat/interview. Try to create a more upbeat enthusiastic profile, there is a lot of negativity and apologising for things.

I agree about not implying that you can sit and easily go to London for the day.

I may be in the minority, but I like all the detail about the cats’ needs and routines right in the listing. I’d like more details about my own accommodations, though. Is there a dedicated guest room, for instance?