I have used this site for many years and have had some wonderful sitters in the past. I posted two new sitting opportunities over a week ago but have had no applications for either sit. I have always been inundated with requests in the past and been spoiled for choice. Is this a recent issue that others have experienced and any advice? The first sit is 2 weeks at the end of January and the second sit is the first week in March.
I havenāt seen any recent increase in lack of sitter availability.
Were the prior sits at a more favorable time of year for your location? Did you change anything in your listing since then? How were the reviews from your recent sitters, and how were the reviews you left for them?
You havenāt gave it very long if itās only been a week, so you must be in an in-demand place. So when youāve posted your sits in the past, did you post those at this time of year? IE when some are pre-occupied with Christmas, Thanksgiving, or those that have 6th/8th Dec celebrations.
If youāre in the US, then there are less travelling from overseas to sit in the US with the way things are.
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@AllyHannah, sorry to hear of challenges. There has been a steady stream of similar threads recently. Causes seem to vary significantly. From excess demand over festive period; to few international housesitters visiting US; to undesirable property/pets/location; to poor quality listings.
Suggest use magnifying glass search function to identify similar THS Forum threads. They contain a wealth of insight.
Suggest add your THS listing to your THS Forum profile - weblink below.
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How are your reviews from sitters?
Thanksā¦..I think Iāve managed to add the link and would be interested in your feedback on my listing
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The link isnāt working
Hi @Wildcolonialgirl as @AllyHannah is new to the Forum and the link does not yet show properly due to the Discourse platform permissions, if you copy and paste the details shown when you click on their profile photo and paste this in to the search engine you should be able to view it. Hope this helps.
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Only oneā¦never thought to chase my reviews. the one i do have was 5 stars
Looking at the site there are quite a few in the area all with a low number of applications
Iāve had a look. I actually looked at this sit and was going to apply as it looked perfect. The only thing that put me off was the expectation that Freddie would sleep on the bed.
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So that will mean youāve had a run of sitters who didnāt leave a review?, this looks bad for youā¦. as it might be interpreted that the sitters had nothing good to say so didnāt leave a review. Did you review them? If not why not?
The main issue I can see is no photos of where a sitter would sleep/shower/relax/work (digital nomads). Youāve not given a sitter a reason to stayā¦ just some dog photos- but none of the house/gardens/locality. Why not though? Please look at other listings, you can learn from them. The listing is your advertā¦
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Hi Ally,
Thereās not one photo of any parts of your house. I certainly wouldnāt apply to a sit where I couldnāt see any of the rooms where I would be living. If you add some in accordance with the THS guidelines you might get a better response.
Good luck
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Here are the things that I think are preventing you from getting any interest
only 5 photos, all of the dog, none of the house.. BEDROOM. BATHROOM, KITCHEN are supposed to be minimum requirements for a listing.
A lot of people do not like dogs sharing the bed with them
car required. but dog has to be taken to vet for injections. So people without a car will not want to have to do that by public transport
dog wears special boots, not everyone can be bothered to faff about with that
only one review
too much info, a long read, some better left for Welcome Guide
there is nothing there that would make me want to do this sit.
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With the new fee that will be the future. Sits that are already difficult to connect with a sitter, will not find a sitter at all if sitter have to pay for it. Look on multiple facebook groups. You might find someone there.
I canāt find your profile but if you say that you had multiple sits and only one review that would stop me from applying since it normally means there might be a problem that sitter donāt mention in a negative review. So if I see someone had 5 sitter and one review I donāt apply.
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I havenāt seen the listing but judging by the replies all I can think is geez, some hosts really donāt think about how to market their site in an appealing way.
No house pictures? Dog must sleep in bed? And on top of that the need for the sitter to drive to the vet regularly.
And you donāt ask for reviews. You might not think theyāre important but they are.
You really need to look at things from the perspective of an unpaid sitter who has better options.
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@AllyHannah I find it amazing that youāve been successful in finding sitters in the past.
- Hereās an article showing you what should be included in your listing. It will give you an idea of how much time you need to put into an effective listing, and how deficient yours is.
- As others have said, you are not covering the minimum required for photos.
- As well as whatās been mentioned by others, you need to fully complete the Amenities section. I didnāt see that point. mentioned, but I only did a quick look through the posts.
- Only the first few words of your title will be seen in a search. Yours would likely display An opportunity to house sit ā¦ - we already know that. Use these first words to highlight whatās unique about your listing, to encourage sitters to click on it and read it.
Your listing needs a thorough overhaul. The effort usually pays off for owners. Good luck. 
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This is frustrating as I have uploaded lots of photos of the house, office , kitchen etc which show on āMy listingā but donāt show on the actual website. I will need to contact someone tomorrow to investigate further. Thanks for having a look thoughā¦..thatās helpful.
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Consider that the problem may be due to a new update. All pictures need captions and must be put in a category by using the drop down box next to each photo.
My bet is your listing has warnings on it that itās ānot completeā, and thatās probably why.
Hiā¦..finally resolved the issue. I had to email them my photos so they could upload them directly which seems to have resolved my inability to upload pictures or update the sit. Thanks for taking the time to respond. Much appreciated
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