The app is unbelievably unreliable for pinging message alerts. We had what’s app comms with an HO yesterday on food/arrival/handover etc and I asked about the WG and our request from 3 days previously and they’d no alerts so missed it all! #whatsappsawinner
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I haven’t missed a single msg on THS — I get email notification each time. So I wonder whether some folks have some tech issue or problematic setup on their end. I also have had real time msg exchanges with some hosts on THS’s messaging platform, so presumably they’re getting alerts reliably as well. (We coordinate flight times, arrivals and such. One host and I had a thread, because she tried to change plans and get me to sit while her son stayed in the home.) I always trade alternative contact info early on, but prefer to have everything pre-sit on THS, for easier tracking and documentation, in case I end up needing that.
Similarly, I hear about some folks not reliably getting notifications on LinkedIn and yet I’ve gotten all of mine reliably for years. That again makes me wonder about the user end. I mention that, because notifications typically are set up to work the same en masse.
On the user end, people have different platforms, use various versions of software on the same platform, have individual email and spam setup and filtering, etc. That makes it impossible for a company to troubleshoot for so many people, at great expense.
I don’t have issues on any other apps or platforms to be honest. Like you I’m online and live and work on my laptop and phone remotely so am a very connected person generally, I have to be. My phone is an iPhone 11 and is always updated. I regularly uninstall and reinstall the app to try and avoid it but it’s clunky again at the moment. A little like managing a temperamental child…
I have the app installed and use it sporadically, like to check if a host is missing reviews from sitters. But I usually use the website, because I’m on an iPad much more often than my phone and the website displays at full screen on iPad, while the app displays small, since it’s scaled for phone screens. I never use THS on laptop, because I use a work laptop and avoid using it for any personal stuff. I wonder whether using the website makes any difference. It shouldn’t, but ….
Maybe. I’m an app kid through and through. Rarely use the website all all
I think you maybe right about that @Maggie8K .
I use mostly the App on my phone . I get notifications come through regularly , very regularly- ( several an hour )on the app but it’s not often clear what I am being notified about - a saved search, a new message in my inbox , a favourite that has just listed ? The notification doesn’t distinguish and it’s often not clear about what I am being alerted too .
A conversation only works when both parties are reading the messages . We check our THS inbox daily ( as we sit full-time ) but not all homeowners do ( as they are only using the site once a year ) . We have had quite a number who have completely missed our messages. However the same homeowners have instantly replied to a WhatsApp message.
So that is our go to for most reliable communication .
That’s a pain. In that case, I’d just rely on WhatsApp and let hosts know.
I get the THS email notifications and they’re specific — like X host has sent you a msg or you’ve been invited for a sit. I don’t typically check my inbox otherwise and haven’t been surprised by unread msgs.
That depends on your iPhone settings. I have set mine to always show notifications (also when the phone is locked) and to show them as a list of banners. And then there are also specific settings for the THS app where one can choose between “temporary” and “permanent”, sound or silent, etc.
Right now I see:
- This listing has new d… Berlin, Germany
- New invitation Sarah, Stockholm
@pietkuip that’s great - how do I do that ?
@Silversitters You can change that in Settings, under Notifications.
There I get this screen (in Swedish…):
So I have notifications as a list and to show them Always (Alltid).
And then one can scroll down in the list of apps to THS to display them as banners (Banderoller).
Thank you @pietkuip - I will do that .
and thanks for the translation as my Swedish is non-existent 
To what @pietkuip mentioned, you can usually do that with each app individually, so you can customize. Many folks either don’t know that or they forget what they set. That’s not the kind of thing that THS or other companies can typically troubleshoot, because there are so many users and their variables. So sometimes users complain, but it’s on their end. And different phones have different variables, depending on their model, operating system, versions, etc.
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