I wanted to start a category for review etiquette. In reading a lot of reviews, I have noted some patterns:
Gushing - the review goes on and on. Is it really necessary to write every single detail of the sit? Sometimes less is more.
Fighting - we said/they said. If you have issues with the sit, is it not better to discuss them PRIVATELY with the host family? Remember everyone gets to read it. It is not private email or text. As a sitter, you are not doing yourself any favours by engaging in verbal online combat or as a host for that matter.
Now, I am new to the game but I do find that these patterns have the effect of causing judgements of sits based on ârumourâ which in my opinion, is anything I canât prove to be true. That said, I do not pay much attention to reviews in many areas. It creates false expectations and disappointment.
It seems better to just indicate that it was a good fit for you or not a good fit. After all, life is a series of learning moments!
Factual bullet points are the best to my mind. Or a series of factual statements that add something the HO mightâve chosen to leave out of their own description but that has a significant impact on the sitter experience eg doggy bedtimes (9pm) that excludes the sitter from the main lounge/kitchen so as to not disturb the crated puppyâŠ.the point is that sitters for whom this isnât an issue wonât see it as a red flag and others will judge whether it fits their lifestyle or not. Itâs ALL about being adept at finding a good match so reviews can provide additional factual detail thatâs useful to pay forward.
While weâve got 100% 5* reviews, I personally think thereâs more to reviews than just reading the score. Sometimes weâve decided to completely ignore the odd bad score an HO has, simply because I had a good gut-feeling when I read the HOâs profile, itâs a connection thing, and a horrible vibe from the sitters review of them.
Itâs happened on a few occasions where the sitter just hasnât embraced the place, the experience, or the pets. There was one saying the villagers were rude and unfriendly, but I could tell the sitter was trying to cover her back in case she got a bad review back.
Thereâs more to reviews than just a number, and the odd bad review among a sea of good is unlikely to put me off an HO. We have had a positive experience in every sit we have done, so weâll continue to trust our gut about an HO with the odd bad review.
If one has issues with a sit I sure hope one would write it in the review. Otherwise there isnât much point in reviews. Smaller things like «I think you forgot to take out the trash» one can say directly, but there are many examples here on forum where reviewers probably should have told the truth so that others can make informed choices on whether they would want a sit. Like getting told to pee in the bushes, animals attacking you, unclean homes, hosts giving you a lot of extra chores on arrival, family members staying on property, the list is endless.
Gushing reviews are often new sitters. They will learn.
I donât mind a long review, you can get a good feel for a sit, if youâre interested in reading through the detail. But I did notice recently that one of the Australian housesitting sites limits their reviews to several hundred characters (about 7-8 lines). Better be succinct.
If I come across a sit I might be interested in, I would rather have all details (whether gushing or not) of the sit as opposed to absolutely zero details. I came across a listing the other day whereby the HO did not give many details for the home or the pet. And that homeownerâs only review came from a sitter who gave the HO 5 stars, but gave zero detailsânot even one sentence writtenâ. That was literally less, but not more. And then I looked at what the sitter had written for previous HOs and there were actual paragraphs. Red Flag? Maybe.
Homeownersâ listings that do not say much or sitters that do not say much in their reviews or say anything at all, I pass on by. â
My reviews are longer, the longer I stay somewhere. I give shorter reviews for short stays.
Personally I love reading positive gushing reviews of friendships formed and time enjoyed. But I also secretly enjoy reading the dramatic ones too hahaha a bit of spicy drama. I did a sit earlier in the year giving a nice review 5 stars all round to the host and recently went back and saw their latest sitter gave them a 3. This really surprised me, how could my experience be so much more different to theirs? A wee bit of sleuthing and it revealed a pattern of behaviour with that particular sitter. Her ratings werenât great, one review of hers was all one stars! You could read between the lines that the sitter was not a good fit but the host is as I described in my review.
So having detailed reviews are important I feel.
A review with no context that just says it was or wasnât a good fit for me with no clarity as to why is a pretty useless review for anyone else that is trying to determine if it would be a good fit for THEM.
I would rather have too much as opposed to too little detail.
I agree with others that a bulleted list of facts is always helpful, and have no issues with someone gushing if it was their genuine experience.
People writing tit for tats just makes one or both parties look petty and I usually take that into consideration. I also understand that most people suck at giving feedback and not everyone is a writer.
That being said, it would be nice if more people took reviews seriously, provided context, and stuck to the facts.
I see Reviews as a âcleansing process.â Hopefully Sitters and Owners learn from the Reviews and make changes for the better, if possible. Other Sitters and Owners simply will not be able to find matches, and will leave THS.
Not everyone is cut out for this platform.
You may not know that very recently, there was a huge change (improvement) to the Review system, whereby Sitters now rate Owners in several categories. This makes it easier for Sitters to differentiate Owners, one from another, so that future Sitters can make more informed decisions.
I donât mind gushing, and probably the person on the recieving end of the gushing is appreciative so thereâs that.
As a host looking at sitters, I like reviews that offer some specifics as to why the sitter was the greatest of all time. I think the rule of thumb should be maybe 3 specifics, for example: âarrived on time, immediately made friends with my shyest cat, and left the home cleaner than I did.â
As a sitter, looking for hosts, I mostly want to make sure the home and pets are as described.
The problem on both ends is that no one wants to come off as petty and people wonât mention things that werenât a problem for them, even though they might be a problem for someone else. I will admit to being guilty of this!
Frankly, I wish we had anonymous surveys on both sides after a sit, with an annual report. I think that might help âcatchâ stuff that people wouldnât mention in reviews. For example, a homeowner might get a report mentioning that 30% of sitters found the bed somewhat uncomfortable, and 10% found the bed very uncomfortable. Sitters might get a report that 80% of homeowners really did find the home cleaner than theyâd left it.
Iâve found detailed reviews helpful - gushing or not. They often fill in little gaps in profiles or help prepare questions for video calls. Iâve only had very positive sits but found through detailed reviews I can fill details in on pets and behaviours but also the hosts experience to give reassurance to potential sitters that they are in for a positive experience. As a sitter I feel I should fully commend hosts if weâve had a fantastic experience and explain how they made it a positive experience.
I donât like the limit. Airbnb has a limit. I just found out in my last review. I wanted to be completely factual and tell the whole story so people could decide for themselves if what I am saying is important for them or not. I could have said communication could be improved but that doesnât specify what went wrong with communication.
Airbnb also puts a limitation on how long the review can be. I was leaving a review for a host about a bad experience I had on Airbnb and I ran out of space. So, I had to re-write what I wanted to say, but still convey my message accurately.
I like details so I donât like being limited on what I can say.
