I read that some HOs put a ‘secret’ word or phrase at the end of their listing to ensure that applicants have read it fully.
Thankfully, I’ve never actually encountered this.
Have you? Does this actually happen? And, what do you think of it?
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Yes, I encountered this. It turned out to be my worst sit experience.
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Yes, I’ve seen such a listing a while ago. I didn’t apply for other reasons. I wouldn’t rule out a listing merely because of it, it would be an overall consideration. But I would think listings with such often would use that for a reason - sits that have issues one should be forewarned about (health, reactive, unusual tasks described).
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I’ve seen it once but that was at least a year ago. I didn’t apply. I would have been too wary about being set up for other ‘traps’ or ‘tests’.
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Yes, I’ve experienced something like that too.
At the end of a host’s ad, there was a code word or code words to ensure that potential pet sitters read the entire text.
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Yes, I’ve seen that multiple times. No biggie. Easy to deal with.
Generally as a sitter, if your application doesn’t reflect that you’ve read the listing, you’re much less likely to get the sit anyway. Many hosts value signals that you have, even if they’ve not used specific test phrases or such.
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I did a sit earlier this year where the host put that in her message. She said she really didn’t like doing it since she thought it could come across as kind of obnoxious–she is a sitter too-- but said she felt she had no choice after getting so many applicants who clearly weren’t reading the listing. This was a long-term sit in a highly desirable area, so she kept having to decline and re-list.
I always kind of found it off-putting but after this experience–seeing how cool and easy going she was and why she felt the need to do it–I kind of see it differently. The overall tone of her listing felt good to me so it didn’t keep me from applying. I didn’t get the sense that the request was indicative of someone who was difficult, etc…
I am sure it has to be really frustrating for hosts to take time to craft a detailed listing and then get numerous messages from people who obviously didn’t read it. And this is especially true now that they are limited in the number of applications they can receive at once.
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Wow! I hadn’t realised my German was so good! 
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Yes I’ve come across it a few times, I don’t apply because I prefer HO’s that focus on the sitters they want, rather than them catching out the sitters they don’t want. It slightly lowers my energy levels when I read it, and makes themselves look a little negative as HO’s, when they could have just stayed focused on attracting brilliant sitters instead, who they will know have read their profile by the message attached to their application.
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Sure, this requirement was easy enough to deal with. There were many more requirements in the listing and they wanted to make sure that applicants had read them. And then there were more requirements (proof of ID, proof of insurance), no biggies for me either. But in the end the HO’s personality was not easy to deal with, at least not for me.
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The translator played a trick on me… 
My mistake in taking the quote in German… 
Nevertheless, it shows how international TrustedHousesitter is. 
Thank you very much for your humorous reaction. 
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You always have to gauge the entire matching experience in context, IMO. One request for a secret word ≠ a bad host.
It sounds like with your host, there probably were multiple warning signs to avoid their sit.
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Agreed. Any host who requests a secret word or phrase is likely doing it because of a bunch of thoughtlessness applicants. That’s a bummer, but I look at listings holistically.
If the signals in a listing are otherwise good, that wouldn’t stop me from applying. But it’s pretty easy to spot when there are a couple of warning signs or more. I’ll skip sits based on that, rather than on one sign that can be neutral, depending on context.
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So how does that work, the secret word? The HO adds some non sequitur at the end of the listing and asks the applicant what the last sentence was?
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The code word should ideally appear in the application letter in the reference line. For example: “Cuddling with “animal name” is a must”
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As I understand it, yes. Not sure that I’ve ever actually seen any listings like that, though.
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What I have seen has been of sort «mention the word «daffodil» in your application and we will know you have read this.»
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Completely agree! I have come across the codewords thing and I didn’t much like it. Not a fan of tricks and traps and this one feels patronising too; I always read sit details very carefully and make it clear that I have. As, I’m sure, does any successful sitter.
If everything else seemed ideal, the codeword wouldn’t be a deal-breaker. But it does leave a bit of an unpleasant taste…
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If I saw a sit like that I would add a secret code word in my application to make sure the HO read it all
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I’ve seen those and I would not apply. I always read the full listing very carefully (how else would I know if I want to apply?) and I write a detailed application that is specific to their sit. I would not respond to some secret code word designed to catch people out, it doesn’t matter how great the sit looks otherwise. I’m not a child and I’m not playing little games like this. I just scroll on.
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