I had a video call with the sitters. They told us a very different answer to not writing reviews than what they said in their email. Their answer was basically they didn’t want to write a negative review due to the HO responding in a negative way on the one time they can respond. They didn’t just not leave a handful of reviews, it was about 40% of the time they sit going back several years.
We spoke for 1.5 hours and they asked many, many questions. All good, however the last question they asked was if they could use another bedroom and bathroom besides the one guest bedroom and bathroom we offer. That meant my bedroom. Well, we don’t allow sitters use of our room. We are not comfortable with that. We provide a very lovely bedroom and full bathroom. They told me that was a deal breaker! Why they didn’t ask when they first applied to our sit, who knows. We have photos on our listing of where they will sleep and the bathroom, besides the entire house and backyard. They ask that question at the very end and wasting 1.5 hours of our time.
Now, I’ve had a call with another couple and they tell me they haven’t decided exactly where they want to be at the time of our sit and need a few days to decide if they will take my sit.
With all their experience, it’s a wonder they didn’t ask much earlier (even at application stage) about the bed issue where that’s a deal breaker for them. So much time wasted @avidtraveler! All the best in securing wonderful sitters.
I’ve posted this several times in various places on this forum, and I’m often met with skepticism by those who frown upon a host or sitter leaving no reviews or an undeserved positive review to avoid retaliatory feedback who say it doesn’t do the community any good, and the platform is based on trust etc etc but the fact is, hosts and sitters do think of themselves first and while the double blind review system has helped offset the fear of retaliatory feedback to some degree the problem still exists.
A host or sitter will most definitely respond to a negative review with a retaliatory comment that tries to blame the other party and future hosts and sitters are left with the ole’ he “said/she said” scenario which doesn’t reflect well on either party,
This is exactly why I left an undeserved positive review for our second sitter, and why I am convinced that the dozen or so hosts before me did the same thing, thus establishing a pattern that is difficult to break with each new positive review giving the sitter more credibility in the event of a dispute between that sitter and a homeowner.
Wrong again in this case, I believe. I’ve been left one 4 star for cleaning which I know was undeserved, and my short professional response, only saying thank you for feedback and glad they were pleased w the cat’s care, was read by subsequent HO’s apparently positively, as I’ve had no problems getting subsequent sits…. On the other hand, I’ve left 4 stars once for overall sit, as poor old dog was dying and really I wasn’t prepared for situation….and another with 4 stars only for hospitality and communication where I explained each rating succinctly for future sitters to have a heads up. The point being it’s simply not true that the stars and reviews are problematic when not reading 5 stars across the board. Soooooo tired of you refuting this basic tenant !
Not sure if you’re referring to me but my point has nothing to do with stars and reviews are problematic when not reading 5 stars across the board. My point is that straight 5 star reviews may in fact be problematic if they’re undeserved 5 star positive reviews left by members who fear retaliation if they leave anything less than a 5 star review.
My concern with this sitter is if they don’t want to leave negative reviews, then basically they consider 40 percent of their sits as negative. I can understand a handful of cases but almost half the sits not meeting their expectations to me signals a sitter who would be picky and difficult to please. I would pass.
Yes. Or they suck at choosing sits or take sits based on the wrong priorities.
Unfortunately, some sitters and hosts aren’t discerning enough to pick well. And you’ll often see a pattern of that when they post in the forum, yet they don’t review accurately.
Anyone can get a one-off bad sit or sitter, but a pattern of that points to a likely bad picker.
That’s why I read sitters reviews also. It just surprised me that there were so many they did not review. They were left with 5* reviews, but didn’t leave a review. Very fishy
I had a couple sit once who (I think) had a good experience (I even let them bring their cat with them) and I left them a good review – they never reviewed me.
Interestingly, about a year later, they texted me to “say hello and touch bases and say how much they loved my home and animals and to let them know if I needed sitters again in the future”……. huh?
(I’ve ignored that)
I guess I (rightly or wrongly) I consider no review an insult.
I can see why that would feel off. When someone has a perfectly good sit and then chooses not to leave a review, it doesn’t sit in the spirit of THS at all — especially when they reach out a year later as if everything is on the same footing. Your reaction makes total sense.
