Suggestions For Owners Managing Sitter Applications

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Hi Angela, I appreciate you asking! I’m not sure I’m the best person to answer, but from what I’m hearing a lot of homeowners either don’t understand or don’t respect the process. A few ideas off the top of my head are:

  1. A contract that requires HOs to click through basic rules of etiquette and initial they’ve read them, and clear rules about losing privileges if they don’t act responsibly
  2. clearly stated information about what happens online when you post dates, pause dates, select a sitter, etc.
  3. what “timely manner” means - should they acknowledge messages within 72 hrs or 10 days? What happens if they don’t?
  4. perhaps a limit of 12 active applications. If they want more they need to decline some to allow more to apply.
  5. automated removal of a listing after a certain period of time (for HOs who leave a listing active for weeks or months)

I don’t know, I assume most HOs are doing their best, but reading these threads makes me feel like sitters have less power and are held to a higher standard, which doesn’t seem fair. There has to be some system in place to discourage slacker HOs and educate the rest. These are just ideas, obviously I’m not making decisions around here, but I hope it helps!

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  1. When the HO presses the Decline Application button, a message appears e.g. “Now send a personal message to the unsuccessful sitter”
    Or better still, they cannot complete the Decline feature without sending a private message
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3

To help owners, perhaps provide a couple of responses when a sitter does not secure the sit.

For example, on the Kiwi/Aussie housesitters site, it’s similar to the following: Blah Blah thanks you for applying but a sitter has been chosen.

I’m happy w that.

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I can sympathise with the owners and the amount of applicants they can get, especially the “honey pot” ones. We all have busy lives and something has to be put on the back burner so I understand if the sit is not for six months why it may take a while for owners to respond.
It doesn’t really worry me about response time as I keep applying for sits in that time frame and if I get lucky I message the others and tell them I am no longer available.
The problem is when the owners start sorting out the applicants. Some. sitters get very despondent when all they get is a computer generated message. If you are like me, each sit gets a personalised message, thought through and carefully typed.
I have come up with this strategy. Pet owners get one chance, if all I get is a computer generated reject message that’s it. I don’t apply again. I took time to message them they should have the courtesy to reject me with at least a group message. I know it won’t really matter to them but it makes me feel hellava better.
I don’t think strategies should need to be put in place. A pet owner can see the effort us sitters have put into our applications so good manners should dictate at least a group message to those who were not chosen.
Elsie

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That’s a great idea. I’d be tempted to apply for a sit the HO advertised in the future if your ideas were in place. Now, if Im rejected without a response, I ‘bin’ the HO and will not consider a future ad from them.

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6

Thanks @LTD but I can only take the credit for idea No 6. The first 5 were from @Shafofo

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