URGENT: This is our third sit, flights in 3 weeks, and zero applications — what are we doing wrong?

Owner Questions, Advice & Chat
1

Hi everyone,

This is actually our third time using THS, but we’ve never had this much trouble finding a sitter. We’re starting to panic.

We’ve done everything that worked before: detailed profile, Welcome Guide ready, manually invited over 15 local sitters… and so far, only rejections or silence (some haven’t even seen the messages).

Our questions for the community:

  1. Is there something in our profile or invitation that might be scaring sitters away?

  2. Should we be offering something extra (car, Uber, etc.)

  3. Any tips for reaching sitters who don’t show up in the search results?

Any tip, no matter how small, would mean the world to us. We’ve never had this issue before and we’re getting desperate.

Thanks so much,
Ivan

(Member’s listing has been added to their Forum profile by the Forum team and post edited to meet the Forum Guidelines)

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I don’t think you’re doing anything wrong and the lack of applicants may simply be a reflection of uncertainties about travel. There are other factors that may be deterring potential international sitters as well. Good luck with finding a sitter.

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Forget about a sitter from outside the US, the political climate is just too unfriendly to outsiders.

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No, I don’t think it is that. America isn’t unfriendly to visitors, just be careful when dealing with border agents.

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Hi Ivan, welcome to the forum.

First, it’s important to know that you are not alone in this. Many HOs are experiencing similar difficulties. It seems this is not the best time to find sitters. The US has also some additional problems.

I would not say “scare away”, but the fact that there have been no reviews given or received is not helpful. There’s nothing you can do about the past but you may want to consider reviewing future sitters.

I think it would also be helpful to develop a bit more the responsibilities section, like adding some information about feeding times, sleeping habits of the pets (time and place)…

In your home & location section, you mention how long it takes to get to several attractions but it doesn’t specify if it’s driving distance, which I guess is what you mean, but it shows as accessible by public transport so it would help attract people who don’t have a car if you give some information about places they can access, both for groceries and attractions and, perhaps you could offer to pick them up at an airport or station.

Otherwise, your listing is lovely, great pictures and gorgeous pets.

Good luck!

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Hi, @IvanAlej ; welcome to the forums.

Sorry to hear you’re having challenges finding a sitter. I’ve had a look at your listing and I don’t know that I’d say you’re doing anything wrong per se. Your home seems tidy, pets are cute & care requirements seem reasonable, your tone is friendly, etc.

I suspect it’s more that you’re a victim of the current circumstances, with the recent TSA issues, the war, the economy, price of fuel etc. hindering travel plans for so many. If you have a look over the forum you’ll come across several threads where these issues are mentioned, alongside discussions of cancelled travel, increased costs, and a dearth of available sitters to meet the needs of active listings.

That said, a couple suggestions off the top of my head (and I’m sure you’ll get a number of others from the many experienced folks here:) :slight_smile:

— First: make sure you have a backup plan in place, be it a paid sitter or family member just-in-case. A lot of people are finding it necessary to cancel plans due to cancelled flights etc., plus your dates aren’t terribly far out at this point so it’s probably time to think about contingencies if you haven’t already.

— You don’t mention if a car is required, although you note the HEB is 7 minutes away, so sort of implies one may be needed. Is there any possibility you can provide the use of a car as part of the sit? With increased travel costs, the savings on a rental car could be a significant differentiator between your sit and someone else’s.

— Your pets can be left for up to 6h; maybe include some enticing suggestions (w/a few photos) for things sitters might find interesting to do in your area? I don’t really know the San Antonio area…I’ve heard it’s nice, but wouldn’t know what kind of outings/restaurants/experiences/local events you have nearby that might make me want to visit. Perhaps include some that can be done with & without the pets.

Last, if it does come down to the wire: the Forum has a ‘last-minute sits’ category that you can post in if you haven’t found anyone within 14d of your start date. Hopefully that won’t be needed, but good to be aware of if you do.

Best of luck!

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Hi IvanAlej,

I noticed you mentioned this is your third sit, but your profile shows no reviews from previous sitters and none left by you for them.

Since reviews are so essential for trust on this platform, is there a reason your past sits weren’t documented with feedback? I’d be hesitant to apply without seeing that history.

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I’d agree with other comments about the absence of Reviews as that’s a big Red Flag-so I think you’ll need to address this in your listing up front. You also failed to give any Reviews to two sitters-nobody wants to put in the work with no appreciation at the end, so again getting in front of this by promising to write a prompt Review. It’d be acceptable if it was just one missing Review which could be explained away as a newbie, but two missing Reviews is far more problematic. I also note that there’s a lot of competition in your area. Good luck though.

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It’s quite unusual to see two sitters who didn’t leave reviews for a sit—and that you also didn’t review them. Without any context, that can come across as a bit of a red flag to other sitters.

Would you be able to share why you chose not to review them, and whether you know why they didn’t review you?

I noticed that both sitters have reviewed other sits they’ve completed, so the absence of reviews here may suggest there was an issue. Any clarification would really help provide a clearer picture.

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I like San Antonio and have sat there before, but wouldn’t apply if hosts have missing reviews from and for sitters. A pattern of that is an automatic red flag to me.

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I agree with others, only two sitters and neither wrote a review? Major red flag. You need to address that in your narrative.

Maybe using a service like Rover would be your best bet given the current date.

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I just went to your profile. I couldn’t get there by clicking the link so I went to find a house sit in San Antonio, Texas. There was a sit listed with three dogs and one cat so I assumed it was yours as there are no reviews either. It shows the sit is for May 2 to May 3. Is this yours and you forgot to change the dates?

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Never mind, wrong sit

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Found the correct sit. You contacted local sitters. I get numerous requests from local hosts which does nothing but confuse me. If THS is telling hosts to contact local sitters then this is the wrong approach. You do that on paid sites not on free service exchange sites. We are here to travel. If I was a host I may reach out to someone in another state to entice them with the beautiful warm weather they will find at your house in contrast to their cold and dreary weather they are now experiencing at theirs. I would also mention things to do that are not in every state. I loved the caverns in your area. That was definitely the highlight of my San Antonio trip. If potential sitters do click on previous sits you had then showing you had two others with no reviews may concern seasoned sitters but not new ones who haven’t learned the importance of reviews yet.
In the future please request a review from your sitters and leave one yourself. When you start collecting good reviews attracting sitters will become a lot easier. Good luck with your next sit.

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The only things I can think of here:

  • I had to look up H-E-B so maybe add the word “supermarket.”
  • I know it’s Texas and everyone drives so I would consider offering a car or an uber allowance for non-drivers, or reimbursement/help on car rental costs and if dogs go in the car then info about a gate, blankets, etc.
  • For people unfamiliar with the area, your home sounds great but maybe more about the area, attractions, etc.

At 3 weeks, it may just be difficult to find someone, so in your shoes I’d still be looking but maybe also looking at a Plan B.

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Unfortunately, I expect you’re going to have problems. The currency on THS are the reviews. Sitters and hosts want to know how previous sits went and the reviews are the only insight into the answers to that question. No sits + no reviews is a small problem and just flags members as new. 2 sits and no reviews is a much bigger problem. Your profile shows you’ve had 2 sitters who did not review you nor did you review either sitter. Both of those sitters were good at reviewing hosts of their other sits. But not you. Experienced THS sitters will see the missing reviews by both parties both times and presume both parties both times came away disgruntled. That pretty much eliminates experienced sitters applying for your sit. Sorry.

That leaves you the prospect that applicants you do get are less experienced or new to THS. Not the best situation but workable. If you do succeed in getting a sitter, do review them and, hopefully, they’ll review you positively.

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a typo?

I know what you meant to say…

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Tongue tied fingers.

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@IvanAlej I was going to suggest sending private invitations to sitters.

However, considering that your sitting doesn’t have any review and you haven’t left any review either I would also be very reluctant in applying.

I would question myself on what might possibly need to be changed. However, in the meantime I would think of plan B and enquire for an alternative, like finding somebody (family or friends) who could help, a local sitter to pay or bringing your pets to some animal sanctuary during the time you’ll be travelling.

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Hi everyone,

Thank you for the honest feedback, I really appreciate it, even if it’s hard to read.

A few of you pointed out the missing reviews from our two previous sits, and you’re right to question it.

Here’s the truth: those were our first two sits on THS. I didn’t understand how important reviews were at the time. Neither sitter left a review, and I made the mistake of not reviewing them either. I thought it was fine to just let it go. Now I realize that was a mistake, and it looks like a red flag to other sitters.

There was no issue with either sit. One was fine, the other was fine. I just didn’t know the etiquette yet.

For context, we’re not new to hosting. Our home was an Airbnb before we moved in, and we were Superhosts with a 4.94 rating. So we know how to take care of a home and make guests feel welcome.

I can’t post the link here (against THS rules), but I’m happy to share screenshots or the listing privately if anyone wants to see.

I can’t go back and change the missing reviews, but I can be upfront about it.

Thanks again for the tough but fair feedback. I’ll make sure to leave reviews going forward and ask sitters to do the same.

A few of you mentioned “last minute sits” and boosting the listing. Our dates are April 25 – May 11 (20 days from today). I know the last-minute forum is only for sits starting within 7 days, so I can’t post there yet.

But is there anything I can do right now besides wait?

Specifically:

  • Would pausing and republishing the listing help?

  • Is “boosting” worth it at this point?

  • Would offering our car make a difference for sitters? (We’re in San Antonio, car-dependent city)

Any advice would be really appreciated. Thank you.

Ivan

Ivan

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