Iāve started to get multiple requests from the HomeExchange community to stay in our home - especially in school holidays. Often people want overlapping days.
Iād really appreciate a view that shows who is requesting which dates. When I have 4 or 5 requests that are a bit overlapping I have to go through each message and get a bit of paper to show
a) who would like to stay when and
b) how much trust and faith I have in the HomeExchanger asking to stay.
It would be great to have a list and a calendar view that shows all live requests and shows if there is an overlap, but also for other info to show in hover-over on that profile/person:
the profile of that person (with the reviews),
the number of guests in their party,
their star rating,
(and maybe the number of exchanges theyāve done).
To take this to the next level (i.e. even more useful) it would be amazing to have a private tagging system where I could tag people based on my perception of how keen I am to host them based on my research of their profile, the tone and content of their request, etc!)
Welcome to the Forum and thank you for this suggestion. What great news that you have so many requests. Your home must be in a great spot - where are you based? You will be pleased to hear that this is an area that the team are looking into, so that you can organise your messages more efficiently. Iāll certainly pass your ideas onto the team.
Is there a way of seeing what is being considered and a very high level sense of order/priority on the development roadmap?
One other thing to throw in to the pot of possible please, Iām a dd/mm/yyyy kind of guy, as I think all Europeans are, when I get a notification from home exchange on my android phone it is in American style mm/dd/yyyy which really confuses me!
In the home exchange app itself it keeps to dd/mm/yyyy!
Iāve filled in the form to suggest an alumni group (UWC.org) as a potential āclubā within HE (https://help.homeexchange.com/hc/en-us/articles/360008019038-Everything-you-need-to-know-about-clubs). I filled the first form in back in July, the second this week. Iāve had no reply. Iāve raised it a few times in chat in the HE app, where the answer was just to wait (not sure if that was just aria the bot or a real person)ā¦is there a way I could check the status or speak to a real person in the know? Your help with be much appreciated.
No iām afraid there isnāt currently a development roadmap that is available for viewing. Thank you for your feedback about the dates - I wasnāt aware that the format was not consistent across the platform and the app, so I have passed this onto the product team to check.
This would be very useful and a timesaver as well. Flipping back and forth between messages and the calendar is a pain, and it shouldnāt be that convoluted.
@eMTee itās so nice to read from someone who lives in a place that is highly sought after, and who makes such an effort in organising requests and replying to the people who are searching
Hi Matthew, it is certainly not a no, however the product team do have to prioritise updates and product changes depending on the urgency and demand for them. With only 2 votes this does not seem to be something that a large number of members are concerned about. This does not mean that it will not happen, but iām afraid I couldnāt indicate if and when it may happen. You would be best to follow up your conversation with the support team.
Hi Melissa - Iāve tried following up on the issue of requesting an alumni group with support, a few times, but with no outcome - any tips on getting through to someone who might prompt action?
Iām sorry it feels like no one is listening. I will pass this onto the team, however iām afraid they will prioritise working on more urgent changes to the platform to improve the user experience for all members. I do know however that the groups section of the website is underutilised and we are really keen to improve this. It may take some time thoughā¦
Thanks Melissa - trying to keep faith, but it definitely feels like a black hole. You have been responsive, but the support at HE have been less responsive and the āProduct teamā ā¦ nothing at all!
My feelings on this are clouded by having arranged 9 exchanges as hosts, and getting nowhere with trying to arrange exchanges as guests! this is partly as Iāve not tried hard and smart enough, but after a good 20 or 30 requests just getting āyour plans donāt correspond with oursā Iām feeling like HE, so far, has just been a one-way non-reciprocal street.
But these things are separateā¦
whether or not the alumni of UWC (https://uwc.org/uwc-alumni-network/) and our attempt on Facebook to have swapping without any structure nor search (https://www.facebook.com/groups/185637029514619) is worthy / allowed to have an alumni group in HE (like those in the screenshot above) is not related to my own lack of skill (and suitabilityā¦ I hope not!) and success, so far, in finding HEers willing to host me and my family! Woe is me!
The groups were introduced 15 years ago and didnāt changed since then and are not very not often used for what I know. To find exchanges, if you are on Facebook as it seems, you would probably have more success within the membersā groups ( I can provide links if needed). Finding exchanges, depending when and where, is sometimes difficult.
Yes Etienne is correct. The groups are underutilised on the platform. It is an area that we hope will be changed and improved. I would certainly recommend using the members only Facebook groups to boost your search for exchanges. The key to finding good GuestPoint exchanges is to be as flexible as possible with both dates and locations. Some of the best GP stays I have done have been to places that I wouldnāt have searched for - they popped up on the Facebook group. Alternatively if you are looking for a specific area then have your set up alerts for those places? By doing this, you then get email alerts when a home is available that fits your needs.
Thanks Melissa, Iāve already set up 7 travel wishlist locations with alerts.
Iāll head over to the Facebook group too - I donāt really use Facebook - and find it hard to keep on top of the stream of stuff in them (hence why I like the idea of structured searches on the HE platform itself!) - but itās all worth trying!
I completely agree with you - Facebook can be a bit of a nightmare for that. I love this Forum but the Facebook group has been around for longer so there are more members there (for now). Check out the āOpen Micā pinned posts in the group as that might help you find specific thing - the one for GP stays is popular https://www.facebook.com/groups/HomeExchangersInEnglish/permalink/3913194025638062
but the Facebook group has been around for longer so there are more members there (for now). Check out the āOpen Micā pinned posts in the group as that might help you find specific thing - the one for GP stays is popular