General Help and Questions

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They are all mapped automatically assuming the channel supports it. HomeAway supports almost everything in OwnerRez (and we support everything you can put on HomeAway). TA and Air have a much smaller taxonomy of amenities, but we match in what we can.

For direct booking, everything will be captured in OwnerRez automatically on the booking -- no sync or extra signature process after the booking is received because it handles all of that in the quote reservation process.

I'd recommend creating a test quote and booking with yourself as a guest -- that way you'll see the entire process.

It only requires the signing party, but you can add custom fields to capture more info about other guests: https://www.ownerrez.com/support/articles/capture-additional-fields-on-checkout-quote-acceptance

email to sms would basically be a service that converts email to text messages and sends them out. You'd put an email address into OR and the gateway would receive the email, pull out the relevant details and send it to the desired phone # via sms text.

I doubt OR is building a universal text option that would work with all systems, I don't think such a thing is even possible with so many proprietary messaging apps. I am pretty sure it will be a standard SMS based text that works based on typical cell phone text messaging.

Email to sms gateway, not sure what that is

I am assuming that it will be designed to universally designed to work on any chat app... What's App, Messenger, etc. Not an expert on that.

I am not aware of how amenities on owner res (per property) are mapped to amenities on Airbnb, TripAdvisor, HomeAway family, Etc.

When I define amenities on owner res, are they all mapped over to the OTAs automatically, or do I have to do a lot of redefining of amenities there to make them fit ?

Ok for those of us planning (soon) to use hosted websites for direct booking, how does all the information for guests get collected? Is it in the same format and methods as if it were from an OTA? Or some differences in behavior and method?

I mean the responsible party, the booking record, the agreement signing, the payment schedule, deposit, travel insurance, communication with guests, Etc?

"Normally folks only require the responsible/booking individual to sign, but you can send multiple links if you want."

Okay, thanks. I am still a few weeks away from actually being in the market. I know a lot, but it is still theoretical.

I have not actually LOOKED at how exactly it is appears when sent to guest. I assume it requests the full name of all adults, at least...

Nope, you only need one of the two. We provide both channel types in case you can only log in to one of the addresses, or have different listing numbers on different sites.

The built in templates are sort of a combined trigger + template -- you don't need a custom trigger for those. Things like booking confirmation for direct bookings, payment receipts, etc will be sent out when that event occurs.

"Using Custom Template" means you have overridden the default template for that email.

a) There's nothing unique about the signing process for Airbnb -- you can use the same method with other channels like TripAdvisor and booking.com that give you the platform email to send a signature link and get the real email address and the signature.

The only thing unique about Airbnb is they include that email address on the iCal -- the other channels need API integrated or channel bridge to get that email.

b) The signature process via the trigger and {BULEASE} link is exactly the same as if you went to a booking's Legal tab and did a request e-signature. They'll enter contact info and sign, and then the signed .PDF is emailed to the guest, to you, and stored on the booking's Legal tab.

Normally folks only require the responsible/booking individual to sign, but you can send multiple links if you want.

c) You can query the booking List to see booking date and whether the agreement is signed. You could also create a reminder template/trigger to yourself to follow up if they haven't signed in a certain period after booking, and then contact/cancel as needed.

Yep, we're in talks with Airbnb for the API connection -- just need partnership approval from them to move things forward.

Channel bridge is part of the channel management module which is $10 + $1/property per month. That includes all of the channel integrations -- API integrated channels (HomeAway, booking.com, TripAdvisor, CanadaStays) as well as the channel bridge for Airbnb and HomeAway.

The amenities in OwnerRez are based on the HomeAway model with some additions, so it should match that pretty close.

We don't have direct integration with Expedia, but if you're on HomeAway with instant book enabled they can distribute those listings over to Expedia automatically.

Currently the only way to do that is if you have an email to SMS gateway and use that in the email TO.

We're working on direct SMS integration which is due out this summer.

Stupid question, but if I already have VRBO set up in channel bridge do I need to set up Homeaway as well? Thought they were basically the same. Thanks!

Is it possible to have templates go to text instead of/as well as email?

Tripz or houfy?

Anyway, I think listing on these gnat sites is mostly a distraction. Just HA, AirBNB, Booking.Com, Craigslist maybe TA should be the focus. Everything else eems like noise.

There were only about 7 listings in my STATE

I have been listed for free a couple of years. 0 inquires or bookings.

OK, maybe stupid question. There are a lot of defined email templates here. Are (many of) these live and will happen as defined, or does each one need to be wired to a trigger? What does the "Using Custom Template" mean on each row?

https://app.ownerrez.com/emailtemplates

I have a few questions related to Email Templates (& Triggers)

The following link is about emailing an Agreement to someone via AirBnB using a real email address
a) is there something unique about AirBnB and not the other OTAs? e.g., if they do not supply the guest email address either?
b) when set up, how exactly does the signing (by all guests as required) + getting this agreement back + having it stored within OR work?
c) how is this supposed to be set up so it gets the agreement back within the right time (like, within 24-48 hours)? And perhaps cancel the booking if they dont?

https://www.ownerrez.com/support/articles/airbnb-request-for-contact-info-real-email-address-and-signed-renter-agreement

I looked for my small town and vacation rentals. Tripz is #17 on the page (last) and then of course, you are listed there along with everyone else. Don't see any value in paying to be there. Probably better spending that money on google or bing adwords for your VRs specifically!

1) I would imagine that it would be pointing to your website rather than being treated like AirBnB or HomeAway. (guessing?) So if you have a website, it shouldn't matter.

2) Why use them? They charge monthly at different levels. If you want a direct-booking type listing site, why not use the free Houfy.com?

Has anyone used Tripz.com? Any issues syncing calendars?? Thanks!

Upon examining a sample Expedia listing (which owns HA/BRBO), I notice these Amenities categories. I tried to copy them here and separate them for clarity.

The Question: Does the Amenities selections map from Ownerrez into Expedia cleanly? There seems to be a somewhat different structure, and a complaint about Expedia is that it is difficult to control/change how they display your listing (even being incorrect)...

Property amenities

Ski:
Close to skiing

Internet:
Internet access

Parking and Transportation:
Onsite parking

Kitchen:
Refrigerator
Stovetop
Microwave
Dishwasher
Toaster
Coffee/tea maker
Cookware/dishes/utensils

Bedrooms:
5 bedrooms
Linens provided

Bathrooms:
2 bathrooms
Hair dryer
Towels provided

Living Spaces:
Living room
Dining room

Entertainment:
Flat-screen TV with cable/satellite service
DVD player
Books

Outdoor Areas:
Garden

Laundry:
Washing machine and dryer

Comfort:
Heating

Pets:
No pets allowed

Suitability/Accessibility:
Smoke-free property

Services and Conveniences:
Iron/ironing board
Phone

Things to do:
Hiking/biking trails, ecotours, and mountain biking nearby

General:
Sleeps 10
Events/parties not allowed
Minimum guest age: 25 years old

Nearby things to do:
Activities
The recreational activities listed below are available either on site or nearby; fees may apply.

I follow a forum with discussions on vrbo/ha hosts who get occasional Expedia bookings. And that it often is not a clear or smooth experience. I get the feeling Expedia (Orbitz, etc) is not exactly seamlessly integrated like the others (vrbo, ha, etc)

How does OR work with Expedia and those other sites? Any setup/tracking advice?

Hi Paul & Chris,
I'm glad this was resolved. Thank you for keeping on top of it.
You guys are working on an API connection with AirBnB, is that correct? How is that looking?
If this occurs in the future the only option will be the channel bridge, which requires the property management module with an additional fee, is that correct?

Thanks again.

There isn't a way to do that currently, but it's something we've kicked around internally. It's difficult to create a scheduled time for that. We'd have to say trigger off of "middle of the stay" and a certain day of week. Other users have use cases for this too, so it's on the radar.

Yes I need this really bad. Anyone figure anything out?

It appears that - at least for the moment - the guest info is showing again in the Airbnb calendar feeds. Maybe they were testing the waters to see what the backlash would be? 😉