Creating a new channel (article)

In this article, we will explain how to create a new channel following a very easy step by step guide. Let's get started...

Steps to create a new channel

Step 1: General settings

1. Go to Homepage -> Configuration -> Channel Manager

2. Scroll down to the bottom of the page, enter the name of your new channel and click on “Create New Channel” 

3. Then, make sure to check that you are working in the proper channel using the drop-down box on the right-hand side.

4. Now you have verified you're in the right channel, click on Channel Settings.

• Channel name: set equal to the name of the new URL “destination.com” so all staff understand  what channel they are modifying.
• Web Address: usually your website domain.
• Technical contact name/email/phone: local office contact info
• Click Save

Step 2: Language & words

1. Channel Manager -> Language & words

2. Set the Data Entry Format and calendar according to your country or preferences.

3. Select your language, it will adjust standard words such as days of the weeks, name of months, etc. Here you can also change the default wording for "Start date", "End date", "Date" or "Local payment". This information will appear in your bookings.

4. This is optional, but you can override some other wordings. If you don't override them, they will be set by the language choice (point number 3).

5. Click on "save changes" at the bottom of the page.

Step 3: Email templates

You can create different email templates for your communication with your customers and/or suppliers. There are dozens of templates, but it's not necessary to create all of them, although at least you should create the following ones: New Booking, Confirmed Booking #1, Failed payment (there are customer facing) and Confirmed Booking #2, Cancelled Booking #2 (there are internal notifications that notify you of a booking via API).

It's important not to edit or change the codes provided for the "Subject" or "Email Body" sections. These codes must be used as is.

Here you can find an easy step by step guide about how to set up every type of template, however, you can find more useful tokens to build the email body through this link:

http://www.tourcms.com/support/overview/TourCMS_documentation.pdf

New Booking

1. Edit "New Booking" email:
2. Check "Enable"
3. To: Select "Default"
4. From email address: This will be something along the lines of <location>@yourwebsite.comç
5. From name: The name that appears on the email
6. Subject: Message that appears on the subject. i.e. "New booking" 
7.   Email Body: default is %dashboard_email_1%. Example:

   • Dear %primary_contact_name%,
     
     Thank you for choosing to book with INSERT COMPANY NAME.
     I am pleased to confirm receipt of your booking as follows:
     
     YOUR BOOKING DETAILS
     Booking Reference Number: %b_id%
     Booking Status: %booking_status%
     Group: %customers_total_line_display%
     
     YOUR TOUR DETAILS
     %itinerary_table_cust%
     
     YOUR DETAILS
     Name: %primary_contact_name%
     Address:
     %primary_contact_full_address%
     Email: %primary_contact_email%
     Telephone Number: %primary_contact_telephone%
     
     Other Group Members: %other_tour_members_list%

8. Different from name/email address if a travel agent is booking: Default
9. Copy in staff to this email (BCC): leave unchecked
10. Copy this email to a fixed email address (BCC): Usually the same as from email address. Can list more than one email.
11. Click "Save" at the bottom of the page.

Confirmed Booking #1

1. Edit "Confirmed Booking #1" email:
2. Check "Enable"
3. To: Select "Default"
4. From email address: This will be something along the lines of <location>@yourwebsite.comç
5. From name: The name that appears on the email
6. Subject: Message that appears on the subject. i.e. "Your order confirmation" 
7. Email Body: default is %dashboard_email_1%.
8. Different from name/email address if a travel agent is booking: Default
9. Copy in staff to this email (BCC): leave unchecked
10. Copy this email to a fixed email address (BCC): Usually the same as from email address. You can list more than one email.
11. Click "Save" at the bottom of the page.

Payment failed

1.  Edit "Failed payment" email:
2. Check "Enable"
3. To: Select "Default"
4. From email address: This will be something along the lines of <location>@yourwebsite.com
5. From name: The name that appears on the email
6. Subject: usually "Order Failure Notification"
7. Email Body: default is %dashboard_email_2%. 
8. Different from name/email address if a travel agent is booking: Default
9. Copy in staff to this email (BCC): leave unchecked
10. Copy this email to a fixed email address (BCC): if you have a staff member who wants to follow up with customers whose payments don’t go through. If so, put their email here. The staff member should check to verify the customer wasn’t able to successfully complete their booking on a later attempt. 
11. Click "Save" at the bottom of the page

Confirmed Booking #2

1. Edit "Confirmed Booking #2
2. Check "Enable"
3. To: Select "Fixed email address" usually <location>@yourwebsite.com
4. From email address: bookings@yourwebsite.com
5. From name: <your company> Bookings
6. Subject: NEW %agent_name% Booking, %start_date_display%, %booking_name%, %primary_contact_name% (%b_id%)7. 
7. Email Body: %dashboard_email_3%
8. Click "Save" at the bottom of the page

Cancelled Booking #2

1. Edit "Confirmed Booking #2
2. Check "Enable"
3. To: Select "Fixed email address" usually <location>@yourwebsite.com
4. From email address: bookings@yourwebsite.com
5. From name: <your company> Bookings
6. Subject: CANCELLED %agent_name% Booking, TourCMS Booking ID - %b_id%
7. Email Body: %dashboard_email_4%
8. Click "Save" at the bottom of the page

Cancelled Booking #2

1. Edit "Confirmed Booking #2
2. Check "Enable"
3. To: Select "Fixed email address" usually <location>@yourwebsite.com
4. From email address: bookings@yourwebsite.com
5. From name: <your company> Bookings
6. Subject: CANCELLED %agent_name% Booking, TourCMS Booking ID - %b_id%
7. Email Body: %dashboard_email_4%
8. Click "Save" at the bottom of the page.

Step 4: Sales prices, deposits & booking fees

1. Sales Price

Here you can select your currency and sales prices information for your channel.

Sale currency:

If your channel operates in a different currency from your own account does, then you should create the exchange rates in advance, for that you just need to click on the link "Configure exchange rates".

Sales tax scheme (Sales)

Here you can select your sales tax scheme for your channel. For that, you need to configure the tax settings in advance just clicking on the link "Configure general tax settings".

Source prices from

You have to decide if your prices come from customer prices (default option) or from supplier costs, it's not possible to set up both options at the same time. For both choices, you can add a percentage or a scheme of markup over the price.

2. Rounding & Format

Money format:

Here you can select the format according to your country and if you want to show decimals (default option) or hide decimals if .00

Deposit:

If you don't have configured a specific deposit for a specific tour, then these rules will be used. Here you can configure the amount or percentage of deposit for sales agents selling through this channel.

There are 5 options to configure the deposit, so you should select one of them:

1 - If you select a fixed amount of deposit per person, then you have to introduce the corresponding amount in the box. You don't need to change anything in the rest of the fields. Example:

2 - If you select a fixed amount per booking, then you have to introduce the corresponding amount in the box. You don't need to change anything in the rest of the fields. Example:

3 - Otherwise, if you select the Percentage of sale value, then you have to introduce the corresponding amount in the box. You don't need to change anything in the rest of the fields. A 100% deposit means that the customer has to pay the whole price at the moment of booking, and a 0% deposit means that the customer doesn't pay anything at the moment of booking and can pay later the rest of the money. Example:

Booking fee:

It's also possible to add a booking fee to your sale price and/or cost price (per booking, per person, or per percentage of sales value). For that, you have to tick the box to enable the booking fee and fill in the corresponding fields. In this example, we are adding 1€ per booking with no commission for the agent, no sales tax type, and no supplier. 

Step 5: Payments & Credit cards         

1. Payment gateway: select appropriate gateway for both e-commerce and back office (if the gateway isn’t listed, click the button below to learn how to set up a payment gateway)

2. How much should the customer pay?:

1. If using TrustMyTravel: "Off"
2. If using Payment Gateway: "only ever show full balance value". 

     3. Show "pay later" option:

    4. Skip ahead to "Provisional" and set ticked to enable

    5. Confirmed: tick to enable

    6. Click "save" at the bottom of the page.

Step 6: Product filters

This is a useful tool to restrict your channel to show only certain tours. You can achieve this if you create the product filter and then make the restriction here in your channel settings. For that, you just need to tick the box "Restrict product on web sale by product", select the product filter from the left side and move it to the right side. Finally, please don't forget to click on "Save changes".

Step 7: Marketplace Setup

1. Homepage > Partners >Data Quality

2. Check “Turn on TourCMS marketplace for this channel.”

3. Company Brand Name: Your company & reference to channel, ie location.

4. Channel name: Same as previously entered

5. Homepage web address: Same as prevously entered

6. Contact us link: Your 'Contact us' URL

7. Privacy policy link: Your 'Privacy policy' URL

8. Booking engine style: Booking

9. Language: English US

10. Sales currenvy: Set to local currency

11. Logo: Upload your logo, 100x100 size

12. Branding colour: Select your company branding colour or enter the HEX colour code

13. Disclose your average statistics to agents: No

14. Company description: Short description of your company

15. Please fill out the rest of the information regarding your company details

16. Fill out the "contacting you" section

17. Click save