. ACTION value LOOKUP & UPDATE
..LOOKUPs can be 'filtered' - the most widely used filter is the NAME field. Entering one or two letters causes ONLY names BEGINNING with the letter(s)
entered to appear be found (multiple records cause a pull-down selection list to appear). Entering more than 2 characters in the name field cause all names containing
those letters anywhere in the field to be found. All filter fields are indicated on screen with • symbol. These fields can be used in any combinaion.
When a specific reservation is known, just enter RES#, or enter REC-RES in REC# field or just -RES in REC# field to directly lookup a reservation
..UPDATEs insert new records or just change the values of existing records based on absence or presence of REC# & /or RES#
[Warning - no edits prevent the creation of duplicace records (by blanking REC#/RES# fields). Only fill in after a CLEAR to guarantee LOOKUP .
Tell the webmaster if you need to have record(s) physically deleted from database.
AFTER updating the database, a reLOOKUP is automatically performed to allow you to visually verify all went well.
Pay special attention to aqua colored messages as they may indicate an error that stopped the update from happening.
Mesages help you confirm actions happened as intended. An Update Log (report) is available via Action List.
. PersonType allows manager to identify 'regular' clients until we build sufficient history to do otherwise.
..Note PersonType OWNER and OWNER'S GUEST will NOT permit deposit or payment input, nor will they produce an INVOICE...call GUEST if will pay.
..PersonType NEVERMORE will block any further rentals to someone [death or a reminder not to rent to some problem tenant again].
..PersonType value REGULAR is automatically assigned (when 2 or more reservations).
. REServation file database fields begin with the screen field EXTRA GUEST and are associated (linked) to the PERSON file fields precedeing.
..EXTRA GUESTS field is left blank unless over 2 or 6 guests over age of 5 are to occupy the unit...we charge $8/day per EXTRA
..COMMENT can be entered on the PERSON level and will display on all RESERATIONs not having their own COMMENT entered.
..ClrRES button clears all REServation fields on the form, but leaved the person (REC) fields unchanged.
.Press $ anytime UNIT#,Arrival & Departure Date are filled-in to view derived RATE, DEPOSIT, & DUE information.
(note the code like v10, w11 etc tells you rate schedule used (v of value, w for winter, s for summer and year).
The routine only handles rentals that span 2 months, but can cross seasons and be of any duration up to 60 days.
Create additional reservations when stay is longer than 2 months. When anything is pro-rated, the full rate used is
shown and /7 /14. /28, /30, or /31 to indicate the divisor used during proration. All formula detail is not shown,
just the result after a => symbol. When 2 seasons, or 2 months are involved, two lines => are shown before
showing gross, tax, total & net. If you enter a deposit, it is used, otherwise it calculates 25% of gross.
Everything is rounded to the penny.
Although the $ output displays in the text area, it is not saved anywhere unless you do an UPDATE while it is displayed.
Any text already in the box before you press $ is preserved below the $'s output.
All the routine needs to work is Unit#, Arrival & Departure dates (deposit & payment amounts are optional), so
it is really independent of reservation entry if you choose to use it that way for rate lookups & manual invoice quotes.
. All ERROR messages, messages to CONFIRM actions taken, or prompts for actions NEEDED will display at the bottom of screen:
. EDIT RULES resulting in ERROR &/or PROMPT message(s) INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING:
..ACTION is always required. STATUS is required to generate EMAIL but not for REPORTS and when used is subject to following:
..UPDATE is BLOCKED if it would result in a CONFLICT with a previously entered record for same UNIT (DATEs overlap on the CALENDAR)
HOLD for a regular guest but not owner or owner's guest, requires a DEPOSIT and also books on calendar so is checked for
conflicts."
..UPDATE normally creates PERSON, RESERVATION & DEPOSIT file records, but you may check NO RESERVATION checkbox to create
a PERSON record not ever to have a RESERVATION. For such records, assign the freeform GPF (Generalized Person Filter) to
classify/retrieve such PERSON records by trade, unit#, etc.]
..STATUS values DEPOSIT PAID requires Arrival/Departure Dates & Deposit fields.
..STATUS values FULLY PAID & PARTIALLY PAID requires Arrival/Departure Dates & Payment fields.
..STATUS value HOLD - Depending of GuestType, can give rise to two scenarios:
(1) Guesttype OWNER or OWNERSGUEST will display status OWNER HOLD and and will reset any STATUS value entered to HOLD
PromiseExpiration, DEPOSIT & PAYMENT information need NOT be entered for status HOLD.
(2) Otherwise, Hold Expiration Date may be entered in the DEPOSIT DATE field, overlay when DEPOSIT is received.
..ACTION value CONFIRMATION EMAIL requires STATUS value DEPOSIT PAID or FULL PAYMENT.
..ACTION value HOLD EMAIL requires STATUS value HOLD [verbage changes from TENATIVE HOLD, to OWNER HOLD based on GuestType].
..ACTION value CANCELLATION EMAIL requires STATUS value CANCELLED
..ACTION value Generate INVOICE requires STATUS value DEPOSIT PAID or INVOICE FULLY PAID.
. RENTAL LOG reservation report selects ALL reservations, filtered by Status, Unit#, HOLDs, Arrival & Departure Date screen described above.
. GUEST LIST and HOUSEKEEPER reports select 'active' (STATUS) reservations, filters based on Arrive/Depart screen values.
. CONTACT LIST REPORT only reports on (filtered) People records.
. HOUSEKEEPER PLANNING report filters based on Arrive/Depart screen values & action can be accessed by Housekeeps using their own userId
and password [as well as manager and webmaster].
. DEPOSIT RECONCILIATION CHECKLIST- provides a convenient mechanism to verify all open deposits.
. MONTHLY SALES JOURNAL - used by Business Manager to triangulate with Excel sheet prepared from Paper Invoices and Deposit Slips.
. ALL-IN-ONE REPORT - shows exceptions from DEPOSITS LOG, CALENDAR RECONCILIATION, DEPOSITS, DEPARTURES LOG
. RENTAL STATS - occupancy & dvance booking statistics,w/slice & dice filtering, by duration, 3clints, rental days, net rental dollars.
Little Used (no longer needed) Reports include:
. DEPOSITS LOG - tracks all deposits held by us and includes ERROR reports 10,11, & 12 that should always be empty.
. PAYMENT RECONCILIATION CHECKLIST - A log of all Payments in descending date sequence - used to "find" reservation associated with a "lost" payment.
. DEPARTURES LOG - for Business Manager Dollar Receipt reconciliation - one month at a time - Arvl Mo & Yr contols Pymt Mo selected
. CALENDAR RECONCILIATION - reports on only one month at a time - filter by unit is optional - various sort sequences can be seletcted for most reports.
See Also:
Beachcomber Office Procedures Manual
Ideas To Consider for the Future
. Begin using INVOICE report for INVOICE PREPARATION and transmittal to Business Manager.
. Potential in the future to use Contact List being created as a byproduct of reservation entry FOR email or std.mail advertising.
. Begin using EMAIL features - perhaps one at a time - RESERVATION CONFIRMATION, TENATIVE HOLD, CANCELLATION
Background
4/5/07 conversation with Dick Eberhart who wanted to react to a guest's suggestion that a timely Reservation Confirmation
(email) be provided to confirm payment, dates reserved, terms including Red Tide and Hurricane cancellation policies, etc etc.
I responded that it would give us needed information about who our regulars were and rental patterns as well. I wanted to
defer work toward that end until researched possible purchase of a quickbooks add-on (pms) that possibly includes such
functionality, but promised to 'carry the ball' if we did not purchase such functionality.