Seller Tutorial

ResortCompete Seller Tutorial

1. Log in.

You can log into your ResortCompete Seller account by clicking on the Seller Login link toward at the bottom right of the ResortCompete home page. (Alternatively, you can bookmark the URL: http://www.resortcompete.com/seller and select it from your browser “favorites” menu whenever you wish to log in.). Just enter the User Name provided by ResortCompete along with your Password and click on Login.

If you forget your password, click on “Forgot your username or password?” and follow the instructions to have your login information sent to the e-mail address in your account.

Logging in takes you to the main Seller account screen, known as the Seller Dashboard.

2. Manage Account.

Once you’ve logged into your account, click on the Manage Account link toward the top right corner of the Seller Dashboard. There are two sections to Manage Account: Your Info., where you can add information about you as a travel representative and Company Info., where you can add information about the company you work for.

Your Info.

This information relates to the person who will be submitting quotes and interacting with customers.

First, change the Password. Make sure you write the password down and put it in a safe place. (If you do forget your password, you can automatically request it via e-mail from the login screen).

Enter the Seller Name (first and last).

We recommend that you enter both an E-mail address and a Phone number, but only one contact method is required.

Enter any Default Comments and/or Default Extra Benefits You’re Offering (optional). Whatever you enter into these fields will show up in the Extra Benefits and Seller Comments sections of each quote request you access. You can then edit the offers and comments to tailor them to the individual quote you are offering. You may wish to use the system for a while first before entering the defaults. Note that you can always come back and change what you have entered.

Enter a short Seller Description. This should be a brief profile to let travelers know who you are. You may wish to include specific areas of expertise or how many years you have in the travel business.

When you are finished entering this information, click on Update Account. Note that you may revisit this section to change this information any time you like.

Company Info.

Click on the tab at the top of the screen labeled Company Info. If you see that this information has already been filled in, you can skip this step. (Company information only needs to be done once per Seller Company, even if you have multiple Seller Representative accounts).

If the information has not already been completed, enter your Company’s physical address.

Next to Seller Notification E-mail, fill in the e-mail address at which your Company would like to receive official ResortCompete announcements including changes to ResortCompete Terms & Conditions for Seller Membership and other contract-related issues. One address is allowed per Company. Please note that it is your Company’s responsibility to make sure that this address is kept current and does not block e-mails from ResortCompete.com or CompeteVentures.com.

Enter a short Company Description to give travelers some background on your company. Information related to expertise and stability--eg., years in business, company size, volume, awards, etc.--can be useful in raising a consumer’s comfort level. As you may be dealing with consumers who have never heard of your company, taking the time to provide good, detailed information in this area is a very important step in convincing consumers to trust you with their vacations.

If you have made changes on this screen, click on Update Account to apply these changes. Again, note that you can always come back and change this information at any time.

3. Manage Specials.

ResortCompete allows you to highlight specific resort or resort and airfare deals by entering specials into the system. Some specials are displayed directly on the home page, and others will be promoted on subsidiary pages and via e-mailings. When a user requests a quote on a special posted via your company’s account, only seller representatives with your company will have the opportunity to respond.

Specials may be posted at no charge, though standard revenue shares apply on any booking that result.

To begin, click on Manage Specials from the Seller Dashboard.

In the upper right-hand corner of the window, click on Add Special. This will open a screen titled Add New Special.

Click on Search Resort Use the search criteria on the left of the Resort Search system to find the resort you wish to post a special for. Click on the resort to highlight in the box at the top right of the screen, then click on Select Resort in the box at the bottom right of the screen to select the resort. This will return you to the Add New Special screen where you will see your resort selection at the top.

Enter a Title for your special. This is the headline for the special. It should include a price for the resort stay, but should not include words in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, with StRANge cAPitaliZAtiOns or any odd punctuation (eg., multiple !!!!!, etc.).

Enter a Description for your special. Do not put phone numbers, names, or any contact information in Descriptions.

Select the Category in which the special is to be displayed. Note that specials may be automatically displayed in multiple categories related to regions, dates, resort companies, etc. if the particular special is appropriate to those categories.

Enter a Brochure cost (optional) and a Rates From cost. These will be displayed to illustrate the traveler's savings should they book this special. Be sure to include all charges and taxes.

Select Run Dates for this special. This will tell the system when the specials is to be displayed on ResortCompete.

Select Start and End dates when the consumer needs to be at the resort to take advantage of the rates advertised in this special. Note that this has nothing to do with when the special is displayed, rather these indicate the range when the rates promoted are available.

Select a Room Type and enter an Airport if the special is limited to a particular type of room and/or a particular airport.

If you would like to receive an e-mail when a user requests a quote on this special, please select the e-mail address you want that notification sent to from the E-mail notification menu.

When you have completed the Add Special form, click on Save Changes to publish your special.

To delete a special, click on Manage Specials to see the Specials List. Click on the special you wish to delete, then click on Delete Special at the bottom.

Requests for quotes on your Company’s specials are displayed directly on your Seller Dashboard below the Manage Specials button. Be sure to check your Specials Requests frequently, and to respond to any new requests within 24 hours. Your specials will be deleted from the site if requests are not answered in a timely fashion.

4. Responding to Quote Requests.

Select Quote Requests from the Seller Dashboard. You will see a listing of requests from consumers. Click on the column title (i.e. User, Entered, Travel, etc.) to sort by these criteria.

Clicking on a particular quote request brings up the request details including information about the user and the resort stay requested. Enter one or more prices into the boxes at the left. Note that the price should include the cost for all travelers requested for the resort stay including any taxes or other fees.

Next, enter or edit any comments, suggestions, or extra benefits you are offering. If you wish to quote insurance, feel free to enter this information into the Seller Comments box. There is no need to quote airfare unless the user requests it in the comments. You may also suggest alternative choices, or enter anything else you think may encourage the consumer to contact you.

When you are satisfied with your entries, click on Submit Quote. The system will then ask you to verify the submission. If you are satisfied your quote is correct, click on Submit Quote again

When you submit a quote, an e-mail will automatically be sent to the to the customer letting them know they have a new quote and giving them a link back to their account so they can view your response.

5. Filters.

You can use the "Filters" link in the right-hand corner of the "Quote Requests" box to limit which requests are displayed.

Filter "Shortcut" menus. You can use these menus to select pre-set limitations on which requests are displayed. For example, if you wish to only see requests submitted in the last three days, you can select "Last 3 days" from the Shortcut next to "Request date." If you only want to see quotes from last three days for Superclubs, select "Superclubs" from the menu next to "Resort Chain." Once you click on "Apply Filter", the changes will be applied.

For more advanced uses of filters, please see the "Search Help" link on the "Filter" screen.

6. Accessing your quotes.

When a consumer contacts you after receiving a quote, they will identify themselves as coming from ResortCompete and give you their e-mail address, username and/or the quote request number.

There are several ways to find a specific quote request. The easiest way is to use the Find User Requests option at the top left side of the Seller Dashboard screen. Simply enter the type of information you wish to search by: request ID number, username, or user e-mail address, and click on Search. The results will be displayed in a new window on your screen.

Alternatively, you can click on View My Quotes or View All Quotes on the right side of the Seller Dashboard. The View My Quotes displays only quotes entered via the particular Seller Representative account you are logged into. The View All Quotes option shows all quotes entered via all sub-accounts for your Company as a whole.

Note that you may also "re-quote" any open quote request (eg. if prices were to go down) any time you would like. Note that you must change the price or the offer if you wish to re-quote--do not just enter "reminders" to the user.

7. Bookings.

It is crucial to report each booking into the system for two main reasons.

First of all, it will keep you from losing business. When you report a booking, it automatically turns off the user's quote request. This stops the customer from getting a lower quotes and canceling your sale.

Secondly, there are financial penalties if you fail to record a booking by the time travel is completed. If you neglect to record a booking, your Company will be fined an amount far in excess of the revenue share for that booking.

Note that you are also required to report any booking resulting from a ResortCompete lead for 12 months following the date of the quote request - even if the user books a different resort than originally quoted, lengthens his or her stay, adds additional rooms or books multiple stays.

Reporting new bookings. You have two options for reporting a booking. The first (and best) is to click on the user's quote request. Click on the link at the top that says Report a New Booking. Alternatively, you can click on the Report a New Booking link on the View Bookings menu.

To report a new booking, simply enter the information requested in the booking form.

If you have booked multiple rooms from a single quote request, you may enter each room as a separate booking, or enter multiple rooms under the same booking—whichever is most convenient for your company.

Deleting a booking. To delete a booking, click on the View Bookings button on the Seller Dashboard and use the column sorts to find the booking you wish to delete. Click on the booking to select it, then click on Delete Booking. A confirm screen will appear. Once you confirm that you wish to delete the booking, it will be deleted from the system.

Modifying a booking. To change a booking, click on the View Bookings button on the Seller Dashboard and use the column sorts to find the booking you wish to modify. Click on the booking to select it; enter your changes; then click on the Save Changes button at the bottom of the booking

User-reported bookings. This feature is under development and will be available soon.

8. Reports.

Reports related to bookings by month and due date, number of quotes submitted, payment history and other information are under development and will be available soon.

Live Chat/Instant Rapport

InstantRapport is an instant messaging system that enables you to hold real time online conversations with ResortCompete customers when they choose to initiate a conversation:

1. Click on “Launch Live Chat”. (Note: You will need to have allow pop-ups from InstantRapport for this feature to work Links to instructions will appear if you have pop-ups blocked.) As soon as launch this feature and for as long as you the chat window open or minimized, all of your quotes will have a “click to talk to this seller” icon appear on them. Once you close the InstantRapport the window, the icon will stop appearing on customer’s screens.

2. When a customer clicks on the chat icon in one of your quotes, you will hear a sound like a ringing telephone. Click on “Accept” to chat with the customer. If you don’t reply within 11 seconds, other sellers at your company will be alerted if they have a Live Chat window open. If no one responds within a certain timeframe, the icon will stop showing on customer screens.

3. A conversation window will open. The customer’s messages will appear in the upper left. Type responses in lower left corner and hit the Enter key or click on “send” to send your messages to the customer. Once sent, your responses will appear on the upper left as well. (Note: If you hold multiple conversations at once, each one will appear in a separate window.)

4. Short Cuts. In the right-hand corner of the window, you will see some “short cuts” to save you typing on responses used frequently. Just click on a short cut to make the full text of the answer appear where you type your messages. You can edit this text before sending it to the customer.

5. Customer information. Information about the customer’s quote request appears in the lower-right corner of the conversation window.

6. Inviting others/transferring conversations. The “invite” button allows you to invite other people in your company into the conversation provided they are online at the time. Just click on “Invite” then select the person you wish to invite from the list. Note that only people online at the time will appear on the list. You can also transfer the conversation (similar to transferring a phone call), by inviting a colleague in and then clicking on “Done” once the invitee has joined.

7. Finishing a conversation. When you are finished with a conservation, click on “done.” You will be asked to rate the value of the conversation.

8. Statuses and what they mean:

Open: “I am available to take any incoming conversations.” (This is the default status and we recommend you use it most of the time).
Busy: “I am working on something else, but I am available to take incoming conversations if nobody else is open.” This usually means you are currently in a conversation. (The system will set you to Busy automatically once you accept a conversation, and set you back to Open automatically after all conversations are done.)
Restricted: “I am only available for conversations from visitors who are specifically responding to my quotes. If I am the last resort, route visitors to me.”
Closing: “I have enough conversations or I am closing down soon. Don’t give me any more conversations except as a last resort.” (This is also what the system automatically sets you to if you don’t click “Accept” in time in response to a request for a new conversation.)

9. Other features. ResortCompete uses a limited version of InstantRapport. To learn about more features that can enhance your communications inside ResortCompete and with all of your customers, please visit: http://www.leepfrog.com/instantrapport/