Connecting to Agoda in new design

Minimum requirements to connect

In order to connect the Property Manager’s (PM’s) property to Agoda, the following requirements must be met:

• Property name must start with an English letter;

• Address and Geo-coordinates are provided;

  The property cannot be located on certain territories

  Afghanistan

  Algeria

  Angola

  Anguilla

  Antigua & Barbuda

  Aruba

  Bahamas

  Bangladesh

  Barbados

  Belize

  Benin

  Bermuda

  Bhutan

  Bolivia

  Bolivia

  Bonaire

  Botswana

  Bouvet Island

  Brazil

  British Indian Ocean Territory

  British Virgin Islands

  Burkina Faso

  Burundi

  Cameroon

  Canada

  Cape Verde

  Cayman Islands

  Central African Republic

  Chad

  Chile

  Christmas Island

  Cocos

  Cook Islands

  Costa Rica

  Cote d'Ivoire

  Cuba

  Curacao

  Democratic Republic of the Congo

  Djibouti

  Dominica

  Ecuador

  El Salvador

  Equitorial Guinea

  Eritrea

  Estonia

  Ethiopia

  Falkland Islands

  Faroe Islands

  Federated States of Micronesia

  French Guiana

  French Southern Territories

  Gabon

  Gambia

  Ghana

  Grenada

  Guadeloupe

  Guinea

  Guinea-Bissau

  Guyana

  Haiti

  Holy See

  Honduras

  Iran

  Iraq

  Jamaica

  Kiribati

  Lesotho

  Liberia

  Libya

  Macedonia

  Madagascar

  Malawi

  Mali

  Marshall Islands

  Martinique

  Mauritania

  Mayotte

  Mexico

  Moldova

  Montserrat

  Morocco

  Mozambique

  Namibia

  Nauru

  Netherlands Antilles

  New Caledonia

  Nicaragua

  Niger

  Niue

  Norfolk Island

  North Korea

  Oman

  Palau

  Panama

  Papua New Guinea

  Paraguay

  Pitcairn

  Republic of the Congo

  Reunion

  Rwanda

  Saint-Barthelemy

  Saint-Barthelemy

  Saint Helena

  Saint Lucia

  Saint Martin

  Saint Pierre and Miquelon

  Sao Tome and Principe

  Senegal

  Sierra Leone

  Singapore

  Sint Eustatius

  Sint Maarten

  Solomon Islands

  Somalia

  South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

  St Barthelemy

  St. Kitts & Nevis

  St. Vincent & the Grenadines

  Sudan

  Suriname

  Swaziland

  Syria

  Tajikistan

  Tanzania

  Togo

  Tokelau

  Tonga

  Trinidad and Tobago

  Tunisia

  Turkmenistan

  Turks & Caicos Islands

  Tuvalu

  U.S. Virgin Islands

  Vanuatu

  Venezuela

  Wallis & Futuna Islands

  Yemen

  Zambia

  Zimbabwe

• Licence number is provided;

• Description cannot contain more than 5000 characters;

• Photos: at least 3 photos are uploaded;

• Availability: Your property must be available in the next 365 days;

Add new properties

Follow the below procedure if you already have some properties created in Rentals United and you want to connect them to Agoda.

1. In Rentals United platform, go to the Services tab.

   

2. Select the proper list to search for Agoda.

   

   • Find Services lists the channels you are not yet connected to,

   • My Services lists the channels which you have already established connection with and channels that are in the process of being connected.

3. Type the Agoda name in the search box or scroll down through the list of available channels.

4. Unfold the Agoda section by clicking the Down arrow button.

5. Click the Property Settings button.

   

6. Connect the property.

   Depending on whether you already have some properties connected to the Agoda or not, you are presented with two different options.

   • Click if it is the first property to be connected.

   • Click if you already have some properties connected.

7. A dialogue window appears with the question if the property is already published in Agoda.

   • If the property is listed in Agoda, terminate the process and map your properties to the Agoda listings.

   • If the property is not listed in Agoda, click No.

8. Provide the required information and click Next.

   Note: Different channels require different information to successfully identify your account:

   • For Agoda it is Chain ID.

   • For Despegar it is the Provider ID.

   If you cannot find this information in your agreement with the channel, please contact the channel directly.

9. Choose the properties to connect to the channel. You can read about the different ways of filtering and selecting properties here..

   

10. Click Next. You will see here the summary of all selected properties. Review the list and check if all properties that you wish to connect are included.

    

Click Next to proceed.

11. The content quality is analysed. The process should take up to a few minutes.

12. The summary of properties’ content is displayed.

    

    If some properties are not ready to publish, improve the content.

    1. Check the content quality by unfolding the section with warning.

       

       Verify if any data is missing or incorrect. It is possible to display the errors by unfolding the section. For more detailed summary of errors, download the XLSX report by clicking the Download Quality Check button.

    2. Click the Improve button. The Edit property page is opened in a new tab.

    3. Correct the content indicated in the report in the Edit property page.

    4. Go back to the Property List and click the Re-check button. If no further errors are displayed, the property is ready to publish.

       

13. If the properties are ready to publish, adjust the mark-up for each of your properties.

    

14. Click the Publish properties button.

15. The published properties enter the Pending status.

    Tip: Each property created this way in Agoda will become a hotel with only one room type. If you want to have multiple properties under the same hotel, you can use the Change mapping option and add additional properties to this connection. Note that Despegar does not support multiple room types under the same hotel.

Setting Rentals United

In order to fully utilize the capabilities of Rentals United and make the linking of the two systems possible, you need to set Rentals United as the connectivity provider in Agoda. For example, this is required in order to enable mapping properties to the listings in the channel. Please, perform the following.

In case of Agoda, please send an email to agodahomes_cm@agoda.global with your Rentals United username, Agoda log-in email and sample Agoda property ID and inform them that you intend to work with Rentals United. The Agoda team will set up the connection for you.

Mapping properties to existing listings

If you already have properties in Agoda and only want Rentals United to manage prices and availability, you may map properties between the two systems. Make sure that you have already set Rentals United as the Connectivity Provider, following the steps at Setting Rentals United.

1. In Rentals United platform, go to the Services tab.

   

2. Select the proper list to search for Agoda.

   

   • Find Services lists the channels you are not yet connected to,

   • My Services lists the channels which you have already established connection with and channels that are in the process of being connected.

3. Type the Agoda name in the search box or scroll down through the list of available channels.

4. Unfold the Agoda section by clicking the Down arrow button.

5. Click the Property Settings button.

   

6. Connect the property.

   Depending on whether you already have some properties connected to the Agoda or not, you are presented with two different options.

   • Click if it is the first property to be connected.

   • Click if you already have some properties connected.

7. A dialogue window appears with the question if the property is already published in Agoda. Click Yes.

8. Provide the required information (Hotel ID) and click Next. Hotel ID can be found in the Agoda dashboard. If you are unable to find it, contact the Agoda Support Team.

9. The hotel data is retrieved. Click the Next button.

   

2. Click the Connect this room button.

   

3. Select the properties you want to map to this room type. One or more properties may be mapped to one Agoda listing.

   

   Tip: Multiple properties should be selected only if they share the same characteristics (amenities, photos, pricing etc.). If you do so, you will create a multi-unit group in Agoda. You can learn more on multi-unit groups here.

4. Click Next.

5. The summary is displayed. You can set the rate mark-up now.

   

6. Click the Connect property button.

   The connection is established. Rentals United sends the prices and availability to the channel and the channel passes correctly all the reservations.

   You can always add more properties under a particular room type. To do this, click the three-dot menu and select the Change mapping option.

Editing rates

The information in this chapter is useful when you already have properties connected or mapped, but you want to introduce changes to rates that will affect only Agoda.

Quick editing data for single rates

With Advanced Settings, you can override the property data you have in the Edit property page. Before the property data is sent to Agoda, it is modified with additional configuration you can apply now. Note that whatever you set right now will apply only to this channel.

1. Click the Manage rates button.

   

2. The Management page opens. At this point you can edit the mark-up value. Mark-up indicates the value that the prices in Rentals United should be adjusted by before sending to the channel.

   

3. Click the Advanced button to open Advanced settings.

   

   • Number of people in price - it refers to the Standard number of guests the price is calculated for. It is possible to overwrite the value set for this property in Standard number of guests in Step 5: Price and availability.

   • Minimal price per night - you can set up a minimum price for this property in Agoda; then, in case this property's prices in Step 5: Price and availability are set below this level, they will be increased.

   • Additional amount per day - you can specify an additional amount that will be charged each day of the reservation. It may cover for additional services available at this rate

     Example: If you offer a breakfast service to your guests, you can create a rate for this purpose and cover it in the additional amount per day.

   • Overwrite minimum stay - it is possible to overwrite the property's minimum stay in this particular rate.

     Example: Minimum stay from Monday to Friday is 2 nights, from Saturday to Sunday is 4 nights.

     • If you set the overwrite minimum stay value to 1 or 2, nothing will happen.

     • If you set the overwrite minimum stay value to 3, only the Monday to Friday season will be overwritten.

     • If you set the overwrite minimum stay value to 5, the Monday to Sunday season will be overwritten.

4. Click the Save changes button.

   Note: Changes introduced here will not affect any other channel than Agoda and will only apply to this rate.

Manual options for all rates in a group

With these settings, you can override the property data you have in the Edit property page.

1. Click the Manage rates button.

   

2. Scroll down to the Manual options section and click the Activate manual options button.

3. Adjust the available options.

   

   • You can verify the availability of a single rate, as well as the total availability of all rates in the Availability summary row.

   • You can verify and temporarily update total availability by typing the new value. If the field has been edited, it is highlighted in blue. To undo the manual settings, click the blue field, delete the value and click away. The field now contains the default value taken from Step 5: Price and availability.

     Example: You received a reservation from 26 May 2021 to 30 May 2021 for Property 15 from another channel. The availability is blocked. However, you already know that the reservation is cancelled, but the availability has not been updated yet. You may still want to rent the property at this time, hence you can temporarily update the availability and receive reservations for this time.
     Important: Bear in mind that once you change anything in manual options, the settings will be persisting until you manually undo them! For example, if you bump up the availability and a reservation comes in, the availability will not be automatically closed and overbookings are possible! You will have to reset the settings in manual options.

   • You can verify and temporarily update price and minimum stay by clicking the pencil icon next to the relevant rate and typing the new value. The field now contains the default value taken from Step 5: Price and availability. If the field has been edited, it is highlighted in blue. To undo the manual settings, click the blue field, delete the value and click away.

     

   • You can also update availability, price and minimum stay for one rate for multiple days.

     

     1. Click the Batch edit button.

     2. Select rate from the dropdown.

     3. Specify dates.

     4. Update availability, price and / or minimum stay.

     5. Click Save changes.

     Edited fields are highlighted in blue. It is not possible to undo manual settings in batch. To undo the manual settings, click the blue field, delete the value and click away. The field now contains the default value taken from Step 5: Price and availability.

Updating listings

If you make changes to your property's content, e.g. update descriptions or photos, you need to remember to update the listing, too. If you do not update the listing - your recent changes will not be visible on the sales channel and the listing will display outdated information.

Remember that price and availability (ARI) updates are handled automatically and there is no need to update the listing if you change e.g. prices. The details that require updating the listing are static data updates and these include descriptions, photos, property data, fees and taxes and more. For details, see here.

Deactivating rates

1. In Rentals United platform, go to the Services tab.

   

2. Select the proper list to search for Agoda.

   

   • Find Services lists the channels you are not yet connected to,

   • My Services lists the channels which you have already established connection with and channels that are in the process of being connected.

3. Type the Agoda name in the search box or scroll down through the list of available channels.

4. Unfold the Agoda section by clicking the Down arrow button.

5. Click the Property Settings button.

   

6. Search for the property you want to deactivate rates for by scrolling down or filtering the property out.

7. Click the Manage rates button.

   

8. A property management page is opened.

9. Click the Deactivate button.

   

   Note: Deactivating rates

   • If there are multiple rates in a group and you deactivate one - you stop sending availability and prices to Agoda, leaving the property open to new reservations on the Agoda channel. This means that new reservations can be made through Agoda, but the channel will not receive the updates in availability and pricing from Rentals United.

   • If there is only one rate in the group or you deactivate the last rate, you need to choose if you want to either stop sending availability and prices to Agoda, leaving the property open to new reservations on the Agoda channel, or to close the availability. If you close the availability, it means you will not receive reservations from Agoda any more.

   Availability can be always re-opened by clicking the Activate button next to the rate.

   

Once the rate has been deactivated, it will still be visible in the Property Settings. If you want to remove it from display, you should follow the below steps. Note that rates can be deleted only if there are no existing reservations that use this rate.

1. From the three-dot menu, select the Confirm removal option.

2. The rate is removed. No additional confirmation is required.

Removing hotels and room types from Property Settings

If you have some properties that are no longer listed in Agoda, but still appear in Property Settings in Rentals United and pollute your view, you may remove them from Property Settings. After deactivating the hotel or room type in Agoda, just use the Remove options available in Property Settings to make the property list in Property Settings identical in Agoda and Rentals United. There are two options available now:

• Remove the whole hotel

• Remove room type

Note, however, that these options can be used only to remove the hotels and room types from the Property Settings list. They do not stop your properties from being rented on the Agoda website.

1. In Rentals United platform, go to the Services tab.

   

2. Select the proper list to search for Agoda.

   

   • Find Services lists the channels you are not yet connected to,

   • My Services lists the channels which you have already established connection with and channels that are in the process of being connected.

3. Type the Agoda name in the search box or scroll down through the list of available channels.

4. Unfold the Agoda section by clicking the Down arrow button.

5. Click the Property Settings button.

   

1. Search for the property you want to remove by scrolling down or filtering the property out.

2. Once found, decide whether you want to remove the entire hotel or particular room types only. Make sure that you have already removed the same properties in Agoda dashboard.

   • If you want to remove the whole hotel, hover over the three-dot menu on top of the cluster and select the Remove hotel option. Hotels stuck in the Pending state can be deleted from the Property Settings, too.

     

   • If you want to remove specific room type only, unfold the hotel cluster and hover over the three-dot menu next to the room type to be removed. Click the Remove room type option.

     

3. A notification is displayed. Click the Refresh synchronization settings button to confirm.

   • If you wanted to remove an entire hotel, the following notification is displayed:

     

   • If you wanted to remove a room type, the following notification is displayed:

     

   Note: The Remove option will usually point you to refresh the property set-up in order to maintain synchronization with Agoda. Hence, make sure to remove the hotel or room type in Agoda dashboard before attempting to remove it in Rentals United. If you need more information how to proceed with hotel or room deletion in Agoda, you may want to contact the Agoda Support Team directly and request detailed instructions.

4. Confirm the process by clicking the Confirm button.

   

5. The summary of changes is displayed. If you removed the hotel or room type correctly in Agoda, you should see this change in the pop-up.

Handling notifications

Rentals United constantly validates and monitors the quality of your properties’ content in our system as well as in the connection between Rentals United and the channels. Hence, you can easily check the current status of your connection and take proper steps in case improvements are needed.

Notifications may be displayed on two levels: the property level and the rate level.

In order to learn more about the received notifications, click the Check notifications button. In most cases, you are prompted to see what can be done to clear the notification away. Depending on an notification type, you can either:

• Retry - Rentals United attempts to synchronize your property content again

• Clear all - you confirm you read the notifications, but intend no action

• Manage - you need to manually adjust the property’s content according to the prompt

Bulk actions

1. In Rentals United platform, go to the Services tab.

   

2. Select the proper list to search for Agoda.

   

   • Find Services lists the channels you are not yet connected to,

   • My Services lists the channels which you have already established connection with and channels that are in the process of being connected.

3. Type the Agoda name in the search box or scroll down through the list of available channels.

4. Unfold the Agoda section by clicking the Down arrow button.

5. Click the Property Settings button.

   

6. Click the Bulk actions button on top of the page.

   

7. You entered the bulk flow and you can update all your listings at once. Bulk actions may vary across the channels. Bear in mind that some options that are available for Agoda may not be available for other channels.

   You can read more about bulk actions:

   • Other bulk actions

   • Batch content update

   • Batch refresh synchronisation settings

8. Select the option and follow the steps displayed on the screen.

9. After the operation is finished, you will be prompted that it was successful. Click the OK button and you will be moved to the Property Settings.

   Note: If any process fails for some properties, you will be presented information which properties were not updated and you can try again.

   

Importing bookings

In case you worked with Agoda and received bookings prior to connecting to it via Rentals United, it is possible to import them into Rentals United to ensure all information is in one place. See more here.