Inside Availability – Standards of Performance - MARKETING

RoomMaster

Inside Availability Standards of Performance

MARKETING

Intentionally Blank

 1999 Galileo International. All Rights Reserved.

The Globe Device, Apollo, Galileo, Inside Availability, Inside Link, and RoomMaster are either registered trademarks and service marks or trademarks and service marks of Galileo International in the United States and/or other countries.

Galileo International Confidential - 1 -

Inside Availability Standards of Performance - MARKETING

Table of Contents

Inside Availability Standards of Performance - MARKETING

Purpose5

Source Documentation5

Marketing Overview6

Introduction6

Overview6

Travel Agent Entries7

Hotel Complete Availability HOC7

Hotel View Rules HOV7

Hotel Index HOI7

HOC Display8

Overview8

HOC Inside Availability Display Screen8

HOC General Standards9

MORE Indicator on HOC9

Booking Codes9

Multilevel Rates-Point of Sale validation9

HOC Display Standards11

HOC Search Criteria11

HOC Display Content12

HOC Marketing Message12

HOC Currency Code12

HOC Rate Change During Stay Indicator12

HOC Exclusive to Inside Availability Indicator12

HOC Rate Type Description13

HOC Inside Availability Screen Display13

HOC Room Type/Rate Item - General14

HOV Display15

Overview15

HOV General Standards15

HOV Display15

HOVS# 16

HOV - Inside Availability Screen Display17

HOV Display Content (Text Items)18

Address18

Phone/Fax18

Marketing Text18

Rate Description18

Currency Code18

Rate Amount18

Inclusions/Exclusions Text19

Room Descriptive Text19

Guarantee Text19

Deposit Text19

Cancellation Text19

Other Rules Text20

Property Description Text20

Property Location Text20

Sell21

Overview21

Marketing Message After Sell21

Sell Error Responses from HOC22

Cancellation Number22

Summary23

Appendix25

Inside Link Error Messages26

for Inside Availability

Galileo International Confidential - 1 -

Inside Availability Standards of Performance - MARKETING

Inside Availability

Standards of Performance MARKETING

Purpose / The purpose of this document is to outline the standards required for the implementation of Inside Availability, from the Marketing viewpoint. Also included in this package are documents describing data formats and the functional description of Inside Availability.
This document has been written for marketing managers who are directly involved in the marketing of your hotel product.
Items described in this document are divided into one of three priority categories, each having an identifying code.
Dividing information in this document into priority categories helps Galileo International to maintain high standards for Inside Availability and ensures vendors are aware of what is required for implementation purposes.
Code / Name / Description
M / Mandatory / The implementation of this item is mandatory for the cut over to Inside Availability
A / Advised / It is highly recommended that you implement these items for cut over to Inside Availability.
N / Nice (to have) / These items are ‘nice to have’ and should be carefully considered for implementation.
Source Documentation / The source for all technical specifications for each of these items can be found in the RoomMaster Inside Availability Functional Specification and Data Formats Guides that are also included in this package. It is important that your technical staff has the most current version of these documents.

Marketing Overview

Introduction / Inside Availability allows you to present and market your products directly from your central reservations system to RoomMaster users worldwide.
This provides the travel agent/consumer user with:
  • Greater access to rates, rule, availability and room/rate descriptions.
  • Increased confidence in the accuracy of the information.

Overview / Inside Availability allows agents to extract data that is stored in your reservations system prior to initiating the booking transaction.
The travel agent/consumer user can:
  • View all of the rates, including their multilevel/negotiated rates.
  • Access rates not available in RoomMaster saving the time and expense of a phone call.
  • Display detailed descriptive data on rooms, rates, policies, commissions and property/promotional information.
  • Sell all rates, even those not stored in RoomMaster.

Travel Agent Entries

Introduction / There are three main entries used to access Inside Availability in RoomMaster. These entries are already familiar to the travel agent. No new formats are required for Inside Availability.
Hotel Availability Request / HOA
HOA is used as a ‘shoppers’ tool. This request displays a list of available properties and rates for a specific city, airport, or reference point. A property is selected from this display for more detailed Inside Availability information. All information displayed in the HOA comes from RoomMaster.
Hotel Complete Availability / HOC
The HOC is used to view ‘complete’ availability from the HOA for a specific property. This Inside Availability display includes a complete rate display with all rate/bedding types that are available to sell at the property. The information the travel agent receives in this display comes directly from your reservation system. A direct HOC may be requested which bypasses the HOA.
Hotel View
Rules / HOV
The HOV is used to view rules and detailed booking information for a specific rate from the Inside Availability HOC screen, or from a booked segment.
Hotel Index / HOI
The HOI is used to view a summary index of hotel properties. The index may be requested using an airport code, city name, or reference point and includes information such as property name, lowest rate offered (for date entered), location information, and mileage/direction from airport, city or reference point. HOC, HOA, and HOD may be requested from this display.

HOC Display

Overview / All rates/rate plans that are displayed and available in the HOA must also be available in the HOC Inside Availability display.
Additionally, you have the opportunity to offer unique rates/plans for consideration through Inside Availability, which are not found in RoomMaster. Knowing that this information comes directly from your reservation system gives the travel agent/consumer user additional confidence in RoomMaster displays and reduces the number of phone calls to your reservations office.

HOC Inside Availability Screen Display

**HOC INSIDE AVAILABILITY** INSIDE AVAILABILITY MKTG MESSAGE

REF USD RATE ZW 77162 HARBOR BAY RESORT

1 81.00IBM : ASSOCIATED RATE ACCESS CODE

NEGOTIATED RATE FOR IBM EMPLOYEES

1K WITH BALCONY AND NEWSPAPER

2 95.00 CORPORATE RATE - 1K - BALCONY - NEWSPAPER

3 59.00+ SUMMER SPECIAL RATE-AVAILABLE 7 DAYS A WEEK

4 79.00@ SUPER SAVER
CITYVIEW-1K OR 2D-BALCONY-NEWSPAPER

5 120.00 SUPER KING 1K-SPACIOUS ROOM-BAYVIEW-BALCONY

6 105.00 CORPORATE RATE
2K-SPACIOUS ROOM HAIRDRYER NON-SMOKING PC JACK
REFRIGERATOR VOICE MESSAGING SKYLINE VIEW

7 130.00 EXECUTIVE 2D-EXEC LEVEL-HAIRDRYER-FULL BREAKFAST

8 57.00 GOVT RATE-CITY VIEW-1K OR 2D-BALCONY-NEWSPAPER

9 90.00 SEN CITIZEN RATE - ID REQUIRED AT CHECK IN

>HOC*PD >01INSIDE . >HOV .

HOC General Standards

MORE Indicator on HOC / Code: M
(transparent to the user) / You must send Galileo International all rate information for a given request. A standard Inside Availability rate display (HOC) contains up to 3,700 characters. This is equal to one 4K block of data.
In the HOC display, one 4K block of data breaks down as follows, in terms of how many lines are displayed:
  • 40 rates having one line
  • 27 rates having two lines
  • 20 rates having three lines

If your display exceeds these parameters, you must provide the ‘more indicator’ with the first 4K block, and then be able to send Galileo International a second 4K block of data to complete the display. If you have determined that your data is likely to require more than 1 4K block, you must complete the necessary programming on your end. Galileo International is already prepared to receive the second 4K block, and must be advised in advance so that we can prepare to receive it.
Booking
Codes / Code: M
Every rate plan/item returned in an HOC display must have a unique booking code of 6 or 7 alphanumeric characters in length. The first character cannot be a numeric.
Multilevel
/Negotiated Rate -
Point of Sale Validation / Code: M
Most booking codes are available to all travel agent/consumer users. The Point of Sale Rule is created to restrict a group of booking codes to a specific travel agency audience. It is used in conjunction with the Multilevel Rate Access code to create authorization to view and sell negotiated rates.
Point of Sale Rule validation is completed by RoomMaster when an agent requests the hotel availability from RoomMaster (HOA and HOC).
A Multilevel Rate Access Code is our code used by the travel agent to request a negotiated rate and must be three to six characters in length. This entry used to access negotiated rates is @ followed by the rate access code, e.g. @AMEX
Special Characters / The following are valid special characters for text information. All other special characters will cause the display to be off-line and unreadable.
Character / Character Type
blank
. / Period
/ / Slash
: / Colon
* / Asterisk
- / Hyphen
@ / at sign (pillow)

HOC Display Standards

HOC - Search Criteria / RoomMaster users have the ability to request availability using room or rate related qualifiers. You must be able to accept and accurately respond to an availability request that specifies these room/rate qualifiers.
Listed below are 4 room/rate qualifiers which agents can specify in an Inside Availability HOC request, along with their priority category codes.
When the search criteria used specifies a Code: M rate qualifier in an availability request, the subsequent HOC display must show any room/rate item which meets this criteria at the top of the HOC display, followed by all other available room types/rate plans.
Code / Agent Entry / Category Search Criteria
Explanation
M / C-
i.e.(C-CLB OR,
C-B) / Rate Category (or Plan)
Codes are used by the travel agent/consumer user to request a specific rate category/plan. The entry is a one to three character code.
All applicable rate category codes are listed in the Appendix. Review the Data Formats guide for the codes that can be sent.
Room types/rates are to be displayed in the order requested by the travel agent/consumer user.
When no rate category code has been specifically requested, it is recommended that the rates be returned in the order shown in the Appendix.
M / @(Pillow)
i.e. (@IBM) / Multilevel Rate
Request for a Multilevel/Negotiated rate
A / $
i.e.($90-150 or $CAD) / Rate, RateRange or Currency
Request for a specific room rate, or range of rates or change to a different currency
A / B-A1K
i.e. Superior room, one King bed / Room/Bedding Type
Request for a specific room/bedding type.

HOC DisplayContent Standards

HOC - Marketing Message / Code: N
Take advantage of the free Marketing space
This message can be one partial line at the top of the HOC display.
HOC - Currency Code / Code: A
A travel agent/consumer user has the ability to request a rate display in a currency other than the currency in which it is stored in the hotels’ reservation system.
If there is a request for a rate display in an alternate currency, we will include the currency code in the format sent to you.
It is understood that the rate amount is for reference only and is not guaranteed when requested in another currency.
HOC - Rate Change During Stay Indicator / Code: M
This is an indicator on the HOC display that identifies a rate that will change during the client’s stay. A breakdown of the rate change must also be provided in the HOV display. (See HOV for additional information regarding the display of rules when there is a rate change.) An example of the HOC rate change indicator (@) appears on line #4 in the display that follows.
HOC - Exclusive to Inside Availability Indicator / Code: A
Another valuable marketing tool which is highly recommended. This indicator denotes that this rate can only be sold through Inside Availability. An example of the HOC indicator (+) appears in line # 3 in display on the display that follows.
HOC -
Rate Type Description / Code: M
  • The rate type description must appear on the first line of the rate item in the HOC display.
  • All rate types, including Multilevel, are to be identified with the rate category name; e.g. CORP, GOVT, SEN, or Multilevel rate name, e.g. BTI, IBM.
  • All descriptions must be spelled out as in the display below.
  • If abbreviations are necessary, they must be those shown in the Inside Availability Data Formats Guide. All others must be discussed with Galileo International Sales and Marketing.
  • If you limit rate descriptions to one line, please use the appropriate rate description first as shown on line #2 below.
  • ‘On request’ room types can be accommodated. The words ‘ON REQUEST’must appear on the first line of the rate description. Arrangements for this functionality must be discussed with Galileo International during development.

HOC Inside Availability Screen Display

**HOC INSIDE AVAILABILITY** PERFECTPLAZA BEST OF THE BEST

REF USD RATE ZQ 78482 GALILEOPERFECTPLAZA

1 81.00IBM : ASSOCIATED RATE ACCESS CODE

NEGOTIATED RATE FOR IBM EMPLOYEES

1K WITH BALCONY AND NEWSPAPER

2 95.00 CORPORATE RATE - 1K - BALCONY - NEWSPAPER

3 59.00+ SUMMER SPECIAL RATE-AVAILABLE 7 DAYS A WEEK

4 79.00@ SUPER SAVER
CITYVIEW-1K OR 2D-BALCONY-NEWSPAPER

5 120.00 SUPER KING 1K-SPACIOUS ROOM-BAYVIEW-BALCONY

6 105.00 CORPORATE RATE
2K-SPACIOUS ROOM HAIRDRYER NON-SMOKING PC JACK
REFRIGERATOR VOICE MESSAGING SKYLINE VIEW

7 130.00 EXECUTIVE 2D-EXEC LEVEL-HAIRDRYER-FULL BREAKFAST

8 57.00 GOVT RATE-CITY VIEW-1K OR 2D-BALCONY-NEWSPAPER

9 90.00 SEN CITIZEN RATE - ID REQUIRED AT CHECK IN

>HOC*PD >01INSIDE . >HOV .

HOC - Room Type/Rate Item-
General / Code: M
  • All room types/rate items returned on the HOC display must be validated for availability and only returned if they can be sold at the time of this request.
  • The Rate Amount in the display must be the rate amount that applies on the date of arrival.

  • The number of nights requested must be validated.
  • Galileo International is able to support ‘on request’ functionality provided the room type is stored in RoomMaster and HOC description states clearly that the room type is ‘on request’.

HOV Display

Overview / The purpose of the HOV rule description display is to provide a descriptive summary of the rules pertaining to a specific booking code. The travel agent can request an HOV before or after a booking has been made.
Galileo International has standardized the organization of Inside Availability information so an agent can expect to see data in the same place for every participating hotel company. However, within this parameter, each hotel has the ability to describe its product creatively in support of its overall marketing and sales strategy.

HOV General Standards

HOV Display / Code: M
  • The HOV rule description display is a summary of rules applicable to the booking code. This display must be available for all booking codes.
  • Text is expected to be descriptive, eliminating any question confusion or need for a phone call to the hotel for clarification. The travel agent/consumer user should not be expected to look at the RoomMaster HOD for additional information regarding this booking.
  • Only rules items relevant to the applicable booking should be present in the summary display.
  • The rule description display should include some or all of the items on page 12. Items marked with Code: M are mandatory.

HOVS#
(The HOV
Display after
End Transact) / Code: M
The HOVS# is the HOV rules description (by segment number) after the hotel segment has been sold. The travel agent/consumer user may want to use this application to review the rules after the hotel has been booked.
Detailed booking information for a specific booking must be available to the travel agent/consumer user any time after the segment has been booked, including after the ‘end transact’ has taken place.
One of two options will determine what the rule content will be when the HOVS# is requested:
  1. The rules can be displayed exactly how they appeared on the day the booking was made. This is advisable.
  2. The rules can be displayed based on what rules are applicable on the date the HOVS# is requested.

Galileo International Confidential- 1 -

Inside Availability Standards of Performance - MARKETING

HOV - Inside Availability Screen Display

**HOV1 INSIDE AVAILABILITY** ZQ 99999 PERFECTPLAZA

ADDRESS: 500 SHORE DRIVE PHONE: 847 555-8666

CHICAGO IL 60603 FAX: 847 555-2001

GALILEO PERFECT PLAZA HOTELS - THE PERFECT WAY

*RATE*

IA1KRR ROMANTIC ADVENTURE

LUXURY ROOM/KING/SITTING AREA/BREAKFAST PACKAGE

USD 179.00 PER NIGHT ON 21 MAY FOR 1 NIGHT

189.00 PER NIGHT ON 22 MAY FOR 2 NIGHTS

179.00 PER NIGHT ON 24 MAY FOR 5 NIGHTS

1452.00 TOTAL FOR 8 NIGHTS

TAX EXCLUDED COMMISSIONABLE AT 10 PERCENT ADULTS 1

LUXURY 1 KING BED SITTING AREA 450 SQ FT W/VIEW OF THE WATER

PACKAGE INCLUDES COMPLIMENTARY PARKING BREAKFAST BUFFET IN THE STARS RESTAURANT MORNING PAPER AND DAILY USE OF OUR EUROPEAN HEALTH SPA FITNESS ROOM AEROBICS CLASSES SAUNA STEAMROOM

*RULES*

ALL RESERVATIONS HAVE TO BE GUARANTEED BY CREDIT CARD OR DEPOSIT

ALL MAJOR CARDS ARE ACCEPTED

AX VI CA CB DC