Step by step
Connect booking sites and channel managers
Connect a channel manager such as Channex and map your room types and rate plans. Your rates and rooms free go out on their own, and bookings from Booking.com, Expedia and Airbnb come in as reservations. Every connection starts in test mode.
A channel manager or a booking site connected to Kila sells your rooms from what you set in Kila. In Kila’s words: “your rates, availability and restrictions go out within seconds of a change; bookings, changes and cancellations come in as reservations on the grid.”
Not available yet
Every two-way connection starts in test mode: Kila’s simulator plays the channel manager or booking site, and nothing reaches a real one. On a live Kila, test mode makes no bookings: “Kila does not put test bookings on a live business’s grid or in its books: the simulator and providers’ sandboxes still take rates and availability, and the connection can be tested, but their bookings are not made into reservations here.” Bookings come in only once the connection is live with the provider, and Kila’s partner accounts are not set up yet: “Kila’s partner account is not set up yet; you may use your own credentials where the provider allows it.” For Channex, Kila says what going live needs: “A Channex account (Kila’s, or your own API key) and your OTAs connected to it in Channex.” SiteMinder, Booking.com (direct) and Expedia (direct) show Approval to go live: they wait for each provider to accept Kila. The bookings in the pictures were made by the simulator on Kila’s demo site.
Open Booking page and channels
On Hotel › Booking page and channels, under Channel manager and OTAs, each connection shows Test mode (1), whether it is Working, how many room types and rate plans are mapped, when it last sent your rates and availability, and its bookings. Lower down, Ways to connect says what each connection does and what it needs to go live.
Press Connect
Press Connect (2). The front desk has no Connect, and this page is not in its menu: Kila tells the desk in a notification when a booking comes in, such as New Expedia booking, and when one needs attention.
Connect in test mode
Choose the Connection: Kila offers the ones not connected yet, such as SiteMinder or another OpenTravel channel manager, Booking.com (direct) and Expedia (direct). Give it a Name and, if you have it, the Hotel code: “The code the provider gave this property. You can add it later.” Kila says what the connection needs to go live. Press Connect in test mode (3): “The connection starts in test mode: Kila’s simulator plays the provider, so you can map, send rates and see bookings arrive.”
Map your room types and rate plans
Open the connection (Open) and its Mapping tab: “Pick the Channex channel manager room type and rate plan for each of yours.” For each of your room types, choose the channel’s room type; for each of your rate plans, the channel’s rate plan, or Not sold here. Press Save the mapping: Kila says Mapping saved.
Test the connection and send your rates
Test the connection checks that the provider answers. Kila says Connection works, for example “Test mode: Channex answered: property “Lakeside Lodge” found.” Sync now sends what has changed, and Kila says Synced; from then on each change goes out by itself. Full resync sends everything again.
Watch a booking come in
On Kila’s demo site you can play the channel on the Test mode tab: Send a booking has the simulator sell a room from what Kila told it and send the booking the way the real provider does. Kila says “The simulated channel sent Booking.com … (new, …). Bookings: 1 new (RES-…).” The Bookings tab lists it with how it is paid, such as Pays at the hotel with a card as guarantee or Prepaid to Expedia, and its reservation (6). Press the reservation’s number to open it at the desk, like any other. On a live Kila the simulator sells nothing: “On a live Kila the simulator takes rates and availability but sells nothing; on the demo site its bookings become reservations so you can follow them.” Your real bookings arrive the same way once the connection is live.
Good to know
The connection’s Settings tab holds the Rate plans sold on this connection, the Days kept up to date (“Availability, rates and restrictions are sent this far ahead.”) and Book on each OTA’s agent account: “Its commission is accrued at check-out like any agent’s, from the percentage below (change it to your contract).”
A booking comes in with no room free
Link to this section: A booking comes in with no room freeA booking site can sell a room you no longer have. The booking still comes in, and Kila tells the front desk in a notification with the same title, which opens this page. The booking waits at the top, under Needs attention: “Bookings that need the desk, and connection problems. Deal with each, then mark it done.” Press Open RES-… to open the reservation, move a guest or upgrade one, then press Done.
The channel is busy or does not answer
Link to this section: The channel is busy or does not answerKila tries again by itself, shortly. In test mode you can see this happen: on the Test mode tab, choose what goes wrong under Make the next call fail, press Fail the next call, then Full resync. The next Sync now says Synced.
You sell a room on a site with no two-way connection
Link to this section: You sell a room on a site with no two-way connectionUse a calendar instead. Under Calendars (iCal), press Add a calendar, give it a Name and the Room type (“The type the OTA listing sells.”), and press Add: Kila says Channel added. Give the OTA this export address: the site then sees the nights that room type is full. For the nights the site sold, add its OTA calendar address (“The OTA’s iCal export link; Kila reads it on Sync. Or paste the calendar later.”) or Paste a calendar. A calendar carries no rates or guest details, and booking sites read it every few hours.
- Take bookings on your booking page: your own page, with a deposit by M-Pesa.
- Set up rooms, rates and seasons: what the channels sell.
- Move or extend a stay: making room after an overbooking.
Next: see the bookings at the desk on the front desk and the room grid.