System Update

November 5, 2024

Hello everyone!

We’re excited to announce the release of a system update that includes new features and improvements. Check out the details below!

— FrontDesk Master Team ✨

 

Send invoices via email

You can now send invoices to your guests directly via email. Use the “Save and send” option when creating an invoice, or select “Send email” for an existing invoice in the Invoices list. Invoices will be sent as PDF attachments, and you can track the email delivery and content in the reservation’s history.

New email keys

We’ve added new email keys for your templates:

  • {InvoiceNumber} – retrieves the latest invoice number for a reservation
  • {InvoiceDate}
  • {TotalNET} – shows the NET value of accommodation and sales combined
  • {TotalTaxValue} – displays the total tax value of accommodation and sales combined

Sales items by tax category on invoices

You can now display sales items grouped by category and tax percentage on invoices. Different items will be organized by sale item category and tax rate for easier review.

New invoice keys

We’ve added new keys for your invoice templates that pull information from the guest’s billing profile:

  • {BillingTaxNumber}
  • {BillingEmail}
  • {BillingPhone}
  • {BillingGiro}
  • {BillingCommune}

Meals report filters

Filter the new Meals report by reservation status and sales source. This feature will automatically exclude sales from cancelled and no-show reservations.

Agoda commission

Commission details for Agoda bookings are now displayed in the reservation form under the Payments tab.

Payment links

Hello everyone!

We’re thrilled to announce the latest FrontDesk Master update, including Payment Links and more improvements to invoicing. Get all the details below!

If you’re interested in implementing online payments with the new payment link feature (available in Europe and the US), feel free to reach out to us at support@frontdeskmaster.com.

— FrontDesk Master Team ✨

 

Online payment links

We’re excited to introduce Payment Links for our FDM Payments integration! This new feature is available for users in Europe and the United States and is an excellent addition to our online payment solutions.

With payment links, you can easily generate a unique link and send it to your guests via email—making it simpler than ever to collect payments. Check out the video below for a step-by-step guide on how it works:

How to get started?
– For existing FDM Online Payments users: You can find the Payment Links option under the “More” section in the main menu.
– Interested in signing up for FDM Online Payments and using payment links? Contact us at support@frontdeskmaster.com for onboarding details.

 

Invoicing improvements

We’ve also made exciting improvements to our invoicing system, giving you more control and flexibility in customizing your invoices.

Here’s what’s new:

  • Customizable Invoice Table Settings: You can now set up default invoice table settings for each template in the invoice configuration. Choose which information should be displayed on the invoice and personalize your templates to fit your needs.

Invoice template settings

  • Editable City Tax values: You can now adjust the city tax directly in the invoice summary when creating an invoice, making the process smoother and more efficient.
  • Surcharge display: Display any surcharges as a separate line item in the invoice table, giving you more transparency in your invoicing.

Stay tuned—more updates are coming soon!

Invoicing improvements

Hello everyone,

Over the past two months, we’ve been working on making several fixes and improvements to the invoice module, all aimed at making the system easier to use and more versatile. While more updates are on the way, we wanted to share the latest changes we’ve introduced. See the details below!

— FrontDesk Master Team ✨

 

Content

Standard Invoice Table
Create invoice from scratch
Issue credit notes
{GroupName} key
Show accommodation per room type
Use billing details
Print invoice from Invoices list
Invoice number as file name
Link payments with invoice
Bug fixes
And more to come!

 

Standard Invoice Table

The recently added {InvoiceItemsTableStandard} will now be used as the default table for new invoice templates. This table offers translations in Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Polish, and it is responsive by adjusting to the selected table settings.

Standard Invoice Table

Try out the new table now, as the next update will offer even more customization options! For more details, see the section about upcoming updates.

 

Create invoice from scratch

Now it is possible to create an invoice not connected to any reservation. Head to the Invoices list and use the Add new invoice button. To create an invoice from scratch, just add the recipient details, set invoice dates, add items to the table and save it.

 

Issue credit note

Now it is possible to make credit notes to system invoices. Select the invoice to make a refund for, and click the Make Credit note button in the Invoices list or in the Payments tab of the Reservation Form.

Credit note will generate negative values for the original invoice and save it as a separate invoice type. In Invoices list, you can now filter invoices by their type: invoice or credit note.

Credit note

The credit note number will be generated automatically based on the new credit note number setting. You can use a custom numeration or use the original invoice number for reference:

Credit note number settings

 

{GroupName} key

Use the {GroupName} key in your invoice template to extract the group name for a group reservation.

Group name key

 

Show accommodation per room type

Now you can easily display accommodation per room type in the invoice table. The system will create a list of room types from the reservation and the quantity of units (beds in dorms and rooms in private rooms).

Invoice room type accommodation table

 

Use billing details

When you are using Billing Profile (Invoice button in Reservation or Guest details) to for reservation billing details, now the system will use those details for the invoice.

Print invoice from Invoices list

Now you can print or save locally the invoice faster with the new print option available directly in the invoices list.

Invoice number as file name

When saving an invoice locally, the system will now use the invoice number as a file name for easier files management.

 

Linking payments with invoice will now adjust the Paid to date amount in already existing invoices. When you edit an existing invoice and want to connect more payments to it, it is now possible.


Bug fixes

We fixed several bugs related to invoicing, including:
– general invoice table bug fixes
– invoice list fixes
– items included into rate (e.g. breakfast included) are now included also on the invoice
– meals report fixes


And more to come!

In the next update, we will add some further enhancements to the invoicing part:

  • Invoice template settings with predefined configuration for selected template
  • Option to separate Sales by category and tax % in the invoice table
  • Option to edit city tax value in invoice table
  • Option to send invoice by email
  • Showing surcharge on the invoice table as an item

Introducing Meals and more!

July 16, 2024

Hello everyone,

Our new system update is here! Discover the new Meals feature and other improvements we added to the system in the past few months. Stay tuned for the next updates with more features very soon!

— FrontDesk Master Team ✨

 

Content

Meals
   – Meals in POS & improved notes
   – Meals view in reservation
   – Quick edit option
   – Meals report
Female/Male dorms assignation warning
Prefer not to say gender option
Bed-night notes history
Statbel report for Belgium
Invoiced amount in Accounts
Extra details in reports
Siteminder: downloading children as guests
Hostelworld: No Show status

Meals

The Meals feature gives you a new, improved way to sell and control meal sales in your property. Breakfasts, lunches, dinners, packed meals, and more can now be viewed in reservations and a new report. See details and instructions below.

Selling meals in POS

Meal products are indicated with the cutlery icon. While the sell in POS works as always, whenever you choose a meal item, the option to sell per consumption date will be enabled. Additionally, it is now possible to manually choose a consumption date for a meal item (e.g., for breakfasts on the check-out date).

Selling meal items in POS

When adding notes, you can now use dietary restriction tags for faster note writing. E.g., click twice on the Vegetarian tag to show ‘2x Vegetarian’ note!

Adding notes to meal sales

Meals view in reservation

Besides the standard list of sale items, you can now use a new meals table view for a simple overview of meals in your reservations. Depending on meal settings, you can see the quantity, time, and notes.

Meals management view in reservation

Quick edit option

Double-click on a meal in the table to open the edit option. There, you can easily adjust the quantity, time, price, and notes for the selected meal type.

Option to edit meal items in reservation

Meals report

You can find the new Meals report under the ‘Guests and Reservations’ report. It will show you a summary of all meals and a list of bookings. You can filter the report by meal type, time, and dates.

Meals report

Customize the Meals report with the printout settings! Choose what information you would like to see on the printout and use the PDF button to open your report.

PDF printout of meals report

> Check how to set up Meals
> Learn how to sell Meal items in POS

Female/Male dorms assignation warning

When moving guests from one gendered room type to another, the system will show a warning when the guest’s gender doesn’t match the new room type. This option will help you avoid mistakes when moving guests around room types.

warning when moving guests

‘Prefer not to say’ gender option

The new ‘Prefer not to say’ gender option is now available for your guests on Booking Engine and during the online check-in process. In reservations, dashboard, and reports, the new option will be displayed as X.

Prefer not to say gender option on Booking Engine

See bed-night note history

With the recent system update, we have introduced an option to check the bed-night note history. It allows you to track the changes to the note. It is no longer possible to delete past bed-night notes.

History of bed-night note changes

Statbel report for Belgium

Statbel report for Belgian properties is now available. You can download it from the Guest List report. Choose the dates and the Statbel report, and hit ‘Download’ button.

statbel report download option in guest list report

Invoiced amount column in Accounts

The new ‘Invoiced amount’ column in Accounts is a great way to check the amount generated with online invoicing like Fact. ‘Amount’ is the value of the transaction saved in FrontDesk Master and ‘Invoiced amount’ is the value saved on the invoice.

Invoived column in accounts

Extra details in reports

In this update, we added some extra columns and details to the reports. Now, in the reports, you can find:

  • Age breakdown information added to Guest List, Bookings list & Guest Demographics – learn more about age breakdown field
  • ‘Show all extras’ option in the Daily Revenue report to display the whole list of sale items and categories
  • Reservation ID column added to the Extras & Sale Items report
  • ‘Total units available’ added to CSV file when downloaded from PRICES calendar

Siteminder: option to download children information

For the Siteminder channel manager connection, you can now use the option to download children as regular guests. The system will apply the children’s price accordingly to match the correct reservation total.

option to download children in siteminder

Hostelworld: No show status application

Now, when ‘No show’ status is applied on Hostelworld, FrontDesk Master will apply the corresponding ‘No show’ status to reservations in the system, instead of ‘Cancelled’.

No show status in Hostelworld booking

Booking.com outage (July 9th, July 12th)

Dear customers,

We would like to inform you that on July 9th and July 12th Booking.com experienced an outage.

The channel informed that the problem was solved.

Important actions to take:

  • Check all bookings made on July 9th and July 12th. In case of any missing booking please enter it manually with the original ID.

In case of any overbooking caused by this issue please reach Booking.com directly.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reach out us at support@frontdeskmaster.com.

Best,
FrontDesk Master Team

FrontDesk Master on YouTube

Dear customers,

Did you know we have a YouTube channel filled with instructional videos to help you get the most out of FrontDesk Master? Our videos are available in both English and Spanish, ensuring you can follow along comfortably.

Make sure to check it out, subscribe, and save the videos for easy access. Click here to visit our YouTube channel now.

Stay tuned for new exiting updates very soon!

Best, 
— FrontDesk Master Team ✨

Processing bookings problem (10th June)

Dear customers,

We would like to inform you that on June 10th we detected an issue with the channel manager.

Problem:

The reservations from some channels (Booking.com, HostelWorld, Expedia) stopped entering into the system. The cause was related to a third party issue. We had to disable the problematic feature for some time until the third party fixed the problem. Unfortunately, the problematic bookings were reprocessed without credit card details.

Resolution:

The problem was solved and the bookings are being downloaded correctly.

Important actions to take:

The reservations should be in the system now, however additionally we would like to kindly ask you to:

  • Check all bookings made between June 10th and June 11th. In case of any missing booking please enter it manually with the original ID.
  • Check the credit card details (in case they are missing) from these bookings directly in the extranets.

We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reach out us at support@frontdeskmaster.com.

Best,
FrontDesk Master Team

You will begin receiving bookings from Hostel Hop soon!

We’re thrilled to share some exciting news with you – Hostel Hop officially launched on March 29th! As our valued partner, we wanted to ensure you’re among the first to know about this significant milestone.

Here’s how you can prepare your hostel to take full advantage of 
Hostel Hop’s benefits:

1. Ensure Integration: If you haven’t already, integrate Hostel Hop with Front Desk Master to seamlessly manage your bookings and capitalize on the platform’s features.

2. Update Your Profile: Take the time to review and update your hostel’s profile on Hostel Hop to ensure it accurately reflects your offerings and amenities.

3. Spread the Word: Start promoting your hostel on Hostel Hop to attract early bookings and generate excitement among travelers.

What Does This Mean for Your Hostel?

With the launch of Hostel Hop, there are incredible opportunities in store for your hostel:

  1. Enhanced Visibility: Joining Hostel Hop expands your hostel’s visibility to a global network of travelers, increasing your chances of reaching new guests and maximizing occupancy.
  2. Competitive Advantage: Take advantage of Hostel Hop’s lower booking fees compared to other platforms, allowing you to optimize your revenue and profitability.
  3. Streamlined Operations: Seamlessly manage your bookings and streamline operations through Front Desk Master’s integration with Hostel Hop, saving time and effort.
  4. Revenue Boost: Leverage Hostel Hop’s unique cash-back incentives for travelers, driving more bookings and revenue to your hostel.
  5. Receptionist Engagement: Empower your receptionists to earn bonuses and commissions by referring travelers to Hostel Hop, fostering stronger engagement and loyalty within your team.

Need Assistance?

Our dedicated team is here to support you every step of the way. If you have any questions or require assistance with setting up your hostel profile, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at info@hostelhop.io or by phone at +1 (407) 325-5080.

Thank you for your continued partnership and support. We’re incredibly excited about the upcoming launch of Hostel Hop and the opportunities it brings for your hostel. Together, we can redefine the hostel booking experience and create memorable journeys for travelers worldwide.

Here’s to a successful launch and a prosperous future!

— Hostel Hop Team

Exciting New System Features

Hello everyone!

We’re thrilled to share the news of our latest system update, featuring exciting new additions, with even more on the horizon in the New Year!

— FrontDesk Master Team ✨

 

PS. Are you interested in integrating with Assa Abloy door lock system? Contact us at support@frontdeskmaster.com for more information.

Content

Virtual rooms
Notes for extra sales
Include breakfast in the room price
Customer aging balance
New simple invoice table
Age breakdown
Permission to allow adding reservations in the past
Decide how cancellation fees should be applied
Extra details in reports

Virtual rooms

Meeting rooms, parking spaces, dining areas, yoga classes, and various additional rooms can now be marked as virtual rooms. 

  • Virtual room types will now appear at the bottom of the room type lists, prioritizing the accommodation
  • Virtual room types will be automatically hidden from the Prices calendar
  • You can check reports, e.g., revenue, occupancy and other statistics, for virtual and actual rooms separately.

> Check how to mark room type as virtual

 

Notes for extra sales

For each extra sale, you can now add a quick note directly at the Point of Sale. The note will be displayed in the reservation’s Sales tab and in the ‘Extras & sale items’ report.

> Find out more about notes for extra sales

Include breakfast in the room price

If your rates include breakfast, now FrontDesk Master can include it in your price and add it to the reservation automatically when the booking is created.

In the rate configuration, choose the option “Includes breakfast” and select the sale item which is included in the price. For all new bookings, the system will automatically add the selected item and calculate the accommodation price accordingly.

> See how to include breakfast in room price

Customer aging balance

In Reservation Balance and Reservation Payments reports, you can now check the customer aging balance. It shows the number of days the reservation has been unpaid after the check-out date.

New invoice table

Try the new invoice template which adjusts for you (you can hide city tax or net value and sales tax) and translates to Spanish, French, and Portuguese. Use {InvoiceItemsTableStandard} key in your invoice template to test it.

Age breakdown

A new field in Reservation Details where you can choose the age range for your reservations, enhancing group booking statistics.

> How to set up the age breakdown field?

Permission to allow adding reservations in the past

With the new permission, you can decide if users can add and extend bookings in the past. You can find it under General permissions:

Cancellations setting

Choose how FrontDesk Master should handle the balance for cancelled nights or reservations: per cancellation policy, or automatically mark all nights as due.

> Learn more about cancellation policies

Extra details in reports

In this update, we added some extra columns and details into the reports. Now, in the reports, you can find:

  • Sale item details in Reservation Balance report
  • Amount paid online (with payment gateway) and payment ID in Reservation Balance report
  • Total booking accommodation and Total sales columns in Reservation Payments report
  • Results in gross in Daily Revenue report 

Cancellations Improvements & Job Opportunity

Hello everyone!

The new system update is here, introducing new features that, we believe, will greatly benefit your daily work routine.

— FrontDesk Master Team

P.S. JOB OPPORTUNITY 🚀

We are looking for Sales Executives and Customer Success in Europe. Contact mat@frontdeskmaster.com if you are interested.

 

Content

Cancellation policies and fees
    – Set up cancellation policies
    – Applying cancellation fess
Cancellation fee details in Online Check-in
Updated Housekeeping printout
New payment date filter in Reservation Payments Report
Activated deposits in Daily Revenue Report

Cancellation policies and improvements

Tracking cancellations and cancellation fees is an important part of booking and revenue management. With this update, we introduced an option to set up cancellation policies and apply cancellation fees to cancelled bookings or nights.

Cancellation policies

Now you can configure your cancellation policies and assign them to rates, to apply correct cancellation fees to cancelled reservations. 

cancellation policies

For example, the Non-Refundable 100% policy charges the total of the reservation if the reservation is cancelled at any time. Flexible 3D, applies cancellation fee of 1 night cost if guest cancels reservation after the free cancellation period. Free cancellation doesn’t apply any cancellation fees to cancelled bookings.

> Learn how to set up your cancellation policies

Applying cancellation fees

Cancellation fees are applied automatically based on your cancellation policies or during manual cancellation. When cancelling a reservation manually, confirm fees applied according to the policy or choose an alternative fee.

Confirm cancellation window

You can always apply or adjust cancellation fees directly in the reservation form. With the $ button, you can mark which nights are due and should be calculated as cancellation cost.

> Learn how cancellation fees are applied to reservations

 

Cancellation fee details in Online Check-in

In case the guest cancels reservation or nights in Online Check-in, they will see the popup showing the information about cancellation fees applied for the cancellation. Cancellation fees are applied according to the rate cancellation policy.

Updated Housekeeping printout

The updated Housekeeping printout option provides a clear display of each room’s status, occupying significantly less space than the previous version. Easily track stayovers, arrivals, and departures for the day, along with guest name information.

housekeeping

Extra payment date filter in Reservation Payments Report

Using the new payment date filter, you can easily find payments for bookings made and paid on different dates, e.g., bookings with check-in in November but paid earlier. This way you can track all prepayments made and activated within a selected timeframe.

Activated deposits in Daily Revenue Report

Now in the Daily Revenue Report you can find an extra row called Activated Deposits. It will show you the value of prepayments (activated deposits) for bookings checking in on the report date.