Expedia Affiliate Network. User Guide

Transcription

1 Expedia Affiliate Network User Guide

2 Table of Contents Welcome To EAN Slide 3 Creating Links to EAN Slide 5 Property Databases (Content Integration) Slide 21 Page Upload/Private Label Setup Slide 24 Search Forms Slide 27 Language and Currency Customization Slide 29 Commission Structure Slide 36 Online Statistics Slide 42 Marketing Slide 50 Contact Information Slide 52 2

3 Welcome To EAN Welcome to the Expedia Affiliate Network. The following slides provide a comprehensive guide to the affiliate program from integrating your private label booking engine to managing commissions using our online statistics program. Should you have any questions or concerns please contact the EAN Account Management team at affiliate@ian.com 3

4 EAN Products Hotel Merchant & Agency Car Agency only Air Agency only Vacation Rentals Vacation Packages Cruise 4

5 Creating Links to EAN

6 Basic Link Upon signing up to EAN you will have received a basic link. This is your unique URL to be used when linking to IAN. The link contains your cid which allows IAN to track your reservations coming from your site. Your URL Would be: (where XXXX is your CID) You can find your basic link in the affiliate center > integration > Basic Link Note: It is not necessary to use our basic link on your page if it doesn t fit the market of your website. You may benefit more from one of our deep links. 6

7 Link Generator 7

8 Link Generator It is imperative to your website success, to ensure your customers land on the most relevant pages from your CPC campaigns or SEO pages. Taking a customer directly to the information they require will increase your chances of conversion, because they will not have to click around your site to find the right information. The EAN dynamic link generator tool will allow you to easily create the relevant links for example: Deep links to specific Cities for Hotel, Car, vacation Rental, Air, Road Trips, Destination Guides Deep links to specific Hotels or vacation Rental Properties. 8

9 Linking to EAN By linking to EAN you can set up your co branded or private label site. This will give your users direct access to our menu bars for easier and clear navigation. You will be able to link directly into each one of EAN's services, such as hotels or car rentals, and to specific cities and properties. You can add search forms to your site. With good integration, users will feel a smooth transition to the booking engine. 9

10 Linking to EAN Hotels Direct Link to Hotel Search Page Allows your users direct access to our menu bars and search facility Note: XXXX = your cid 10

11 Linking to EAN Hotels (continued) Link to Specific City (hotel Listing) If your website provides information on a particular city or group of cities, you can link directly to that city's hotel listing by adding certain code to your link. How To: The variables are easy to add: city=, state=, and country= followed by the corresponding information. Use a %20 to join city names where there is a space in the URL string (example: San%20Diego). For Example: Basic Link = City = San Antonio State = TX Country = US City Specific Link = 20antonio&stateProvince=TX&country=US&hotel=2&submitted=true&validat ecity=true Note: The hotel list page uses the variable hotel=2 to display the list page. 11

12 Linking To EAN Specific properties If your website provides information about specific hotels and properties, then you can link directly into any hotel that the Expedia Affiliate Network offers. You have the option of linking to the property's Description/Information Page or directly to the Rates and Availability Page. How To: The variable used for the hotel property rates/availability page is hotelid=. The description/information page uses the hotelid variable as well as hotel=1. For Example: Basic Link = City = San Antonio State = TX Country = US Hotel ID = City Specific Link = 16&city=san+antonio&stateProvince=TX&country=US&hotel=1 12

13 Linking to EAN Hotels Basic Hotel Search Form Allows users to search directly from your site, add this to one or many of your pages to make it easier to How To: Affiliate center > Integration > Linking to IAN > Basic Search form Copy and paste html to your server. Extended Hotel Search Form Allows user to search using hotel name in a specific city of specific property How To: Affiliate center > Integration > Linking to IAN > Extended Search form Copy and paste html to your server. 13

14 Linking to EAN Cars Linking to the EAN Car Search Page Note: XXXX = your cid 14

15 Linking to EAN Air Link to EAN Air Search Page 15

16 Linking To Vacation Rentals Basic Vacation Rental Link: Linking to Vacation rentals can be done in the same way as linking to EAN hotels i.e. through the use of search boxes, by destinations and by properties. Go to: Affiliate center > integration > linking to IAN > vacation Rentals Note: XXXX = your cid 16

17 Linking to EAN Cruises Basic Cruise link How To: Affiliate center > integration > Linking to IAN Copy and paste the Html on to your server Note: XXXX = your cid Cruise Search Form 17

18 Cruise Integration To add the Cruise product to your site you can find your basic cruise link in the affiliate center (xxxx = your cid) How to: Affiliate center > integrate > cruise integration Select from a choice of 7 cruise colour templates and submit Please allow 24 hours for your colour settings to take effect Important Note: When integrating your cruise pages, you will have a few templates to choose from. With each choice, you will have the option of No Header. This option will remove the generic Cruise header at the top of the page. Private Label headers will not apply to Cruise links. 18

19 Vacation Packages Vacation packages give your customers the ability to purchase multiple travel components air, hotel, car, and t-shops (trips add-ons) in one transaction. Packaging Components Merchant Hotel (required) Air Car T-Shops (Trip add-ons like tours, show tickets, insurance, restaurant coupons, etc.) Sample package link &packageType=1 Contact your Account Manager in order to activate and configure packages for your account. Once activated we will provide your EAPID (package account number) for use with the sample package link above. NOTE: Vacation Packages are currently only available to customers with a US issued credit card and billing address 19

20 Deep Linking Your EAN Pages The link generator also allows you to specify language and currency values. You can select searches for surrounding cities and landmarks. HOW TO: Affiliate center > Integration > Link Generator Step 1: Select city, state (where appropriate) and country Step 2: Choose product you wish to link to, set currency and language Step 3: Click on build links now button HOT TIP: Another great way to utilize EAN is to leave your basic links the way they are and let our geo-location functionality display the language and currency of the visitor based on the location of their IP address! 20

21 Property Databases (Content Integration) The property databases contain information concerning every hotel we offer, including the name, address, EAN hotel ID, available amenities, and full text descriptions. Each database is a pipe delimited text file that can be imported into various programs, commonly Excel and/or Access. It can be used to quickly locate specific properties or groups of properties. Alternatively they can be used as a basis for creating your own HTML pages using your choice of data in order to boost your search engine rankings. HOT TIP: Download the B&B database and showcase on your site as an ideal place for romantic getaways, special celebrations or weekends away 21

22 Property Databases (Content Integration) Some of the databases available for download include: Hotels Hotel Descriptions Hotel Images Condo Descriptions Vacation Rentals Bed and Breakfast Landmark IDs. It is important that you regularly download the databases and use them to update the information contained within static pages on your site. We recommend that you do so on a monthly basis to ensure that you have the most current property information. 22

23 Property Databases (Content Integration) How to open a file using Excel: Affiliate center > integration > property databases Click on the link for the property database you wish to download Save the.txt file to your computer Open excel Choose open file Find the.txt file database saved to your computer and open it Choose the delimited button and click next Uncheck the Tab box and select the Other box In the other box, insert the pipe character (shift + ) Click Finish - This will open the database in an excel spreadsheet. 23

24 Page Upload/Private Label Setup 24

25 Page Upload/Private Label Setup Adding branding to your EAN pages involves 4 easy steps: 1) Create a header and footer 2) Publish your header to the Web 3) Use the Page Upload tool in the Affiliate Center 4) Check your EAN pages Please refer to the Private Label Setup Custom and Header/Footer Creation Guides for more in-depth information

26 International Links If you would like to offer linking to international sites you can use the flags and html mapping information in the affiliate center. How to: Affiliate center > integration > international links Right click image, save as to your server or drive. Note: The flags will NOT translate your pages into different languages. They simply re-direct the user to a page we have created in their native language 26

27 Search Forms To create a customized booking engine, choose from 10 search forms; including Hotel search forms, multi product search forms, Flight and car only search forms. Customize your search form by selecting the appropriate language and currency or even change the colors to align with the look and feel of your website. This will reduce the number of clicks within a customer s search. HOW TO: Affiliate center > integration > Search Forms Step 1: Select Language Step 2: Select Currency Step 3: Click on selected form Step 4: Select the html by clicking the highlight all button and copy Step 5: Past the HTML on your own web pages. 27

28 Sample Search Forms 28

29 Language and Currency Customization

30 Basic Customization Make your site appealing to people who speak different languages and/or live in different countries than you do by integrating different languages and currencies into your site. By Selling to a global audience your conversions will increase and you will sell more. You can change the language and currency just by adding simple parameters to your basic link. 30

31 Language Language Offering several languages increases the range of users that will be able to utilize your website You can change the language simply by adding (&locale=xx) at the end of your URL (XX = language code) For example: will set the language to French. (XXXX is your cid) 31

32 Popular Language Codes Language English French Spanish Swedish Italian Dutch Norwegian German Danish Code en fr es se it nl no de da 32

33 Currency Multiple currency types are supported for merchant hotel properties. Billing currency Billing currency is the currency used by the property and is the currency that the supplier will charge to the customer s credit card. Billing Currency is set by the property and cannot be changed by the affiliate. Display Currency Display Currency is the currency in which the customer wants to see the rates displayed. Display Currency is optional and can be set by appending &currencycode=xxx at the end of the URL. For example: will display our rates in British Pounds. (XXXX is your cid) 33

34 Sorting Options Sorting options Search result sorting options (1-Best Value, 3-Price, 4-Quality and 5-Hotel Name) For example: will sort the hotel search result page by price. (X is the sort option number) The code supplements for languages, currencies, etc can also be combined. For example: &locale=en&currencycode=gbp will create an English booking engine with the currency set to British Pounds. 34

35 Color Settings For a smoother, more professional private label integration we will update the color settings of your EAN pages to align with the look and feel of your website. Your Account Manager will make these changes for you after you have uploaded your new header and footer. We will choose colors based on your site s (or header if your site isn t live yet) current palette. Please contact your Account Manager at affiliate@ian.com with any specific color requests. 35

36 Commission Structure

37 How Commissions Work Customers book travel via your site, and we in turn pay you a commission for completed reservations. The day the travel is over (for example the customer checks-out of the hotel, returns their rental car, etc.) is considered the consumed date. Due to the way each product is configured, payout times will vary. It is in your best interest to promote merchant hotels, vacation rentals, and packages, as commission is applied to your account the month following consumption. Why? Customers pay in full at the time they book. Agency hotel and car rentals involve customer payment directly at check-in or the rental office, meaning we must collect the commission after consumption. Once the commission is collected we apply the money to your account. Payments occur monthly on the 15 th to partners who have accrued $50 in commissions. Accrued commissions totaling less than $50 will continue to carry over month to month until the $50 minimum is reached. 37

38 Commission Levels Hotel Types Merchant hotel Agency hotel What is this type of hotel? These are the hotels we contract with directly and specially negotiate rates and inventory levels. Hotels that are extracted from global distribution systems like WorldSpan and Sabre we do not work with them directly. When does the customer pay? In full, at the time of booking. Once they check-in (or out depending on hotel policy). What is the cancellation policy What happens upon check out? EAN does not charge for changes or cancellations, however we do pass on the hotel s policies, which will vary. When the customer checks out (in other words the booking is consumed), EAN posts the commission to your account within one month. Cancellation fees vary depending on the hotel. The hotel owes EAN a commission. We work to collect the money on your behalf, and post the commission to your account once received. 38

39 Commission Levels Commission Policies by hotel type Merchant hotel Agency hotel How do we calculate the commission? When does the commission accrue or post to my account? Your commission is calculated on a per transaction basis. The base room rate (the amount the customer pays before taxes and fees) is multiplied by 5%. All consumed bookings during the current month accrue commission to your account the following month. If you accrue more than $50, we send a check. Again, the commission is calculated per transaction. Once a hotel pays us a commission, we split the money with you 50/50. Hotels typically pay commissions at 8-10%, meaning you should expect roughly 4-5% commission payout per booking. Once a commission payment is received, we immediately post it to your account. Commission accrual is entirely governed by payment timing from the hotel. 39

40 Payment Timeline For example, on the 15th of April, we will calculate the affiliate commissions for Merchant Hotel bookings consumed between 1st of March and 31st of March. Commission for Agency hotel bookings is calculated based on payments collected by us from the supplier between 1st of March and 31th of March. Your check will be sent on the 15th of April. Both commissions are processed and a check is sent! Agency payments collected by us during these dates Consumed Merchant reservations during this time are calculated 1 st of March 31 st of March 15 th of April Note: If commissions accrued on the 15 th do not exceed $50, the amount will continue to carry over month by month until a payment is generated. 40

41 Payment Payments are made when the amount to be paid is higher than US$50. Should the amount in any given month be below this threshold, the outstanding amount will be rolled over to the next month, until it reaches or exceeds the minimum payment limit. You will receive your payment by check in USD via postal mail by default. It is possible to receive monthly payment via direct bank transfer, in various currencies. Please review the EAN EFT Instructions page for further information: 41

42 Online Statistics

43 Stats Reporting We provide you with access to a number of comprehensive reporting tools where you can check transactions and expected commission real time online. At > Affiliate Center > stats, you can access the following tools: STATISTIC TOOLS 1. Account Summary: Gives the you an overview of transactions and expected commission in the current payment cycle. 2. Stats Generator: Provides you with a customizable report which shows all the details of bookings and commission for a period of 45 days. Note: In order to see the Paid column, you must select the Login as Parent check box when logging into Stats. 43

44 Stats Reporting Account Summary For a brief overview of your account s performance for the current month, you can consult the Account Summary. > affiliate center > stats > accounts summary Bookings since Expected commissions: Amount to be expected as commission once the booking is consumed* Confirmed Reservations: Amount in reservations waiting to be consumed Cancelled Reservations: A client may have cancelled after making a reservation. There is no commission for these cancellations Last Check Mailed Shows the history of bookings that were covered by the last payment Amount accrued towards next check This is the total amount of commissions paid during the current month only. In Queue for Help: If we need to contact the hotel to arrange the booking for the client, a reservation will appear here. *Please note this figure only includes commissions earned in the current month 44

45 Stats Reporting Account Summary Last Check Mailed This shows a history of previous check payments. By clicking on each check date you can see a complete list of bookings for that check Important Note Check history is only available for the last 24 months. 45

46 Stats Reporting Stats Generator To generate statistics for a time period of 45 days you can select the parameters of your choice and also chose the type of booking: Option 1: Consumed A customer is considered as having consumed the booking when he/she has checked out of the hotel. By booking day Date when the customer has booked his hotel online/by phone. Option 2: Check Search This will provide details for what commissions have been paid for the specific month selected. 46

47 Stats Reporting Merchant hotels This booking was consumed and therefore commission paid. This commission was paid with a previous check. This booking was made but cancelled (CX) which is why the expected commission is 0$ 47

48 Stats Reporting Agency hotels This hotel was booked through our Call Center Total sales (minus taxes and service fees) in the selected period Total commission to be expected upon check-out Commission to be paid on 15 th of month (if amount equals or exceeds minimum threshold) The commission for this booking will be paid as soon as we have collected payment from the hotel. 48

49 Tax Information It is important that all affiliates complete the EAN Tax information form upon sign up and/or update it on an annual basis so that we can report this income to the IRS and demonstrate that you will pay taxes on this income in your country. Without the correct information on file we are unable to pay you your commission. Therefore you will not be able to proceed in the Affiliate Center until the form has been submitted. If you have questions when filling out the form we recommend that you refer to the FAQ section contained within the form or consult a tax advisor/tax professional. The details of the form depend on whether you are a US citizen/resident or a non US citizen/resident. To complete the appropriate form please click on the link which best describes your residency status, fill in your details and press Submit. 49

50 Marketing

51 Merchandising Central Merchandising Central is an excellent place to build custom widgets, entire web pages, deal feeds, and ready-made campaigns powered entirely by your specifications. Only want to sell properties in New Orleans, that are pet-friendly, have a 4 star and above rating that typically cost under $200 a night? Not a problem! Merchandising Central will help you to offer campaigns based on location, amenities, star ratings, price and much more! We deliver the properties you want as HTML widgets ready to be embedded into your site, feeds based on your choice of XML, RSS or CSV, or entire branded web pages. The options truly are limitless! In order to access and take advantage of Merchandising Central, you ll want to login to the Affiliate Center and click the Marketing tab. 51

52 Contact Information If you have questions or require support integrating EAN into your site, please contact us: We are generally able to respond the same day. Including your CID in all correspondence is helpful. We look forward to hearing from you. Matt Duckworth and Minella Quarto EAN Affiliate Relations 52