If you would like some email going out to a customer there are a few steps involved:

1. create a template (using Newyse - Reports - Templates) containing the content of the email
2. create a report (using Newyse - Reports - Report configuration) which contains some important meta-info
3. send the report
   1. use Notification Manager to automatically send out the email
   2. manually send and email using Reservation Manager
   3. use Newyse - Search Reservation - Print Report

Template

A template is defined to generate the content of an email. Static content can be merged with information from the system. Usually emails are being created in HTML format. Apart from HTML the Velocity engine can be used to write scripts which generate HTML. Tags are available to output information from the system. An example of this is the tag $reservation_arrivaldate which is used to print the arrival date of the current reservation. Much more info about the tags which can be used can be found on the Newyse Templates page

There are three types of templates which have different purposes:

• Layout: These can be used to specify a common header and footer, but they are also useful to define variables which will be used in every template which used this layout
• Sub Template: Use these for parts you want to re-use in other templates. An example of this could be the specification of a bill

Definition Template: this is the main template which is directly connected to a report

A few attributes of a template are important:

• Name: when used in
  • Definition Template (DT): this name will be used in the report configuration
  • Layout Template (LT): this name can (and should) be used in Definition Templates
  • Sub Template (ST): this name will be shown in the template editor and is used within the text of Definition Templates
• Content type: usually HTML
• Context: usually reservation and defines the tags which are available within the template, it indicates the template will be used for reservations
• Subject (only for DT): Subject line of the email, can be defined per Language and can make use of script and tags as well
• Bcc (only for DT):  Blind carbon copy, email-addresses, , can be defined per Language and can make use of script and tags as well. NB: only useful when report is sent from Newyse, attribute is neglected for Maxxton Software.
• Email will be sent to (only for DT): can be one of [Customer, Paying Customer, Agent]. When using Newyse this attribute defines the receiver of the email NB: only useful when report is sent from Newyse, attribute is neglected for Notification Manager. This field also defines the content of the bill lines within the tag $billList, since these can be different depending on who the bill is mean for. 

Report

Once the template has been written it must be 'packaged' in a report. What is shown in Newyse/Reservation Mgr/Notification Mgr/etc. is always the name of the report. Therefore choose a name which makes sense to the user who will actually send the report.

A few attributes of the report are important:

• Name: as already described will be shown to the user who is actually sending out the report
• Document type: this will define at what places the report will be available for sending out. A few possible values are reservation, housekeeping and reminder. Reservation specific should be included if you want to be able to send the report from Reservation Manager.
• Distribution Channel: some places limit the number of reports shown based on this value. If for example a reservation is made by an Online Travel Agent and you would just like to show only reports with specific content for OTA's then define these OTA DC's in this report.

The connection to a template is made by adding a 'URL' to the report. For this URL, the following attributes are important:

• Type: choose E-mail template if you want the template to be sent out as an email. Other types like Cognos report, Jasper report or SMS template are possible, but beyond the scope of this documentation
• Template: this is the name of the template which will be used as content
• URL: the actual URL itself must be Email if you want the template to be sent out as an email

Send the report

There are several ways to send out the report. To manually send an email to the customer for one specific reservation you would probably use Reservation Manager. The email can be sent from the communications area within a reservation. To automate sending emails in bulk or immediately when something happens (for example when an optional reservation becomes definitive) you would configure Notification Manager.

There are also ways to send emails from Newyse, the easiest of which is from the search reservations screen.

Notification Manager

Notification Manager can be used to automate sending reports by means of Tasks. A task consists of 2 parts:

• a (set of) condition(s): if a reservation matches the condition then the report will be created for this reservation
• an action with receiver: the action itself, only email report, + the receiver of the email, which could be anyone involved (customer, agent, owner, location contact, etcetera)

The type of task defines when the report will be sent. This can be Manually, Periodically or when a Change happens.

• Manually: just pick the report you would like to send, select the set of conditions which must apply and press execute to sent out the report for all reservations which match the selected set of conditions
• Periodically: a set of conditions is verified periodically (daily, weekly, hourly, etc.) and the report is sent out for all reservations which match the set of conditions
• Change: when something is changed to a reservation (as specified in the conditions of the task) the report will be sent out for this specific reservation where the change occurred

This was just a very brief explanation of Notification Manager. There are a lot more configuration options which are described here.

Reservation Manager

When working with a reservation within Reservation Manager it is very easy to send an email. The communication tab within the reservation contains all communication which has already occurred and from this screen there is the possibility to send an email, just select a report and press send. More info about Reservation Manager can be found here.