Although there isn't a specific 'tentative' group setting for unconfirmed groups, you are able to create a group and block rooms within the group module if you would like to hold rooms for them.
The below article reviews how to add the group information and block rooms.
Go to Operations > Groups to open the Group Master.
To create a group click on the New button in the Group Master to open the Group Wizard.
Primary
- Fill in the General tab of the Primary section. These can be updated at a later stage if needed
- Note the tabs at the bottom of the window.
- Name – the name of the Group. It is suggested that you differentiate this to show the group is tentative/unconfirmed Eg. TENT Smith group
- Group ID – this is a code that specific to this group. A group code can only be used once so it is important to make it unique to avoid errors when creating future groups for the same company. The suggested format is the initials of the group, followed by the arrival date. This code is mandatory should you wish for the group to be able to book reservations using the eRes Online Booking Engine.
- Client Type – select Client Type for this group.
- Room Charge Code – select Room Charge Transaction Code
- Arrival Date – select the group arrival date
- Nights – input the number of nights the group will be staying
- Departure Date - will auto populate after the Nights are selected
- Guests can arrive and depart outside the block – this section allows you to setup pre & post nights for the group. If you wish to enter pre or post nights, check this box and then enter the number of pre nights next to “Days Before” and the number of post nights next to “Days After”
- Active – check this box to make this Group active
- Cut-off Days – the number of days before the Arrival Date that you would like for the block to release
- Cut-off Type – select if the Group Block is to be released by Whole Block (the entire block will be released on the Cut off Date) or by One Day (the block will release one day at a time beginning with the first date set in the Cut off Date)
- Block Type – select if the Group Block will be Solid (the rooms are taken out of inventory) or Transparent (the rooms are not taken out of inventory)
- Source of Business – select the source of business from the pull down menu
- Attach note - this note will be placed on all picked up reservations under “Reservation Notes”. Typically this note is regarding billing instructions for the group, however you may also like to note here that the reservation is tentative/unconfirmed
Contact & Billing Info
Fill in the Contact & Billing Info tab of the Primary screen. These can be updated at a later stage if needed
- Folio Number - Use the drop down menu next to “Folio number” to select folio number 1 for now
- Address information – fill in the contact information for this group
When finished, select the Post button in the bottom right hand corner of the screen.
Block
The next step is to input the Group Block, the rooms that are being held for this group to book.
In the block tab view, the following fields are viewable:
- Room Type - a list of your active Room Types
- TOT - total inventory for each Room Type
- Avg Rate - the Average Rate (based on the Group Rate attached to the group in the Rates tab)
Then, broken down by Group Dates (this includes pre/post nights)
- INV - Available Inventory for each Room Type on each date
- BLK - Group Block (this number will decrease as reservations are created)
- PUP - Rooms Picked Up (this number will increase as reservations are created)
- REM - Remaining Rooms in Block (BLK - PUP)
Edit Mode
To enter the Group Block, check Edit Mode located in the bottom left hand corner of the screen.
Entering the Block
Proceed to enter Group Block holds under the BLK column for Group Dates (including any pre/post nights). Once Group Block has been entered, select Post to save.
In the example below, Monday, October 26 & Thursday, October 29th are the Pre & Post nights, respectively. In many situations a property may decide to not hold rooms on the Pre & Post nights as there is often no guaranteed pickup for those nights. Instead they may decide to only hold rooms on the nights of the actual group block.
Checking the Totals
Once the block numbers have been entered and saved, we will now see updated block totals at the bottom of the column for each day.
The tentative group is now complete.
Note: It is important that tentative groups are kept up to date:
If the group does not go ahead, the group will need to be canceled to ensure that it is no longer holding inventory
If the group goes ahead, the group will need to be updated and completed correctly based on it's specific requirements: