Introduction
This guide has been provided to help you get the most out of using your internet reservation system.
Online reservations and appointments is one of the new growth areas of the Internet. Because it is a new experience for many customers they may be somewhat uncertain of the procedure. As a TimeTaggers subscriber, you can help to ensure their online reservation experience is pleasant, personal and productive. By doing this you will encourage them to return to your reservation system and remain a satisfied customer.
Definitions
We use these terms on our site.
Customer - The person who submits a reservation request.
Subscriber - The person or business that has
subscribed to TimeTaggers and has created their own reservation system.
128-bit SSL Encryption - This is currently the
highest non-military grade of data encryption available. Credit
card data is encrypted when it is processed over the Internet to
protect it from unauthorized use.
Navigation Bar - The navigation bar is located at the
top of each reservation system and is a list of information options
available. These options are:
Appointments - you can create a list of future reservations, listed
by date or name.
Reminders - create reminders that will be displayed to
you during the period you specify.
Setup - the main link to set and change all your TimeTaggers
features and options.
System Control Panel - take control of the all your TimeTaggers
features and options for an account.
Logout - preferred way to end your current TimeTaggers session.
Select from topics below for more information.
Manage your Time
Availability - Days and Times
Manage your Reservations
Location for Reservations
Confirmation of Reservations
Set Reservation Limits for Customers
Set your
Reservations System days in Advance
Remind Customers of their Reservations
Applying
Terms and Conditions to Your Reservations
Manage your Customers
Customer Details and Profile
E-mail Messages
Manage your Account
Your TimeTaggers Profile and Contact Details
Subscription Details
Private or Public Access
Customize your Display
Customizing your Reservation System
Displaying
Your Company Logo (Banner) on Your Reservations Page
General
What software do I need to use TimeTaggers?
Do I need to accept cookies to use TimeTaggers?
Please contact TimeTaggers here if you find a glitch or technical problem
Each TimeTaggers system can be set up for Reservation periods to suit the subscriber. Reservation times for available days, and whole days that will be shown as unavailable (such as weekends), are configured under Setup / Resources / Days Unavailable.
Customers viewing the Reservation system will see the available Reservation times as set by the subscriber. Any appointments already booked by other customers will not appear.
Subscribers may choose to change an available time to unavailable to prevent Reservations being made at this particular time. This is done by clicking Edit Unavailable Times (Green Icon) for each day requiring a setup under Setup / Resources / Show All Resources view. When this is done the Reservation time that has been made unavailable will not appear on the customers view. Top
During the registration process the street address where Reservations are to be held must be entered. If required, after registration a postal address may be added to the subscribers profile by using Options.
The Location address will be shown on all Reservations times within the Reservation system. Top
When customers submit their request for a Reservation they receive an e-mail message confirming their submission has been received. Because TimeTaggers cannot monitor all Reservations subscribers may have, we can only confirm the customers Reservation request, subject to confirmation by the subscriber they have chosen.
In the interest of customer satisfaction it is suggested that each subscriber develop a system for individually confirming the customers Reservation.
The confirmation message to subscribers has been created to allow you to simply forward the message to your customer if required. Top
Set Reservation Limits for Customers
Subscribers can set the limit of Reservations that a customer can make in a session. TimeTaggers recommends that this option should be activated if your Reservation system is open to the public. Top
Set your Reservations System days in Advance
The subscriber can set the customer calendar view of their Reservations system forward from today's date by 1 to 128 days.
Subscribers should activate this option when they require advance notification of customers reservations. Top
Remind Customers of their Reservations
Reminder email about scheduled Reservations can be automatically sent to customers 1,2 or 3 days in advance.
By activating this option customers are alerted to their future reservations with you. Top
Applying Terms and Conditions to Your Reservations
In some cases TimeTaggers subscribers may wish to attach their own Terms and Conditions to their Reservation system. Once this option is activated all customers who make a Reservations request will be asked to accept these Terms and Conditions prior to submitting their Reservations request. If the customer does not accept the Terms and Conditions statement then they cannot submit their Reservation request.
If you wish, you may use this facility to display information that is important for your customers to see, even though the information may not be strictly considered to be terms and conditions.
Remember to consider the customers perspective and choose your Terms and Conditions with care. While this option provides an effective way of ensuring customers understand the terms on which you do business, it would be wise to ensure your terms statement is as customer-friendly as possible. Applying too many, or unduly rigorous, Terms and Conditions may dissuade customers from submitting their Reservation request. Top
To remove unwanted Reservations or reduce the number of Reservations held, Reservations details can be deleted. Once deleted they cannot be retrieved. Top
This option enables you to collect the information you require from your customers at the point they make their Reservations. At present customers may provide the following information: first name, last name, email address, telephone number, fax number, physical address and postal address. As a subscriber you have the option of collecting the parts of this information you consider necessary for you to effectively manage your Reservations. To maintain ease of use for customers it is suggested you do not ask for more details than you really need.
TimeTaggers Privacy Statement outlines our approach to protecting information we hold. We encourage our subscribers to provide the highest level of security possible for the data they receive. Please use TimeTaggers customer data in an appropriate fashion. We do not advocate sending unsolicited email messages to our subscribers or their customers, and we do not recommend sharing information capable of identifying individuals.
All subscribers have the option of adding new customers and creating a Customer Profile for them. The subscriber will need to register the customer and allocate a username and password to that customer. The customer can then access the subscribers Reservation system using the username and password supplied, and change the password if required. Once registered, the username cannot be changed.
When creating a new customer profile the subscriber will need to enter a security question and answer. This question and answer cannot be changed by the customer, so choose an appropriate and relevant topic for the question and answer. Top
When a customer submits their profile or a Reservation request, they will receive an e-mail confirmation at the email destination they provide in their Customer Profile.
Subscribers need to configure their Reservation system so that they receive e-mail confirmations at a convenient destination. TimeTaggers allows subscribers to enter multiple e-mail destinations into their Profile and then select which destinations they require to be used.
Customers will expect that subscribers receive immediate advice of their Reservation request. To provide optimum customer satisfaction it is recommended you keep abreast of your TimeTaggers e-mail messages. E-mail messages may be automatic Reservation request confirmations or customers using your email address (as found in your Profile) for general correspondence. Top
Your TimeTaggers Profile and Contact Details
To ensure your customers can readily contact you it is recommended you maintain the currency of your contact details.
Make it easy for customers to get in touch with you by displaying all relevant information contained in your subscriber Options. Top
At any time a subscriber may view their current subscription details under Options/Subscription Details. This displays account number, number of entries currently in the Reservation system, date currently paid up to and current subscription rates.
In this section credit card details may be changed for the monthly subscription, and the TimeTaggers account may be canceled at any time. Top
TimeTaggers allows you to choose whether you wish your Reservation system to be open to the public or kept private protected by a password.
Public means anyone can access the Reservation system to view and make a Reservation. This is recommended for most businesses. First time customers will need to know either the name or the TimeTaggers URL for the Reservation system they want to access and register with that Reservation system. On subsequent visits the customer will gain access by using the username and password they created when they registered.
Private means you (the subscriber) will need to give out a password for people to view your Reservation system and make a Reservation.
If a Reservation system is marked as private, only people the subscriber has registered with that Reservations system can access it. Usually the subscriber would register those people whom they want to have access. The usernames and passwords created for customers by the subscriber must then be given to each customer. Top
Displaying Your Company Logo (Banner) on Your Reservation Page
To present a consistent company image TimeTaggers subscribers may insert their own logo in the banner space (701x71 pixels) on their Reservation page. Once activated, the subscribers logo image will replace the default TimeTaggers banner.
Under the Setup Profile Tab page you will be able enter the web address or URL from which your image will be drawn to insert into your Reservation system. It is this address and image name you must enter. Top
What
software do I need to use TimeTaggers?
There is no special software required. All you need is an Internet browser.
TimeTaggers has been designed for use with Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5 and above. If viewed through Netscape Navigator some incompatibility problems may be experienced, however most TimeTaggers functions will be available to you. Top
Do
I need to accept cookies to use TimeTaggers?
Yes but only session cookies for your security. To use a TimeTaggers
Appointment Diary you will need to have your browser cookie option set to accept cookies.
No cookies are stored on your computer except the security session cookie while you are
accessing a TimeTaggers system.
Top
Sign up to the TimeTaggers Weekly Newsletter and you will be kept up to date on all the latest updates.