Managing Channel API Mappings

A channel company is a collection of information from a company’s Dashboard, which can be used by an OTA like Expedia to sell that company’s items.

To add a channel company:

1. Go to Settings > Build > Integrations > Channel.
2. Click Add channel company.
3. Enter the channel company name. This should be the name of the company whose Dashboard you are working with; for example, Dolphin Quest. In some cases, channels may show this name to the end customer, so don’t include anything you wouldn’t want the public to see.
4. Enter the channel or OTA name in the SKU field (ex. Expedia).

5. Fill out additional settings as necessary:

   1. If setting up Expedia, check the box Visible to Expedia
   2. If setting up Google, do NOT check the box Visible to Google. This should only be selected by the @connectivity_team as this sets the integration live.
   3. If setting up TripAdvisor Experiences/Viator, enter the Viator supplier ID and API key

6. Click Create

Since different distribution channels have different requirements, you will always need to set up separate channel companies. This is where the SKU comes in handy, allowing you to identify which company is for which channel.

If the company you’re setting up also sells items for one or more FareHarbor companies, you can add these companies under External Company Mappings.

This also comes in handy for companies with multiple Dashboards, like Dolphin Quest. To add an external company mapping, click Edit next to the channel company, then follow the steps below.

1. Under External Company Mappings, click Add company.
2. Use the Choose a company dropdown to search and select the company you want to add.
3. Click Create.
4. Repeat these steps for any additional companies.

Note: The External Company mappings feature cannot be used for the Google integration.

Channel items are the item names provided to the API user, or channel. These may be the same as the item names in the Dashboard, or they can be adjusted to fit the channel’s setup (for example, a “Whale Watching” channel item can represent multiple Dashboard items, like “Morning Tour,” “Afternoon Tour,” and “Evening Tour”).

To add a channel item:

1. Click Edit next to the channel company.
2. Under Channel Items, click Add channel item.
3. Enter the Channel Item name (SKU is optional).

4. Update the following settings, if necessary:

   • General admission: The item has no specific start or end time (e.g. museum tickets)

   • Flexible end time: The item has a specific start time, but no specific end time

     Note: You cannot have both General admission and Flexible end time selected for the same item.

5. If setting up a TripAdvisor Experiences/Viator integration, enter the Location name and UN/LOCODE (otherwise, leave blank).

6. Always leave the “Action Link” field as blank. This field is used for the Google TTD. integration and is automatically filled in and sent to Google even though you do not see it filled in.
7. Click Create.

8. Repeat these steps for any additional channel items.

   

Each channel item now needs to be mapped to one or more associated Dashboard items, and will also need to be set up with customer types and availability options. Item mappings connect the channel item to one or more items from a FareHarbor Dashboard.

To map the channel item:

1. Click Edit next to the channel item name.
2. Under Item Mappings, click Add item mapping.
3. Using the dropdown, select the Dashboard item the channel item should be mapped to.
4. Click Create.
5. Repeat these steps for any other Dashboard items that need to be mapped.

Note: The items shown in the dropdown are based on the company whose Dashboard you’re updating, as well as any external company mappings that have been added.

To Duplicate the Channel Item:

1. Click Edit next to the channel item name.
2. Click on Channel Item Settings.
3. Scroll to the bottom of the Channel item settings and click “Duplicate”.

Note: Clicking the duplicate button will duplicate the channel item at the stage the mapping is in.

Channel customer types depend on what customer/ticket types the OTA. Sometimes they will be the same as the customer types on the company’s FareHarbor Dashboard, but other times, they will need to be mapped to a specific set of options. Be sure to know what options the channel offers before creating your channel customer types.

To add a channel customer type:

1. Under Channel Customer Types, click Add channel customer type.
2. Type in a name for your channel customer type (for example, Adult).
3. Optional: Enter a SKU if you want to specify a different internal name.

4. Fill out additional settings as necessary:

   1. If setting up GetYourGuide, select a GetYourGuide ticket category
   2. If setting up TripAdvisor Experiences/Viator, select a Viator ticket category
5. Click Create.
6. Repeat these steps for any other channel customer types you are adding.

To map the channel customer type:

1. Click Edit next to the channel customer type.
2. Click Add customer type mapping.
3. Using the dropdown, select the Dashboard customer type the channel item should be mapped. to
4. Click Create.
5. Repeat these steps for any other customer types you want to map.

The customer types shown in the dropdown are based on the Dashboard items that have been mapped above.

Channel options are the booking options that the channel will be offering. These options are then mapped to specific availabilities.

To add a channel option:

1. Under Channel Options, click Add channel option.
2. Type in a name for your channel option.
3. Optional: Enter a SKU if you want to specify a different internal name.
4. Click Create.
5. Repeat these steps for any other options you want to add.

To map the channel option:

1. Click Edit next to the Channel Option.
2. Click Add.

3. Optional: Enter parameters for mapping Dashboard availabilities:

   • Starts between: Map only availabilities that occur during a certain timeframe
   • Hours long: Hours long: Map availabilities with a specific length. Leave this section blank unless instructed by @connectivity_team.
   • Item: Map only availabilities from a specific item. Leave this section blank unless instructed by @connectivity_team.
   • If mapping for GetYourGuide, only create the option as an all day availability.

4. Click Create

After clicking Create, you’ll see a notification at the top of the page indicating how many availabilities will be mapped with the parameters you’ve chosen. If needed, click Edit to adjust an existing option mapping, or click Add to add another mapping.

• The names assigned to channel companies, channel items, channel customer types, and channel options can be used for many purposes, including customer-facing information on OTA websites. For this reason, make sure that the names you choose make sense, and avoid making significant changes to them.

• Whenever we update data in the Channel API, that data is immediately available to the API user. How and when that data is updated on the channel website is up to the specific API user, so you may not see an update right away.

• Channel companies/items/customer types/options should only be deleted if considered inactive, invalid, or unavailable. Most API users will be able to detect when channel items and options are added/deleted, but they may not be able to detect when channel customer types or companies are deleted.

• Use caution when making changes on Dashboards that use an API. Here’s a list of actions that can break the integration (meaning customers might not be able to make bookings on the channel’s website).

• Clients using the Channel API should be reminded that they need to contact us if they need to make changes to items/availabilities that have been mapped. Here is the external documentation that you can share with clients.

• For companies with TripAdvisor Review Express enabled, TA Review Express emails will not be sent to customers whose bookings were made through the Channel API.