beGadget Booking Timer Integration

 

The beGadget Booking Timer applies itself to all accommodation items added to a shopping cart, whereby the product within the cart is  reserved until the session expires.

During this time, no one else will be able to book the product that has been added to the shopping cart, thereby guaranteeing the booking and providing a better user experience.

An option to extend the time is also provided for those who need more time to complete their booking.

 

Best Practice Implementation

In order to view and prepare for these upcoming changes, beDigital recommends the following best practice:

1. Ensure the destination enables the Booking Timer via their Bookeasy Staff Console.  The beGadgets timer is disabled by default, but can be activated via Administration > Booking Administration > Booking Timer Reserved Cart Defaults. 
   
   
   
   
   

   There are 3 defaults:

   Reserve for
   This is the default number of minutes added to the Booking Timer when a customer adds a new item to their shopping cart.  Options range from Disabled to 60 minutes.

   Warning at
   When the Booking Timer countdown has less time remaining than the amount indicated by this value, the customer will be given the option to extend the Booking Timer if they "need more time". There is no limit to the number of times a customer may extend the Booking Timer, however the button is only available when the timer value is less than this default value.

   Extend by
   This value represents the number of extra minutes that will be added to the Booking Timer when the customer indicates that they "need more time". 
   
   

2. When testing this new gadget feature on a development / staging / UAT / testing server, ensure the beGadgets have been installed as per the live Production website's template.  If you require a beGadget Authorisation key so that the beGadgets display, contact beDigital and provide us with your staging domain.
   
   
3. For those without a development / staging / UAT / testing server for testing (only a live production website), the web developer will  need to apply and review the integration directly on the live website.
   
   
4. To enable the Booking Timer with the default options, only one parameter will need to be inserted into the Cart Gadget, and the Booking Gadget, 
   
   e.g. showBookingTimer: true
   
   Please note, if the  BE.gadget.cart gadget has been installed on more than one page then it will be necessary to add the booking timer parameters to each instance separately.
   
   It is also possible to customise the Booking Timer text labels as shown by the code sample below. 
   
   Example code snippet:
   
   <script src="//gadgets.impartmedia.com/gadgets.jsz?key=YOUR-API-KEY" type="text/javascript"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
  $w(function() {    

    BE.gadget.cart.text.cartReserved  =  'Complete your booking in {0}';
    BE.gadget.cart.text.cartExtend  =  'I need more time';
    BE.gadget.cart.text.cartExpired  =  'Your cart has expired';
    BE.gadget.cart.text.cartReserve  =  'Attempt to reserve cart';

    BE.gadget.cart('#cart-example',{
    vcID:XX,
    showBookingTimer: true,
    bookingURL:'insert URL to booking gadget here'
    });
  });
</script>



5. After adding the Booking Timer on the destination website, check how it looks by first adding an item to the shopping cart and then proceeding through to the checkout / booking gadget page. And don't forget to check that all pages containing the shopping cart gadget have been configured correctly.
   
   

6. If required, customise the styling of the Booking Timer via your own CSS rules.
   
   

7. If required, customise the text defaults for your Booking Timer using JavaScript override variables used in the sample above.
   
   

8. If your website has a responsive template or a dedicated "mobile site", please double check the Booking Timer is displaying correctly on small screen devices.

 

 

How much time will my developer need to implement and style the Booking Timer?

Your web developer will require approximately 1-2hrs in order to properly implement and style the Booking Timer onto your destination website. 

 

Where can I go for help and support?

 

Please direct all queries to bedigital@bookeasy.com.

1. beGadget documentation
   http://gadgets.impartmedia.com/doc/
2. beGadget functionality settings and recommended parameters
   http://www.bookeasy.com/bedigital/digital/implementation