Template Builder

To edit or add a template, go to:

1. Communications
2. Template Builder

The table displays the configured templates grouped into two tabs: Automation Templates and Standard Templates. The selected tab is highlighted in blue:

Automation Templates are any templates that can be used with the CRM - Automation Rules. Standard Templates are any templates that cannot be used with the CRM, and must be sent out manually via the distribution list or reservation.

To view information about the categories and types of templates, please click on 'Category Guide' to open the following window:

The grid displays the templates that have been configured.

The system comes with several default templates that can be used as a starting point or good example. These templates can be completely customized, or new templates can be created.

1. The column headers display the Description, Email Subject Line, the Category and which versions of the template are configured:  HTML (Email), SMS (Text), and/or Airbnb/Vrbo.
2. Click "New Template," to create a new email or SMS template
3. To create the default system templates, click "Create Default Templates"
4. Click the 'edit' icon to edit the template or the 'trash' icon to delete a template

Grid Columns:

• Description: name of the template for internal reference
• Email Subject Line: this is what the email recipient sees when the email is sent to their inbox
• Category: determines which distribution list to send the email to
• HTML (Email): Read-only checkbox to indicate an email version of this template is configured
• SMS (Text): Read-only checkbox to indicate an SMS version of this template is configured
• Airbnb/Vrbo: Read-only checkbox to indicate an Airbnb Message or Vrbo Inquiry version of this template is configured

Email & SMS templates can be created, stored and sent directly from CiiRUS. The templates are used to send personalized emails or texts to selected guests, owners, staff and sales leads. The CRM would trigger the template to automatically send specific emails to a selected a group of individuals when certain conditions are met.

It is recommended to create the following six mailers to be sent to the guest throughout the booking process:

• Thank You for Quoting
• Guest Booking Confirmation
• Guest Portal Information
• Payment Reminder
• Arrival Instructions
• Thank You for Staying with Us

In addition to the above six mailers that can be sent throughout the booking process, there are endless ways to use the CRM to communicate with guests and within your organization. Some other examples of CRM Mailers include:

• Email blasts to owners or staff
• Happy anniversary or birthday emails to past or future guests
• Upsell a Reservation Extra such as insurance or equipment rentals
• Post-departure surveys or reviews
• Owner booking notifications
• Cancelled booking notifications to property manager or guest
• Notification to reservation team to deliver a “welcome pack” that the guest purchased online

To create a new template, select "New Template" and specify the following:

1. Choose an existing template to copy from to save time. This will copy all versions of the selected template to the new one
2. Enter a description, email subject line and category
3. Click 'Save'

The new template will either appear in the Automation tab or the Standard Templates tab depending on the selected category. To edit the template, click the 'edit' icon:

The template editor will appear. The white window on the right is where the content will be added with the tokens. To the left, a list of available tokens will appear.

Please note, when editing an automation template, there are three versions of it. One or more versions can be configured per template. For example, you could have an email and an SMS template set up for arrival information.

A token is essentially a smart-tag that will dynamically populate with the data once the email/SMS is sent. For example, the token [bookingid] will display the actual Booking ID for the applicable booking.

The template is made up of static and dynamic content.

For example in the image below, the sentence "Thank you for booking with us!" is static and will remain the same in every email that is sent. Whenever a token is used, this information will be dynamic data where it will differ depending on the message being sent.

To apply a token, place the cursor where the token should populate, and then double-click on the applicable token from the list.

The tools at the top are similar to Microsoft Word where images, hyperlinks and tables can be inserted, and fonts and colors can be styled:

In addition to using the CiiRUS email template designer, templates can be created in the likes of MailChimp that offer pre-designed email templates that are fully customizable and mobile-responsive.

HTML code can be imported into the CiiRUS email template designer and saved with the tokens.

To import the code, follow these easy steps:

1. Copy the entire HTML code/page for the applicable template
2. Create a new template in CiiRUS following the steps above
3. Click the "three-dot" icon and select "Edit Template"
4. From the tools at the top, select the HTML icon
5. Paste the code and then click on the HTML icon again to go back to the preview mode
6. Click "Save"

In addition to automating emails to the guests, the CRM also allows automated SMS text messages to be sent to the guest or a specific phone number.

A first contact message will be sent to the recipient when the number being messaged has not been contacted by the system in the past 365 days. If the recipient has been contacted within this time, the first contact message will not send again.

To add the SMS Guest Opt-In text message:

1. Click "New Template"
2. Apply the “SMS Guest Opt-In” category
3. Save

Currently, the following tokens are supported for the SMS Template:

[guestid]

[guesttitle]

[guestfirstname]

[guestlastname]

[guestfullname]

[companyname]

[companytelephone]

[companyemail]

[domain]

Templates specific to Airbnb bookings or Vrbo inquires can be created here using the 'Automaton Template' category. Follow the steps above on how to create a new template and add the content within the 'Airbnb/Vrbo' version.

These are plain text only which means no HTML is permitted.

For standard templates, email blasts can be sent via the distribution list based on the email category. For example, you could send an email blast to all future guests or all past guests not attached to a reservation. To do so follow these steps:

1. Create a new template and categorize it accordingly. For example, 'Email to All Past Guests'
2. Configure the template with the content and tokens
3. When you are ready to send, click the 'ellipses' icon and select 'Send an Email Blast'

As a reminder, the tokens will not populate until the email/SMS is sent out. A test can be sent by setting up a rule in the Automation Rules if it is a "Automation Template" category and set to send to the property manager's email address. Once tested, the CRM rule can be changed to send to the guest or owner.