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Bookings

Introduction 

The contents of this manual details what you need to do in order to set up bookings in the Merac back office software. This guide details from start to finish what needs to be done in the software before you can take bookings. Please note that without following all the steps detailed in this manual, you will not be able to take bookings. Bookings are generally used where you either (i) do not have any capacity management requirement for a specific bookable ticket ('Bookable Resource' in Merac), capacity essentially is "unlimited" and not restricted to any maximum  (ii) or you have a set capacity for a specific 'Bookable Resource', for example you have a generic 'Day Ticket' but you can only sell 2000 per day. 

Where there is the requirement to strict manage the capacity so that (i) a combination of ticket types make up the capacity, e.g. the capacity is 2000 but is made up of Adult Child and Concession day tickets (ii) or where there are multiple times throughout the day for an event / activity and time needs need a capacity (that can be the same or unique per time), then this is typically set up using 'Sessions'. Setting up 'Sessions' to be booked / sold  in-house and online is covered in a separate user guide. This would be typical for capacity managed day tickets where there are multiple ticket types making up the capacity, for example guided tours and trains running multiple times per day, "Santa's Grotto" tickets etc.

Creating New Price Lookups (PLU’s)

First you need to create all the required PLU’s that can be booked.

To do this click on 1. ‘Setup’, then 2. ‘Pricing’, then 3. double click on the ‘New PLU/Stock Wizard’ icon.

Creating a New Admission Ticket PLU

First select the type of PLU you wish to create using the wizard.

For this example, click on the circle to the left of ‘Admission Ticket’ to select it.

Click on the ‘NEXT’ button.

Click in the ‘Short description’ and enter the PLU description required.

The ‘Short Description’ is the description that shown on the till and on receipts.

This should be limited to 20 characters and should not include any punctuation.

The ‘Long Description’ field is auto populated with the same information typed in the ‘Short Description’ box. The ‘Long Description’ is used on the reports in the Merac back office software, To modify this click in the ‘Long Description’ box and amend the info in the relevant fields as required.

Now you must now specify the ‘Pricing Type’.

In this specific example we have selected ‘Do not allow’.

This option means the price of the PLU cannot be manually changed by anyone at the till.

Now select the required ‘Analysis Code’ by clicking on the dropdown selector (to the right of 'Sales Analysis Code')

Alternatively, use the ‘Analysis Codes’ button if you are familiar with how to select an ‘Analysis Code’ using this way.

From the dropdown list that appears, click on the required ‘Analysis Code’ to select it.

In the above example we selected the ‘Analysis Code’ called Admissions.

  

Now select the required ‘VAT code’ by clicking on the dropdown arrow (to the right of the test  ‘VAT code’).  

From the dropdown list that appears, select the ‘VAT code’ you require (in this case 'S' for "Standard" rate was selected)

Click in the ‘Sell Price (Inc Vat) and type in the required selling price for this PLU (e.g. £10.00 is entered as 10.00). Next select the ‘Price Valid from:’ and ‘Price Valid to:’ dates as required. Please note if you want to start selling tickets from today (or a specific date) then the ‘Price Valid from:’ will need to be set to this date. Please note if this has bee set to a future  for testing purposes you may need to edit this date to be able to test selling a ticket, then put it back to the required date after testing.

To do this click on the arrow to the right of ‘Price Valid from:’ and the date selector calendar appears.

Click on the text for the month (e.g. click on the text 'March' in the below example). 

The month selector appears automatically. Click on the required month in the month pop-up to select it.

Next click on the text for the year (in this example click on the text '2025' at the top of the pop-up)

You will see the up / down arrow selector appear to increase / decrease the year as required. Finally click on the date (in the selected month and year) that you want to start selling this ticket from. his will define the date and the process this ticket can be sold from this ticket can be sold from. Repeat the process to change the ‘Price valid to:’ date as required. This defines the last date that this ticket can be sold at the price specified.

Please note he default price validity is for 10 years from the date the PLU was created, but you can set these dates to be as required. If there is no foreseeable price change or these tickets can be sold year round at this price, then you may want to set the end date to be way into the future (e.g. 31/12/2099). If tickets for an event can only be sold on certain dates e.g. from today (or from a specified date in the future ) until the day of the event only, then set the 'from' and 'to' dates as required. 

Please note when setting up a PLU in the Wizard you can only enter the first 'from' / 'to' price only as required. If you have a different prices for next year already, then additional prices for future dates can be added later by editing the PLU. This is referred to by Merac as "Price Breaks" and this is covered in a separate guide. This allows for one PLU code to hold multiple prices for when prices change annually for a ticket / event. This also allows for seasonal price changes, such as low, mid and high season price differences etc. This negates the need for adding multiple PLU codes for annual / seasonal price changes. However if your business decides you need separate PLU codes for price differences for its own reporting purposes this can be done, but this means you will have to create and multiple PLUs with similar codes / descriptions. New PLUs will also need to be assigned to the till screen button immediately prior to it being sold at the new price and the updates sent to the tills. This is all avoided by having one PLU code with multiple "Price Breaks" as the price will update automatically as specified.

For customers that have purchased a financial integration or need to map Merac 'Nominal Codes' to PLU data for reporting purposes, then (if required) a first and second 'Nominal code' can be assigned to a PLU using the 'Nominal Codes'  dropdowns. Financial integrations and 'Nominal Codes'  mapping are outside the scope of this manual, if required please contact your Customer Success Manager and they will be able to provide a quote for your training needs.

Click on the ‘Next’ button once all the data has been entered.

If ‘Gift Aid’ is not to be claimed for this PLU, then leave this box un-ticked.

If ‘Gift Aid’ is to be claimed for this PLU, then click in this box so a tick appears in it.

If the ‘Gift Aid?’ box is ticked, you also need to specify whether you add an extra donation.

N.B. if the ‘Gift Aid’ price includes an extra donation (i.e. the with gift aid price is higher), then click in this box so it is ticked.

Please note the 'Tour / Session  ticket' options are not covered in this manual as this is specifically covering NON SESSION based bookings set up. Setting up Session based bookings is covered in a separate guide.

Now you must specify the footfall quantity to be recorded against this PLU as required.

To do this click in this box and type in the required footfall (as a number, e.g. 1).

If a ticket is to be printed when this admission PLU is sold, then click on the dropdown arrow to the right of 'Ticket type 1:'. 

From the list of available ticket types that appears, click on the required ticket design to select it.

 

Colleagues that have had ticket design training will need to set these designs up before you set up the PLUs, so you can select the required ticket design. Merac provides some basic "template" ticket designs but these will no doubt need to be modified to add text, logos and content to meet your business needs. If you need training on designing tickets, please contact your Customer Success Manager and they will be able to provide a quote for your training needs.

If required a second ticket design can be printed on selling this PLU. If so repeat the process using the dropdown to the right of 'Ticket Type 2:'. This could be used for printing a promotional offer but is often used only for train tickets where an outbound and return ticket is needed for travel.

Now click on the ‘Next’ button to continue.

Type in the code for the new admission PLU in the 'Code / Barcode:' field.

Please use an alpha-numeric code when creating your own codes for PLUs. Simply decide on your own PLU coding system and ensure that all people entering new PLU’s use the same PLU coding system.

The ‘Sell Unit’ Section is non-applicable for admission items so leave this as ‘Each’.

Once you have typed in the required code, then click on the ‘Add’ button.

Next click on the ‘Finish’ button to finish adding this PLU.

You will then see the following screen. Now click on the ‘OK’ button.

You have now set up one admission PLU for called “SUMMER EVENT ADULT ENTRY” at £10.

You will now be taken back to the wizard screen.

To create the other ‘Admission Ticket’ PLU’s for the summer event,

Click on the ‘Next’ button and repeat the procedure to create all the other PLU’s required.

 For example, for the summer event we may create the following PLU’s:

A PLU called “SUMMER EVENT ADULT ENTRY”, priced at £10.00 (as detailed in the above example).

A PLU called “SUMMER EVENT SENIOR ENTRY”, priced at £8.00.

A PLU called “SUMMER EVENT CHILD ENTRY”, priced at £4.00.

In our example on the previous pages we used the wizard set up an ‘Admission Ticket’ type PLU.

Please note that exactly the same procedure would be followed to create a:

  • Non-Stocked Item.
  • Admission Ticket.
  • Bookable Item.
  • Membership Item.
  • Hire Item.

You must first select the type of PLU you want to create.

To set up any other type of item using the wizard, you simply first select the required item.

For example, to set up a new ‘Non-Stocked Item’, first click the circle to the left of the text ‘Non-Stocked Item’.

Then you simply click on the ‘Next’ button and follow the screens as per the previous example. 

The exception is when setting up a ‘Stocked Item’ using the wizard. Stock Items are usually sold using the 'Online Shop Module' (if this module has been purchased), so such items may not be required to be set up at this point If so, simply proceed to Section 3.

If stock items are required, then setting up a ‘Stocked Item’ using the wizard contains additional screens.

An example of how to use the wizard to create a ‘Stocked Item’ PLU is detailed in Section 2.2.

Creating a Stocked Item

Click on the circle to the left of the text ‘Stocked Item’ so that it is selected.

 

Using the dropdown selector to the right of ‘Item Group’, select the ‘Item Group’ this item will be in for Stock Reports.

If an appropriate ‘Item Group’ is not available a new one can be added via the ‘Item Groups’ button.

In the ‘Stock Description’ field enter the required description for the stock system / reports.

This can be different to the description used by the sales reports, these descriptions are added later in this process.

Please note that in this manual only outlines the set-up of the simplest stock item, where the pack size of the stock unit is set as ‘Each’. This means that all purchase orders and adjustments of stock will be done as single units (‘Each’). So, for this example the stock unit must be set to ‘Each’.

The ‘Pack Size’, ‘Weight’, ‘Size’ and ‘Bin Location’ can be entered as required and are for information purposes only.

These are not required in this example, so these entries are left blank.

The ‘Valuation Group’ is only used for the ‘Stock Valuation Report’, each stock item can be assigned to only one ‘Valuation Group’. This enables the Stock Valuation report to be filtered by the ‘Valuation Group’. Either select the required ‘Valuation Group’ from the dropdown list, or if you do not require one simply select ‘Not Defined’.

If a new valuation group is required, this can be added by clicking on the ‘Lookup Units’ button located to the right hand side of the ‘Valuation Group’ box. Ideally these should have been set up in advance in Setup > Stock > Item Groups.

Once the required valuation group has been selected, click on the ‘Next’ button.

If you want to use the ‘Stock Re-Order Report’ in Merac and to generate recommended purchase orders, then you must enter the required information in these boxes. If you do not wish for the software to generate automatic recommended purchase orders or the ‘Stock Re-Order Report’, then you simply leave these boxes blank.

The explanation of each of these fields is given below.

‘Re-order level:’

The number you enter here is the number of single items (not packs) that the Stock must fall below, in order for it to appear on both the software’s (i) ‘Stock Re-Order Report’ and (ii) when generating recommended purchase orders.

‘Re-order qty:’

The number you enter here is the number of single items (not packs) that will be re-ordered if the stock falls below the ‘Re-order level’ you specified. Once the item falls below this level it will appear on both the software’s (i) ‘Stock Re-Order Report’ and (ii) also when generating recommended purchase orders.

‘Maximum qty:’

The software will automatically calculate this value for you based on the ‘Re-order level’ and ‘Re-order qty’ you specify. The number here is the maximum number of single items (not packs) that you want to have in stock of this item at any time. The software will automatically warn you if you attempt to order / adjust stock of this item that will exceed the number you specified in ‘Maximum qty’. You can manually edit this number if required.

If you do not require to use either the ‘Stock Re-Order Report, or for generating recommended purchase orders in the Merac back office software, then simply leave the above boxes blank.

Now click in the ‘Standard cost:’ box and enter the usual cost of “buying in” a single item.

N.B. do not enter the cost for the pack here, it is the cost per individual stock item (e.g. one bottle, can or cap)!

So in this example it would be the “buying in” cost for a single baseball cap (e.g. enter £1.23 as 1.23). You will now notice that the software automatically populates ‘Latest Cost’ and ‘Avg cost’ with the figure you entered into the ‘Standard cost’.

The ‘Latest Cost’ is the last cost of purchasing the item from the supplier. If for any reason you wish to enter a different starting ‘Latest Cost’ for this item, click in the ‘Latest Cost’ box and delete the value that is present. Now type in the required cost price in the relevant box.

In this example the ‘Avg cost’ is the average cost of purchasing the item from the supplier. This is a calculated value which the Merac software will recalculate based on historical cost price changes.

Once all the required cost information has been entered, click on the ‘Next’ button.

Select the ‘Main supplier’ for this item by clicking on the dropdown arrow. Ideally these should have all been set up in advance in Setup > Stock > Suppliers. New Suppliers can be added at this point by clicking the Suppliers button.

If required,  enter the supplier’s own code (i.e. catalogue / ordering code) in the 'Main Suppliers Code' field.

If required you can also specify a second, ‘Alternate Supplier’ for this item in the relevant fields (if applicable).

Enter an ‘Alternate suppliers code’ for this item (if required).

Click on the ‘Next’ button once all the necessary data has been entered.

You will now see the below screen that you are familiar with, for creating the PLU for this stock item.

In brief when you are in this screen you must do the following:

  1. Enter the required ‘Short description:’.
  2. Enter the required ‘Long description:’.
  3. Select the required ‘Pricing Type:’.
  4. Select the required ‘Sales analysis code:’.
  5. Select the required ‘VAT code:’.
  6. Enter the required ‘Sell price (Inc Vat):’.
  7. Select the required ‘Price valid from:’.
  8. Select the required ‘Price valid to:’.
  9. If required select the 1st and 2nd 'Nominal Codes' (see Section 2.1)
  10. Click on the ‘Next’ button once finished.

If you are unsure about entering any of the above information, please follow the detailed steps in the previous example showing how to create an admission PLU (see Section 2.1).

You will now see the screen below. In this example we are setting up a ‘Stocked Item’

So, in this instance (when setting up a 'Stocked Item') there is no need to do anything in this screen.

Click on the ‘Next’ button to go to the next screen.

You will now see the final screen.

Enter the manufacturer’s barcode for the item in the 'Code / Barcode' field. alternatively if the item does not already have a barcode enter your own code for the item in this field. If using your own codes, we recommend using alpha-numeric codes.  

Once the code / barcode has been entered, click on the ‘Add’ button.

Please note if you have stock of this item that you want to record that you have a specified number of this item, you can enter the quantity you have (in single items not packs) in the 'Opening Quantity' box and select the 'Stock Location' that will be updated with this quantity. This will save you creating an order / delivery of this item to get the stock level correct.

Next click on the ‘Finish’ button which will complete the addition of this PLU.

You will then see the following screen. Now click on the ‘Ok’ button.

You have now set up a stocked item ‘Summer Event Baseball Cap’ at £10.00.

Changing the Selling Price of a PLU

To do this you need to 1. Click Setup 2. click Pricing then 3. double click Price Lookup Index.

If you know the code then you can enter it in the code box and it will find that specific item, on clicking 'Search'. 

To limit the results it is often best to use a combination of search parameters to quickly find the item. In this case using 1. the item 'Category' dropdown and selecting 'Stock Item' from the dropdown limits the results to only 'Stock Items'. Most Merac 'Users' may not remember the code so often it is easiest to search 2. using the 'Description' field. If you know the item started with a word, then you can also search for all PLU’s that start with a certain word. For example, if you type SUMMER in the ‘Description’ box. However, it is often best to search for all PLU’s that contain a certain word, to do this you must type the % symbol before the word you wish to search for. For example, type in %SUMMER in the ‘Description’ to show all PLU’s with a ‘Description’ that starts with the word “Summer”.

You can also select / enter data into the other fields to narrow searches down by 'Analysis Code', 'Session Type' (not applicable for non session based bookings as detailed in this guide), 'Selling Unit' and 'Current List Price'.

3. Click the ‘Search’ button, this will show all PLU’s with a ‘Description’ that starts with the word “Summer”.

4. Double click on the item you wish to change the price for (in this case the search only found one record)

You will now see the screen shown below:

To view, or amend the selling price for this item, click on the ‘View/Add Price’ button.

Please note that the price you entered in the wizard, populates the ‘Inhouse Prices’ field.

This is the price that the till will sell this item at. If the selling price of this item was incorrect when sold at the till, click in the ‘Price’ box.  Delete the existing price and type in the new price as required.

Once you have amended the price the ‘Apply’ button to save the changes.

Please note the changes will NOT be at the till until you send the updated price(s) to the till (see Section 4)

You will notice there is also an additional price field for ‘Internet Prices’.

If you have purchased the ‘Online Bookings Module’ from Merac then this is the selling price of the item when it is sold on your Merac Online Ticketing Web Pages. If you have not purchased the ‘Online Bookings Module’, then the ‘Internet Prices’ field can be ignored.

 

If you wish to change the selling price of this item when sold on the internet, enter it in the ‘Internet Prices’ field

The internet price can be lower (or higher) than the price when sold at the till, as required by your business.

Enter the correct price as required, then click on the ‘Apply’ button. Please note this price will not affect your online ticketing pages (if purchased from Merac) until your web pages update process has been carried out. This is covered in Section 11.

In this screen you can also amend the ‘VAT:’ rate (if required) by using the relevant dropdown arrow to select the VAT rate.

If you make any changes you must click on the ‘Apply’ button.

Once all the required changes have been made, then click on the ‘Close’ button.

At the next two screens click on the ‘Close’ button.

Please note you can also add any future price changes for the PLU (e.g. if you know the price changes next year), these are called "Price Breaks" this is outside the scope of this manual and is covered in another user guide.

Sending PLU Changes to the Tills

From the main menu select ‘Edit’ then ‘Recreate Till Data’.

If you wish to send these changes to all tills, then just proceed to the next step.

If you wish to send to selected tills, then click on the ‘+’ symbols until you see all tills.

You can then right mouse click on a specific till to deselect it. Right mouse clicking on the same till again will select it.  

Once all the required tills are selected, click on the ‘Apply’ button to send the updates to all tills.

You will now see a progress bar in the middle of the screen, like the one below.

Once all the changes have been sent to the tills, you will see the following screen. Click on ‘OK’.

Creating a New ‘Calendar Period’

Next you must create a ‘Calendar Period’ for this event, this specifies the dates on which this event can be booked. This will enable you to prevent items being booked outside of the agreed dates. In our example the summer event may run from 1st June until 31st August, so in this example you would set up a calendar that specifies these dates. This will allow bookings only to be made for the dates of the event. But we first recommend you check with your colleagues if a  calendar has already been created that can be used for your event to avoid duplication.

If not, then to create a new calendar 1. click Setup 2. click Bookings then 3. double click Calendar Periods.

You will see a screen like the one showing below. Click on the ‘New’button.

At the next screen that appears, again click on the ‘New’button. 

 In the 'Code:' field type in an appropriate for this calendar (e.g. SUMEVENT1)

Next click in the ‘Description: field and enter an appropriate description for this calendar (e.g. Summer Event).

Once both the ‘Code:’ and ‘Description:’ have been entered, click on the ‘Apply’ button at the bottom.

Next click on the ‘Close’ button.

You will now see the new blank calendar.

The next step is to select the required dates for the event you are setting up.

  Now use “click and drag” to select the required dates. To do this:

  • Left mouse click on the first date but keep the left mouse button pressed down.
  • Now drag the mouse across to the last date in the range of dates that you require.
  • Now release the left mouse button (known as “click and drag”).

           (if this has been done correctly the selected dates should now be highlighted yellow - see below).

  • Now click on the ‘Select’ button, the selected range of dates now be highlighted green.

You will see a screen like the one below, showing the range of dates you selected highlighted in green.

Repeat the steps on the previous page, so that the entire date range you require is highlighted green.

Once all the required dates have been selected, click on the ‘Apply’ button.

Please note that the dates you selected on this calendar were for the current year only.

You will notice that the year selector has now become active.

If the event runs on the same dates every year, you can repeat the procedure to select the dates for future years as required.

Simply click on the year dropdown arrow selector and select the next year from the list that appears.

Now repeat the procedure explained on the previous pages to specify the required dates for this year.

Repeat these steps to select the dates for every year as required, click on the ‘Close’ button.

You have now created your new ‘Calendar’ and you will be taken back to the bookings setup screen.

Creating New ‘Time Slots’

Now you must create a ‘Time Slot’ for this event. A ‘Time Slot’ is set up to reflect your event times, which could be your opening times or a smaller time window as required. Please note this is not used in any way to refuse entry based on anyone coming outside the booking time, it is just the time that that booking will be recorded against in Merac. For the summer event scenario, we will set up a time slot to reflect the normal opening times (as 9 am to 5 pm). So, in this scenario you would set up a new ‘Time Slot’ to specify these times. Please note that you should first check to see if a suitable ‘Time Slot’ has already been created that can be used for your event.

If not, then to create a new calendar then 1. click Setup then 2. click Bookings 3. then double click Time Slots. 

You will see a screen like the one showing below. 

Click on the ‘New’button (under file in the top left corner of the screen)

At the next screen that appears, again click on the ‘New’button.

Click in the ‘Code’ box and type in required code for this ‘Time Slot’.

Click in ‘Description’ box and type in required description for this ‘Time Slot’.

Once these have both been typed in, click on the ‘Apply’ button. Now click on the ‘Close’ button.

You will now see a screen like the one below.

Please note by default the time slots appear in hourly increments.

If you want the time slot for this event to start on the half hour, then select the required ‘Time Scale:’ from this dropdown list (e.g. ‘30 min’). This will be required if e.g. your "booking day" runs from 9:30 am to 4:30 pm.

Next you can use “click and drag” (as explained in Section 5) to select the required times.

Click on the row representing the start time and drag the cursor to the row for the end time.

The selected rows will now be highlighted yellow as shown below.

With the rows highlighted yellow, now click in the ‘Description’ box.

Type in a relevant ‘Description:’ for the time slot, e.g. ‘Summer Event Times’.

Now click on the ‘Select’ button.

The selected times for this ‘Time Slot’ will now be highlighted green displaying the description.

Next click on the ‘Apply’ button and then ‘Close’.

Creating New Bookable Resources

In order to enter bookings using the Merac back office software, a ‘Bookable Resource’ needs to be set up for every item that can be booked. We will now create bookable resources using the PLU’s you created in Section 2.

To create ‘Bookable Resources’, click on 1. Setup then 2. Bookings then double click on 3. Bookable Resources 

You will now see a screen like the one shown below.

First you must select the type of bookable resource you wish to create from the PLU’s created earlier.

To select the type of bookable resource you wish to create using the 'Resource Type' dropdown selector.

Select the ‘Resource Type’ relevant to the bookable resource you are setting up. For example, if we are creating bookable resources for the PLU’s for admission ticket PLU’s that we created earlier, then under ‘Resource Type:’ you would select ‘Admission Ticket’.

So, for our theoretical summer event we would need to set up bookable resources for the following:

  • The PLU with the description “SUMMER EVENT ADULT ENTRY” (priced at £10.00).
  • The PLU with the description “SUMMER EVENT SENIOR ENTRY” (priced at £8.00).
  • The PLU  with the description “SUMMER EVENT CHILD ENTRY” (priced at £4.00).
  • The stock item with the description “SUMMER EVENT BASEBALL CAP”.

First, we will cover how to set up 'Bookable Resources' for all the ‘Admission Ticket’ PLU’s.

To set up 'Bookable Resources' for the admission ticket PLU’s, first you select the ‘Resource Type:’ you are going to set up . For all the admission ticket’ PLU’s, ensure that ‘Admission Ticket’ is picked in the 'Resource Type' dropdown.

Next click on the ‘New’button. .

The first bookable resource we need to set up is for the ‘Admission Ticket’ PLU with the description “SUMMER EVENT ADULT ENTRY”. The first step is to click the arrow to the right of 'Unit Price'.

This will open the 'Prices Index' screen. Input the search criteria for the PLU.

In this case the PLU code we created earlier was entered in 'Scan/Enter Code' field. Next click the ‘Search’ button.

In the list of search results, click the PLU for this bookable resource (e.g. ‘SUMMER ADULT ENTRY’).

The required PLU will be highlighted, now click the ‘Use Selected PLU’ button.

You will now notice that the price of the selected PLU is now showing in the 'Unit Price' field

The 'Code:' and 'Description:' fields have populated with that of from the PLU (if required these can be changed)

Next, enter the ‘Number Available’. This is the quantity of this ‘Bookable Resource’ available per ‘Time Slot’ .If a limit is not required, you can enter ‘9999’ in this field (i.e. where no capacity management is needed). Alternatively if a capacity is needed for this specific ticket type, enter the number as required (e.g. 1000)

Now click on the arrow next to ‘Dates Available’, this brings up a list of all ‘Calendar Periods’.

From the list that appears, simply select the required ‘Calendar Period’ (as set up in Section 5).

Important note: do not select the calendar ‘Whole Year’. Select one of the bespoke 'Calendar Periods' you have created.

In this example we will select the calendar period called “Summer Events”.

There are now several options here which you need to select or de-select as required.

‘Show on Diary:’

Click the box to the right of the text ‘Show on Diary’ so that it is tickedif you want this bookable resource to appear on the Merac back office software ‘Diary’ screen (see section 9) when it's booked.

‘Print Times on Documents:’

Click the box to the right of the text ‘Print Times on Documents’ so it is tickedif you want the time that this resource was booked for to  to be included on the default 'Booking Confirmation' letter (report) that is provided with Merac. this can be run as a report or can be provided. This can be run as a report (Report Bookings > Booking Confirmation) or is generated after opening a booking record by (1) clicking the 'Print' button in a booking, or (ii) is used to generate the attachment when clicking the the  'Email Conf' button (that can email a booking confirmation by Outlook - if your company have installed this.

‘Print Values on Documents:’

This is the same as the above, except it adds the time in the same way to the relevant documents. 

‘Allow Booking from Internet:’

This setting only applies if you have purchased Merac's online ticketing module. If not then simply leave this setting un-ticked, as it is not applicable. Click the box to the right of the text ‘Allow Booking from Internet’ so that it is ticked only if you want customers to be able to book this resource on your bookings website. Only applies to customers who have purchased the Online Ticketing Module (e-commerce web pages) from Merac.

‘Named Tickets?:’

This is only for online bookings and is usually only used for birthday party bookings, when you need to record the name of the person the birthday party is for in the booking in Merac. Having this option selected means that when you book this resource online, a box appears in which you can enter a person’s name. To select this option, click the box to the right of the text ‘Named Tickets’ so that it is ticked .N.B. this name is not printed on tickets produced at the till (if applicable) when redeeming the booking.

Part Payment (Online):

This setting only applies if you have purchased Merac's online ticketing module. Part payment can be set on each 'Bookable Resource' as required  to allow part payment when the resource is booked on-line only. Part payment can be set as either percentage of the item price or a specific amount as required. 

‘Edit Booking Letter’ Button’

N.B. if you want to create your own booking letters in Microsoft Word then do not use this option. If you do not how to set up and use Microsoft Word mail merge templates in the Merac, then this would require chargeable training. Please contact your Customer Success Account Manager and they will be able to provide a quote for your training needs.

This option is only used if you want to use Merac's pre-defined single 'Booking Confirmation' letter (report) that is supplied with the Merac back office software and can be sent to a customer form within a booking record or run as a report (in Reports Bookings > Booking Confirmation report). If so, then you can add some additional text but only to specific sections of this letter by clicking on the ‘Edit Booking Letter’ button then you will see screen below. Please note you can only add text to three sections of this predefined Merac 'Booking Confirmation' letter  letter as follows:

Please note you cannot amened the font size, style, or colour, as this is predefined.

Simply type in text as required in each section, then click on the ‘Ok’ button to accept the changes.

Next under the text ‘Times Available’ use the dropdown to select the required ‘Time Slot’ created (see Section 6).

Important note – do not ever select the time slot ‘Whole Day’. Always use a bespoke ‘Time Slot’ you have created.

Please note if different times were offered on different days of the week then you could create multiple  ‘Time Slots’ as required. For Example you could have a 'Summer Event Weekday' and a 'Summer Event Weekend' ‘Time Slot’. You can then pick the ‘Time Slot’ to use for each different day of the week by clicking in the box to the left of the text 'Always' (under 'Times Available', so that that the tick in this box disappears.

The selected ‘Time Slot’ will now appear in every day of the week (see below screenshot). Then use the dropdown selector (to the right of each named day) to select the required ‘Time Slot’ for that day  (e.g. either the 'Summer Event Weekday' and a 'Summer Event Weekend' ‘Time Slot’ as applicable) If there are specific days of the week in which this resource cannot be booked, simply click in the box to the left of the relevant day so the box becomes un-ticked. Once the 'Time Slot'(s) have been selected / deselected as required, click on the ‘Apply’ button.

You have now set up this bookable resource and you will be back at the screen shown below.

Now you would repeat the steps detailed in the previous pages to set up all the other 'Bookable

Resources' that are required. Remember you must first select the correct ‘Resource Type’.

So, for our theoretical event we need to set up:

'Bookable Resources' with the ‘Resource Type’ of 'Admission ticket’ for:

  • The ‘Admission Ticket’ PLU with the description “SUMMER EVENT ADULT ENTRY” (priced at £10.00).
  • The ‘Admission Ticket’ PLU with the description “SUMMER EVENT CHILD ENTRY” (priced at £5.00).
  • The ‘Admission Ticket’ PLU with the description “SUMMER EVENT SENIOR ENTRY” (priced at £7.50).

'Bookable Resources' with the ‘Resource Type’ of 'Stocked Item’ for:

  • A ‘Stocked Item’ PLU with the description “Summer Event Baseball Cap” (priced at £10.00). 

After selecting the relevant ‘Resource Type’, then you would simply click on the ‘New’ button and set up all the other bookable resources in exactly the same way as the example detailed on the previous pages. Each type of bookable resource is explained below, so that you can choose the required type:

 

Admission Ticket:

Select this option for PLU’s set in the wizard as ‘Admission Ticket’ PLU’s.

Hire Item:

Select this option for PLU’s set in the wizard as ‘Hire Item PLU’s. For example, you may create a PLU called “Bike Hire” that you want to create a bookable resource from.

Location:

Select this option for PLU’s set up in the wizard for specific locations that you want to create a bookable resource from (locations would usually be set up as either a ‘Bookable Item’, or ‘Hire Item’ type PLU). For example, you may create a PLU called “Function Room” that you want to create a bookable resource from.

Tour/Session:

This only applies to PLU’S which are linked to Sessions and is not covered in this manual, there is a separate guide on this topic. For your information sessions are (i) when a resource can be booked for a specific time increment. For example there may sessions running every half hour for a specified activity, the first ‘session’ is at 9:00-9:30 am, the second session is at 9:30-10:00 am etc. (ii) For each ‘session’ there is also a maximum availability, for example the 9:00-9:30 am session has an availability of 10 people only etc. (iii) and also multiple different ticket types can make up the session capacity (e.g. the 10 capacity can be a combination of e.g. adult, child and concession tickets).

Non Stocked Item:

Select this option for PLU’s set in the wizard as ‘Non-Stocked Item’ PLU’s.

Person:

Select this option for PLU’s set up in the wizard for specific people that you want to create a bookable resource from, people would usually be set up as either a ‘Bookable Item’, or ‘Hire Item’ type PLU. For example, you may create a PLU called “Tour Guide” that you want to create a bookable resource from.

Stocked Item:

Select this option for PLU’s set in the wizard as ‘Stocked Item’ PLU’s.

Adding / Editing Booking Templates

To create a new ‘Booking Template’ 1. click ‘Setup’ 2. click ‘Bookings’. 3. double click ‘Booking Templates’.

To start creating a new booking ‘Booking Template’, click on the ‘New’button. .

Type in the required name for the template in the ‘Template Name’ box (e.g. “Summer Event”).

Now select the ‘Booking Type’, click on the dropdown arrow here to display the list of options.

Please note these categories are a user definable list and can be set up in Setup > System> Lookup Items.

Most Booking Reports can be filtered by this 'Booking Type'. There is also the ability to extract customer data that made booking in a specific 'Booking type' which can be exported to Excel or used to create Mail Merges to Word directly form Merac. This is covered in a separate guide on 'Member Mailing'

In ‘Dated/Undated’:               Select as required from the available options described below:

‘Open Dated Tickets’:            Select this for “Open Dated” bookings, where bookings are not for a specific date.

                                                The customer can come in (redeem the booking at the till) on any date they like.

‘Date Specified Booking’:      Select this if a booking must be allocated to a specific date.

                                                The customer must specify the date they are coming at the time of booking.

                                                The customer is expected to come in (redeem the booking at the till) the date they booked for.

                                                The till system will warn you if they come in before / after this date.

                                                You then decide based on your policies whether to allow entry or e.g. ask them buy day tickets.

In this example we have selected the ‘Date Specified Booking’ option.

Next you must select the required ‘Template Style’.

In ‘Template Style’ select the required option from the drop-down list here.

Tickets:

This ‘Template Style’ for templates is typically used where there are no capacity management requirements for a specific 'Bookable Resource', so there is no limit on the quantity of a specific ticket type. Typically the this is where the 'Bookable Resource' setting of 'Number Available' would be set to 9999 (as there is no concept of infinity / unlimited in Merac a number needs to be entered).

Please note: if this ‘Template Style’ is used and a 'Bookable Resource' setting of 'Number Available'  is set to a specific quantity (e.g. 1000) it will allow that quantity (1000) to be booked quantity per booking.

Availability/Groups:

This is where you want to manage the capacity of a specific resource to a total number per 'Timeslot'. If this ‘Template Style’  is used it will manage the total quantity that can be booked per 'Timeslot' to the quantity entered in the 'Number Available' setting of each 'Bookable Resource'. So, if the 'Number Available' of a generic 'Event Ticket' has the 'Number Available' set as 2000 on 'Bookable Resource', this would only allow 2000 in total of this specific ticket to be booked into that 'Timeslot' (which is set to be the duration of the event e.g. a 9:00am-5:00pm or as required).

Please note: if an event has multiple times per day it can run, then generally Sessions will need to be used.

Sessions/Tours:

This ‘Template Style’ style must be selected when bookable resources for sessions will be contained in the template. Please note setting up sessions are not included in the scope of this manual.

Birthday Parties:

Select this ‘Template Style’ for birthday party bookings, as this will give you the option to record the name of the person whose birthday it is when making a booking using this template.

The other options should NOT be used to set up non session based booking, so should NOT be selected.

In this example we have selected the ‘Availability/Groups’ for the ‘Template Style’.  

Once all the required information has been selected as required then click on the ‘Save’ button.

Now you must select the ‘Bookable Resources’ that will be used in this template.

To do this click on the ‘Add >>’ button (at the bottom of the section of the screen labelled 'Resources)

You will now see ‘Select Booking Resources’ screen (as shown below).

The next step is to select the required bookable resources. At the start it is quite easy to find any 'Bookable Resources' you have created as only the few set up will appear. Over time once you have added lots of  'Bookable Resources', so the best way to find specific ones is to enter the code or part of the code or description in the 'Filter' field. Please note that no % wildcard is needed as the filter searches automatically for anything containing the code / description entered. In this example 1. SUMMER was entered in the 'Filter' field was entered, then 2. the 'Apply' button was clicked to show the results,

3. To select the required 'Bookable Resources  click the box next to them, so that a tick appears in the required boxes.

4. Once all the required bookable resources have been selected click on the ‘Ok’ button.

You will now see the 'Bookable Resources' that you selected here listed in the 'Resources' section of the screen.

Please note the order the resources appear in this list can be changed by clicking on a 'Bookable Resource' so that it is highlighted yellow. Next click the up / down arrows as required to move the resource up / down the list. This will affect the position of the resource in the list of resources when making an in house booking. This also applies to online bookings for those customers that have purchased the module and set up this 'Booking Template' to work online.

Click the 'Save' button once the required changes have been made.

In the 'Booking Template' there are other options that can be applied to each 'Bookable Resource', but these settings are only applicable for customers who have purchased the ‘Online Bookings Module’ from Merac. these settings are only designed to work with our Online Ticketing (E-Commerce) Module for those customers who have require the Merac online ticketing e-commerce web page pages. These online ticketing web page specific settings are covered in Section 10. For customers that have not purchased the Online Ticketing Module  from Merac, then all of these settings are not applicable. In this case please ignore all other settings as they do not apply to "in-house" (back office software or till based) bookings!

Confirmation Letter

For each ‘Booking Template’ you create, you can specify a ‘Confirmation Letter’. This letter will be printed automatically but only when a booking is made "in house" (till or back office software) using the booking ‘Wizard’ (and selecting a 'Booking Template that has been assigned a ‘Confirmation Letter’ - see Section 9). Please note that the ‘Confirmation Letter’ itself has to first be created in Microsoft Word as a mail merge template, this is covered in a separate user guide. Alternatively, training on this functionality can be provide and if this is required please contact your Customer Success Manager and they will be able to provide a quote for your training needs. 

If you already know how to and have set up a Microsoft Word mail merge template(s) to be used for your ‘Confirmation Letter’, then you simply click on the ... button to the right of the text 'Confirmation Letter:'.

Browse to the required location and click on the required booking confirmation letter, so it is highlighted. 

Next click on ‘Open’ to select this letter.

 

You have now assigned a ‘Confirmation Letter’ to this booking template, which is showing here.

Once you have selected the required ‘Confirmation Letter’ then click on the ‘Save’ button.

If you do not require a ‘Confirmation Letter’ then don’t select one and just click on the ‘Save’ button.

Please note that there are various other the settings that only apply to customers who have (i) purchased the Merac ‘Online Bookings Module’ from Merac and (ii) only for booking templates that will be used for online bookings on your web site. All these additional settings are are explained in detail in Section 10.

Finally click on the ‘Close’ button to exit the ‘Booking Templates’ screen.

You have now created a booking template called ‘SUMMER EVENT’.

You now must test this new Booking Template works correctly, which is detailed in Section 9.

Creating New Bookings

The template you created will now be available to use in the booking ‘Wizard’ screen. The booking ‘Wizard’ is the simplest way to make new bookings. Although we are using the ‘Wizard’ to test our new ‘Booking Template’, exactly the same procedure can be used to make new bookings using the ‘Wizard’.

Using the Booking Wizard

The booking ‘Wizard’ screen is accessed by first clicking on the ‘Diary’ main menu button.

The ‘Wizard’ is then accessed by clicking on the ‘Wizard’ button here.

At the next screen you are required to select the date for the booking from the calendar. Please note for whatever is being booked you will need to select a date is was set to be available on. This is defined by the 'Calendar Period' you set up which was then applied to the specific 'Bookable Resources' This means only you can only book specific 'Bookable Resources' if the 'Calendar Period' they are assigned to includes the booking date. If the system does not allow you to book check the 'Calendar Period' for each 'Bookable Resource'. Also check (in Setup > Prices > Price Lookup Index) that the there is a valid price for the PLU that the 'Bookable Resource' is linked to.

If the date of the booking is in the current month, simply click on the required date to select it.

However this is a 'Summer Event' which only runs on specific summer dates.

If the booking is for a future month, click on the text for the month name (e.g. click on 'March' at the top of the screen)

You will then see a list of months appear, click on the required month to select it from the list.

If the booking is for the next year, then click on the year text (e.g. click on '2025' at the top of the calendar).

You will then see an up and down arrow selector appear to the right of the year.

Use the up and down arrow to select the year as required.

Then select the month and date of the booking as explained above, in this case Saturday 5th July 2025 was selected.

Once the required date for the booking has been selected, click on the ‘Next’ button.

You will now see a screen like the one below. All the templates have been created, they will all be listed on the left hand side.

Click on the name of the 'Booking Template' on the left hand side of the screen (e.g. "Summer Event")  so it highlighted (blue). N.B. you only have only created one template it will be selected (highlighted) automatically.

When you click on the required 'Booking Template' name the resources that you added to that template will be shown.

These appear under the 'Select Items to Book' text and will all be ticked (selected) by default.

If in this booking you do not require specific resources, these can be de-selected as required.

Click on the  to the right of bookable resource to deselect it.

A  will now appear to the right of the resource, indicating it is deselected.

You can toggle between selected and de-selected as required by clicking on the  or  button.

If there were a lot of resources in the template it is sometimes easier to deselect them all first, then select them one at a time.

To do this click the 'Toggle All Off' button. Then use the method above to select / deselect 'Bookable Resources' as required.

Ensure the required 'Bookable Resources' for this booking have a  showing to the right of them.

Click on the ‘Next’ button.

Next you must specify the quantity of the resource you want to book.

To do this type in the ‘Number to Book’ in the relevant field, then click on the ‘Next’ button.

Repeat the procedure for the next resource(s).

So, enter the ‘Number to Book’ for each resource in the booking, then click on the ‘Next’ button.

If multiple resources were selected and a specific resource is not needed it can just be skipped by clicking 'Next'

Once the quantity of each resource in the booking has been specified, the below screen appears.

It is recommended to always search for the customer to see if they have booked before, to avoid duplication

1. To see If the customer making the booking already exists, type in their surname in the 'Name' field..

To limit results it is recommended to type in their surname, then a comma then their initial or full first name.

2. Now press on the ‘Search’ button and the search results are displayed.

3. Click on the required customer, so they become highlighted.

4. Now click on the ‘Next’ button.

Alternatively, if this person may be a new customer that does not exist in the Merac back office software.

In this case enter their surname and click search (just to check), then as no results are found simply click on the ‘Next’ button.

In the next screen you must then enter all the required information into the ‘Contact Details’ screen below.

The above fields are self-explanatory, so simply click in the relevant box and enter the contact details.

If a (*) to the left of a box means it you must put an entry in this box as this data is mandatory.

Please note there is some control over what can be set as mandatory in Setup >System > System Options > 'Bookings' tab.

The other settings that can be applied to a customer in this form are explained below.

‘Account Type’:

Select the required ‘Account Type’ from the available list. There is also the ability to search for, extract lists of customers and create mail merges to customers which have an 'Account Type' selected. The use of the mail merge / 'Member Mailing' functionality is not covered in the scope of this manual. This is covered in a separate user guide.

‘Account Source’:

Select the required ‘Account Source’ from the available list.  

‘Account Flags’:

Select the required ‘Account Flag’ from the available list. There is also the ability to search for, extract lists of customers and create mail merges to customers which have  'Account Flags' selected. The use of the mail merge / 'Member Mailing' functionality is not covered in the scope of this manual. This is covered in a separate user guide. 

For customers without the GDPR module there will also be in this screen the options:

‘Ok to Mail’:

Please note that if you have purchased the Merac ‘GDPR Module’ then this tick box is not applicable as it will not be present.

If you do not have the ‘GDPR Module’, then tick this option if you have confirmed it is OK to contact a customer via mail. There is the ability elsewhere in the software to search for, extract lists of members and create mail merges to customers which have this option ticked. The use of the mail merge ('Member Mailing'  functionality is not covered in the scope of this manual. This is covered in a separate user guide. 

‘Ok to Email’:

Please note that if you have purchased the Merac ‘GDPR Module’ then this tick box is not applicable as it will not be present. If you do not have the ‘GDPR Module’, then tick this option if you have confirmed it is OK to contact a customer via email. There is the ability elsewhere in the software to search for, extract lists of members and create mail merges to customers which have this option ticked. The use of the mail merge ('Member Mailing'  functionality is not covered in the scope of this manual. This is covered in a separate user guide. 

If you want more information on the GDPR module then please contact your Customer Success Manager and they will be able to provide a quote for the functionality and your training needs.*

Once all the required information has been entered, then click on the ‘Next’ button.

The next screen will be the GDPR options (please see the above* if you need a quote or information on the GDPR module)

Select the GDPR options as required in each section, alternatively click the 'Do not make any contact option' to opt out.

You will now see all the overview of the booking, with the customer details showing in the top left corner of this screen.

Below that will be the booking date and 'Arrival Time' selector. If the customer is due to arrive at a different time to their booking their arrival time can be captured. For example, it may be a coach party who want to go to the restaurant at 8:00 am 

for breakfast and this field allows you to capture an arrival time if different to the time of the booked tickets / activities.

Click on the hour and either use the up/down arrow or click in the hours and enter the hour in 24 hour clock 'hh' format.

Do the same to amend the minutes (if typing the minutes do this in 'mm' format) as required. The arrival time will be shown in the relevant reports and will be recoded in the specific booking record in Merac.

Enter 'Notes' as required in the notes field, e.g. to reflect that they are arriving at 08:00 to go to the restaurant etc.

For birthday party booking, if you wish to enter their name and date of birth, then click thenext to 'Birthday Party?'

If required, you can then capture the name of the person with the birthday and their date of birth where shown.

In the 'Name' field enter name of the person whose birthday it is and select their date of birth using the 'DOB:' dropdown.

If the birthday party name and date is not needed, click on the  to turn this function off again.

Finally click on the ‘Booking Source’ dropdown and select the required option using the dropdown.

This is to capture the "source" of the booking which could be e.g. 'Phone Booking'.

Merac provides some basic option but these are user-definable and are created / maintained by you in Merac.

This can be done in Setup > System > Lookup Items and is covered in a separate guide.

As you are testing this as long as you can get to this point you do not need click on the ‘Finish’ button.

Doing this will create the booking, so you would then need to cancel any test bookings made.

Once this template is working as required, then you can use this template to create new bookings.

 If you assigned a 'Confirmation Letter' to this booking template, then it is option whether it needs to be printed.

Please note printing booking confirmation letters requires your IT Team to have installed Microsoft Word on your computer.

By default the 'Print Confirmation Letter?' option is ticked. If it doesn't need to be printed, click theto turn this off.

Thethen turns to a. The functionality can be toggled on / off as required by click theor.

If you do NOT want to create a test booking as this point click the 'Cancel' button.

If you DO want to create a test booking as this point click the ‘Finish’ button to create the booking.

 If you click the ‘Finish’ button you will then see a window confirming the booking was saved (as shown below).

Please note that this contains the customer’s booking reference number.

If you selected a confirmation letter, Microsoft Word will automatically open in the background. The booking details will be merged into the a Word document (using the 'Confirmation Letter' Word document template assigned to the 'Booking Template'). Please note Merac do not provide training or Support on the Microsoft Word or it's mail merge functionality. So, once Word has opened and created the document, you would need the relevant training to be able to preview / complete the mail merge using Microsoft Word to print (save soft copies or merge and email) of the document. Your IT team will need to have installed Microsoft Word and they may also need to amend Word's own 'Trustcenter' settings that can block third party applications (like Merac) from being able to open Word. This will need to be done on each computer that uses mail merging to Word via Merac. If your IT cannot resolve any mail merging issues experienced, then please log a ticket with Merac Support via the Merac Support Portal.

Click on the ‘OK’ button, which takes you back to the ‘Diary’ screen as shown below.

Internet Bookings Setup

As stated previously to be able to use booking templates for internet bookings on your website you must have first purchased web site integration from Merac. 

You must also ensure that the specific booking templates that will be used for online bookings on your web site must have the ‘Allow From Internet’ setting selected. To do this go into ‘Booking Templates’ screen.

1. Click on the required template name so it is highlighted. 

2. Now click in the ‘Allow From Internet’ box, so that it is ticked.

3. As soon as you select this option you will now notice that the ‘Website URL:’ field is automatically populated. N.B. once you have done all the tests to check all is working as expected, this is the web page address (URL) you must provide to the person who designs and maintains your own web site, so they can add this link on your website where required.

4. Click 'Save' to accept the changes at this point.

Please note that no one can see this web page as this point it only exists in the Merac back office. It can be viewed and tested via the Merac back office software, this is covered below.  It will only be available to book from your own web pages once your web developer puts this specific page URL where required on your own web pages, after you have done full end-end testing.

The below additional settings also only apply to 'Booking Templates' that are set up to be used online. There are both 1. settings that can be applied to each specific 'Bookable Resource' as required and also in 2. and 3. settings that can be applied that affect the entire 'Booking Template' (web page) when used online.

Each of these sections of the screen are detail below

Resource Specific Settings

These settings are in section 1 of the above screenshot. These are set per 'Bookable Resource' (each ticket type can have different settings). These are detailed below.

Min per booking:

This stands for “minimum per booking”. This enables you to define the minimum number of this resource that can be booked per booking. For example, if this resource was for a group admission ticket that can only be booked for parties of more than 10 people, then enter 10 in this box. N.B. if there is no minimum booking requirement, then leave a 0 in this box.

Must book at least one of these

Select this option against a bookable resource to ensure at least one of this resource must be booked. For example, this could be selected against the resource for an adult admission ticket, to ensure at least one adult admission ticket must be booked. To select this option, click in the box to the right of the relevant text so that is becomes ticked

Max per booking:

This stands for “maximum per booking”. This enables you to define the maximum number of this resource that can be booked per booking. For example, if this bookable resource was for a special event ticket and you want to limit people to book only 5 of this bookable resource per booking, then enter the number 5 in this box. N.B. if there is no minimum booking requirement, then leave a 0 in this box.

Named tickets?

This is only for online bookings and is usually only used for birthday party bookings, when you need to record the name of the person the birthday party is for in the booking in Merac only. N.B. this name is not printed on tickets produced at the till (if applicable) when redeeming the booking. Having this option selected means that when you book this resource online, a box appears in which you can enter a person’s name. To select this option, click the box to the right of the text ‘Named Tickets’ so that it is ticked .

Exclude Resource from Location-Master:

This setting is not required used  – please do not use this setting.

Cannot be sold alone:

Select this option against a bookable resource to prevent it being booked alone. For example, this may be used if we want to ensure that when booking children’s admission tickets that a responsible adult must also be booked. In our specific example we may select this on the ‘Summer Child’ resource, this will ensure either that at least one ‘Summer Adult’ or ‘Summer Senior’ resource must be booked first. To select this option, click in the box to the right of the relevant text so that is becomes ticked.

Require Member Validation:

This is only used where the memberships system has been set up and is in use. If needed specific ticket types (usually ones at special day / event ticket prices for members) can be set up so that they can only be booked if a valid membership card number is provided when booking online. To set this up the 'Require Member Validation' option needs to be ticked for each resource it is required on.

Once ticked then the 'Choose Memb Types' button becomes active and needs to be clicked.

 

 A pop-up then appears in which you can click on the 'Membership types' that are allowed to validate that ticket type.

Selected membership types show highlighted (blue). Once all membership types are selected in this screen, click 'Save'.

Repeat for any other ticket types that require validation.

Validation online will be by entering a valid (non expired) member card number of the specified membership type(s).

Essential Items (internet only):

Specific 'Bookable Resources' can be set to be "essential" in order for a booking to be able to be made. If the correct number of these resources are not selected then you cannot complete the booking, the customer will be prompted online if they try and pay without selecting pre-requisite resources. If certain tickets are deemed "essential" then each of the 'Bookable Resources' resource that counts as an "essential item" needs to be ticked where shown below.

This then works in conjunction with one of the settings that is set at 'Booking Template' level (see below *)

Booking Template Specific Settings

These are some other settings that can be set on each booking template.

Allow from Internet:

Already explained previously in this guide.

Use Location Master

This setting is not required used  – please do not use this setting.

Hide Location Master from Basket

This setting is not required used  – please do not use this setting.

Web follow on Template ID:

This option is only applicable once you have created more than one online booking template in the Merac back office software. After a specific booking template is used online, rather than going directly to the payment screen you can automatically be directed to another Merac online booking template (web page). This is known as a web follow on template. 

For example, if you want the ‘Summer Event’ Template to be automatically directed to another template, you simply enter the ID number of the other template in the ‘Web follow on template ID’ field then click ‘Save'. Please note the ID of a template can be found by clicking on it so it is highlighted and then noting the ID number, where shown below.

Create Sales Order for Dispatching

This setting is not typically required for online templates that are used to sell admission tickets online. If ticked, when booked online a 'Sales Order' will be created in the relevant screen in Merac. This is typically only used / required for online shop or online membership purchases (for those customers who have purchased these modules) where shop items needs to be picked and marked as dispatched. Some customers use this to ensure member cards / packs are dispatched.

Essential Items (Internet Only ):

After you have ticked each specific 'Bookable Resource' *see above *) that counts to the number of "essential items" in total, then where shown you need to specific the total number "essential items" that need to be booked. If the correct number of "essential items" are not selected, the customer will be prompted and cannot book until the requirements are met. In the below box you simply enter the total number of "essential items" that need to be purchased, this is in any combination. So if you need at least one person over 18 to book, then you might e.g. tick the 'Summer Event Adult Entry' and 'Summer Event Senior Entry' tickets only as "Essential Items", then enter the number where shown below to be 1.

Max Per Template (Internet Only)

If you need to restrict the total number of resources booked per booking to X then enter the required number in this field.

Web Page Header and Trailer Text / HTML

This is also set per 'Booking Template' or web page. You can create your own bespoke header and footer sections per 'Booking Template'. This is often used for extra instructional text on the event or e.g. how to book.

HTML Header:

You can enter your own text that will appear in the header section of the web page for this specific booking template, this is known as the ‘HTML header’. If you do not require any additional text in the web page header, then please ignore this option.

If required, you can define you own ‘HTML Header’ by clicking on the ‘Edit’ button to the right of the ‘HTML header’ text.

Likewise the HTML trailer is accessed and created / updated by clicking the relevant 'Edit' button. If required, this allows you to create in either text or HTML (if you know HTML) to add a bespoke web page header or trailer. This is often used to add instructions text about the event, booking requirements or e.g. extra instructions on what to do on the web page to book.

Clicking either button opens a screen like the one shown below.

For users that do not know HTML, you simply type the required text here (maximum of 4000 characters in total). Please note that unless know how to write HTML. you cannot change the font type size and formatting etc. iAlternatively, for users who know how to use HTML, then you can type in the required HTML (maximum of 4000 characters in total). So, this may be something that (if required) your own web page developer or in-house HTML experts can assist with. Click on ‘Ok’ once the required web page header text has been entered as required.

HTML Trailer:

This is accessed and edited (if required) in the same was as the 'HTML Header' as detailed above.

HTML Layout:

This is only to be used by Merac – do not enter anything in the ‘HTML Layout’ unless advised to by Merac.

Once all the settings have been selected as required for this template, click on the ‘Save’ button.

The configuration that can be done in the Merac back office software and is now complete

You now need to update your online bookings templates; this is covered in the following section.

Updating Online Booking Templates

Please note that when you ‘Save’ changes to a booking template that has been set up for use online, this does not immediately update your website with these changes. There is a procedure you must carry out to update your website with these changes. Please note that if you forget to carry out this procedure then overnight a procedure runs that automatically updates your website with these changes. To do this click on the ‘Website Login’ button.

You will be now taken to your website administration login web page.

Type the password you have already been provided in the password field

Next press the ‘Enter’ key on your computer’s keyboard.

You will now be on the ‘Admin Menu’ page, click on the ‘Update Templates’ button.

Wait for the ’Update completed successfully’ message.

Once this procedure has finished, you can then press the ‘Logout’ button which is located at he bottom of this screen.

You can now check how any of your booking templates will appear online.

To do this click on the required online booking template so it’s highlighted. 

Now click on the ‘View’ button, this will open the ‘Website URL’ (see section 10) shown here.

Now it is your responsibility to check the page created functions as required.

 

If the web page does not function as expected, you must check that everything was set up correctly. Please refer to all the previous sections of this manual to check the set up was carried out correctly..

Please note it is also your responsibility to speak to your own web designer and provide them with this new

‘Website URL’ and advise them as to where this needs to be used on your own website page(s).

You now know how to set up and test online ‘Booking Templates’.