As we have mentioned before, there are many differences between the current version of the Pinpoint Booking System WordPress Plugin and the 3.0 one. Don't worry, it's still the same plugin that you are accustomed to and know how to use, with some of the features approximately the same- but improved to allow a more detailed configuration. In order to fully understand the new structure, let's make a comparison of the two versions and see what's what.


I. What's new with Pinpoint version 3.0


What used to be Extras in the current version, is now divided into multiple extensions - Amenities, Availability Extensions, Products, and Services. We also added a few new features: Deposits, Down Payments, Form Items, and Packages. So let's see what they're all about!


Amenities


This extension is the closest thing to what Extras are in the current version of Pinpoint, with added scheduling and availability. Useful in many occasions, the amenities extension allows you to add extra services or products to your client's booking. For example, in the accommodation businesses, when your client makes a reservation, you can offer room service or pool access as extras - for whatever price you set.


Availability Extensions


With this extension, you can customize certain features of your client's booking based on the criteria that you set. If you manage reservations for, let's say, a guided sightseeing tour, you can establish a certain price for adults and a reduced one for children. With version 3.0, your client can book 2 places for adults and one for a child, in the same booking, for a total of 3 reserved places.


Products


As the name suggests, if you want to add a certain product to your client's reservation, this is the extension that can help you. Where is this useful? For instance, if your business manages bookable seats for concerts or exhibitions, you could also add merchandise from the artists, with an extra price or not, with every reservation. Each product will have its price, available stock and if applicable, disponibility according to seasons - editable through advanced settings.


Services


This extension is of great help availability wise. Say you run a gym, and use the booking calendar to manage the schedule of your personal trainers. Since you know approximately how long a fitness session is, you can automatically set the availability for that period of time, as soon as the reservation is made. It's similar to the products extension, but instead of available stock, there's the amount of time it takes the service to be completed.


Deposits


Deposits used to be available through the calendar's settings, but since they are so important, especially for the accommodation business - but not only - we made them an extension. With Pinpoint Booking System, the plugin will take care of receiving and returning the deposit - all you have to do is make the extension available and schedule it.


Down Payments


When your product or service is expensive, or it involves payments to me be made ahead of the reservation date, this extension comes into play. For instance, if you are in the event planning field, it is useful for both you and your client to request an up-front payment to ensure a smooth organization and to be safe from cancellation. You can also allow the client to pay the full price for the reservation if you want to.


Packages


This extension combines multiple features into a promotional package, that you can offer at a special price or based on a coupon. Say you're in the accommodation business, and you want to give your clients a great experience at Christmas. To do this, you can create a package with, let's say, accommodation, special Christmas dinner and a guided walk around your surroundings. To make it better, you can also add a coupon for your loyal customers to use.


Form Items


The Forms in the current version are general, added to the whole calendar. So, to improve this, we added this extension, where you can add forms to different extensions. You can still customize the forms, but you can make them much more specific - for a certain product or service. This makes it easier for businesses to create invoices as well.



II. The familiar but improved extensions from the current version of Pinpoint


With 2.0, some of the extensions we added would have been hard to integrate and required some rearrangements in order to function at full capacity. However, there are a couple of things that were kept into 3.0 as well, but their structure and user-friendliness was improved:


Rules


This extension is your way of shaping the way in which your customers interact with your booking calendar. In 2.0, you could only restrict how many or how few days and hours one can book at once - for the whole calendar. With the new version, you can also decide when the rule applies, giving you more control.


Discounts


Useful for any kind of business, this extension is mostly as you remember it - apart from the new step-by-step configuration. You can still edit details like the name of the discount, its value or percentages. For more advanced settings, you can add your own custom values, availability, schedule, and conditions.


Coupons


If you want to increase your clients' fidelity, then vouchers and coupons are the perfect solutions. The name of the coupon, as well as its type, percentage or value, are customizable. For more specificity, you can add your own configurations in the advanced setting section.


Taxes and Fees


In most fields of commerce, additional taxes and fees have to be added to the final price of the reservation. As you would expect, you can edit the basic details, as well as if it should be included in the total price of the booking or in the summary of the cart. You can use the advanced settings to be more precise with your configurations.


Email & SMS Templates


It's useful to send a notification to you or your client after a reservation is made - and you can do it all from your booking calendar. All you have to do is set up a custom email or SMS template - For the body of the message, there are a couple of shortcodes that you can use, listed in the documentation.


Why did we make these changes?


Better organization means increased productivity. Having a separate tab for extensions help you know exactly where to find what you're looking for. Also, with this new structure, some features are connected - for example, you can attach almost any extension to Amenities, Products, Services and Availability Extensions. Additionally, each extension has its own availability, scheduling, and conditions - to give you more control over how your clients interact with your booking calendar. We feel that the new version of the Pinpoint Booking System will make it easier for you to manage reservations and customize the booking calendar for your needs. If you have any questions or suggestions, don't hesitate to contact us.