WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW AIRBNB API

The new Airbnb API is a faster, more reliable connection to Airbnb than our previous API connection. However, this new connection does have some important differences and noteworthy features. All of these differences are requirements of Airbnb or limitations of their new API, to which Tokeet must adhere. Below is a list of things to note when connecting to the new API.

  • Listings connected to Airbnb using their new API will be made instant bookable. This is done by Airbnb and cannot be undone in Tokeet or on Airbnb.
  • Listings connected to the new API must meet Airbnb's content listing criteria. The specific criteria are detailed below. Any listing not meeting these criteria will be automatically delisted by Airbnb until they are updated to meet the criteria.
  • Cohosted listings are officially unsupported by the new Airbnb API. Tokeet does allow cohosted listings to connect via the new API and many of the connection features will work. However, we encourage users with cohosted listings to add their Tokeet rental's iCal URL to the Airbnb listing in the Airbnb dashboard to ensure availability is constantly updated. 
  • Listings connected prior to August 9th may have suffered a lapse in synchronization. This is due to an update released by Airbnb which now requires a synchronization setting for each listing. Tokeet is now automatically updating listings with this setting. Listings that are either cohosted or do not meet the content requirements will be automatically rejected by Airbnb.
  • Once a listing is connected to Tokeet, pricing and availability settings will no longer be accessible in Airbnb. These settings must be updated in Tokeet.
  • User may choose to sync only rates and availability via Tokeet or sync their entire listing content (Full Synchronization). By default Tokeet connects to your Airbnb listings with rates and availability sync. This allows Tokeet to perform all required actions like pushing rates, pushing availability, sending and receiving messages, and importing bookings. You may switch to Full Synchronization from within the connection details in Tokeet. Please note that if you choose Full Synchronizationyou will no longer be able to update your listing's rates, availability, or content in your Airbnb dashboard and will be required to do so via Tokeet.
  • Guest requirements are removed from listings connected to any channel manager via the new Airbnb API. There is no way to add these requirements back. This is done automatically by Airbnb.
  • Dates directly blocked on Airbnb will not be imported into Tokeet with the new Airbnb API. Users are encouraged to directly block dates in their Tokeet calendar to ensure all connected channels are updated accordingly.
Airbnb Listing Content Requirements
Airbnb will automatically disable listings that do not meet the following minimum content requirements.
  • Title - At least 8 characters in the listing title
  • Description - At least 50 characters in the listing description field
  • Photos - At least 7 photos, including 3 with high-resolution (800x500 pixels) 
  • Amenities - At least 5 amenities

TOKEET - THE ROAD AHEAD



Many of you have questions about the new Tokeet products and how they relate to the core application. Since the announcement of Automata and Signature we’ve received numerous emails and messages from users asking for more details about the direction of Tokeet and how the new products affect them. These are all fair questions and I hope to answer them here.

Almost a year ago we starting laying down the roadmap for Tokeet. Much of what we planned involved expanding on already popular features like automation, contracts, rate management, and others. Our goals were ambitious and we planned to transform Tokeet into a complete solution for the short-term rental industry. While this all seemed great, it would mean expanding the existing product even further and also coming up with an interface that worked well for all the various features. We feared that the result would be a bloated, complex product that’s hard for new users to start using, complicated to develop, and difficult to maintain.

Ultimately, we decided to split the core application into multiple, unique, and feature rich apps that perform specific tasks really well. We felt that would create a much simpler user experience in the core application and also give us the flexibility to build each app with a custom user experience. Not to mention developing and maintaining smaller apps would be operationally easier. We may even potentially integrate the add-on applications with competitor systems in the future.

So, with the decision made, we started building five (5) new add-on applications (we’ve been busy). Four of these applications are already built, two have already been released. We are also undertaking a rebuild of the core application, which we’re calling Tokeet version 3 (TV3), from scratch. If you look closely at the Automata and Signature videos you’ll see TV3 in action. TV3 will not natively include some of the features it does today. This would have required us to build and maintain the same features in two different applications, which isn’t sustainable in the long-term. Instead, users will be required to use one of the add-on products. However, TV3 will contain many features not currently in Tokeet and be much easier to use.

Despite the splitting of Tokeet into multiple applications, users will be able to seamlessly transition from one application to another. There will be a single sign-on for all apps. This means one username and password for the entire suite. In addition, user will be able to open any app, automatically be logged in, and start working directly from Tokeet. This will make using the suite of applications effortless and intuitive.

Despite all of this expansion we plan to stay true to our core of providing feature rich products at very competitive prices. Yes, the new apps will come with their own individual price tags. We believe that each app can stand alone as a product and that they should fund themselves. Yes, the core application will be changing. However, we believe the added features and vastly expanded add-on applications serve to make the entire Tokeet experience more powerful and complete for our users.

Exact product release dates will be revealed in the future. In short, we plan to launch all new products and TV3 by the end of 2018. Thanks to all of you for being a part of this journey. Many of you have been around since 2016 when we first launched and we are eternally grateful for your loyalty. I’m happy to answer any questions I can about the Tokeet roadmap on this thread.

Thanks for being Tokeet users.

UPDATE YOUR AIRBNB API SYNCHRONIZATION

As of Thursday, August 9th, Airbnb now requires all API-connected listings to choose a specific synchronization setting. You must choose either to manage your rates and availability only in Tokeet, or manage everything including your listing details in Tokeet. If you haven’t already done so, you must update your synchronization settings in Tokeet. 


Please note that your listings must also meet the Airbnb listing quality guidelines when connecting via a channel manager. The Airbnb API rejects listings connections that do not meet the following minimum content requirements.

- Listing title must be at least 8 characters long.
- Listing description must be at least 50 characters.
- At least 7 photos, including 3 with high-resolution (800x500 pixels).
- Listing must have at least 5 amenities.

Finally, all Airbnb API listings are now set to Instant Book by default. This setting cannot be changed and is mandated by Airbnb. Tokeet has no control over this setting.

We will be following up with more details and updates regarding the new Airbnb API.

Thanks for being a Tokeet user.

ANNOUNCING OUR NEW AGODA API

Agoda API Synchronization Is Now Available


We're excited to announce that you can now connect your Agoda listings to Tokeet via API. Agoda and Tokeet have partnered to bring you a seamless, fast, and reliable connection between Tokeet and Agoda. Connect your Agoda account to Tokeet and receive real-time reservation notifications. Rates and availability synchronization is also available so you can be sure that your price and calendar are always updated instantly. Click here for instructions on connection Agoda to Tokeet.

We've been working hard to provide you more options to connect with Tokeet from the top distribution channels around the world. Agoda is another step in making Tokeet the obvious choice for any property manager in any market globally.

Please let us know if you have any questions, we're always happy to help. Thank you for being a Tokeet user.

ANNOUNCING OUR NEW AIRBNB API

Over the past few months we’ve been in discussions with Airbnb on a formal partnership agreement that will bring our companies closer together and allow a deeper integration between our two products. These discussions started in February and now, after 5 months of development, we’re happy to announce that Tokeet is an official partner of Airbnb. Even more exciting, we’re also officially announcing the release of a new Airbnb integration in Tokeet. This integration, which has been in beta for the past week, is faster, more powerful, and vastly more reliable than the previous Airbnb connection.

I understand that many of you have been affected by recent and frequent outages relating to the previous API connection with Airbnb, for this I sincerely apologize. During these outages we’ve been feverishly working with the Airbnb engineering and partnerships teams on a new integration with the sole purpose of improving the experience for you, our users. Today that new integration is available to you in your Tokeet account.

We plan for every customer to eventually move over to the new API and will ultimately discontinue the previous API connection. If you’ve ever had any issues with your Airbnb API connection then I recommend you make the switch immediately. It will only take a few minutes and instructions for switching are below.

We have more exciting announcements to make in the near future, but that’s all for now. Thank you for being a Tokeet user.


Switching to the new Airbnb API

Tokeet's new Airbnb API connection is live. This is a faster, and more reliable connection between Airbnb and Tokeet. Please follow the steps below to migrate your Airbnb accounts to the new API.

First disconnect the Airbnb API (OLD) accounts following the steps in this guide.

Disconnect a Channel Account

Then reconnect with Airbnb API (NEW).

Connecting to Airbnb API - New

Please let us know if you require further assistance. We're happy to help.

MORE ABOUT TOKEET, THE GDPR AND YOU

We’ve made updates to ensure our terms are easier to understand and to keep up with evolving international data privacy standards. These updates include new legal requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Here’s a quick overview of our updates:
  • Clearer Terms - We’ve clarified and reorganized our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, making it easier to understand the data that we collect, how we use it and our responsibilities under the GDPR.
  • Product Updates -  We’ve made product changes, including migrating our applications to secure serving (https://) to help both you and Tokeet meet the new requirements.   
  • We have also provided additional security controls, including the workflow for approving secure certificates for your custom domain Tokeet websites.  Action is needed on your end to help migrate your custom domain websites to secure serving. Please look for an email from Support with the next steps.  Don’t be shy if you have questions - contact us at support@tokeet.com.
If you have any questions about this update, the GDPR or anything else, please don't hesitate to reach out at support@tokeet.com.

Thank you for being a Tokeet customer!

UPDATES ABOUT TOKEET AND THE GDPR


On May 25 2018, Europe’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into force. In the hospitality industry, GDPR is important for everyone: even if your rental business is outside the European Union, you are responsible for protecting the rights of European citizens (for example, EU guests).

Tokeet is committed to complying with the requirements of the GDPR. Today we are sharing more about our preparations for the GDPR - including updates to our policies and changes to our products, to help both you and Tokeet meet the new requirements.

Updates to Tokeet Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
  • Tokeet's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy are being updated to reflect new legal requirements of the GDPR.  
  • These updates set out our responsibilities around data processing, data deletion, data security, and more. 
Product Updates

To comply, and to support your compliance with GDPR, we are:
  • Migrating all Tokeet applications to secure (https://) protocol.
  • Migrating all custom domains that use Tokeet website builder to secure protocol.  We will be reaching out to all custom domain holders with next steps.
  • Allowing new Tokeet domain websites, widgets, and guest portals to be generated with secure protocol by design and by default.  
If you have any questions about this update, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at support@tokeet.com. We will continue to share further information on our plans before the May 25 enforcement date.

LAUNCHED: 120+ TWEAKS & IMPROVEMENTS, NEW TRIGGERS, AND MORE!

We have been hard at work on new products and integrations, which we will begin to unveil this quarter.  In addition, our world-class Engineering team has been focused on improving current features and functionality of Tokeet. 


  • First, we have improved on our functionality to automatically notify users in case channel connections become Pending / Disabled.
We automatically send an email to Tokeet account admins; in addition, we have created a new Trigger type called "Channel Disabled."  This trigger can help inform your internal team that a channel connection is disabled, and that action needs to be taken by you in Tokeet.

  • Second, we have tripled our iCal server capacity--which drastically improves our refresh time for iCal channel connections and makes sure you avoid costly double bookings.
  • Last but not least, this weekend's release addresses over 120 workflow improvements and bug fixes, including:
Fixed:  [Advance Inbox] Button is not clearly visible
Fixed:  [Advance Inbox] Column width should remain intact
Fixed:  [Advance Inbox] Updated "City & Country" doesn't display until you reload the page
Fixed:  [Automation] Select Rental(s) field prepopulated when in Stealth mode
Fixed:  [Automation] Sorting does not work properly on "Events" column
Fixed:  [Automation] Fix sorting on "Rentals" , "Stealth On" , "Stealth Off" and "Time Zone" column
Fixed:  [Automation] Sorting does not work properly on "Type" column
Fixed:  [Automation] Sorting does not work properly on "Updated" column
Fixed:  [Booking Engine] Fix typo in booking engine page title
Fixed:  [Calendar] Check in/out time displays wrong when Agenda Calendar is downloaded
Fixed:  [Calendar] Edit Hold Event reverses dates
Fixed:  [Calendar] Event name does not display properly in Hold Event pop up
Fixed:  [Calendar] Filter by Months not working properly for Hold Events List
Fixed:  [Calendar] Long Rental names going out of field
Fixed:  [Calendar] Manually created bookings are using the wrong rates
Fixed:  [Calendar] Month doesn't appear selected on Planning Calendar
Fixed:  [Calendar] Multi Calendar opens the next business day
Fixed:  [Calendar] Rental list should be alphabetically sorted
Fixed:  [Calendar] Standard Calendar not loading at production for specific account
Fixed:  [Calendar] Tags icon on Multi Calendar and Planning Calendar is not same
Fixed:  [Calendar] The order of the names in the popover are in reverse to the dates the guest stay
Fixed:  [Calendar] Weekly calendar changes to monthly calendar when we switch month to another
Fixed:  [Calendar] When booking is manually created, channel info doesn't display on Multi-Calendar until you reload the page
Fixed:  [Calendar] Allow to save when you remove Expiration date from Hold Event and update changes
Fixed:  [Channels] Sort on basis of "Account Name", "Property Name" and "Status" columns
Fixed:  [Data Dictionary] Add *|INQUIRY:CHECK_IN|* and *|INQUIRY:CHECK_OUT|* tags
Fixed:  [Expenses] Remove "Repeat" field from Import Expense popup
Fixed:  [Feeds] Highlighted text doesn't display with white theme
Fixed:  [General UI] Multiple Tool tips do not display properly
Fixed:  [Guests] Popup closes and changes are saved without clicking SaveE button
Fixed:  [Guests] Reduce icon size in detail view of guest
Fixed:  [Guests] Sorting does not work properly on "County" column 
Fixed:  [Guests] When importing Guests from vCard, Phone number doesn't display
Fixed:  [House Staff] Make changes to Hold Event List just like administrator role
Fixed:  [House Staff] Rentals names should be properly visible like in Multi Calendar
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Context Menu should close when you click Assign Staff button
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Error when you click "Pay with saved card" button
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Error when you try to export inquiry report
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Filter should be "Arrive";  Option should be "All Months"
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Sorting does not work properly on "Arrive" column
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Sorting does not work properly on "Depart" column
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Total displays wrong in tooltip and in detail view
Fixed:  [Inquiries] User not able to set Depart Time in "Add Flight" pop up
Fixed:  [Inquiries] When we update Telephone or Email, Birthday information disappears
Fixed:  [Inquiries] Fix warning message display "for "followup" and "no followup"options 
Fixed:  [Invoices] Invoice preview page to take into account the time zone, fix Due Date to display correctly
Fixed:  [Message Templates] Error message even if SMS length is less than 160 characters
Fixed:  [Message Templates] While sending messages, display Subject entered in template
Fixed:  [Owner] Add future dates in Month dropdown
Fixed:  [Owner] Convert to booking button should not display in Owner role
Fixed:  [Owner] Currency does not update properly in Owner invoice
Fixed:  [Owner] Mini Calendar doesn't load for Owner role
Fixed:  [Owner] Pagination does not display on Owners invoices
Fixed:  [Owner] Pagination should not display on print preview of the statement
Fixed:  [Owner] Restricted Rentals table shouldn't display for Property Owners
Fixed:  [Owner] Search field on "Restricted Rentals" section 
Fixed:  [Owner] Update default text under Owner Rentals
Fixed:  [Payments] Pagination for Payments module
Fixed:  [Rental Rates Beta] Rate List view to display all the rates that are under Rates & Payments
Fixed:  [Rental Rates Beta] Check out date shouldn't display with Red dot
Fixed:  [Rental Rates Beta] Min Stay field displays value of Max Stay
Fixed:  [Rental Rates Beta] Pagination problem: view doesn't switch to first page
Fixed:  [Rentals / Rates & Payments] If "default" category is not present, it shouldn't appear in filter 
Fixed:  [Rentals / Rates & Payments] Promotional rate with multiple rate categories shouldn't delete when a Standard Rate is deleted
Fixed:  [Rentals] Currency automatically changes without clicking confirmation pop up
Fixed:  [Rentals] Display dots if the name of the country is long
Fixed:  [Reporting] Utilization report displaying $ instead of €
Fixed:  [Staff] "Convert to Booking" button should not display in House Staff role
Fixed:  [User Settings]  In "Add User" popup, "Country" field should be a dropdown
Fixed:  [User Settings] Fix Tokeet font post- password reset
Fixed:  [User Settings] Fix Pagination controls on User List
Fixed:  [User Settings] Sorting does not work properly on "Country" column
Fixed:  [User Settings] Property Manager shouldn't be able to delete Administrator user
Fixed:  [User Settings] Provide ability to sort user list by Name, Role, and Country columns
Fixed:  [User Settings] Upon user deletion, redirect to list view

Thank you for continuing to make Tokeet great! We're looking forward to your feedback about these new additions and fixes to our platform. As always, please email us with your questions or suggestions any time.

LAUNCHED: SLACK INTEGRATION, NEW WIDGETS, DATA FEEDS, AND MORE!

This is another huge week for new Tokeet features and enhancements!

  • First, we've launched an integration with Slack. By using the integration, you can get notified of Tokeet events in corresponding Slack channels. For example, every "Booking Confirmed" event can be tracked an associated Slack channel. Read more about our integration with Slack in our Help Center
  • Second, we've launched two new widgets: a Booking Widget and a Search Widget!

    • The Tokeet Booking Widget allows guests to book directly from your non-Tokeet website, via a Tokeet booking engine.
    • The Tokeet Search Widget allows guests to search the availability of your rentals from any website. You can use your own non-Tokeet website and seamlessly direct users to your Tokeet website for final booking and communication. Read more about our new widgets in our Help Center
  • Third, we've launched a brand new Data Feeds feature. Tokeet believes in arming you with all the data possible. Now you can easily extract detailed, event-level data via a secure data feed URL. Inquiry and Guest data feeds are available; data is updated in real time. Read more about Data Feeds in our Help Center
  • Next, we've launched an integration with Dropbox. Used with Tokeet, Dropbox can help you centralize your documents and keep them stored in Dropbox's cloud infrastructure. In particular, you can store attachments received via incoming email and executed contracts in your Dropbox account. Read more about the Tokeet integration with Dropbox in our Help Center
  • Last but not least, we've launched a series of enhancements to improve the security of our platform. Your Tokeet email attachments are now accessible only with a Tokeet login; they may also be stored in your connected Dropbox account.
Thank you for continuing to make Tokeet great! We're looking forward to your feedback about these new additions to our platform. As always, please email us with your questions or suggestions any time.

LAUNCHED: BOOKING ENGINE, RATES CALENDAR, AND CLIENT API!

This week, we are rolling out multiple exciting additions to the Tokeet platform.

  • First, we've launched the Tokeet Booking Engine.  This highly requested feature can be used as either an extension of the current Website Builder, or a standalone booking engine if you have your own, non-Tokeet website.  Read more about the Tokeet Booking Engine in our Help Center.    
  • Second, we have added a new "Rental Rates" module which allows you to observe both occupancy & rates on the same calendar screens.   We have also added visualization which allows you to identify high rate periods--both on a monthly and yearly basis, as well as the ability to drag and paste new rates straight onto your calendar.   Read more about Rental Rates Calendar in our Help Center.  
  • Last but not least, we’re very excited to announce the launch of the Tokeet Client API (CAPI).  CAPI is available to our Manager and Unlimited plan customers. You can now build and integrate your internal platforms with Tokeet, allowing for a seamless automation of workflows.  Read about the Tokeet Client API in the API docs.  

Thank you for helping to make Tokeet great! We're looking forward to your feedback about these new features to our platform.  As always, email us with your questions or suggestions at any time.


Show Previous EntriesShow Previous Entries