Most
limousine operators have a wide variety of
limousine management software today to choose from. Which software is ideal for the l
imousine operators? I believe that my ideal software must be user friendly, basic but advanced options available at no extra costs, ability to upgrade with a minimal fee, widely used and recognized within the industry, and
must be priced as the best bang for the buck. So I will compare what a basic software shall consist and compare types of software plans and terms available on the market.
Most operators really need a basic software where one can make reservations, invoicing, data entry, set up, rates, run reports/graphs and some other utilities. I found few software which fall within my category across the platform ranging from $1,000 to infinity. You are reading and saying to yourself, �infinity, what you mean infinity?�. Okay so lets work on the limousine software backwards in this case by discussing an infinity priced software.
I found a software web based software which advertise as low initial payment�. Wow, sounds pretty good, transforming into a professional limo company with chunk change? Not really, because to have a basic web based system, it will start out around $800-$900.In addition, there are monthly fees and transaction fees. So lets further examine an operator like myself who intends to be within limousine business for 25 years.
So, lets eliminate this system out of the equation because when I plan to retire in Hawaii, which is another 25 years, I will be unhappy and wont enjoy retirement. I will be paying close to $22,000 over
25 years by adding monthly charges to the initial $997 totaling $21,997.00. Holy smokes, So now lets move onto other limousine management software in market.
I narrowed in down between "F--------" and Trip Tracker, and finally settling for Trip Tracker because it is more affordable. So I tried out Trip Tracker because base software starts at about $1,095 which included 6 month free tech support. I have owned this software for over 8 months and it is an amazing software. My only obstacle was that I am not into reading manuals so much, so it took me a lil longer by just playing with the software and using the tutorial CD. Furthermore, I was offered flexible payment terms chargeable to my credit card. So how could I refuse the offer?
Let me give some details describing by describing the software.
I told you, that if I can avoid reading, I do my best. I had Trip Tracker support help me setup the software such as company name, telephone name, pickup and cancellation policy to be on reservation forms, detailed charges and a special note thanking client to use my company �CSL Transportation� on invoices. I got free training from Trip Tracker, on how to make a reservation, simultaneously emailing confirmation to client and drivers, invoicing trips, applying charges to clients, accounts receivables and payable.
So as a courtesy to Trip tracker, since they really were helpful to me in tutoring, avoiding reading manuals and saving me time, I am sharing my fantastic experience with others within the limousine industry
So you click onto Trip Tracker, and the software loads. This is the main screen with all tabs. To make a reservation, we will go Reservation Tab
scroll down to NEW RESERVATION and a new window pops up allowing us to enter a client ID-cash reservation, credit card reservation
So if we type a client Id in Number field, if we do not remember, we can type their name, or by agent or passenger name: So for test purposes, I will select type 100 in number field (CASH), reservation form opens up as displayed here:
We can enter date, time, desired vehicle, enter driver/affiliate, all pickup and drop information,
Suppose it is a 3 car job order, all we have to do is click on
Copy This Tripicon twice. We will have 2 additional reservations # 1157 and 1158. Reservations 1157 and 1158 will automatically populate most fields except for vehicle ID, pickup time.
Suppose we need to make a round trip reservation? * * see how the Pu and drop will Reverse on return trip automatically on the next reservation 1160. so lets click on Copy This Trip
Upon clicking Copy This Tripicon, a pop up window display. On this window, we can select Return Trip, Change Time Values. Change the New date to whatever date return trip will be. Click OK.
Upon clicking Okay, Reservation # 1160 will display on screen.
The original Pickup point and drop off have been reversed onto the copied trip. This is a major Time Saver, I love this function, as I can send a client 2 reservations within less than 2 minutes.
With a few simple clicks, we can Email confirmation to client, and send trip details to driver/affiliate simultaneously. HERE is what I like, the clients confirmation is different from driver/affiliate.
Customer data, billing, or telephone numbers do not display on driver/affiliate confirmations unless you choose to send them same confirmation sent to your client. You can type any additional email addresses, in case the executive assistant asks to send a confirmation to BOSS, and the Bosses Boss (wife) and any other individual(s). So click on CONFIRM by Email
*send a simple plain TEXT based or an HTML based confirmation by selecting on upper right hand*
So now Let me walk you through the dispatch screen. The dispatch screen is under the same Reservations Tab. Suppose we want to view. The screen will list all reservations from top to down by time. The reservations will be color coded, and the vehicles will also be color coded on left side of screen. The blue codes are Sprinter Vans, the Red is for a 10 passenger stretch limo, green for sedan.
We can scroll back and forth by days and months to view dispatch screen of previous day and week.
By going back to Reservation Tab, we can get a lot more things, such as check vehicle schedules.
Or we can run a Future Sales Report. Nice!! That is what Wall Street investors like to see!
INVOICES:
So Let me move onto invoicing, process charges, send clients invoice or a receipts by clicking on Invoices Tab. This area requires a bit care and caution, HERE I suggest new users to READ MANUAL, because I made a few errors such as having open invoices, applying payments, Here are screen shots.
Aside from Invoicing, we can also make group reservations for conventions or events planners.
Here is another great awesome feature for example you have an Event Planner send you 30 Airports or shuttling groups back and forth
So typing in 40 reservations or 20 different passengers with 40 different pickup and drop locations seems like a real nightmare? Not at all, if you are using Excel. Send your clients an Excel spreadsheet and just simply import all data into Trip Tracker.
Import Trips from an Excel spreadsheet
Trip Tracker can easily import a batch of reservations from an Excel spreadsheet. A predefined template has been provided. You can create & update your own templates. Just follow the instructions at the bot-tom of this document.
Publish the Excel spreadsheet format:
1. Send the spreadsheet template (IE. ResvTemplate.xls or your own customer template) to your corporate or group charter customers. This can be found in the Tripwin folder. If you have a single-user license, then it will be in C:\Tripwin. 2. If you cannot find the file,
download it here.
3. There are 3 sample reservations already in this file which show how each field should be entered. If the client sends these back in their file, you can just skip them on the import. Or, feel free to delete them in the original file.
- If the trip has multiple segments or passengers, leave the first column blank for each 'extra' row. This will cause the row to be included with the previous row's trip.
Import formatted Excel spreadsheets:
Setup:
1. Once the client emails back the spreadsheet, save the attachment to your computer.
2. In Trip Tracker, go to Utilities and choose 'Import Reservations from Excel Spreadsheet'.
3. When the screen displays, make sure the 'Import Set' says 'IMPORT RESV' (unless a custom template has been setup for you).
4. Make sure the File Name points to the spreadsheet you just saved. You can either type in the full file name, or click the Browse button to select it.
5. Enter the Customer Number you want assigned to all trips in this spreadsheet.
6. Make sure the Header Row, Last Col, and First Data Row fields match the spreadsheet. For ex-ample, the 'IMPORT RESV' template should have Header Row of 1, Last Col of 'T', and First Data Row of 2.
Process Each Trip:
1. Click the 'Start Import' button.
2. This will step you through each row from the spreadsheet.
3. For each trip in the spreadsheet, the 'Import Reservation Values' screen will be displayed, show-ing all the values from the spreadsheet.
4. You can change any field value you want before accepting the trip.
5. Note that you can scroll down to see more fields.
6. Once all data has been validated, you can press 'Accept & Save' or 'Reject' each trip.
7. Once accepted, the Quick Reservations form will be displayed with all values from the trip.
8. Remember that if any field's value isn't valid, it will not let you off this screen until you fix the problem.
9. If you 'Reject' a trip, the trip is bypassed and no confirmation is sent. If the client requires one, then 'Accept' the trip so you get the Quick Reservations screen, then send a cancellation confirmation from there and delete or cancel the trip.
Restart the Import:
1. If you press the 'Quit Import' button, it will abandon the import at the current record. All previously imported trips will still exist.
2. You can continue importing later by clicking 'Start Import' on the same spreadsheet, and just click 'Reject' for all previously imported trips.
3. Note that it will not restart in the middle of a multiple segment trip. Just delete the partially accepted trip from before, and accept this entire trip.
Things to remember:
1. If you are using Spot Times, make sure the import set uses the Pickup Time, not the Start Time. Go to the Import Set (ie. "IMPORT RESV") and click the new button 'Edit Field Layout'. On the 'Pickup Time' row, click the 'Trip Segments' button, and then choose 'PickupTime1' from the list & click OK. This will switch the fields.
2. Make sure you tell your clients what they can enter in the 'Car Type' field. This must exist on your Vehicle Groups (e.g. 'SEDAN' or 'VAN'). Otherwise you'll have to change every imported record. If you don't do either, the import will not work!
3. Make sure the 'previewed' airline codes are the 2 or 3 digit codes (e.g. 'US', not 'US Air'). This could cause you to lose the flight info from the trip. Also, make sure there is a space between the Airline and the Flight No. (e.g. 'US 123', not 'US123').
4. Sometimes fields are too long and you can't leave the record. Typically this is either a phone number (max 12 chars), or the flight's city. Just shorten the data on the screen.
5. For multi-passenger trips, if you accept any part of the trip, make sure you accept the entire trip. Otherwise, when you restart the import it will think the trip has already been processed.
6. Sometimes Excel gets stuck & won't close the file. Usually it opens a window stating that some columns have weird data and makes you say you want to save it, although this window could be in the background. Just click on the open 'Microsoft Excel' on the task-bar.
7. If you are using 24-hour time, you might not see the times being entered, since it is putting them in the 12-hour fields. If in doubt, just hit the PgUp key (and if it changes records, then the PgDn key) to refresh the screen.
Create your own Import Set:
1. Create a new spreadsheet containing your desired format. Or, have your clients send you one in their format.
2. In Trip Tracker, go to Utilities and choose 'Import Reservations from Excel Spreadsheet'.
3. Click 'Add New Import Set' to give it a new name.
4. Enter the Customer ID and the File Name
5. Click 'Get Fields from File' to grab all of the existing spreadsheet's headings into this set.
6. Click 'Edit Field Layout' to associate each heading with a Reservation or Trip Segment field. You can re sequence the columns, change the fields, etc.
- If you want to delete a column, click on it, then press Ctrl-Del. Make sure you renumber the columns so you don't have a hole.
Backup Data:
I would like to discuss a bit about backup. What is Back up? Why is it important to Backup? I usually prefer to backup all my images, documents, pdf files and even Trip Tracker Data on an external drive as a back up plan. I am not a big fan of doing same tasks or repeating myself over and over.
Backing up files
If you have an external hard drive, you can back programs and files to it. So if something happens to your computer or you drop your laptop, everything is on the external hard drive. Western Digital has a nice little drive called Passport. Plug it in and its software will automatically back up the hard drive of your computer. You can install Trip Tracker and other programs on to the external hard drive and you can use it as a back-up if something happens to your main computer. It�s a USB external drive, recognized by Windows software. When plugged in, double click and it will be just as if it was a second hard drive attached to your computer.
Trip Tracker offers daily back up of your data files. You can also use a program such as Cobian and schedule daily, weekly or monthly backups of your data file. This is the recommended backup software from the Source1 Solutions computer guys. Just follow the instructions in the software and make adjustments until you have the backup you desire. You can do full backup of all the data files, or partial backups of files that have been updated. If something happens to your computer and you replace it, once Trip Tracker is reinstalled, you can have your data files restored within minutes.
When backing up programs or files, just pay attention to which drive you are backing up from. Usually your files on the C drive and external drives can be E of F (depending on how many CD/DVD drives or what you have plugged into the USB slots). So you copy from C drive to the external drive (for example E), if you use a program such as Cobian, you can browse to find the file to copy and then browse where the backup copy is to go and how often the backup is performed and when.
So I have provided some points about the Trip Tracker Software to limousine operators. I wish I could have shared more about Trip Tracker but all this takes time away from managing my limousine operations and this article is gonna become very lengthy. I hope I have done best to describe the software and my experience. Please feel free to post any comments and questions, or you can contact Trip Tracker for any questions, or newest gadgets such as the Mobile App, access Trip Tracker remotely from your I phone or I Pad.
Thank you for reading this article.
Rick Goondall
CSL TRANSPORTATION
347 Fifth Ave, suite 1402-154
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212.537.6668. Tel: 646.812.8948
Fax: 646.205.8029
Email:
csltransportation@hotmail.com
www.limousine-rental.net
Post a Comment