E-business set up advice

manonthemoon

Hey Folks,

I want to set up a b&b reservation website. I know it is a competetive market but think i have a niche worked out.

Anyway, i can design the site and optimise for search engines.

My first question is


1. Is it just a case of recieving emails (booking requests). Ring up B&B/ hotels and see if they have availability. If they have, simply respond to email and take deposit off credit card?

Is there something that i havnt thought of/

2. Who do i go to to see about implementing the credit card system

Ant help would be much obliged

Thanks


Motm

mayhem#

Right, I can see you making millions...................NOT!

Mr E

Originally posted by mayhem#
Right, I can see you making millions...................NOT!

Wow... what a stunningly helpful reply. :rolleyes:

manonthemoon: It can be as simple or as complex as you like.

A simple implementation would be a simple mailto form on the website which would email customers' requests to you.

A more complex implementation would be a database backend.

It all depends on your time available (DB backend would take longer, obviously), and your ability.

- Dave.

jd

Originally posted by mayhem#
Right, I can see you making millions...................NOT!

just like you did

mayhem#

Originally posted by jd

just like you did

OOUUUCHHH.........:D

G

As far as I've seen with B&B reservations sites the easiest and most practical way of running such a site would be to get each B&B to subscribe to your site for e.g. an annual fee, give them a page with a spiel and then a form which will send an email to the B&B proprietor themselves.

They can handle the booking from there. How can you accept credit card payments if you don't know the availability?? B&B heads like hard ca$h, let them handle the bookings, your hard part is getting the site no.1 on the search engine.

G

mayhem#

Originally posted by manonthemoon
Hey Folks,

I want to set up a b&b reservation website. I know it is a competetive market but think i have a niche worked out.

Anyway, i can design the site and optimise for search engines.

My first question is


1. Is it just a case of recieving emails (booking requests). Ring up B&B/ hotels and see if they have availability. If they have, simply respond to email and take deposit off credit card?

Is there something that i havnt thought of/

2. Who do i go to to see about implementing the credit card system

Ant help would be much obliged

Thanks


Motm

I'm sorry but I just cannot see the added value neede to make any kind of impact in a site where one would have to email an availability request to someone on the other side who then has to call the B&B's to see if there are rooms available?
There is not a huge amount of money to be made in that business and most of it is divied up by the "big" boys anyway....

manonthemoon

Thanks for the help TMB,

I was thinking of the mailto form at least for the start.

Do you know where i would go to find out about setting up a credit card facility.?

I have never set up one and am i would like to be 100% before i start

Thanks again

MOTM


Here's a joke :

A fella wants into a vet with a rottwieler.
- Me dog is sick will you have a look at him
- Sure says the vet

He takes the dog into the next room and two minutes later. He comes in carrying the rottweiler.

Vet says to the man "I'm going to have to put him down"

"Why, whats wrong with him" says the man

"He's too heavy"

steve-hosting36

mailto / formmail.cgi

www.payandshop.com for cc processing

CarrigHOST

CC Processors
Worldpay - http://www.worldpay.com
SFCommerce - http://www.sfcommerce.com
EuroConex - http://www.euroconex.com/

You migt find a script that suits your needs at http://www.hotscripts.com


Sean

DeVore

WAAH!!!

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES
HAVE THE CUSTOMER USE THE MAIL FORM TO GET THEIR
CREDIT CARD DETAILS TO YOU.

repeat dont use mail it might as well be a megaphone.

Give me a shout if you want advice and oh yeah, what all the others here said (apart from the ones trolling Mayhem).

DeV.