**Understanding Marketing Segments in a Reservation (Cloud) š„
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Marketing Segments in Visual Matrix Cloud help categorize reservations for reporting, analysis, and marketing purposes. These segments include Market Segment, Referral Code, and Reason for Stay.
Understanding how these fields work togetherāand how they are automatically populatedāhelps ensure consistency, reduces manual entry, and improves the accuracy of reports and exports.
What Are Marketing Segments?
Marketing Segments are three key fields used on every reservation:
- Market Segment: Identifies the type of business (e.g., Corporate, Leisure, Group)
- Referral Code: Identifies how the guest booked (e.g., Website, Phone, OTA)
- Reason for Stay: Identifies why the guest is staying (e.g., Business, Vacation, Event)
Together, these fields provide a complete view of:
- What type of guest do you have
- How they booked
- Why are they staying
How Marketing Segments Are Applied
Marketing Segments can be populated in different ways depending on your setup.
Required vs Optional Fields
Each field can be configured as:
- Required: Users must select a value before saving a reservation
- Optional: The field can be left blank
Default Values
If a field is not required, a default value can be assigned.
When a default is set:
- The system automatically fills in the field when saving a reservation
- Users can still change the value if needed
Manual Selection
Users can manually select or change Marketing Segments during:
- Reservation creation
- Reservation edits
When Values Are Assigned
Marketing Segments are typically assigned:
- When creating a reservation
- When saving a reservation
- When editing an existing reservation
If defaults are configured, they will automatically populate at the time of saving unless overridden by the user.
Special Behavior: Reason for Stay āOtherā Option
The Reason for Stay field includes an āOtherā option that allows users to enter a custom value.
When Other is selected:
- An additional field appears
- Users can enter a custom reason not listed in the setup
These entries can be reviewed in the Reason for Stay report, which displays all custom āOtherā values entered by users.
If similar custom values are used frequently, consider adding them as standard Reason for Stay options to improve consistency.
Impact on Reports and Exports
Marketing Segments are used throughout the system, including:
- Marketing Exports (Guest, Company, Travel Agent, City Ledger)
- Segment Reports (Market Segment, Referral Code, Reason for Stay)
- Forecasting and performance analysis
Accurate and consistent use of these fields ensures:
- Reliable reporting
- Better marketing insights
- Improved data analysis
Integration Considerations
Marketing Segments (Market Segment, Referral Code, and Reason for Stay) are also used in external integrations, such as your channel manager rate plan mappings.
If these values are: Modified, Deactivated, or Deleted, it may impact how reservations are received from external systems.
For example:
- A rate plan mapped to a specific Market Segment may no longer match
- Reservations from the channel manager may fail to import correctly
- Booking data may be incomplete or rejected
It is important to review any integrations before making changes to Marketing Segment setups.
Best Practices
- Set fields as Required whenever possible to ensure consistency
- Use default values if the field is optional
- Train staff to select the correct values during reservation entry
- Review reports regularly to ensure data accuracy
- Limit use of āOtherā to cases where no standard option exists
Still Need Help With This Topic?
Ask Yourself:
- Are the Marketing Segment fields set as required or optional?
- Are default values configured correctly?
- Are users selecting the correct values consistently?
Support May Ask You:
- What are your current setup settings for Market Segment, Referral Code, and Reason for Stay?
- Are default values configured?
- Which report or export is showing incorrect data?