Where do I find it?
Configuration> Sales Channel> External Reference Batches
What does it mean?
This feature gives you the possibility of printing an external code from any other operator/company/ attraction on your tickets, allowing your customers to go directly to the other company using that same ticket. For instance, if you are selling a third party ticket, like a museum, you can print a barcode from the museum on your tickets. This way your customer can directly access the museum using that ticket, without the need to exchange it for another one at the entrance.
For this, the other operator/company/attraction should provide you with a file containing all the codes to be printed on your tickets..
What should I do?
First of all, you need a CSV file provided by the other operator/company/attraction with their codes. The codes must be alphanumeric, special characters are possible ([a-zA-Z0-9-:.;/_(){}\\[\\]+\\*#@<>%&=!|]+? but as for any other CSV file please abstain from using ; and ,) and should be placed in the first column (column A) without any header. Please, keep in mind the maximun lenght allowed is 255 characters and also limit the file to a maximum of 1000 codes/rows.
Once you have the CSV file, go to "Configuration> Sales Channel> External Reference Batches" and follow these steps:
- Create a "New" external reference batch
- Give it a name that describes the tickets
- Select the status:
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DISABLED: you can select this status to disable this feature.
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ENABLE_EMPTY_PROCEED: the booking will be successful even if all of the codes within the CSV have been used or the CSV is empty.
- ENABLED_EMPTY_FAIL: the booking will fail if all the CSV codes have been used or the CSV file is empty. The device will show the following error message:
- IVENTURE: Do not use this status, it's only for internal use of Palisis AG.
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- Select and upload the CSV file previously saved on your computer.
- Select the corresponding Priceplan price simply by clicking on it.
- Finally, don't forget to Save
Once you have created the External reference batch, you can see how many references have been uploaded and how many are still available (that haven't been issued yet). In our example, we have uploaded 10 codes and all of them are still available.
Please, take into account that you can't remove an existing external reference batch, but you can always DISABLE changing the status. You can upload additional codes from a new CSV-File at any time. If you want to have unused codes removed from a batch please contact our Support team.
Finally, you need to design your ticket layout to include an "External reference", otherwise, the barcode will not print out.
Click "edit" on the external reference block to select the type of barcode (QR code or CODE 128) and select the alignment.
How does it look in the reports?
Those bookings will show as "Direct Sales" but you can see the issued codes in the External Reference ID column.