Cobot lets visitors book conference rooms and other resources without signing up for a membership. External Bookings helps you get more out of your space by letting non-members (visitors) book resources through public pages, giving you a chance to earn extra income.
You can activate External Bookings under Calendar » External Bookings. You’ll have a 30-day free trial to explore all features, including accepting bookings from visitors.
After your trial, the feature costs €15 or $19 per month, plus a fee on any revenue made through it.
This guide covers:
Setting up Resources
After activating External Bookings, you can:
Create new resources:
Add resources from the External Bookings Dashboard or under Products » Resources.
Resources are listed alphabetically.
Edit existing resources:
Change existing resources to include different rates and information for visitors.
Turn on the 'public' option to make resources visible to visitors.
Visitor Approvals & Paying Later
At the bottom of each resource, you can turn on options for:
Approval Required for Visitors: Visitors will need your approval before confirming a booking.
Allow Visitors to Pay Later: Visitors can book without being charged immediately. You can process payment manually before or after their visit.
Removing Resources from Public Listings
To stop a resource from being publicly listed, go to Products » Resource » Edit and switch off the public option.
Homepage & Visitor Bookings
Once a resource is public, a unique URL is created. You can embed this link on your website so visitors can book directly.
Visitors will also see memberships and passes on your homepage.
New Bookings
Here’s what visitors will experience when booking:
Overview: Visitors see resource details, capacity, and availability.
Guests & Extras: Visitors can select how many guests they’ll bring and any extras they’d like to add.
Contact Details: Visitors enter their information and agree to your terms and conditions.
Payment: Visitors choose their payment method and confirm the booking.
Confirmation: Visitors see their booking details and receive a confirmation email.
Canceling & Editing Bookings
Visitors can cancel bookings through a link in their confirmation email.
You can also cancel or edit bookings through your External Bookings Dashboard.
Email Notifications
Cobot automatically sends emails for different stages of the booking process, including confirmations, reminders, and cancellations. You can customize these emails under Customize » Emails.
External Bookings Dashboard
Your External Bookings Dashboard lets you:
Approve or decline bookings
Edit or cancel bookings
Convert visitors to members by assigning them to a membership plan
Payments & Invoicing
Manual Payments: Set up options like cash or bank transfer, which will require manual processing by your team.
Refunds
Refunds must be done through Stripe or PayPal. To reflect this in Cobot, create a negative invoice to balance your records.
Analytics
Check your Analytics Dashboard to view income from External Bookings and get insights into bookings and payments.
