Revolution Release R1.9 is live, as of November 17. Here are some of the developments of interest to agencies:

Pay Per Click Network -

Revolution Manager now shows both Kayak and Compare Car Rentals.com as Pay Per Click or PPC Networks, although the Compare program is not yet active. The upgrade includes a new look and feel with nicer graphs, additional statistics and an account overview page. New signups to our PPC Networks receive 3% free clicks on their first purchase, to check the appearance of their vehicles on-line.

Car Rental Express.com (CRX) Redesign is in Progress

The CRX site is receiving a major upgrade, with a stylish new look and improved navigation. The same great reservation capabilities will be in place and our team is working hard on this upgrade. A site relaunch will take place relatively early in 2010.

Vehicle Image Popup Redesign

This new design allows for cross browser support so that Popups can appear on such browsers as Chrome and Safari. The new popup is also more intuitive and user friendly.

Systems Admin / Procedural

Our server platform has been enhanced with a more efficient backup solution. Additional automated monitoring has been added, making the system best in class.

Some Great Additional Revolution Features

• Improved calendars for pickup and dropoff dates
• One day rates display
• Updates to billing reports
• Revolution code upgrades
• Several client updates

Nucar Connection

There is now a Nucar connection which brings a lot of international representation to CRX and will increase the number of reservations received from overseas.

We are proud to announce the release of Revolution 1.8. Features were developed to better serve your needs.

New Pro Image Gallery (by eVox)

You now have access to over 1,500 new model, showroom quality images, available in all colors in our Pro Gallery. These are professional, up-to-date and uniform vehicle images, which will enhance the look and feel of your representation on the Internet. You can access them by visiting your Vehicles page in Revolution Manager. You can browse and then upload the images that you like best.

New CRX Payment Options

Now you have the option of being charged $12.50/reservation at Car Rental Express.com OR $4.00/reservation/day, to a maximum of 5 days (for any length of rental). This way you can choose to be billed the best way that suits your company. Changes are made only at billing cycle boundaries, like the first of the month. Please contact Robyn Moreno at robyn@expressitech.com to ask for a change in this CRX payment option.

New Partners Added to Our Site

While working towards the completion of this release, we have been communicating closely with two new partners that will allow for increased revenue for your agency:

• 1. Rate Highway - a great way to actively manage rental rates
• 2. Compare Car Rentals.com - a new distribution channel, like Kayak

These new partner services will be available at our next Revolution release, and you can read previews about them at ExpressITech.com. Rate Highway is currently completing beta tests.

Improved Internal Systems

We have made many internal changes to better organize the running of our day-to -day operations. We now have Project Time Tracking, Billing System improvements and Domain Name Management.

Revolution 1.7 has kept our development team busy since December. We are happy to unveil a batch of new features to our Revolution clients.

Revolution Manager - New Look

The first thing you will notice is that Revolution Manager has a new look! The color scheme has changed, and the layout is now wider, giving you more space to administer your Revolution configuration.

Revolution Manager - Now Speedier!

For release 1.7, we focused heavily on improving Manager’s performance. You can now load and edit your information with greater speed and ease. We will be continually optimizing Manager’s performance, but we’ve made a huge leap forward with this Release.

Discounts and Rate Codes Report

In Manager, you can view a report of reservations that were made using special rate codes and discount codes.

Find it here: Reports » Other Reports » Discount Report

Module Enhancements

Vehicle Sales Program

You can now choose “call for pricing” instead of setting a dollar value for each vehicle.

Find it here: Revolution » Modules » Vehicle Sales

Corporate Program

You can now edit the email to which your corporate applications are delivered.

Find it here: Revolution » Modules » Corporate Program

Affiliate Program

You can now customize the service agreements that your affiliates agree to when they enroll in your affiliate program.

Find it here: Revolution » Modules » Affiliate Program

Reservation Phone Number

You can now create a phone number exclusively for your reservation confirmation email (a call center #, for example). This will replace your location and company default phone numbers.

Revolution™ 1.6.1 was released Monday, Dec 15th. It is a minor release, but includes some noteworthy features:

Learn By Example in Manager

Revolution™ Manager is a large administration system, with many powerful features to help you configure Revolution™ to your business’s requirements. You can now learn by example, with a one-click option to view our demo company “Basic Example Agency”.

In Manager, you will see a link in the sidebar “View a Demo Company”. Click on the arrow icon, and you will be taken to the same page as you are currently editing, but with the demo company’s data. You can navigate through the demo company, preview their Revolution pages, view reservation reports, etc. When you want to switch back, simply click on “Return to Your Account”.

Find it: Manager » [sidebar]

Daily or Weekly Rate Instead of “Rental Rate”

Revolution now allows you to show your renters the Daily or Weekly rate on the rate search results, instead of the calculated Rental Rate. Revolution chooses the largest rental period, and will display this to the renter (e.g. a 9 day rental will show Weekly, whereas a 2 day rental will show Daily).

Find it: Manager » Revolution » Rental Center » Rental Center Options » Rate Options

Reservation Reports and Notifications

Reservation requests now have a unique subject line: REQUEST FOR RESERVATION - REPLY IS REQUIRED to differentiate them from regular reservations.

The reservation report in Manager now paginates your reservations, and holds the correct page after canceling or replying to the renter. You can also now search from reservations over any date range (ignoring the calendar filters)

Find it: Manager » Reports » Reservations

Support Phone Call Report

If you are subscribed to our telephone support service, you can view you phone call log in Manager.

Find it: Manager » Support » Phone Calls

Revolution™ was released today, with some notable new features.

Revolution™ and Email Marketing from Constant Contact

Constant Contact is the web’s leading email marketing solution, enabling you to send high-impact e-newsletters to your customer list. Revolution™ now integrates with Constant Contact, making your mailing list maintenance completely automatic:

• Export your Revolution™ customer list, for easy import into Constant Contact
• New emails addresses from Revolution™ customers are imported nightly to your Constant Contact account
• Send e-newsletters to your customer list through Constant Contact’s secure and powerful admin panel

If you use Revolution™ on your website, and are interested in activating the Constant Contact Module, contact our support department.

Have Your Customers Read Your Rental Policies?

Misunderstandings at the rental counter are frustrating for everyone. Now you can ask your customers to read your rental policies before they submit their reservation. If you enable this option, on the renter information form, the following message will appear

“I have read, understand and agree to the Rental Policies”

with a checkbox, and a direct link to your rental policies page (in a popup, so they don’t navigate away from the reservation). The renter is required to check-off this field in order to submit their reservation.

Find it: Manager » Rental Center » Rental Center Options » Messages

Kayak Program: Free Clicks for your Clickbank

If you are part of our Kayak Program, you will now receive 3 free clicks for every 100 purchased. This allows you to periodically test your Kayak listings, and click-thru to your landing pages without incurring the click cost.

Find it: Manager » Network » Kayak Program

Updates for WebLink Clients

There are a couple of notable enhancements available for WebLink clients.

Rental Length Restrictions and Pickup Time Margin

Create minimum and maximum rental length restrictions for selected vehicles. Renters will be informed of the restriction when they submit their itinerary, so they understand why a rate quote is not being returned.

Find it: Manager » Rental Center » Rental Length Restrictions

You can also now set a minimum pickup time margin; the length of time the renter must book in advance. If the renter’s pickup time is under this cut-off, they will be prompted to call your rental location for rates and availability.

Find it: Manager » Rental Center » Rental Center Options » Itinerary Options

Policy Conditions

Rental policies can now be given location and vehicle conditions. When after the renter has chosen a their rate quote, only the policies matching these conditions will display.

Find it: Manager » Rental Policies