RentalToolService.com

1Logging In & the Dashboard

Accessing the Admin Area

Go to rentaltoolservice.com/wp-admin in your browser. Enter your username and password, then click Log In.

Dashboard Overview

The black left-hand sidebar is your main navigation. The most important items for daily management are:

The Top Bar

The black bar at the very top of every admin page has useful shortcuts. The house icon (your site name) lets you switch between the admin and the live front-end without logging out. Click Visit Site to preview how the website looks to visitors.

2Managing Rental Equipment (Listings)

All rental equipment is managed under the Rent Items menu. Each piece of equipment is a single "Rent Item" with its own page, photos, pricing, and availability calendar.

Adding a New Rental Item

1. Go to Rent Items → Add New in the sidebar.

2. Type the equipment name in the large title field at the top (e.g. "20T Excavator — Cat 320").

3. In the main content area below the title, write a description — what it does, condition, included accessories, and operating notes.

4. On the right-hand side, under Rent Item Category, tick the category that best fits (e.g. Excavators & Earthmoving). If no category fits, add one — see Section 3.

5. Set the Featured Image (bottom-right panel). This is the main photo that appears on listing cards throughout the site.

6. Fill in the settings tabs in the large panel below the content editor. Each tab is described in detail below.

7. When ready, click Publish (top-right). To save without publishing, click Save Draft.

Item Settings Tabs — Overview

Below the content editor you will see a row of tabs. Each one controls a different aspect of the listing:

General Info Tab

This is the first tab. The key field here is Rental Type, which controls how the booking calendar works for this item.

Other fields in General Info:

• Sub Title — a short tagline shown under the item name on its page
• Highlighted Features — a checklist of key specs that appear as green ticks on the item page (e.g. "Operating Weight: 20,000 kg")
• Short Description — a brief summary shown on listing cards. Keep it to 1–2 sentences.

Pricing Tab

Set how much it costs to rent the item. Enable and set multiple rates — the system automatically applies the most cost-effective combination for the customer's chosen dates.

Standard Rates

• Hourly ($) — price per hour
• Daily ($) — price per day
• Weekly ($) — price per week (7 days)
• Monthly ($) — price per month (30 days)

Tick the checkbox next to each rate you want to enable, then enter the price. You can enable all four and the system will find the cheapest combination.

Auto-Pivot Thresholds

These tell the system when to switch from a shorter rate to a longer one:

• Apply daily rate after X hours — e.g. after 8 hours, charge the daily rate
• Apply weekly rate after X days — e.g. after 5 days, charge the weekly rate
• Apply monthly rate after X weeks — e.g. after 3 weeks, charge the monthly rate

Sessional / Day-Wise Pricing

Set different prices for different days of the week (e.g. higher weekend rates) or a specific date range (seasonal pricing) using the Day-wise price and Sessional price sections at the bottom of the Pricing tab.

Off Days Tab

Mark dates when this item is not available for booking.

• Specific dates — click dates on the calendar to toggle them unavailable. Blocked dates appear greyed out to customers.
• Recurring weekdays — tick Monday–Sunday checkboxes to permanently block a day of the week (e.g. block Sundays).

Inventory Tab

Controls how many units of this item exist and how bookings reduce that count.

• Stock quantity — total number of identical units available for rent
• Manage inventory based on order status — choose which WooCommerce order statuses count as a confirmed booking (e.g. "Processing" and "Completed")
• Manage inventory based on return — when enabled, a unit becomes available again as soon as the return date passes, rather than waiting for the order to be manually closed

Gallery Tab

Add multiple photos that appear in the image slider on the item's page.

1. Click Add Image.

2. Upload new photos or select from the Media Library.

3. Select multiple images at once by clicking each one, then click Add to Gallery.

4. Drag images to reorder them. The first image in the gallery appears as the main slider image.

Extra Service Tab

Add optional extras that customers can select when booking (e.g. "Delivery", "Operator", "Fuel pre-fill"). Each extra shows as a tickbox or quantity selector on the booking form.

1. Click Add Service.

2. Enter a Service Name (e.g. "Delivery to site").

3. Set the Price — this is a flat fee added to the booking total.

4. Choose whether the price is per booking or per day.

5. Tick Required if you want it automatically added to every booking (e.g. a mandatory insurance fee).

FAQ Tab

Add frequently asked questions that appear in an accordion section on the item page. Good questions: fuel policy, deposit requirements, what's included, operator requirements, damage liability.

1. Click Add FAQ.

2. Type the question in the Question field.

3. Type the answer in the Answer field.

4. Repeat for each Q&A pair.

Terms Tab

Add rental terms and conditions specific to this item. The customer must accept these during checkout. Leave blank to use the site-wide terms configured in the global plugin settings.

Tax Tab

By default all items use the WooCommerce tax class set in WooCommerce → Settings → Tax. Use this tab only if a specific item needs a different tax treatment (e.g. a GST-exempt item).

Fee Management Tab

Add surcharges that appear as separate line items in the booking total — for example, a fuel levy, weekend surcharge, or platform fee.

• Fees can be a flat amount or a percentage of the booking subtotal.
• You can set fees to apply only on specific days of the week or within a date range.

Security Deposit Tab

Collect a refundable bond at checkout. Enable this tab, set the deposit amount, and it will be collected through WooCommerce as part of the booking total. Refund it manually via WooCommerce → Orders when the equipment is returned undamaged.

Location Tab

Set pickup and drop-off location details for this item:

• Pickup location — the physical address or yard where the customer collects the equipment
• Drop-off location — where it is returned (often the same as pickup)
• Distance pricing — optionally charge a delivery fee based on distance

Related Tab

Choose up to 4–6 other rental items to show in the "You may also like" carousel at the bottom of this item's page. Select items that complement this one (e.g. a compactor related to an excavator).

Settings Tab

• Show available quantity — displays "X units available" on the item page. Useful for popular equipment.
• Enable extra service quantity — allows customers to choose a quantity for extra services (e.g. 2 operators instead of 1).
• Add to Cart shortcode — paste into any page to embed this item's booking form: [rent-add-to-cart id='POST_ID']

Editing and Deleting Items

Hover over any item in the list to reveal the Edit, Quick Edit, and Trash links.

• Edit — opens the full editor with all tabs
• Quick Edit — change the title, category, and published status without opening the full editor
• Trash — moves the item to Trash; it won't appear on the site but is recoverable. Go to the Trash view at the top of the list to restore or permanently delete it.

3Equipment Categories (Rent Item Types)

Categories group your equipment into types that customers can filter by on the Browse Equipment page. Current categories on the site:

Adding a New Category

1. Go to Rent Items → Rent Item Type.

2. Fill in the Name (e.g. "Scaffolding") in the left-hand form.

3. The Slug auto-fills as a URL-friendly version — leave it as-is.

4. Click Add New Rent Item Type. It appears in the list on the right.

Editing a Category

Hover over a category name and click Edit. You can change the name and description. Only change the slug if necessary — doing so will break existing links to that category.

Assigning Items to Categories

Open any Rent Item in the editor. On the right-hand side, the Rent Item Category box lists all categories with checkboxes. Tick the appropriate one(s) and save.

4Rental Orders & Bookings

Bookings are recorded in two places: the plugin's own Order List (rental details) and WooCommerce Orders (payment details). You need both for a complete picture.

Viewing Rental Booking Details

This shows all rental-specific booking information:

• Customer name and email
• Item rented and rental type
• Check-in and check-out dates
• Quantity / units booked
• Extra services selected
• Booking status (Pending, Processing, Completed, Cancelled)
• Associated WooCommerce order ID

Click any order row to expand its full details. Update the Booking Status directly from this screen using the status dropdown.

Viewing Payment Orders

This shows the financial side of every booking — what was charged, payment method, billing address, and order history. Each WooCommerce order has a corresponding entry in the Rent Items Order List.

Order Statuses Explained

Processing a Refund

1. Go to WooCommerce → Orders and open the order.

2. Scroll down to Order Items and click Refund.

3. Enter the amount to refund and a reason (optional).

4. Click Refund via [Payment Gateway] to process automatically, or Refund Manually if handling the refund outside the system.

5Website Pages

Editing a Page

1. Go to Pages → All Pages.

2. Click the page name to open the editor.

3. Edit the content in the block editor. Text blocks can be clicked directly to edit.

4. Click Update (top right) when finished.

Adding a New Page

1. Go to Pages → Add New.

2. Enter the page title and add content using the block editor.

3. In Page Attributes on the right, leave Template as "Default Template" for a standard page with sidebar, or choose "Full Width Page" for a layout with no sidebar.

4. Click Publish, then add it to a navigation menu if needed (see Section 6).

6Navigation Menus

Adding a Page to a Menu

1. Select the menu from the dropdown and click Select.

2. On the left, expand Pages and tick the pages you want to add.

3. Click Add to Menu, drag items into the desired order, then click Save Menu.

Adding a Custom Link

1. Expand Custom Links on the left panel.

2. Enter the full URL and the link text, then click Add to Menu.

3. Drag it into position and click Save Menu.

Adding Equipment Categories to a Menu

Expand Rent Item Type in the left panel (you may need to tick it under Screen Options at the top). Tick the categories you want, click Add to Menu, and save.

Creating Dropdown Sub-Menus

Drag a menu item slightly to the right under another item. It becomes indented, indicating it is a sub-menu (dropdown) under the parent above it.

7Sidebar & Footer Widgets

Editing a Widget

1. Go to Appearance → Widgets.

2. Click the widget area panel to expand it, then click the widget to expand its options.

3. Edit the content and click Update.

Adding a New Widget

1. Click the + button inside any widget area.

2. Search for the widget type (e.g. "Text", "Navigation Menu", "Search") and click to add it.

3. Configure its settings and click Update.

Changing the Footer Menu Columns

Each footer column uses a Navigation Menu widget pointing to a menu from Appearance → Menus. To change what links appear, edit the corresponding menu (Section 6) — you don't need to touch the widgets themselves.

8Theme Customiser

The Customiser lets you edit almost all of the website's text content and branding without touching any code. Changes preview live as you type and are only published when you click Publish.

Homepage Sections

Hero Section

• Hero Heading — the large headline at the top of the page
• Hero Subheading — the smaller text below the headline
• Hero Button Text & URL — the primary call-to-action button
• Hero Background Image — the photo shown behind the text

Stats Bar

The row of numbers (e.g. "2,400+ Items", "320+ Brands"). Edit each stat label and number individually.

How It Works

The three-step section. Edit each step's title and description.

Featured Equipment Heading

The heading above the featured equipment grid. Equipment shown there is pulled automatically from your Rent Items — most recently added items appear first.

Trust / Why Us Section

The section with bullet points. Edit the heading, bullet text, and the secondary image/callout on the right.

Testimonials

Add or edit customer testimonials. Each has a name, company, quote, and star rating.

Footer Settings

• Footer CTA Heading & Description — the "Need equipment?" banner above the footer columns
• CTA Button Text & URL — the amber button in the CTA banner
• Footer Logo — upload a logo for the dark footer background (falls back to the main logo)
• About Text — the short paragraph below the logo
• Social Links — paste your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn URLs
• Copyright Text — the text in the footer bottom bar

Contact Page Settings

All visible text on the /contact/ page is controlled here — no page editing needed.

• Hero Label — small label above the page title (e.g. "Get in Touch")
• Hero Heading — the page title (e.g. "Contact Us")
• Hero Description — the subtitle paragraph in the hero banner
• Email Address — your contact email (shown and linked)
• Phone Number — your phone number (tap-to-call on mobile)
• Phone Hours — e.g. "Mon – Sun, 7am – 7pm AEST"
• Weekday / Weekend Hours — office hour lines shown under the clock icon
• Response Note — the text in the blue callout box
• Form Heading & Subtext — heading and sub-paragraph above the contact form

9Contact Form

The site uses Contact Form 7. The form collects: Full Name, Email, Phone, Subject (dropdown), and Message.

Editing Form Fields

1. Go to Contact → Contact Forms and click Edit.

2. The Form tab shows the form markup. Fields are shortcode tags, e.g. [text* your-name] for a required text field.

3. To add a new field, click a field type button above the editor (Text, Email, Tel, etc.) and insert it.

4. Click Save.

Setting Up Email Notifications

1. In the form editor, click the Mail tab.

2. In To, enter the email address that should receive submissions (e.g. support@rentaltoolservice.com).

3. Edit the Subject and Message Body using the field tags listed below the editor.

4. Click Save.

Viewing Form Submissions

Contact Form 7 does not store submissions in the database by default — all submissions are delivered by email only. To keep a submission log, install the free Flamingo plugin (same author) — it stores every message in the admin panel under Flamingo → Inbound Messages.

10WooCommerce Settings

General Settings

• Selling location — restrict to Australia or allow all countries
• Currency — Australian Dollar (AUD)
• Currency position — where the $ symbol appears relative to the amount

Tax Settings

• Enable tax rates and calculations — must be ticked
• Prices entered with tax — "Yes, inclusive of tax" if your rental rates already include GST; "No, exclusive" if you add GST on top
• Tax rates — under "Standard Rates", add a row: Country = AU, State = *, Rate = 10, Tax name = GST

Payment Gateways

Email Notifications

• New Order — sent to the admin when a booking is made. Set the recipient to your email address.
• Order Processing — sent to the customer confirming payment was received.
• Order Completed — sent to the customer when the rental is marked complete.
• Customer Invoice — manually sent from the order screen to resend an invoice.

Click any email to edit its From name, From address, subject line, and content.

My Account Page

Customers log in at /my-account/ to view order history and manage their details. WooCommerce creates and manages this page automatically — do not delete it.

11Media Library

All images and files uploaded to the site live here. Upload once and reuse anywhere.

Uploading Images

1. Go to Media → Add New.

2. Drag and drop image files onto the upload area, or click Select Files.

3. Once uploaded, click an image to add its Alt Text (important for SEO) and Title.

Image Guidelines

12User Accounts

User Roles

Adding a New Admin User

1. Go to Users → Add New.

2. Enter username, email, first/last name, and a strong password.

3. Set the Role to Administrator (for full access) or another role as appropriate.

4. Tick Send the new user an email about their account, then click Add New User.

Changing Your Password

Go to Users → Profile, scroll to Account Management, click Set New Password, enter a strong password, and click Update Profile.

13Plugins Overview

Key active plugins and their purpose. Do not deactivate or delete any of these without understanding the impact.

Updating Plugins

1. Go to Dashboard → Updates to see everything that needs updating.

2. Or go to Plugins → Installed Plugins and click Update Now on individual plugins.

14Quick Reference — Common Tasks