Old method - How to receive Vrbo Messages in the Smily Inbox

Smily now supports and syncs Vrbo Messaging API 🎉
Check this new article to find out how it works: Smily Inbox - Vrbo Messaging Guide

Old way:  Vrbo Messages in the Smily Inbox

Important: Vrbo does not support inbox synchronization through its API. However, you can use the workaround below to receive guest messages in your Smily Inbox.

Note: Reservation requests are not considered messages by Vrbo and will not be synchronized to Smily. These requests must continue to be managed directly from the Vrbo platform.

Step 1 – Create a Contact Guest in Smily

Create a guest profile using your own contact information.

Complete the following mandatory fields:

• First Name
• Last Name
• Preferred Language
• Email Address Label
• Email Address

Screenshot Placeholder:

Step 2 – Send Yourself a Test Message

1. Open the Smily Inbox.
2. Start a conversation with the guest profile created in Step 1.
3. Send yourself a test email.

This will generate a unique Smily Inbox email address.

Screenshot Placeholder:

Step 3 – Copy the Smily Inbox Sender Address

1. Open the email received from Smily.
2. Copy the sender email address displayed in the email header.

This address will be used in your Vrbo account so that guest messages are forwarded to Smily.

Screenshot Placeholder:

Step 4 – Add the Email Address in Vrbo

1. Log in to your Vrbo account.
2. Navigate to Account → Account Settings.
3. Add the copied Smily Inbox email address as a secondary (or tertiary) email address.
4. Save your changes.

Screenshot Placeholder:

Step 5 – Verify the Email Address on Your Listings

To ensure the email address has synchronized correctly:

1. Open one of your Vrbo listings.
2. Click Modify Property.
3. Open Contact Information.
4. Confirm that both your primary email address and the Smily Inbox email address are displayed.
5. Verify that communication settings are enabled for both addresses.

Screenshot Placeholder:

Result

Once configured, guest messages sent through Vrbo will be forwarded to the Smily Inbox, allowing you to manage communications from Smily while keeping your existing Vrbo account settings unchanged.

If messages are not received after completing these steps, verify that the additional email address is correctly configured and enabled on each Vrbo listing.