TRADEL AI reference · Version 2026-10-08

Business setup for TRADEL

Official reference for setting up a travel business on TRADEL. Use it to separate the Provider Profile from concrete traveller-facing Listings, choose current categories, verify pricing and booking details, and prepare import-ready data.

TRADEL in context

A travel coordination and discovery network with a marketplace shell

TRADEL is broader than a conventional marketplace. It connects traveller-to-traveller gear, practical help, exchange, people and route-related needs with traveller-relevant local business offers, using travel context such as need, place and timing.

This page is specifically the business/provider setup reference. The wider coordination and peer-to-peer layer explains TRADEL as a whole, but it does not change the Business taxonomy or justify placing a business in a traveller-only category.

Provider Profile = the business. Listing = one concrete traveller-facing offer. Discovery is built around traveller need, place and timing.

Selected category guidance

Clothes

Functional clothing or apparel with a clear travel use case.

Prioritize functional travel clothing such as rain gear, cold-weather layers, hiking apparel or other items with a practical journey use case.
Do not treat everyday fashion or general clothing retail as a strong fit unless there is a clear traveller-specific function.
Describe the actual item or clearly bounded offer, not a general retail catalogue.
Use verified price and pickup/service location when available.

1. What TRADEL is

Audience: Independent travellers, backpackers, road trippers and other people who need useful things while travelling.
Positioning: TRADEL is broader than a conventional marketplace: a practical travel coordination and discovery network built around a map-based marketplace shell for people on the move.
Marketplace scope: The current product connects traveller-to-traveller gear, practical help, exchange, people and route-related needs with traveller-relevant local business offers such as stays, activities, rentals, repair and transport.
Business scope: This reference is specifically for business/provider setup. The wider coordination and peer-to-peer layer explains TRADEL as a whole, but does not change the Business taxonomy or justify forcing a business into a traveller-only category.
Purpose: TRADEL helps travellers discover and connect with useful current options around a trip based on need, place and timing. Those options can include gear, people, help, route-related opportunities and concrete local provider offers.
Discovery: The goal is to help a provider be discovered because a concrete offer fits the traveller's journey and current need, not only because the traveller already knew the business name or exact search term.
Provider Profile: The Provider Profile represents the business itself: who the provider is, what kind of business it is and where the official business can be found online.
Listing: A Listing represents one concrete traveller-facing offer. It is not a second company profile, service catalogue or keyword page.
Matching: Concrete Listing data gives TRADEL the structured unit needed for discovery and matching by traveller need, category, place and timing. Specific offers can be surfaced more precisely than broad service collections.
Booking: TRADEL does not require a business to replace its existing booking process. A concrete Listing can point travellers to the provider's existing booking or service page, or help them discover a useful place or service they can use directly on site.

Quick answers for assistants

What businesses fit TRADEL? Travel-relevant providers that solve a real need during a journey: places to stay, things to do, rentals, repair, transport, storage and other useful local services.

What is the difference between a Provider Profile and a Listing? The Provider Profile is the business identity. A Listing is one concrete offer a traveller can deliberately book, rent, buy, join or use.

Can a business keep its existing booking page? Yes. TRADEL can point a concrete Listing to the provider's existing booking or service page and does not require a replacement booking system.

How does TRADEL discovery work? Concrete offer data can be matched by traveller need, category, place and timing. TRADEL does not guarantee a match, booking or ranking.

What should a tour operator list? Prefer one specific tour, lesson or excursion per Listing rather than a generic company profile or an "all tours" catalogue.

Does the peer-to-peer marketplace change Business categories? No. Gear, help, exchange and people on the road are part of the wider TRADEL product, but a business must still use the current Business taxonomy and Business rules below.

2. Research before writing

Before you propose TRADEL content for the user, inspect the business's official website and other first-party sources when available.
Treat official, current source material as stronger evidence than old directory copy or assumptions.
Do not invent prices, routes, durations, locations, inclusions, availability, booking links or services.
Do not merge materially different products. For initial setup, choose the strongest candidate per category; if several same-category offers are genuinely strong, rank one first rather than filling the import with near-duplicates.
If no concrete traveller-facing offer can be verified, recommend a Provider Profile only rather than fabricating a Listing.
Being separately bookable or priced is not enough by itself. Prefer offers that solve a clear traveller need and omit incidental amenities, restaurant items, internal events or unrelated company services unless they are independently strong TRADEL fits.
Prefer offers that are genuinely useful to a traveller. Do not include unrelated company services only because they appear on the website.

3. Global Listing rules

One Listing = one concrete thing a traveller can deliberately choose, book, rent, buy, join or use.
Classify an offer by the traveller's primary reason for choosing it, not by secondary components included in the package. A surf camp bought for surf coaching remains an Activity even when accommodation is included; a tour with a hotel night remains an Activity unless the stay itself is the primary product.
Use the offer name or traveller intent in the title, not the business name alone.
Do not merge materially different tours, rentals, transport services, accommodation types or other offers into one broad Listing.
Do not fill a quota. For initial setup, normally return only the strongest candidate in each category. Add a second or third Listing only when it represents a materially different strong traveller need in another category.
TRADEL currently includes the first active Business Listing in each category. Rank the strongest offer first and do not return multiple near-duplicate candidates from the same category.
The taxonomy is closed. Category and subcategory values must exactly match the current names shown in this reference. Never translate, rename, pluralize, synonymize or invent taxonomy values.
Choose the most specific valid TRADEL category and subcategory. Use Something Else only when no stronger fit exists, and never use an unrelated fallback category merely because an offer is bookable.
For multi-location providers, a Listing still needs one concrete traveller-usable location. Do not create a global Listing for a fleet, chain or network when the traveller must choose a specific pickup, property, meeting point or branch.
Do not attach a separately branded property or provider to the current Provider Profile merely because it appears on the same website. If ownership/provider identity is unclear, flag it for confirmation.
Actively look for a real public price or meaningful starting price. Use a numeric price only when it clearly belongs to the exact offer, location/variant and pricing unit represented by the Listing. Do not turn a temporary date-specific package total into a generic starting price.
Use Price on request when no honest numeric entry point with a clear basis can be verified.
Use one real handover, pickup, service or activity location for a Business Listing when verifiable. Never create a false precise location.
Prefer the direct booking or service page for the specific offer over a generic homepage when one exists, but remember that a useful offer can also be discovered and used on site without online booking.
TRADEL may review, edit, deactivate or decline Listings that are too broad, misleading, duplicated, unverifiable or otherwise do not fit the marketplace. Use this as a reason to make the recommendation more precise, not as a reason to avoid proposing a valid offer.

4. Provider Profile fields

Business name: Required. Maximum 160 characters.
Description: Required. Maximum 800 characters. Describe the business as a whole, not one specific offer.
Business type: Required. Maximum 80 characters. Use a plain factual type, not a slogan.
Official website: Required. Use the verified official business website.
Instagram: Optional. Use only when verified.

5. Listing fields

Photos: Business offers require at least 2 authentic photos of the specific offer. Real snapshots and natural on-site images usually have the highest value because they show what travellers can actually expect. Do not invent image URLs or substitute generic/generated imagery.
Title: Maximum 50 characters. Name one concrete offer.
Category: Choose the strongest valid current TRADEL business category.
Subcategory: Choose the strongest valid current subcategory when the category provides one.
Condition: Only when TRADEL requires it for the selected business category/subcategory.
Available from: Use only when known or supplied by the user.
Shipping: Only when the selected category supports shipping and it is factually offered.
Description: Maximum 2500 characters. Explain exactly what the traveller gets and the useful conditions.
Handover / service location: Business Listings currently use 1 location. Choose the single most useful verified handover, pickup, service or activity location.
Price: Actively recommend a verified price or starting price when one exists. A clear numeric entry point usually signals stronger user intent than Price on request. Never invent a number.
Currency: Return when a verified numeric price is available.
Pricing mode: Exact import values are fixed, flexible or gift. Use fixed for a verified numeric fixed or starting price; flexible when no honest numeric entry point can be verified; gift only when genuinely free.
Booking or service page: Prefer a verified direct page for the specific offer.
Instagram: Optional. Use only when it helps with this specific offer and is verified.
Contact options: Only recommend direct contact details that are verified and genuinely useful for this offer.

6. Writing style

Write like a useful human preparing a real traveller-facing offer: plain, specific and natural.
Prefer concrete facts and decisions over promotional adjectives, slogans or generic travel language.
Avoid filler, repeated conclusions, keyword lists and formulaic phrases such as "unforgettable experience", "seamless journey" or "perfect for every traveller" unless the source makes a specific verifiable claim that genuinely requires them.
Do not repeat the business name, location or category merely for keyword coverage. Use them where they help the traveller understand the offer.
Keep descriptions easy to scan and focused on what the traveller can actually get, where, when and for what price or terms.
Format traveller-facing Listing descriptions into a few short, meaningful paragraphs when the content contains distinct ideas such as the offer, inclusions and pricing. Do not return one dense block of text when natural paragraph breaks would improve readability, and do not create a new paragraph for every sentence.

7. Current Business taxonomy

This taxonomy is read from TRADEL's current database and is a closed vocabulary. Use category and subcategory names exactly as shown; never translate, rename or invent them. For category-specific guidance, follow the category reference link before producing the final answer.

Stays

Accommodation a traveller can actually stay in.

Hotel Hostel Campground

Hotel: Hotels, resorts, serviced apartments or apartment-hotel style accommodation where the stay itself is the primary product.
Hostel: Hostel-style budget or social accommodation, typically with shared/dorm options or an explicitly hostel-led stay product.
Campground: Campsites, camping pitches, RV parks, camper/motorhome pitches and glamping stays where the traveller is primarily booking a place to camp or stay in a campground-style setting.

Prefer a concrete stay type or clearly bookable accommodation offer over a generic property-company profile.
Useful facts include accommodation type, location, booking route and a real public price or starting price when verified.
Do not combine unrelated properties into one Listing when the traveller must choose between them.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=stays

Activity

A tour, lesson, excursion or other activity a traveller can join.

Guided Tours Adventure Park Water Activities Air Activities Horseback Riding Motor Tours Other in Activites

Guided Tours: Guided sightseeing, hiking, cycling or other tours where the guided route/experience is the primary product.
Adventure Park: A fixed adventure attraction or park such as ropes courses, ziplines or similar venue-based activities.
Water Activities: Surfing, snorkeling, diving, rafting, kayaking and other activities primarily done on or in water. Surf camps bought mainly for surf coaching belong here even when accommodation is bundled.
Air Activities: Paragliding, skydiving, ballooning and other activities primarily taking place in the air.
Horseback Riding: Horseback riding experiences, lessons or guided rides.
Motor Tours: Motorized recreational tours such as snowmobile, quad/ATV or similar guided motor experiences.
Other in Activites: Only for a real joinable activity that fits none of the named Activity subcategories. Never use it for food, storage, accommodation or as a generic fallback.

One materially distinct tour or activity should normally be one Listing.
Useful facts include activity type, start area, duration, inclusions and verified price when available.
Avoid titles such as "all our tours" or descriptions that only advertise the operator.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=activity

Rentals

A concrete item or vehicle rental a traveller can obtain.

Gear Rental Vehicle Rental Other in Rentals

Gear Rental: Rental of non-vehicle traveller or activity equipment such as hiking equipment, backpacks, trekking poles, tents, camping gear, skis, snowboards, surfboards or similar gear.
Vehicle Rental: Rental of traveller vehicles including campervans, vans, RVs, motorhomes, cars, motorcycles, motorbikes, scooters, bicycles, e-bikes and other rideable or motorized travel devices used primarily for transport.
Other in Rentals: Only for a concrete rental product that genuinely fits neither Gear Rental nor Vehicle Rental.

Make the rented item or useful rental class obvious.
Useful facts include pickup area, rental period or pricing basis, requirements and verified price.
Do not merge materially different rental products just to cover more keywords.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=rentals

Vehicles

Traveller-relevant vehicles, parts, equipment or repair services allowed by the selected subcategory.

Vehicle Parts Vehicle Equipment Vehicle Repairs Shops

Vehicle Parts: Concrete replacement or upgrade parts for traveller vehicles.
Vehicle Equipment: Concrete vehicle-related equipment or accessories rather than the vehicle itself.
Vehicle: A concrete traveller-relevant vehicle offered for sale or another allowed non-rental vehicle use, such as a campervan, van, RV, motorhome, car, motorcycle, motorbike, bicycle, e-bike or other rideable/motorized travel device. Rentals belong in Rentals / Vehicle Rental.
Repairs Shops: A concrete repair or workshop service useful to travellers with a car, campervan, RV, motorcycle, motorbike, bicycle or similar vehicle; examples include breakdown repair, tyre/tire replacement or puncture repair, mechanical fixes and traveller-relevant workshop service.

Use the most specific subcategory available.
For repair businesses, describe one clear traveller-facing repair/service offer rather than the workshop as a whole.
Do not invent vehicle condition, availability or service capability.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=vehicles

Jobs

A concrete job, seasonal role or work-exchange opportunity relevant to travellers.

Strong traveller-relevant examples include farm jobs, fruit picking, harvest work, seasonal hospitality, hostel jobs and other short-term or seasonal roles that travellers can realistically take.
Work exchange or work-for-accommodation opportunities can fit when the exchange is concrete and transparent, for example defined work in return for room and board or accommodation.
Represent the actual role or opportunity, not the employer as a generic Listing.
State location, role scope, duration, compensation or exchange terms and important conditions only when verified.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=jobs

Skills & Help

A specific skill, practical service or form of help a traveller can use.

Name the actual help or service the traveller can request.
Separate materially different services when they solve different traveller needs.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=skills-help

Clothes

Functional clothing or apparel with a clear travel use case.

Prioritize functional travel clothing such as rain gear, cold-weather layers, hiking apparel or other items with a practical journey use case.
Do not treat everyday fashion or general clothing retail as a strong fit unless there is a clear traveller-specific function.
Describe the actual item or clearly bounded offer, not a general retail catalogue.
Use verified price and pickup/service location when available.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=clothes

Electronics

Travel-useful electronics with a clear practical function on the road.

Prioritize electronics that solve a real travel need, such as charging, navigation, adapters, communications, cameras or other journey-useful gear.
Do not treat general consumer electronics or a broad electronics shop as a strong fit without a clear traveller use case.
Identify the actual product or bounded offer.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=electronics

Bags

A concrete bag, luggage or related traveller-facing offer.

Identify the actual item or bounded offer.
Use specific pickup/service information when available.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=bags

Sports

Primarily sports gear or equipment a traveller may need for an activity or trip.

Prioritize concrete sports gear and equipment rather than generic sports retail or broad sporting services.
Name the actual product or tightly bounded gear offer.
Do not merge unrelated sports inventory into one Listing.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=sports

Long-term storage

Storage that solves a real travel gap: leaving a vehicle, luggage or equipment safely across a meaningful trip break.

Use this for genuine longer-term storage such as leaving a vehicle, motorcycle, bicycle, luggage or travel gear between trip stages.
Do not classify ordinary same-day or overnight lockers, ski depots, hotel luggage rooms or short convenience storage as Long-term storage.
State what can be stored, where the service is located, the meaningful storage duration and the pricing basis when verified.
Do not use a generic logistics-company description as the Listing.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=long-term-storage

Books & Passes

A concrete book, pass or traveller-useful access offer.

Identify the actual item or pass clearly.
Avoid a general shop or catalogue description.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=books-passes

Transport

A concrete traveller transport service such as an airport transfer, driver or shuttle.

Airport Transfer Driver & Shuttle

Airport Transfer: A concrete airport-to/from-destination transfer service.
Driver & Shuttle: A concrete driver, shuttle or point-to-point traveller transport service that is not primarily an airport transfer.

A transport Listing should describe the traveller-facing transport option, route or clearly bounded service.
Do not combine airport transfers, weddings, events, sightseeing and unrelated driving services into one broad Listing.
Prefer a specific pickup/service area, route or use case and verified pricing when available.
Services that are not primarily useful to travellers should not be added merely because the provider offers them.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=transport

Something Else

A fallback for a concrete traveller-facing offer that genuinely fits no stronger TRADEL category.

Use this only after checking all other current business categories.
Do not use Something Else to force ordinary restaurant meals, breakfast, internal events, amenities or unrelated side services into TRADEL merely because they are bookable or priced.
The Listing still needs to be one concrete traveller-facing offer with a clear independent traveller need.

Category reference: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?category=something-else

8. Required AI output

Visible answer: Research deeply but keep the human-readable answer short: TRADEL fit, the strongest 1–3 offers, verified price or price-to-confirm, and only critical missing facts.

Do not dump fields: Do not make the business owner read or copy every Provider Profile and Listing field from the visible answer.

Import block: At the end, return the complete field-ready Provider Profile and up to 3 Listings in the machine-readable TRADEL import block defined below.

Style: Direct facts first. Avoid long reasoning, repeated descriptions, marketing filler and explanations the owner does not need to act on.

9. TRADEL import handoff

Machine-readable handoff back to TRADEL after the short human-readable recommendation.

Schema: tradel-business-setup/1

Provider fields: name, description, provider_type, website_url, instagram_url

Listings: maximum 3 suggestions.

Listing fields: title , category , subcategory , condition , description , location (label, city, region, country, lat, lng) , price , currency , pricing_mode , booking_url , instagram , contact (tradel, whatsapp_public, whatsapp, email) , photo_guidance , missing_info

Markers: TRADEL_IMPORT_BEGIN … TRADEL_IMPORT_END

Pricing modes:

fixed — Use for a verified numeric fixed or starting price.
flexible — Use when no honest numeric entry point can be verified or the price must be confirmed.
gift — Use only when the offer is genuinely free/gift.

Strict import rules:

Use the exact field names shown in this contract; do not rename keys.
Use raw URLs only, never Markdown links.
Use exact current TRADEL category and subcategory strings from the reference; never invent or translate taxonomy values.
Use booking_url for the provider booking or service page; this is the canonical field name for new AI output.
If price is null, currency should normally be null and pricing_mode should be flexible.
For a verified starting price, set price to the numeric amount, currency to its ISO code and pricing_mode to fixed.
Coordinates may be null. Never use 0,0 as a placeholder for an unknown location.

{
    "schema": "tradel-business-setup/1",
    "provider": {
        "name": "Example business",
        "description": "Concise factual provider description.",
        "provider_type": "Tour operator",
        "website_url": "https://example.com",
        "instagram_url": "https://instagram.com/example"
    },
    "listings": [
        {
            "title": "Example concrete offer",
            "category": "Activity",
            "subcategory": "Guided Tours",
            "condition": null,
            "description": "Field-ready Listing description.",
            "location": {
                "label": "Meeting point",
                "city": "Example City",
                "region": "",
                "country": "Example Country",
                "lat": null,
                "lng": null
            },
            "price": 49,
            "currency": "EUR",
            "pricing_mode": "fixed",
            "booking_url": "https://example.com/offer",
            "instagram": null,
            "contact": {
                "tradel": true,
                "whatsapp_public": false,
                "whatsapp": null,
                "email": null
            },
            "photo_guidance": [
                "Authentic photo showing the offer in use.",
                "Real on-site detail or handover photo."
            ],
            "missing_info": []
        }
    ]
}

Use current TRADEL category and subcategory names exactly; the taxonomy is closed.
Return numeric price and ISO currency code only when the price basis belongs to the exact Listing.
Location coordinates are optional; TRADEL will not invent them and null is preferable to a placeholder coordinate.
Photos are guidance only; the business owner still uploads authentic photos.

Machine-readable version

The same current reference is available as JSON: https://jointradel.com/ai/business-setup?format=json

Broader TRADEL context: https://jointradel.com/ai/overview.json · https://jointradel.com/llms.txt