How to navigate billing in TeacherZone when a student wants to make a partial payment.
We frequently receive inquiries regarding the possibility of accepting partial payments. This refers to dividing a monthly recurring or package plan into smaller installments, often on a per-lesson basis.
- Here are some solutions to consider when a customer requests to make a partial payment:
- Wait it out: Determine the date when they can make their full payment and make a note that they will have enough funds to recharge their card or mark the payment as paid (through check or cash) on that specific date.
- Log smaller payments only: If the due date has already passed, you can cancel their current plan charge and instead add a quick charge for the remaining amount. Alternatively, you can create a single or multi-lesson plan and book that for them. Keep in mind that manually keeping track of these changes may be a challenge.
- Reduce the "future" payments: To reduce the future payment, you can access the future payment report and search for the queued payments. Then, click on the next owed payment and select the edit option. From there, you can enter the desired amount for the payment.
- Create a "package plan" (best practice): Instead of having a monthly recurring payment, consider offering a smaller package plan for customers who often face financial difficulties. This way, they can make more manageable and incremental payments. Learn more about package billing plans here.
- If you decide to accept partial payments, the best long-term solution is to book the customer on a package plan. With this plan, the customer will be billed in smaller increments, usually at a premium rate different from the automated recurring monthly rate. The advantage of this approach is that the lessons will only recur after the customer has attended the prescribed number of lessons. This way, the customer can make more manageable and incremental payments.
- For example:
- Customer 1 on a fixed recurring monthly plan
- Customer 2 is unable to make monthly payments, so they have the option to purchase 1 or 2 lesson packs instead. These packs may have a 10% premium since they are paying for individual lessons. The advantage is that they will only be charged again after attending the last lesson, allowing for smaller and more manageable payments.