Processing Payments
This article covers how customers can pay your studio, where your team sees every payment, and how to take payment for something that's still owed. Say a customer books a class pack in the portal with Pay later and then pays in cash when they arrive. You find the purchase on your dashboard, take the payment, and it shows in your reports.
Choose how customers can pay
- From the side menu, go to Settings > Business.
- On the Payments tab, under Payment methods, turn on the ones you take:
Pay later – customers can book now and pay at the studio. The purchase is saved as owing until your team takes the payment.
Pay later for memberships too – shows once Pay later is on. Customers can also start a membership without paying up front. Leave it off to make memberships paid at checkout.
Online (Stripe) – customers pay by card and wallet through your Stripe account. You need to connect Stripe under Settings > Integrations first (see Connecting to Stripe). If Stripe isn't connected, customers aren't offered card payments.
US bank accounts (ACH) – shows under Online (Stripe) only if your Stripe account can take bank debits (a US account with ACH Direct Debit turned on). Customers can pay from their bank account. A payment takes up to 4 business days to clear, and the pass works in the meantime.
Direct debit (GoCardless) – customers pay by bank debit through your GoCardless account, which you connect under Settings > Integrations. If you don't see this option, it isn't included in your plan.
- Click Save changes.
Card on file
Under Card on file, turn on Require a saved card at checkout if you charge late cancellation or no-show fees. Customers then have to save a card when they check out. Under What customers are told, write at least 20 characters explaining why, for example "Your card will be saved to process any late cancellation or no-show fees as per our studio policy." Customers see it at checkout.
Other payment methods
If you take some payments outside StudioGrowth, such as on a Square terminal or through Venmo, add them under Other payment methods. Your team can then record those payments in StudioGrowth so they show in your reports. No money moves through StudioGrowth for these.
- Click Add a payment method.
- Pick the method from the list.
- Make sure Use this payment method is switched on. Switch it off to hide the method without removing it.
- Click Save changes.
You choose from a set list, so you can't type your own name for a method. Customers don't see these methods when they check out in the portal. They're for your team at the desk.
Where you see payments
Dashboard
The Sales and Transactions tiles at the top of the Dashboard show the last 7 days compared with the 7 days before. Click either tile to see every payment taken in the last 7 days.
Further down, Waiting for payment lists purchases from the past 30 days that haven't been paid yet.
A customer's profile
- From the side menu, go to CRM > Customers and open the customer.
- Open the Billing tab. Payments lists everything they've paid for, with the date, the amount and how they paid (Paid by).
The Billing tab also shows their saved cards under Payment methods, and late cancellation and no-show fees under Other charges. On the Passes tab, a pass that's still owed has a Not paid label. Tick Only ones still owing to see just those.
Reports
From the side menu, go to Analytics > Reports and find the Payments reports:
Transactions – every payment taken in the period, with how it was paid, the tax, any discount and the amount. Click Export to download it as a CSV file.
Pending payments – purchases not yet paid for, and who owes them. You can take the payment from here too.
Take payment for something that's owed
When a customer chose Pay later, or your team sold something without taking the money, the purchase stays owing until you take the payment. You can start from the dashboard, the Pending payments report or the customer's Passes tab. They all open the same window.
- On the Dashboard, under Waiting for payment, click Take payment next to the purchase.
- Under How, choose how the customer is paying:
Card – charge a card the customer has saved, or enter a new one. Click Charge the card.
Payment link – StudioGrowth makes a link the customer can pay online. Copy it, or click Email it to them. The pass is marked paid as soon as they pay with it.
Cash, Bank transfer or one of your other payment methods – records the payment as received. Add a Note if you like, such as a receipt number or who took it, then click the button that reads Mark $27.50 as paid (with the amount owed).
Card and Payment link need Stripe. If Stripe isn't connected, the window says so and you can only record the payment.
Record a payment taken outside StudioGrowth
Say a customer paid $27.50 on your Square terminal. Take payment as above, choose Square, type the Square receipt number in Note, and click Mark $27.50 as paid. StudioGrowth doesn't charge anything. The pass shows as paid and the payment appears in your reports with Square as how it was paid. Choosing Stripe Terminal works the same way: it records the payment, and you take the card on the reader yourself.
A membership payment that didn't go through
If a membership's automatic card payment fails, the customer's Passes tab shows Collect payment instead of Take payment. It opens a payment link for that payment, which you can copy or email to the customer. Stripe also tries the card again on its own.
Sell at the front desk
To sell a pass, product or booking to someone in front of you, click Quick sale in the top-right corner. You choose the payment method there in the same way, and the sale shows in the same places.
Questions
Why can a team member only take card payments?
Their role may not have Allow All Payment Methods. Without it, cash, bank transfer, pay later, payment links and your other payment methods are hidden for them. Ask the studio owner to change their role.
Can I add a processing fee to card payments?
Yes, on the same Payments tab. See Processing Fees.
How do I give money back?
See Refund a Payment.
Note: Turning Pay later off stops new pay-later purchases. Purchases that are already owing stay owing until you take the payment. Find them in the Pending payments report (the dashboard list only covers the past 30 days).
If you have any questions, reach out to us at team@studiogrowth.com and we'll get you up and running in no time.