DojoMesh can email your members before each payment and when a card is declined, so fewer payments fail and nobody is surprised by a charge. Each reminder has its own on/off switch and your own wording, and every one goes out from your academy's email account. Nothing is sent until you switch a reminder on.
The three reminders
| Reminder | Goes to | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Upcoming Automatic Payment | Members on automatic payments, before their card is charged | Amount, date and card (e.g. "Visa ending 4242"), an Update my card button, and a link to ask you to stop automatic payments |
| Payment Due Soon | Members who pay by hand, before their membership runs out, and anyone with an unpaid invoice coming due | Amount, due date, a Pay now button, and the ways to pay you accept |
| Payment Did Not Go Through | Members whose automatic payment was declined | The amount and card, whether it will be tried again, and an Update my card button |
Everything is on one tab: Settings Message Templates Payment Reminders.
Choose the timing
At the top of the tab, set Days before the payment, anywhere from 1 to 14. The default is 3. It applies to both the upcoming-payment and the payment-due reminders.
Reminders go out in the morning, between 9 am and noon in your academy's time zone (set under Settings Gym Settings). Each payment is reminded once, however the timing is set.
Under the setting you will see how many reminders would go out over that many days, for example "22 automatic payments, 6 members who pay by hand, and 0 unpaid invoices", so you know what to expect before switching anything on.
If a member is billed more often than the reminder window (say weekly, with reminders 10 days ahead), their reminder comes a little closer to the charge instead, so they never get two reminders for back-to-back payments.
Check the wording
Each reminder starts with a friendly default you can use as it is, or edit the subject and content like any other template. The parts in double curly brackets, such as {{amount}} and {{due_date}}, are filled in for each member; see Variables.
Use Send me a test under each one to email a sample to the address you log in with. The buttons in a test are samples: they open the real pages but say the link is invalid, because a test is not for a real member.
Switch them on
Tick the switch on each reminder you want (Send before each automatic payment, Send before payments are due, Send when an automatic payment is declined) and click Save. The first reminders go out the next morning.
If you are unsure, switch on Payment Did Not Go Through first. It only goes to members whose card has just failed, and it is the one most likely to get you paid.
Upcoming automatic payment
Every member with an active automatic payment gets this the set number of days before their charge. It tells them the amount, the date and the card it will come from, and there is nothing they need to do.
If their card has changed, the Update my card button opens the same secure page as the card update link you can already send from DojoMesh. The new card is used for the upcoming charge automatically.
Payment plans with a set number of payments stop getting reminders once the last payment is taken. Paused or cancelled automatic payments get none.
Requests to stop automatic payments
The upcoming-payment email has a small link: "Want to stop automatic payments? Send us a request." A member who follows it sees what is being stopped, can add a note, and confirms. Then:
- Their automatic payments are paused straight away, so nothing more is charged while you decide.
- You are emailed at your academy's contact address, with their details and any reason they gave.
- A note is added to their member profile.
The request waits for you at the top of Financial Recurring Payments, under Requests to stop automatic payments. Talk to the member, then choose:
- Stop automatic payments: their automatic payments are cancelled and their card is not charged again.
- Keep automatic payments: they are turned back on exactly as they were. If the charge date passed while they were paused, the next charge moves to their next regular date rather than charging the missed one.
Only the automatic payments are paused. The member stays active, and nothing is cancelled until you choose Stop automatic payments. Members cannot cancel on their own from the email.
Payment due soon
This covers two kinds of payment.
Members who pay by hand
Active members with no automatic payment get this before their membership runs out: the date it is paid until, the same date the Overdue Members page uses.
The Pay now button appears when both of these are true:
- The member's profile has a monthly membership plan with a price. The amount shown includes that plan's taxes.
- Your academy takes card payments online, with Square or Stripe set up in Settings.
When the member clicks Pay now, DojoMesh creates an invoice for their plan and opens it so they can pay by card. You will see the invoice under Invoices. Once it is paid, their membership is extended by the plan's length, exactly as if you had marked it paid yourself. If they have already paid you another way since the reminder, the button tells them so and no invoice is made.
Without a Pay now button, the email still lists the ways to pay that you have turned on in Settings, such as e-transfer to your e-transfer address, cheque, or at the front desk.
Unpaid invoices
Any unpaid invoice with a due date gets the same reminder before it is due, and its Pay now button opens that invoice.
Payment did not go through
When a card is declined, DojoMesh tries it again the next day, up to three times. This email goes out the morning after the first decline, once per payment, telling the member it was declined and whether it will be tried again, with an Update my card button. If the retry goes through before the email is due, nothing is sent.
A member who puts a new card on file from the email is billed on the new card. If their automatic payment had already stopped after three declines, it needs turning back on: with Stripe that happens by itself when they save the new card; with Square, use the Reactivate subscription button on their row under Financial Recurring Payments.
Variables
As well as the usual {{first_name}}, {{gym_name}} and {{gym_contact}}, payment reminders can use:
| Variable | Becomes |
|---|---|
{{amount}} | e.g. $120.00 CAD, tax included. "your usual membership fee" when DojoMesh can't tell. |
{{due_date}} | e.g. Thursday, October 15 |
{{card}} | e.g. Visa ending 4242 (automatic payments) |
{{description}} | The plan name, or "Invoice #10234" |
{{pay_button}} | A Pay now button, or nothing when they can't pay online |
{{payment_options}} | A list of the ways to pay you have turned on in Settings |
{{update_card_button}} | An Update my card button |
{{stop_autopay_link}} | The stop-request page, for use inside a link |
{{retry_note}} | Whether the card will be tried again (declined payments) |
Every link is personal to that member and expires after 30 days.
Troubleshooting
A member did not get a reminder
Check, in order: that reminder's switch is on; the member has an email address on their profile (or, for a child, their parent does); they are an active member; and their payment date falls inside your Days before window. Members who pay by hand also need a "paid until" date from a past payment. Members on punch cards or one-time plans are not reminded, because their date is an expiry rather than a renewal.
A child was not reminded, but their parent was
That is deliberate. When a child's membership is paid through their parent's payments, the parent gets the reminder rather than the family getting several.
There is no Pay now button in the email
Either the member's profile has no monthly plan with a price, or card payments are not set up for your academy. Give the member a plan from their profile, or set up Square or Stripe. Unpaid invoices always get the button as long as card payments are set up.
The amount says "your usual membership fee"
DojoMesh could not work out the amount because the member has no plan with a price. Assign one on their profile and the next reminder shows the real figure.
The reminders are not coming from my email address
They use the same email account as the rest of your academy's messages. Check it under Settings Email Settings; see Send academy email through Gmail.
Common questions
Will turning this on send a flood of emails?
No. Only payments coming up within your Days before window are reminded, each once. The count under the timing setting shows exactly how many to expect.
Can members cancel automatic payments from the email?
They can ask, and asking puts the payments on hold, but only you can cancel them. That gives you the chance to talk to the member first. See Requests to stop.
Can I send these by text message?
Not yet. Payment reminders are email only for now.
Can I still send the overdue email by hand?
Yes. The Overdue Reminder tab is the email you send from the Overdue Members page with Send Reminder, after a payment is late. It works exactly as before.