Subscriptions support guide
Introduction
The subscriptions feature, introduced in 1.20.x.x provides a membership type service. It allows membership plans to be created, which clients can subsequently subscribe to.
In version 1.20.x.x, a subscription plan is directly associated to a pass, thus upon payment of a subscription, a pass is automatically assigned to that customer.Introduction
The subscriptions feature, introduced in 1.20.x.x provides a membership type service. It allows membership plans to be created, which clients can subsequently subscribe to.
In version 1.20.x.x, a subscription plan is directly associated to a pass, thus upon payment of a subscription, a pass is automatically assigned to that customer.
Key concepts
Subscriptions consist of the following key concepts:
Subscription plans - a subscription plan is a membership plan that the administrator must define. In version 1.20.x.x, plans are directly associated to pass. So, if a customer subscribes to a plan to associated pass is automatically associated upon renewal.
Subscription mandates - once a subscription plan has been created and published, a customer will be able to subscribe to the associated plan. To subscribe to the plan a customer must sign a mandate, which indicates that the customer authorises charging of the credit card for future services.
Invoices - an invoice is generated each time a subscription is due. Invoices which are sent to the customer and can be also viewed by the administrator provides key information regarding an up-coming charge. It details the service (pass) that is associated to the subscription plan and offers information on the current payment status.
Setting up and managing subscription plans
The setting up of a subscription is quick and simple. Please refer to the ‘Setting up and managing Subscription plans’ section for further information.
Managing subscription mandates
Only customers can create a mandate, since it is necessary for them to confirm and your terms of authorisation and to understand the nature of future charges. However, once a mandate has been created, you can subsequently manage the mandate on a basic level and view the associated invoices.
For further information on managing subscription mandates and viewing associated invoices, please refer to the ‘management of subscription mandates and invoices’ section.
Important: It should be noted that mandates, once defined, cannot be changed in terms of cost or frequency of sale since this would change the contract of sale between you and your customer.
Customer subscription mandate interface.
The subscription mandate interface, consists of three parts:
Subscription mandate sign-up - this interface allows customers to sign mandates. Once signed, the system is ready to commence the mandate lifecycle.
Subscription mandate management - this interface allows customers to manage their subscription mandates. Once a mandate is signed, mandates will be shown in the customer’s account along with any renewed passes. A customer can access their account to view existing mandates and to use associated passes. From the Subscription mandate management interface, a customer can also cancel their mandate if they choose.
Invoice management - invoices are generated just prior to a subscription mandate being charged. The invoice details the associated services, when payment is due and the current payment status. In the event that the an automatic payment fails which can happen due to card cancellation, card updates or if the bank chooses to request re-authorisation, the customer will be directed to the associated invoice to provide resolution for the failure.
For further information on the customer subscription mandate please refer to the following sections:
Customer Subscription mandate sign-up interface overview
Customer Subscription mandate management interface
Customer Invoice management interface
Life cycle of a mandate
When a customer signs a mandate, the mandate will enter the following lifecycle:
Subscription mandates are periodically checked to see if we are getting close to the time for a subscription to be paid. If this is the case, the system will issue an invoice. This invoice details the service that is being renewed and tracks the payment going forward.
Normally, when an invoice is issued, it will not be automatically charged. Typically invoices are issued 48 hours before a charge is initiated. This allows time for customers to contact administrators before the charge is made. The date for charging is called the ‘due date’ and will be clearly indicated on the associated invoice.
Once an invoice due date is reached the system will attempt payment using the previously associated credit or debit card. In the event that the payment is successful, the customer is notified and their service (pass) automatically renewed.
In the event that payment fails, the customer will be notified and asked to return to their account to enable the problem to be resolved. When resolving the problem, the payment failed due to authorisation checks by the bank, the will be able to re-request payment. During this process, their bank may ask them to provide additional forms of validation.
Trouble shooting
A subscription plan has been created, but my clients are not able to subscribe to it.
Go to Subscriptions -> Plans and check the ‘pause’ state. If a subscription has been paused, customer will not be able to subscribe. However, any existing mandates will continue to be processed.
I want to stop customers from subscribing to a subscription plan but keep existing mandates active.
Go to Subscriptions -> Plans and set the state of the plan to ‘pause’. Once a subscription has been paused, customers will not be able to subscribe. However, any existing mandates will continue to be processed.
I want to cancel a subscription plan and stop any associated mandates.
Go to Subscriptions -> Plans and click the delete button. Once a subscription has been deleted, customers will not be able to subscribe. Further more, the mandates of existing customers will stop. Customers will automatically notified that their mandates have been cancelled.
I want to edit a subscription plan and / or mandate - what is best practice?
We recommend that you consider mandates and associated plans as immutable (non editable). This is because when a client signed up - the essentially enter an agreement with you. This agreement should not change after they have signed up. Whilst we do support limited edits, we recommend that if a plan or associated mandate needs to change significantly, then you should create a new plan and ask your client to re-sign.