Spending endless hours chasing after your members’ payments was probably not even on your radar when you were setting up your fitness center business. Yet how else can you receive the money you are owed? One of the best solutions is to implement recurring invoices into your payments model.
The subscription model and how it can help your gym.
First, let’s get a sense of what automated payments are and how they work. As the name implies, subscription payments happen without you needing to tweak them every time. All you have to do is to make an agreement with the individual member specifying how much money will be withdrawn from their credit card or bank account each month. Your system might have a day of the month already pre-set, or you may be able to decide upon one. Bottom line: Once you have finished your discussion, both you and your client will know exactly how much will be withdrawn from a specific account or card, on what date, and for what duration of time.
You will soon come to realize the benefits of automated payments. Most importantly, you and your member will both gain the element of predictability. Customers need not worry about remembering to submit their payment, lest they risk being prevented from working out at your gym. At the same time, you and your bookkeeping staff will have a much better idea of how much cash you can expect for any given month. That makes both regular purchases and unanticipated emergencies easier to deal with.
On a more subtle level, subscription payments help you to deepen your rapport with customers. Instead of only hearing from you when you need money, they can now look forward to positive promotions and member benefits that you transmit to them via email or on signage posted throughout your fitness center.
Because recurring payments are pretty much set-it-and-forget-it, customers may also be more likely to keep their membership going for longer. Since retaining clients is one of the biggest challenges for exercise centers, this is an affordable and mutually beneficial strategy that can be set up easily, is affordable, and will integrate seamlessly into your other business systems.
Accepting recurring payments: How to get started.
The process is fast and easy. All you need to do is set up an account with a payment processor if you don’t already have one. If you’re just starting out, it is important to realize that cheapest is not always best when it comes to merchant account and payment processing providers. Instead, pick a vendor with expertise in the fitness industry who is not looking to charge you exorbitant fees, or lock you into an extended contract. Consider buying point of sale hardware and software instead of leasing it, and be sure the vendor you choose has a knowledgeable and responsive customer service department.
Next, talk to your customer about setting up automatic payments to be deducted from their credit or debit card, checking, or savings account. Note that having funds automatically withdrawn from a customer’s bank account is the more affordable option, so do your best to encourage it instead of credit or debit card deductions.
The automatic payments process can become even easier if you have invested in gym management software with built-in billing features. These will also allow you to have more flexibility in terms of withdrawal schedules, automated payment reminders, and even alerts that let you know if an account has been closed, a card has expired, or a check has bounced.
Setting up recurring invoices is the perfect way to streamline operations at your fitness center. Taking this step saves you time and money because you no longer need to focus on obtaining delinquent payments. Furthermore, those annoying late-night trips to the bank to deposit cash will be reduced or might even become a thing of the past. When payments fail, your system lets you know immediately, which allows you to get to the bottom of the matter quickly and prevent misunderstandings.
Offering the subscription option to your customers represents a win for everyone involved. Talk to your payment processor today about upgrading or configuring your hardware, and this additional, flexible choice will be up and running in no time. Offering the option to make recurring payments is just one more thing you can do to give your members the premium flexibility and choices that will keep them coming back.
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