The Prorate Contracts feature is designed to offer flexible billing options for members who join mid-billing cycle. If you choose to bill all your members on a specific date of the month, for example all billing is on the 1st, you can setup your contracts to automatically pro-rate the first payment, so you are able to charge your members from the sign-up date until the 1st of the month. This feature allows you to charge members only for the portion of the billing period they use. By calculating dues based on the exact number of days a member is active, this feature ensures that members are billed accurately, promoting trust and satisfaction.
Configuring Monthly Proration on Contracts
Configuring the system is straightforward. Follow these steps:
Navigate to Setup > Inventory > Packages.
Edit an existing contract or create a new one by clicking the Add Contract button.
Note: Monthly proration only applies to contracts, not packages.
You can configure the contract as usual, except for the Renewal Details section, where proration settings are managed. Click here for more details on creating contracts. Keep in mind the following exceptions when configuring proration:
Contract Type: Must be set to "Term" or "Ongoing".
Payment Frequency: Must be set to "month(s)".
Prorate First Month: Ensure this checkbox is checked.
Payment Due Day: Must be set to a value other than zero. This number refers to the day in the month you would like regular billing to occur. For example, enter 1 for accounts that bill on the 1st, 10 for accounts that bill on the 10th, etc. Member Manager will setup the contract with the prorated amount between “today” and the regular billing date set as the payment due day. This amount will be shown under “due today” and will include any initiation fees or down payments entered.
After entering all required fields, scroll to the bottom and click either “Save” or “Save and Exit” to save the contract.
Point of Sale (POS) Experience
You can sell a contract as usual from the POS system in Member Manager. During the sales process, edit contract details by clicking “Edit/View Details”. However, if a contract is prorated (“Prorate First Month” is checked), there are specific exceptions to consider:
Payment Frequency: This field is set to “1 Month(s)” by default and is disabled. It cannot be updated unless “Prorate First Month” is unchecked. Only monthly contracts can be prorated.
Contract Start Date: This field is set to the current sale date by default and is disabled. It cannot be updated unless “Prorate First Month” is unchecked. All pro-rated contracts must start “today”.
Free Payments: This field is set to “0” by default and is disabled. It cannot be updated unless “Prorate First Month” is unchecked.
Override Payment Due Day: This field can be edited and is set to the day indicated by “Payment Due Day” during contract setup. The value must be greater than “0”. This number refers to the day in the month you would like regular billing to occur. For example, enter 1 for accounts that bill on the 1st, 10 for accounts that bill on the 10th, etc. Member Manager will setup the contract with the prorated amount between “today” and the regular billing date set as the payment due day. This amount will be shown under “due today” and will include any initiation fees or down payments entered.
To update any contract details, users must click the "Save & Update Payment Schedule" button. This action will regenerate the Payment Schedule displayed below the details section. The schedule includes the prorated amount in the pre-payment.
If an initiation fee and down payment are set, the payment schedule will display a pre-payment that includes the prorated amount, the down payment, and the initiation fee. For example, if a contract is configured for 24 payments, the schedule will show a pre-payment that combines these amounts, followed by 24 additional payments.
Note: If you want the pre-payment to count as one of the 24 payments, set the "Number of Payments" to 23 and recalculate the payment schedule using Save & Update Payment Schedule.
In the example below, using the contract details above (contract is prorated, $10 initiation fee, $10 down payment set to "Apply to All"), starting on 7/19 with the payment due on the 1st, the pre-payment amount is broken down as follows:
Prorated amount: $16.35
Initiation fee: $10.00
Down payment: $10.00
Tax: $1.82
Total pre-payment: $38.17
After finalizing the contract details and capturing the member’s signatures, you will be directed to the Items in Cart screen. In the checkout section, the original item amount is deferred, this becomes “payment 1” and is due on the set Payment Due Day and displayed as “Deferred Payment”. The Checkout section also shows the initiation fee and the prorated amount labeled as “Prorated First Month”.
Next, proceed to checkout, select a payment method, and complete the payment process.
Member Portal Experience
Members can purchase prorated contracts through the Member Portal using the "Enroll" function. Discounted contracts are clearly marked, with the original price shown as strikethrough and the discounted price displayed beneath it.
When you click on the contract, a detailed view will be displayed. This view clearly shows the prorated amount, accompanied by a "P" tag or tooltip to indicate that the contract is prorated.
Members can click “Join Now” and proceed through purchasing the contract. Click here for an overview of the Member Portal and details on purchasing contracts.