⏰Setting Up Payment Plans

Learn how to setup and use Payment Plans to lower the barrier of cost to your classes, workshops, and even shows!

Are you a student or ticketholder? Check out our Patron's Guide to Payment Plans.

The following guide is for venue administrators and managers who need to configure payment plan options for their events

What are Payment Plans

Payment Plans are an optional method for customers to break up payments into smaller installments over time. For example, instead of a $100 payment, they can decide to split into four $25 payments over time. This can help with purchasing specific shows or classes that might otherwise not be able to be afforded in one payment. The amount and number of installments can be decided by you, along with which specific shows and classes you want to allow to be purchased via a plan.

Setting Up Payment Plans

Setting up Payment Plans is very straight-forward. Simply expand the "Payment Plans" option on the left-hand sidebar and select Manage Plans.

Direct link: Payment Plans Dashboard

Heads up for Square users!

Depending on when you created your account and connected Square, you may need to reconnect to grant additional permissions. If you see a "Reconnect Square Account" button present on this page, simply click and follow the steps. You will only need to do this once.

From this page, you'll be able to create a new Payment Plan by clicking the Create New Payment Plan option in the upper-right.

Payment Plan Configuration Options

On the creation page, you have a few options:

• Plan Name: This is a custom name you can include that is displayed both internally and to the patrons.

• Plan Description: This is an optional description you can use to include more details about the plan. This is included along-side the Template description (more on that below).

• Select Show, Class, or Tag: This is to assign the specific events you'd like to this payment plan.

• Template: This is the payment plan template you'd like. More on templates below.

Payment Plan Templates

We've created helpful templates for you to use with this feature:

Plan Template	Plan Schedule
2 Payments 50% Split Template	1st payment: 50% of the total due at checkout 2nd payment: 50% charged 24 hours before the event start date Ideal for pre-event collection: This template ensures you have everything paid in full prior to the start of the show or class. ⚠️ Special handling: If the patron purchases a plan less than 24 hours from the start of the event, then they are charged both halves at checkout.
3 Payments 33.34% Split Template	1st payment: 1/3 of the total due at checkout 2nd payment: 1/3 charged 24 hours before the event start date 3rd payment: 1/3 charged 30 days after the event start date ⚠️ Post-event payment included: This template includes a payment that intentionally occurs after the event. Ensure your terms and conditions clearly communicate this to patrons.
4 Payments 25% Split Template	1st payment: 25% due at checkout 2nd payment: 25% charged 2 weeks after first payment 3rd payment: 25% charged 4 weeks after first payment 4th payment: 25% charged 6 weeks after first payment This familiar template is modeled after what many third-party payment plan platforms provide, making four payments in total over six weeks.

Payment Processing & Management

How Payments Work

When a patron purchases a plan, we store their credit card information on your Square account. This allows us to automatically retrieve and charge the patron on each plan date.

Important Square Account Management

It is highly advised to not edit or modify the payments or customers on your Square account while they are enrolled in a plan.

Payment Retry Logic

Automatic retry system: We'll try to charge a patron's payment three times, each time with 24 hours between attempts. If by the third attempt we can't charge their card on file, we'll cancel the payment and alert your theatre.

Viewing Enrolled Plans

You can view enrolled plans one of two ways:

1. From Payment Plans menu: Navigate to Enrolled Plans option in the Payment Plans dropdown

2. From individual Orders: View payment plan details directly on the specific Order page

Direct link: Enrolled Payment Plans

What You'll See

The enrolled plans view shows:

• Patron information

• Payment schedule and amounts

• Payment status for each installment

• Card on file details

• Next payment date

Managing Enrolled Payment Plans

From the Enrolled Plans page, you can manage individual payment installments for your patrons. This gives you full control over the payment plan lifecycle.

Searching and Sorting

The enrolled plans table allows you to:

• Search by Name: Find specific patrons by their name

• Search by Email: Locate plans by patron email address

• Sort columns: Click on column headers to sort by Patron Name, Email, Date Enrolled, Payment Amount, Payment Due, Payment Status, or Retries

Changing Payment Status

Each payment installment has a dropdown menu (accessible via the three dots ••• icon) that allows you to change its status:

Status	Description	When to Use
Mark Upcoming	Resets the payment to upcoming/scheduled status	Use when you need to reschedule a paused or problematic payment to be processed again
Mark Paused	Temporarily pauses the scheduled payment	Use when a patron needs extra time before their next payment, or when resolving payment issues
Mark Paid	Manually marks the installment as paid	Use when payment was received outside of the system (e.g., cash, check, or external payment)
Mark Canceled	Cancels the payment installment	Use when the patron can no longer complete the plan or by mutual agreement to stop remaining payments

Pausing vs. Canceling: Use Pause when the payment is temporarily on hold and may resume later. Use Cancel when the payment will not be collected at all. Paused payments can be marked as Upcoming to resume processing.

Important: Changing a payment status does not automatically issue refunds or charge the patron. If you mark a payment as Paid manually, ensure you've actually received payment through another method. For refunds, you'll need to process those separately through Square.

Common Scenarios

Patron needs more time to pay:

1. Navigate to their enrolled payment plan

2. Find the upcoming payment installment

3. Click the dropdown menu and select "Mark Paused"

4. When ready to resume, select "Mark Upcoming" to reschedule

Patron paid via cash or check:

1. Find the relevant payment installment

2. Select "Mark Paid" from the dropdown

3. Record the external payment in your records

Patron wants to stop their payment plan:

1. Review remaining installments with the patron

2. Mark remaining unpaid installments as "Canceled"

3. Discuss any outstanding balance or refunds needed

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Patron Experience

For Patrons

Patrons can view and manage their payment plans through their account page. They can:

• See upcoming payment dates

• Update their payment method

• View payment history

Email notifications: Patrons receive email notifications about upcoming payments and any payment issues

Payment Method Updates

If patrons need to update their payment method, they can do so through their account page under "Payment Methods" where they can replace their card on file.

Need to help your patrons with their payment plan features?

We've got a guide! See our Patron's Guide to Payment Plans for the customer experience documentation.

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Have questions about implementing payment plans? Just reach out to our Support Team for help.