ePayments and eCommerce may be new words to you. They can be intimidating, confusing, or something you don’t have time to figure out. Many of Jackrabbit’s customers have switched to taking online payments despite the obstacles and fears they’ve faced. You aren’t alone if the thought of taking payments from your customers online is frightening! And we’re here to help. Not just our Jackrabbit support team, but other users too. We want to make sure you feel comfortable before you hit the ePayment button for the first time to charge tuition.
Dance Davidson was very hesitant about accepting online payments. They have openly shared their story and welcome any of you who are going through the same thing to contact them. [Please email us at marketing@jackrabbittech.com and we’ll introduce you!]
What were the three biggest reasons you didn’t want to collect ePayments?
- Cost – They couldn’t imagine paying the percentage fee. Giving away a percentage of revenue felt like a huge chunk of change. And it could be for you too. But once they saw the amount of hours their office manager spent taking payments drop down drastically, the percentage fee was incomparable. Terilynne (owner) explained that not having her office manager run to the bank with checks and cash, wait for the funds to go through, and then manually balance their checkbook took up more time than she realized. From a financial standpoint alone, taking ePayments brings more money back to the studio – even with the percentage fee.
- Confidentiality of information – Taking payments through an online system can be risky if you aren’t using the right provider. We hear about cyber attacks regularly in the news in the US. Dance Davidson was able to communicate to their parents how safe Jackrabbit’s ePayment system is and that their information was in good hands. Because of this, their parents did not hesitate going to online payments – they actually prefer it! Dance Davidson asked Jackrabbit a lot of questions about our security before switching which helped them educate their staff and parents so everyone is comfortable with the new system.
- Old dog, new tricks – Terilynne was so used to running her business one way, she couldn’t imagine doing things differently. Putting new processes in place is quite an undertaking. Totally changing the way you collect tuition fees will mean your financial side of the business is all changing. But, you can do it! Terilynne made the switch and was surprised at how easy it was. Collecting payments the first time was so memorable hearing her office manager say, “Hey, watch this!” and with the click of a button, their tuition was collected.
“To look back, it’s hard to believe that we hesitated for so long. But when we were in that spot, I couldn’t imagine making the switch.” – Terilynne Knox, Dance Davidson owner
What are the three biggest reasons you’re happy you switched to collecting ePayments?
- Time – Dance Davidson’s office manager has so many other and more important things to do now! We don’t ever have to wait for someone to bring their payment to the office. We don’t have to ask people for money in the waiting room and can focus on creating a welcoming environment instead. Having to chase parents around with calls, emails, face-to-face conversations is exhausting. We no longer have to do that and it is wonderful! With Jackrabbit’s ePayment option, we don’t have to key numbers into the system at all. Our customers can swipe their card or update in their Parent Portal.
- We can plan and save – By using ePayments, we are certain that our parents will pay on time. This allows us to plan and save like never before. We know exactly how much money we have in the bank at all times. Not having to worry about collecting payments is a huge relief. It allows us to be creative, think into the future, and continue to provide an innovative dance studio to our customers.
- Convenient for parents – Our families have loved paying online. When we switched over, nobody complained. Most of our parents have rewards credit cards and prefer paying with those to accrue points. We have one family who pays up front for the semester with a check, but everybody else has a credit card on file. Having the option to pay with a check is nice for a small percentage of our customers. We have a Pro Shop and sell merchandise like tights and t-shirts. Parents can email our office manger an order, we’ll put it in the teacher’s box and the teacher will give it to the student during class. Then, we charge the credit card on file and that’s that! It’s really convenient for parents and they love having the option to do this. Another great thing is the ability to have multiple cards on file and be able to refund right to their cards!
“I have other, more important things for my office manager to do than collect payments, run to the bank, and balance the checkbook.” – Terilynne Knox, Dance Davidson owner
Since 2012, Dance Davidson has been collecting payments online. With over 300 students, they couldn’t imagine life without ePayments. What’s holding you back from making the switch to Jackrabbit’s software? Share in the comments.