Payment Requests
- Support
- May 19, 2022
- 7 min read
Updated: Oct 7, 2024
If you are using Retreat Portal, then you have the option to enable Payment Requests.
Payment Requests allow you to send emails to guests or groups who have an outstanding balance asking them to pay all, or part, of the remaining balance via Retreat Portal. The link in the email takes the guest to the payment page where the requested amount is captured.
Table of Contents
Retreat Portal Interface (Guests and Groups)
Log in to you your retreat portal console.
Required
Optional:
Click the menu icon in the top left of the page and you will see a Financials section with options for Outstanding Balances and Payment Requests. Click Outstanding Balances.
Outstanding Balances
The Outstanding Balances page in Retreat Portal shows the status of every invoice that has a balance due. It doesn't matter if the program hasn't started yet. It captures any invoice that hasn't been fully paid.
Recommended Reading: How to use tables in Retreat Portal
Click the question mark button in the top-right of the table to view the description of the columns.
The rows use the Balance for column to distinguish whether an invoice is meant for a Reservation (i.e. a guest) or for the Program (i.e. a group). Note in the example below that the Balance due is also a good indicator of whether the balance belongs to one person or a group.
When you've found the outstanding balance that you want to request payment for click the Create link in the Payment request(s) column. If a payment request already exists for the associated invoice, then the count of payment requests followed by an Edit link is present.
A form will appear with the contact for the payment request at the top. If you wish to select a different party to receive the payment request click the icon that looks like a pencil next to a square box. In the form you can choose when the payment request should be sent (default is immediately) and you can set when the payment is due. Finally you can choose whether the current outstanding balance should requested or if a fixed amount should be paid. When done click Create Payment Request.
Important: Requesting a party to pay the entire balance means the balance at the time you create the payment request. Should the balance change after the request is created, then the payment request does not change. This is because the email may contain the amount being requested.
The Outstanding Balances table will update automatically to indicate a payment request exists for the given invoice.
To edit the payment request(s) for an invoice click the Edit link. Since multiple payment requests per invoice are possible the edit screen will show you the listing of associated payment requests. If you wish to Create an additional payment request click Create. If you wish to edit an existing payment request click the Edit link for the given payment request row. The top of the form shows you the invoiced amount, total paid to date, the outstanding balance and the total requested payment requests. It is possible to have payment requests totaling more than the outstanding balance.
When you click Edit you'll see the details of the payment request.
If the payment request has not been sent yet, then you can modify the request as well as delete the payment request.
If the payment request has been sent, then you cannot modify anything nor can you delete the request. You can void the request though so that if they try to pay they are told they do not have to pay.
Outstanding Balances by Program and batch creation
Often times you want to create payment requests for all invoices belonging to a specific program (e.g. the program starts in four weeks and you want all guests with outstanding balances to pay two weeks before the program starts).
In Retreat Portal click the top-left menu icon, then click on the Program Search.
Search for the program you want and click the Edit link on the far right.
When you are in the Program Details click 'Outstanding Balances' on the left-side menu bar.
The listing of outstanding balances are limited to just the given program. You can click 'Create' or 'Edit' for any of the outstanding balance rows to create or edit individual payment requests.
To create a batch of payment requests check as many boxes in the far left column or click 'Batch actions ...' header to select all rows. When one or more rows is selected click 'Batch actions ...' again and you will have the option to create payment requests.
When you click 'Create pay requests' a pop-up will appear to confirm the selected recipients, the amount being requested, when payment is due, and when to send the payment request notification. If a recipient is missing an email address it will be highlighted and there is an option to remove any recipient from the list prior to creation.
The date and time to send the payment request notification is the same for all those in the list. Nor can you currently edit the amount requested nor when payment is requested. By default the remaining balance is the amount requested and the pay request due date is either two weeks from now or when the invoice is due.
When you are satisfied with the list click Create.
Retreat Portal Payment Requests Listing
The Payment Requests page in Retreat Portal shows the status of every payment request that has been created.
Click the question mark button in the top-right of the table to view the description of the columns.
The Payment Requests listing combines together the invoice status as well as the payment request status. It is possible an invoice may change or other payments made which could nullify the need for the party to pay the payment request.
The top of the listing has default filters to hide any invoice that has been paid in full as well as to hide any payment requests which have been paid in full.
The Request status column is the status of the request while the Invoice status column is the status of the invoice. The two are not tied together.
Important: There is no way to create payment requests from the payment requests listing page. Payment requests originate from invoices so you can only start from a page which has invoice information.
To take action on a payment request (e.g. to edit one) then click the three dots in the row for the payment request. A pop-up will appear allowing you to edit the payment request. You can also copy the link to the payment request should you wish to manually send it to someone. Or you can preview the pay request link.
Editing a payment request follows the same rules as above which are based on whether the payment request has been sent or not. Once a payment request has been sent, then your only option is to void the payment request.
Previewing a Pay Request will not flag the payment request as being viewed. But going to the link from Copy Pay Request Link will flag the payment request as being viewed.
What the payer sees (Pay Now Interface)...
The link to the payment request shows the payer a simple form to supply their credit card information and to pay the amount immediately.
You can supply your own logo to show in the top-right of the screen. The payment request link gives a summary of what the payment is for along with the invoice details. There is a button to view the invoice as well as pay the invoice.
Recommended Reading: Customize Retreat Portal Invoices
Enable Payment Request Portal Interface
Before you can use the Payment Request feature in Retreat Portal you must do the following.
Click the gear icon in the top-right of the page and select Marketing.
On the left-side of the page click Feature Flags and ensure Send Payment Notification is Enabled and Pay Now UX Version is set to v2.
Pay Now v2 Branding
The Pay Now interface is what guests and groups see when they pay the payment request.
Click the gear icon in the top-right of the page and select Branding.
On the left-side of the page click Payment Requests.
Click the Refresh button on the far right in the Preview area. This will refresh the contents to show you a sample of what the pay now interface would look like for the payer. The top of the page is fixed, but scroll down and you'll see a section for your logo. The preview shows what the interface looks like for a mobile device.
To change/set the logo click the Change button and the image picker will appear. If you have images you may choose an already uploaded image or click Upload Image and then Browse to pick an image from your computer to use.
Click the Refresh button again in the Preview area and the page will update. Scroll down to view your logo on the pay now page.
If your logo doesn't have a transparent background and you want a specific color behind your logo click the eye dropper icon next to Logo Background.
A color picker will appear. Drag your mouse around the left-side box to change colors and slide the bar up/down to adjust the color as well. Or you can enter an HTML color code in the box next to the # symbol. When done click the multi-colored circle in the bottom right.
Click Refresh to see the color in the preview window.
REMEMBER: When done click the Save button to make any changes permanent.
Payment Request Email Templates
Go to retreatportal.com and log in.
Click the gear icon in the top-right of the page and select Business
Expand Libraries on the left-side.
Select Emails on the left-side.
Two email templates apply for payment requests.
[ Automated ] Guests : Payment Request - is the email template sent to the recipient requesting payment.
[ Automated ] Guests: Payment Request Payment Confirmation - is the email template sent to the recipient after payment has been made.
OR
To get more information about how to manage email templates see the following tutorial: https://www.retreatportal.com/post/email-template-management
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