What is the difference between Pausing someone's membership and cancelling?
Pausing A Membership
What it means:
Pausing a Membership simply skips any upcoming monthly membership charge(s) on that billing date.
Pausing will immediately stop any membership-related perks, so they couldn't use them while membership is paused. Note: a lot of times studios set a reminder to pause a person's membership the day before billing date for the month so that member can continue to use perks through that month.
You can schedule when a pause ends, but not when it begins.
What it doesn't mean:
You cannot pause someone's membership and expect their membership to continue in any way after that unless manually unpaused by the studio. There is no way to "schedule" an "unpause".
Pausing does not issue any partial payments or have the ability to schedule out when membership "unpauses."
If there is a desire for partial payments/prorating, it's actually better to cancel membership altogether. Studio managers have the option to prorate the cancellation. If they have remaining time in their month, it will add Account Funds to their account for that time/money. Then, whenever they start back up, the amount will prorate depending on the time of the month they sign up for – and use any Accounts Funds that are in account at the time.
Cancelling A Membership
What it means:
Cancelling membership immediately stops membership fees and perks.
Studio managers will have the option to prorate and add to users' account funds to access perks through remaining month or pre-determined time.
If/when a member restarts a plan, they will pay a prorated amount based on the time they sign up.
You can schedule when a membership cancels.
What it doesn't mean:
Pausing a membership! They will not have access to Kiln Fire until they restart.
What happens when someone signs up for a membership that starts in the future? When/how are they charged?
When you the New Member Start user sign up link (Users > All Users > User Sign Up Links button), you can customize the link you send to 1.) be specific to the membership they want to sign up for and 2.) set a start date in the future. If you check the “Charge full amount immediately up front, add to account funds” will allow you to gather full payment right away, then “store” that amount in the member's Account Funds in Kiln Fire. Then, when membership officially starts, Kiln Fire will automatically pull the amount from Account Funds rather than their card for that month, then from saved card on file for the other months moving forward.
What are Account Funds and how do I use them?
Account Funds are dollars stored in your Kiln Fire account. You can essentially use them towards anything in Kiln Fire instead of charging your card. You may have Account Funds for certain things like membership dues, refunds, credits for volunteering in-studio, etc. You can check your amount by going to your user profile and scrolling down to Account Funds.
What is the process for ordering hardware for piece tracking?
Go to Studio > Hardware Orders > Start Hardware Order. There you will find options for Firing Ticket Package or Point of Sale system. When you click into either, there are a few options you have to customize your order. Once you submit, we'll be in touch about delivery and configuration!