Making Membership Renewals a Quick & Easy Process

Introduction

Customers told us they wanted a membership system that would fully automate membership renewals and, at the same time, be easy to maintain. Saving time for key membership staff without compromising accuracy was the inspiration for the new Subscribe360 renewal system.

Key requirements from membership managers:

• Allow renewals to be run multiple times per year (if needed)
• Creation and management of all membership invoices (or proformas) as part of the renewal process
• Handle the automated issuing of renewal documents
• Support different payment scenarios, including free memberships, multiple memberships/subscriptions per member, allow other parties to pay, and support memberships for both individuals and organisations
• Handle the on-boarding of new members
• Ensure granular control over pricing with the flexibility to add new membership levels at any time
• Have a clear handover to finance once the renewals are complete
• Supports the end-to-end process, including Direct Debits (if required)

Targeting Memberships to be Included

At the heart of the solution is the Renewal Batch. This allows the membership manager to select the memberships that are due for renewal easily. The manager specifies the date range for renewals - e.g. all members due in May - and what price list to use. The price list is important as new pricing can be introduced at any time without impacting previous renewals.
 

Generating and Issuing Renewals

The renewal batch can then be set to generate the membership renewals. This will automatically generate a membership renewal record for all subscriptions that are due in the period. If a member has one or more subscriptions, a separate renewal record will be created for each. Still, they will all be consolidated onto a single invoice (or proforma) and renewal letter. Renewal communications are issued automatically and based on Word templates that are easy to maintain.
 

 

Organisations and Contacts as Members

If applicable, the process will automatically handle the renewal of both individuals and organisations within the same renewal batch. It will also allow for the billing of an organisation for an individual’s membership/subscription. The ability to cross charge a membership was a key requirement of a number of membership organisations. 

Product Upgrade at Renewal

The renewal process also supports an automated change of product/membership grade at the time of renewal. This saves staff time and ensures that membership product/grade changes can be recorded at any time in the current subscription period.

Payment Plans for Instalment Management

Once the renewals have been generated and issued, the supporting Payment Plans can be generated. Payment plans reflect the subscription period, payment method and payment frequency. This ensures that the correct amount will be collected by instalment for the subscription period. For example, a monthly payment plan will be due each month, but quarterly payers will only be due every third month. 
 

Automated Renewal Documentation & Emails

All communications can be fully automated, from renewal letters to direct debit advance notices. All document templates are stored in SharePoint and easily maintained using Word, with no third-party plugins required. Email templates are also easily maintained by staff through the Email Template manager and an easy-to-use email editor.   All letters and emails include support for personalisation without the need for a separate document generator. 

Auditing & History

The full renewal process is audited, with the Membership Renewal record capturing all key information as it was configured at the time of renewal. The standard Dynamics 365 auditing system provides a further level of traceability.
 

Summary

The new Subscribe360 renewal system is a best-in-class solution to meeting the most complex membership renewal scenarios. Contact us today if you would like to see the Subscribe360 renewal system in action.