Successful payments are essential for the success of an online course. They provide a steady income stream for course creators and enable learners to access quality content without financial barriers. As such, it is important to ensure that all payments are processed properly and not fail while using Thinkific.
But what happens if your students’ payments on your course content suddenly fail? This article provides a comprehensive guide on what happens when payments fail in Thinkific and how to resolve them. It covers topics such as troubleshooting payment failures, understanding why certain types of failures occur more frequently than others, and strategies for preventing future issues from arising.
This article also outlines best practices for handling failed payments within Thinkific so that course creators can ensure their learners’ satisfaction with their learning experience is always maintained.
Reasons for Failed Payments
Regarding failed payments in Thinkific, two potential causes could be at play. The first is technical issues on the student’s end, such as an expired card or insufficient funds. The second cause is technical issues on the platform’s end, such as server downtime or processing errors.
Technical Issues On The Student’s End
In cases where the payment fails due to technical issues on the student’s end, it can be difficult for course creators to detect and troubleshoot these problems. However, suppose a course creator notices that a student has made multiple attempts to purchase their content without success. In that case, they should reach out and investigate further into why this may be occurring. Some common reasons for failed payments from students include:
Expired Card
This happens when a credit or debit card used for making a payment reaches its expiration date before the transaction is completed.
Insufficient Funds
This instance occurs when a student does not have enough money in their account to cover the full amount of their purchase.
Technical Issues On The Platform’s End
In some cases, failed payments may occur due to technical issues on Thinkific’s side of things — meaning that errors are occurring within the platform itself that is causing payments to fail unexpectedly. After attempting a payment, you can typically identify these failures by looking at any error messages displayed in your dashboard and seeing if they match up with any known system-side errors reported by Thinkific support staff.
Common causes of technical issues on Thinkific’s side include:
Server Downtime
Server downtime usually happens when there is an unexpected disruption in service due to maintenance activities on Thinkific’s servers or other related infrastructure components.
Processing Errors
These occur when one or more steps in completing a payment fail due to an issue with the merchant processor or one of their associated services (e.g., fraud prevention).
> > Click Here to Start Your Free Trial < <
Thinkific’s Approach to Failed Payments
Thinkific provides several features to help course creators handle failed payments. One is automated email notifications sent to students when their payments fail. This instance allows the student to be alerted of the issue and allows them to rectify it before payment access is denied.
In addition, Thinkific also offers automatic retries for failed payments after a specific period has passed. You can enable this feature on the settings page, and it ensures that students are not denied payment access until all payment attempts have been exhausted.
Finally, Thinkific also offers an automatic deactivation of course access for students with failed payments after a grace period has elapsed. This instance allows course creators to ensure that only those who have completed their payments can access their content and prevents any potential issues from occurring due to non-payment.
Resolving Failed Payments
Students who experience failed payments in Thinkific can easily resolve the issue with a few simple steps. This section outlines a step-by-step guide for students to resolve failed payments in Thinkific:
Step 1: Log into your Thinkific account and select ‘My Account’ from the menu.
Step 2: Select ‘Payment Settings’ and click ‘Manage Subscriptions.’
Step 3: Review any existing subscription plans you may have linked to your account and any recent attempts at a payment that may have failed.
Step 4: If needed, update your payment information or change your subscription plan by clicking the ‘Edit’ button next to each option.
Step 5: Make sure all changes are saved before exiting this page.
Students also have the option to change their payment details or subscription plans within their Thinkific accounts if they need to do so. To make these changes, they must go back into their Payment Settings page and select either ‘Update Payment Details’ or ‘Change Subscription Plan’ accordingly. Once the desired changes have been made, students should click the ‘Save Changes’ button at the bottom of the page before exiting it completely.
If students require additional assistance with resolving their payment issues in Thinkific, they can contact support through one of several communication channels available (e.g., email, phone call, live chat). The customer service team is always happy to help and will be able to provide more specific guidance based on individual cases.
> > Click Here to Start Your Free Trial < <
Preventing Failed Payments
As a course creator, you want to ensure that all payments are processed successfully in Thinkific. Here are certain steps students can take before making a purchase to prevent failed payments from occurring in the first place.
For example, students should ensure their payment details (e.g., credit card information) are updated and accurate before purchasing your course content. Additionally, they should ensure sufficient funds are in their account when attempting to make the payment.
On the other hand, as a course creator, there are certain strategies you can employ to minimize failed payments within Thinkific. For instance, setting up automated email notifications for learners when their payment fails will help them quickly identify and resolve any issues with their payment method before trying again.
Additionally, offering alternative payment methods such as PayPal or Apple Pay provides learners with more options and increases the likelihood of successful transactions being made on your courses. Finally, providing detailed instructions on completing the checkout process helps learners understand what is expected of them when purchasing.
> > Click Here to Start Your Free Trial < <
Resolving Failed Payments in Thinkific: Conclusion
In conclusion, this article discussed what happens when payments fail in Thinkific and how to resolve them. We looked at troubleshooting payment failures, understanding why certain types of failures occur more frequently than others and strategies for preventing future issues from arising.
We also outlined best practices for handling failed payments within Thinkific so that course creators can ensure their learners’ satisfaction with their learning experience is always maintained. Finally, we recommended steps students should take to avoid failed payments in Thinkific and tips for course creators to minimize failed payments.
It is important to promptly address any payment failures to ensure uninterrupted online course access. The successful processing of payments is essential for the success of an online course as it provides a steady stream of income for course creators and enables learners to access quality content without any financial barriers.