Skip to main content
How to offer a payment plan

While Maven builds this into the product plan, there are ways to do this manually.

Chelsea Wilson avatar
Written by Chelsea Wilson
Updated over a week ago

Summary

  • You can create a payment plan option by using coupon codes in Stripe.

How to create a payment plan

If you need to set up a payment plan for students, you'll use Stripe's discount code features. This method involves delayed course revenue and manual follow-up with your students. With a manual payment plan, there's no guarantee a student will pay subsequent installments. While we don't recommend this method, we do want to demonstrate that it's a possibility. We suggest that pilot cohorts keep it simple with one transaction.

You'll need to think about how many installments you want students to make, and how much they'll pay in each installment. For example if your course price is $1000, you'll decide if students will pay 2 installments of $500 or 4 installments of $250.

Once you've decided on the payment plan, here are the steps to create your codes in Stripe:

  1. In Stripe, create a discount code. Name it Payment Plan and make sure it has a code like PAYMENTPLAN or PP50. In this example, PAYPLAN2 is a reference to a plan with 2 installments. You'll use the discount feature in Stripe to discount the price 50% now and then you'll collect 50% later.

  2. Market your Payment Plan how you see fit. Keep in mind, you'll be actively following up with each student to collect subsequent payments. You can promote it on your landing page in a very visible way or keep it in the FAQs. You can invite students to email you about it and provide them with your code on a 1:1 basis.

  3. At the payment page, the student puts in the discount code and pays. In this example, they'd be paying 50%. They're now successfully enrolled in your course.

  4. Second installment. At a later date, you'll need to collect the second installment of the payment. In Stripe, you'll create a Payment Link for your product. Ensure the payment page you're creating accepts discount codes.

  5. Send the payment link to the student and direct them to use your discount code again when paying. In this case, they'd put in PAYPLAN2 again.

Did this answer your question?