How are Automatic Discounts Applied?

For all the details, refer to the "How to Use Discounts" document, but here are the basics:

1. Set up a Discount Policy and mark it for Auto Apply
   
2. Apply the discount policy to Curricula so it becomes the default (This makes your life easier, and ensures that the right discount information is shown when a parent views curriculum details on your website)
3. Apply the discount policy to Classes (if it was not the default when the class was created)

When you, or a parent, enrolls a student the discounts in the policy will be applied as appropriate. 

Note: If you set up your pricing as one inclusive price (no specific materials price) your total price will be considered tuition, and will be discounted as tuition, so you may want to consider that when setting % discount levels.

Adding Pictures Videos and Links to my Emails or Website

Warning! This is not fully supported, and it is your responsibility to check the results of your additions in the inline editor before you accept the changes and publish them to your website.

Email marketing and Content management in YourVirtuoso uses an editor which will allow you to include images, links and Html codes which enables linking to pictures and videos on websites like Flickr or YouTube or the KI website. You need to find the content you want, or upload your own content to one of these sites before it can be used in YourVirtuoso.

On Flickr, upload and select one of your photos. Pick a size, probably the "small" version, and Flickr shows a box with "HTML to copy and paste in your webpage". Copy this HTML. Then go to YourVirtuoso Content Management/Inline Editor or to Marketing/Mailings and once you have the editor open, use the picture tool (mountains with sun over them) which lets you paste the url of the image.

For videos on YouTube, it is the same process (but it works with anyone's video's, not just your own uploads). Copy the Html which is labeled "Embed" next to the video you want and paste it in YourVirtuoso as described above, but using the "<>" html tool to see the code for the text box you are editing, and pick the right place.

For links, copy the address (URL) for the link you want, and in the inline editor, select the text you want to have as your link, and click on the link tool (globe with chain links). Paste the link address with the http:// at the start in the link pop up window.

Once you are done editing, check it looks OK in the inline editor view of your website, and go to Content/ApplyChanges to accept or discard your changes.

Why do pictures in the mailing I uploaded not show up?

The display of pictures depends on how the file is created. A correctly generated html email includes pictures by referencing a location on the internet where the picture is located. When the reader views the file, their browser or email program fetches the picture from the internet and displays it on the page.

If you create a file on your PC or Mac using MS Word for example and save it as html, the html file you create references images that are on your computer's hard drive somewhere. They show fine when you look at the file on your computer, but when someone else (or the YourVirtuoso server) tries to find the pictures, they cannot get to your hard drive to load them. 

If these are pictures that are on a website somewhere, and you know a little about html, you can modify your document to reference them and make it work.

We are looking for a quick and simple solution, but as always, easy solutions take a lot of work!

I will post some ideas on including pictures and videos in emails and on your website shortly for experienced (or fearless) users!

How can I manage priority registrations from existing customers

Priority registrations usually means taking registrations and deposits from current customers before you have opened the class for online registration. Two solutions come to mind:

1. Set up your classes in a new session. Do NOT activate the session, but go ahead and activate the classes. At this point, you can enter the priority registrations and payments, but nobody can enroll online. Once the priority period is done, activate the session and everyone can enroll online in the remaining openings. Or...
   
2. If your classes are not configured yet, take deposit payments using "Take a payment" when you receive it, and once you have your classes active, enroll the student and immediately "Take a payment" again, but use "Available Credit" as the method to apply the deposit to payments. Any auto payments or notifications will then be correct
   

My Classes page is too busy when I have Summer and Fall classes open for registration?

I think the best way to manage the way the classes appear on your website is by using curriculum groups (Under Setup/Curricula). 

You could create a group for regular (spring/fall) classes and a group for summer classes. By naming them and describing them you should be able to make navigation of your particular choice of curricula simple for the parents.

You can also segregate Kindermusik classes from Piano classes using this method.

Why Can't I Refund to a Customer's Credit Card?

Update! It is now possible to refund to cards with a couple of restrictions...

As all licensees share a merchant (credit card) account, refunds are immediately taken from the shared, holding bank account. For this reason, you can only refund up to the amount you have received in card payments since your last settlement was processed (Sunday early mornings). In addition, we can only refund all or part of a specific customers credit card payments in the last 60 days - a fraud prevention measure imposed by the card company. 

For example if a customer paid $100 3 weeks ago by card, as long as you have $100 in payments since last Sunday, you can refund them up to $100. 

It is good to get in the habit of doing refunds on a Friday afternoon if you encounter limitations, as this is the weekday when your refundable balance will be greatest.

Gerry

Welcome to my YourVirtuoso Blog

After a year of helping Casey at Kindermusik International answer some pretty interesting and challenging questions about the use of YourVirtuoso, I decided many of the answers deserved to be shared with our user community (you). 

Some of the answers are already in the "How To" documents, or help pages, but I am as guilty as the next person of not reading all the documents, so if this helps you get the answers you need I think it is worthwhile.

This blog is not intended to replace your existing support resources, so it won't cover everything, and comments may not get (timely) responses, but if you have requests for specific topics, I will be delighted to try and get to them if they seem of general interest.

Enjoy,

Gerry