Create a Certification Billing Template

When creating a Billing Run in Rhythm, you have the option to select one of your preconfigured templates or you can make one from scratch. Using a template is a great option when:

• You want to generate billing runs automatically on a recurring basis
• You want to increase your efficiency when creating a billing run from scratch
• You want to perform multiple actions in a single billing run
• You thought of something we haven't 😉

Creating a Billing Run Template

1. Access the Certifications application and navigate to the Setup tab. 
2. Navigate to the Billing dropdown and select Templates.
3. Select Create a Billing Template.

Enter Billing Template Basic Information

With every billing template, there is standard information you will need to provide:

• A name for the billing run
• ID will autofill based on template name, but can be adjusted as necessary and must be unique
• An email address for completion notification
• Optionally, enter a description of what this billing template is intending to do

Select Actions

Select the Actions you want this billing run to take.

• Send renewal reminders: Send out reminders to those whose certifications are approaching the expiration date or have already expired
• Drop/terminate expired certifications: Set a termination date and drop certifications that have not been renewed
• Bill training providers: Generate invoices for training providers who owe money for applications, courses, or exams
• Forecast renewals: Generate pro forma orders for the application fee associated with the selected renewal process to determine the amount of forecasted revenue for a specified certification
• Activate applications: Process completed applications to generate new certifications or extend existing ones
• Send application reminders: Sent reminders to those who have unfinished applications nearing expiration
• Archive/deactivate expired applications: Change the status of applications that have passed their expiration dates

Enter Billing Run Info

With every billing run, there is standard information you will need to provide:

• A name for the billing run
• An email address for completion notification
• A date and time to process the billing run

Helpful Hint: No matter when you choose to process a billing run, Rhythm will ask you to preview the results before it is executed. So, when you schedule a run for a future date, you will also need to determine how many hours of notice you'll need on the processing day.

As for the rest of the information we need, that really depends on the actions you selected in the previous step. Let's take a look at what that looks like:

Send Renewal Reminders

• Notice: Click the "+ Add Reminder" button to add one or several reminders to the process
• Date range: Determine expiration date ranges using the date selection fields
• Certification programs: Segment the billing run by only including certain certification programs
• Training providers: Segment the billing run by only including certain training providers
• Status reasons: Segment the billing run by only including certain status reasons

Drop/Terminate Expired Certifications

• Expiration dates: Search for certifications that have an expiration date within a specific date range. This is helpful when you're targeting a specific period of time
• Drop notice: Select one of the Billing Notice templates you created in Billing Setup to notify the certificant of their upcoming expiration. This allows you to have unique emails for different certification programs. If you do not want to send a billing notice, simply leave the dropdown selection blank
• Certification programs: Segment the billing run by only including certain certification programs
• Training providers: Segment the billing run by only including certain training providers
• Status reasons: Segment the billing run by only including certain status reasons

Bill Training Providers

• Expiration dates: Search for transactions that have an expiration date within a specific date range
• Invoice template: Select which invoice template to use for billing
• Invoice payment terms: Select the payment terms for generated invoice
• Email invoice: Determine if you want to email the invoice to the training provider billing contact
• Certification programs: Segment the billing run by only including certain certification programs
• Training providers: Segment the billing run by only including certain training providers

Forecast Renewals

• Expiration dates: Search for certifications that have an expiration date within a specific date range. This is helpful when you're targeting a specific period of time.
• Certification programs: Segment the billing run by only including certain certification programs
• Training providers: Segment the billing run by only including certain training providers
• Status reasons: Segment the billing run by only including certain status reasons

Activate Applications

• Notice: Select one of the Billing Notice templates you created in Billing Setup to notify the certificant of their application activation. This allows you to have unique emails for different certification programs. If you do not want to send a billing notice, simply leave the dropdown selection blank
• Certification programs: Segment the billing run by only including certain certification programs
• Training providers: Segment the billing run by only including certain training providers
• Status reasons: Segment the billing run by only including certain status reasons
• Application types: Segment the billing run by only including certain application types

Send Application Reminders

• Notice: Click the "+ Add Reminder" button to add one or several reminders to the process
• Certification programs: Segment the billing run by only including certain certification programs
• Training providers: Segment the billing run by only including certain training providers
• Status reasons: Segment the billing run by only including certain status reasons
• Application types: Segment the billing run by only including certain application types

Archive/Deactivate Expired Applications

• Expiration dates: Search for applications that have an expiration date within a specific date range. This is helpful when you're targeting a specific period of time
• Drop notice: Select one of the Billing Notice templates you created in Billing Setup to notify the certificant of their upcoming expiration. This allows you to have unique emails for different certification programs. If you do not want to send a billing notice, simply leave the dropdown selection blank
• Certification programs: Segment the billing run by only including certain certification programs
• Training providers: Segment the billing run by only including certain training providers
• Status reasons: Segment the billing run by only including certain status reasons
• Application types: Segment the billing run by only including certain application types

Save the template

1. Review the information and actions associated with your billing template.
2. Once you're sure everything looks correct, click the blue Save button at the bottom. 
3. Now you can use your billing template in automated billing runs or when creating a billing run manually!

Helpful hint: If you ever need to make changes to your template in the future, navigate to Billing Templates in Certification Setup and click the green pencil icon next to the appropriate billing template.