Within TutorCruncher, a Client is typically the individual or organisation that receives services from one or more of your Tutors. Generally speaking, the Client is whoever might be paying for your services. In many cases this will be the parent of a child; in other cases it could be a school, or local authority who pay on behalf of students in their district.
Where companies deal with older learners who pay Invoices for Lessons which they also attend themselves, that person could be treated both as a Client and a Student at the same time - read more about that here.
Clients have the ability to create and manage one or more Student accounts, to view upcoming Lessons on their Calendar, access Lesson Reports, and pay for accumulated charges such as Lesson fees and Ad Hoc Charges. They could be the sole paying Client for services rendered to a Student or multiple Students, or they could be an Associated Client, such as a parent who doesn’t pay for the services, but still has access to Lesson Reports and scheduling information for their attached Student. Clients could have just one, or multiple Students attached to their profile.
Organisations can track and manage their Clients by navigating to People > Clients. A Client’s profile includes their contact information, Students connected to their account, accounting records (including any saved card details and/or Direct Debit mandates), any reviews they’ve left for a Tutor’s services, a record of any actions performed on TutorCruncher pertaining to their account (including any Jobs their Students have been assigned to) and a record of any Emails or SMS messages sent to them via TutorCruncher.
Where can I find my Clients?
Clients can be individually searched for via the search bar, or a full list of your organisation’s Clients can be found via People > Clients. What you see here could vary depending on what options are selected in your profile’s Default Client View settings.
An example of a Client user list.
Here you can:
Use the status tabs to cycle through the Client list based on their profile status. The ‘Prospect (Pipeline)’ status will bring you to the Client sales pipeline (more on that below).
Use the Create New Client button to create a new Client.
Use the Filter button to filter through the list of Clients by their location, creation date range, applied Labels, any Custom Fields you might have, their associated Client Manager or Affiliate, whether or not they’ve consented to have their data stored, or their profile status. The more information there is on a Client’s profile the easier it will be for Administrators to use this feature.
Once a filter has been applied, you can use the Email Clients button to email any Clients who match the criteria used in the filter. If no filter has been applied, then all Clients listed will be emailed.
Use the ‘Label Filter’ dropdown menu to quickly filter out Clients based on any Labels applied to their profile.
How do I create a Client?
Follow these steps:
Navigate to People > Clients.
Select Create New Client.
Fill in the Client's details.
If your branch allows Client login, (this can be specified via System > Settings > Branch Details) and you've added an email address when creating the profile, your new Client will receive a welcome email with a link to create a password to log in. Note that you will need to have the ‘Client Welcome Email’ Email Definition sending for this to work.
Submit.
You can also import multiple Clients using the Import function. This will allow you to upload multiple Client profiles quickly and easily. Clients can also sign themselves up via your website.
Note: The welcome email expires after three days, at which point the set password link will no longer work - you can resend a welcome email by navigating to the Client’s profile and selecting the Send email button under the Communications tab - this will open a dropdown menu with an option to resend the welcome email. Please note that you can only resend a welcome email if the Client hasn’t logged in already.
How do I edit the details on a Client's profile?
You can edit a Client's details by navigating to the Client's profile and selecting Actions > Edit Profile. Adjust the Client's details and Submit. The Client’s last name and profile status are required fields, and we recommend that you include an email address so that they can receive important communications. You can also add in Custom Fields (and also make these required) which will appear under the ‘Extra Fields’ tab.
An example of a Client profile, with Edit Profile highlighted in the Actions dropdown menu.
To change a Client's email address, simply navigate to the Client’s profile, and select Actions > Edit Profile. From here you can edit the email address found in their email field, before clicking Submit.
Note: the Client will then receive an email to confirm their new email address, and they must confirm this new email address within three days.
Where can I find my Clients' payment details?
As you are aware that previously for Admins, all Client payment details were on their 'Accounting' page.
You can now access this information via a separate page called 'Billing' which will show up as a separate tab on the Client's profile.
The new Billing page as viewed by the Admin.
In addition to this, previously when a Client logged in, all their card details were stored on their Dashboard. We have now moved this information along with the option to edit their default payment method, to the 'Billing' tab instead.
The new Billing page as viewed by the Client.
Can my Client use Bank Transfer as their preferred payment method? (only applicable to UK based companies)
If your branch permits Clients to use Bank Transfers as a payment method or if you have GoCardless active, then the Client can edit their default payment method to one of those.
Once these changes are released, we will be updating the Clients' default payment method in the following way:
If they are currently using GoCardless to pay their Invoices, then we will set their default payment method to GoCardless. If they usually pay via Bank Transfers, then that would be set as their default payment method, else we will set their default to pay by card.
You, as an Admin, can also update your Client's default payment method by navigating to the Clients' profile > Billing > Edit Client Default Payment Method and choose the preferred payment method.
Update preferred payment method options tab.
If the Client does not have any GoCardless details stored on their profile then they won't be able to set their default payment method to it until they have added these details.
Paying by GoCardless.
If a Client prefers to pay by card, they can choose the relevant option on the Billing page.
Paying by Card.
Clients can also choose to pay by Bank Transfer using the Stripe Bank Transfers option on their Billing page.
Paying by Bank Transfer.
Note: if a Client prefers to pay by Bank Transfer, then the invoice will NOT be auto charged. Instead, the payment request email and the Invoice PDF will include instructions on how to make the payment via Bank Transfer (as shown below).
Bank Transfer Invoice PDF.
Additionally, on the Stripe payments page (within TutorCruncher), there's now a dedicated tab to view all Invoices and Credit Requests with payments made specifically through a Stripe Bank Transfer.
You can access this page by navigating to System > Settings > Payment Integrations > Card Payments with Stripe (New) > Payments > Bank Transfers.
Stripe Account Bank Transfers page.
You can also view the Invoices and Credit Requests paid via card.
Stripe Account Card Payments page.
What if my Client is also receiving Lessons from my company?
If you would like to also add your Client as a Student, you can do so by navigating to the Client's profile before selecting Actions > Edit Profile and selecting 'Add as Student' from the dropdown menu.
Adding a Client as a Student.
Can Clients sign themselves up?
Yes - if you have ‘Client signup’ enabled via System > Settings > Company Details > Branch Details, then there are several ways in which a prospective Client could sign up:
Sign up via Client signup link: Your company has a link that can be accessed by prospective Clients to sign themselves up and create their own profiles - you can find your company’s signup link (alongside other helpful URLs) via System > Settings > Company Details > Company Details.
An example of a Client signup portal.
Sign up via Socket for online Lesson booking: If you’re using the TutorCruncher Socket for online Lesson booking, your Clients will be prompted to create a new account when booking a lesson via your website. Read more about the Socket for online Lesson booking here.
Sign up via Socket for Client enquiry form: You could also use the TutorCruncher Socket to create a Client enquiry form via your website - read more about the basic or advanced enquiry forms.Read more about the Socket for Client enquiry forms here.
What is a Client profiles 'status' and how do I change it?
A Client’s profile will have a status associated with it - this refers to where the Client is at in their customer lifecycle. There are three statuses a Client’s profile could have:
Prospect (Pipeline): This means that the Client is still a prospect and within your sales pipeline. They may have only had an initial contact with your organisation and not agreed to purchase any services from you, or they might be further into the process, with a preliminary agreement in place with your organisation and an initial registration fee paid. These pipeline stages are entirely customisable by you and can include as many or as little stages as you wish, and you can read more about them below.
Live: This means that the Client is on board with your organisation and has paid for or is expecting to be paying for your services. They have full access to their Client dashboard (if you have Client login enabled) and can be added to Jobs and receive communications.
Dormant: This means that the Client’s profile is inactive. Dormant Clients still have access to all areas of their Client dashboard and can still receive payment requests. This could be a Client who temporarily does not require your services, or a lead that was never realised during your sales process. Marking Clients as dormant is useful in cases where you need to separate out Clients who are actively using and paying for your services from ones who might not be.
When a Client first signs up to your company, they will be given the status 'Prospect'. To change their status, navigate to the Client's profile and select Actions > Set Status before choosing the desired status from the dropdown menu.
An example of a Client profile, with the Set Status dropdown menu highlighted.
Note: User profile statuses (including that of Clients) are hardcoded into TutorCruncher; as such, they cannot be altered or customised.
What is the Client 'Pipeline'?
The Pipeline is there to help you track the progressive of prospective Clients through your sales process and keep a record of leads that were either ‘won’ (converted from a lead to a paying Client) or ‘lost’ (not converted; no sale). To that end, Clients move through the Pipeline to then ultimately be either marked as 'Won' or 'Lost'. You can drag a Client into one of these statuses from the Pipeline view, or select this on the Client's profile page.
Setting a Client to 'Won' means they will show up in your 'Live' Client status list and be removed from the Pipeline. What constitutes a “Win” will depend on your company’s sales process and is open to your interpretation. Setting a Client to 'Lost' means they will appear under the 'Dormant' tab in your Client list, and they will no longer appear in your Client pipeline.
An example of a Client sales Pipeline.
Any recently created Clients with the status 'Prospect' set on their profile will appear in the first stage of your Pipeline view. You can use your mouse to drag them to the next stage of your Pipeline as they move through your sales process. You will be able to see how long a certain Client has been in a certain Pipeline stage, as well as any Labels applied to them, and who their Client Manager is. As you move your Clients from left to right they reach the final stages of your sales process. Find out more about editing your sales Pipeline here.
Your Pipeline stages are customisable via the Pipeline Stages menu in your system settings, up to a total of six stages.
How do I manage my Client’s account balance and payment methods?
Read up on Client balances here.
Can I choose what email notifications a Client will receive?
The notifications a Client receives can be specified by navigating to the Client’s profile, selecting Actions > Edit Profile, and toggling the options on the checkbox list under Received Notifications, the notifications include:
Broadcasts: The Client will receive manual marketing communications via Broadcasts. (Be aware that they can unsubscribe themselves from this.)
Lesson reminders: The Client will receive a reminder prior to a Lesson taking place - the amount of notice given here is specified in your Lesson Reminders.
Low balance reminders: The Client will receive email/SMS reminders when their balance dips below a certain threshold.
Invoice reminders: The Client will receive automatic reminders via email/SMS for unpaid Invoices - the amount of time that passes between the Invoice being raised and the reminder being sent is specified via your general accounting settings.
Credit Request reminders: The Client will receive automatic reminders via email/SMS for unpaid Credit Requests - the amount of time that passes between the Invoice being raised and the reminder being sent is specified via your general accounting settings.
Invoice payment requests: The client will receive payment requests for Invoices.
Credit Request payment requests: The client will receive payment requests for Credit Requests.
Which Clients will receive a welcome email?
By default, Clients that are created with the 'Prospect' status will receive a welcome email. You can change this via System > Settings > Branch Details - disabling this checkbox will mean that only 'Live' Clients are sent a welcome email.
What is an ‘Associated Client’?
Within a Student’s profile page, you will find a panel titled ‘Associated Clients’ - this is a list of all Clients who are associated with this Student’s profile. By default the Student’s main Paying Client will be listed here, but you can add more via the Add button. This will open the ‘Add Client to Student’ panel, from where you can select a Client to associate with the Student alongside their given permissions:
Adding an associate Client to a Student’s profile.
By default, associated Clients will be able to view a Student’s profile alongside any Lessons that the Student has been assigned to. The other permissions an associated Client can be given are as follows:
Accounting Permissions: This allows the associated Client to view all accounting data to do with the Student, alongside receiving and paying Invoices sent for the Student’s tutoring.
Lesson Booking Permissions: This allows associated Clients to cancel and book Lessons for the Student. Whenever an associated Client books a Lesson, emails are sent to the associated Client and the paying Client. The Student’s Lessons will also be viewable from the associated Clients Calendar as well.
Access to Lesson Reports: This allows Clients to receive and have access to the Student’s Lesson Reports. This also means that any associated Client with access to Reports and accounting permissions will receive Reports alongside Invoices.
Associated Clients can access the whiteboard integration on a Lesson via the whiteboard link found in the ‘Upcoming Lessons’ panel on their dashboard. Alternatively, Lesson Reminders can be sent via email and/or SMS to associated Clients as well (provided that the ‘Send to Associated Clients’ checkbox is enabled in the Reminder’s settings) that contains a link to the online classroom.
Note: Associated Clients can still receive emails regardless of whether or not they have a TutorCruncher login. To create an associated Client that does not have a login of their own, simply create their Client profile, enter their email address, and set their status to ‘Prospect’. If ‘Send pipeline Clients a Welcome Email’ is disabled in your Branch Details, they will not receive the Client welcome email. Once the permissions have been set for the associated Client’s profile, they will be able to receive emails pertaining to the Student without having their own TutorCruncher login.
Can I copy a Client profile from one branch to another?
Yes - simply navigate to the Client’s profile, select Actions > Copy to another Branch. This will open the ‘Copy to another Branch’ panel, from where you can choose which branch to copy the Client to. This will only appear if there is another live branch to which you would copy them.
What Labels are automatically applied to Client profiles by the TutorCruncher system?
These are the two Labels that can be automatically applied by TutorCruncher:
Self Sign Up: Applied to Tutors and Clients when they sign themselves up.
Enquiry: Applied to Clients when they fill in an enquiry form.