How do I add a payment link to our email notifications?

You can make it easier for your Customers to complete payments by adding a direct payment link to your email notifications. This guide shows you how to set it up in Checkfront so Customers can pay online right from the message you send.

Follow our step-by-step instructions to add a payment link to email notifications, including adding URL or text links using email variables.

Accessing the features mentioned in this article

Where can I find this feature using the top menu?

• Manage > Notifications > Email > Email Notification
   

What more do I need to use this feature?

• Admin or restricted permissions to Manage Notifications.
   

Which Checkfront version supports this feature - classic items, classic products, or both?

• This feature is available in both our classic version using classic items (Inventory > Items) and our classic version using classic products (Inventory > Products).  → Learn more about products

What is an email notification? A notification is an email message sent to your Customers to confirm booking actions and may include a booking confirmation, notice of changes made to the booking, or a payment request.

Expert Tips from Checkfront Support: Asking for payment through an email notification "Do you need to send a Customer a link to pay a booking deposit? Adding links to email notifications using email variables is a good way to do this!"  - Jordan, Technical Support Lead

Would you like to provide Customers with an easy way to pay for a booking directly from an email you send them? Using email variables, you can display the URL directly in the email or as a text link.

The payment link is an excellent option if you don't require Customers to pay at the time of booking or want them to pay a remaining balance!

What are email variables? Email variables are elements you can add to email messages that are automatically filled with information once received by the recipient. For example, you can add a payment link to bring Customers to your booking payment page.   There are two payment variables available: {$BOOKING_PAYMENT_URL} links to the payment page for a booking. If no balance is due, this redirects to the receipt page.   {$BOOKING_PAY_FULL_URL} links to the payment page for a booking. This requests the full payment from the Customer even if a deposit is still owed. If no balance is due, this redirects to the receipt page.

The notification payment link is different from the Pay Now Link option The notification payment link differs from the Pay Now Link option, which adds a button to the Booking Invoice for Customers to click and pay the remaining balance. Find out more here: Managing Booking Invoice layout options

Editing a notification after accepting bookings does not update emails already sent Adding a payment link to a notification after you accept bookings does not update previously sent emails. Instead, this change applies to notifications sent going forward with the link.

Learn more about email notifications For a detailed look at email notifications and email variables, check out the following articles: Introduction to email notifications Working with variables in email notifications

You can include a payment URL directly in notification emails. Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Notifications area (Manage > Notifications).
2. Click the + New Notification button to create a new notification or select an existing entry to edit it.
3. Add one or more of the accepted variables in the Email section under the HTML tab, such as {$BOOKING_PAYMENT_URL} or {$BOOKING_PAY_FULL_URL}.
4. After you finish setting up the notification, click the Save button to save your updates.

When the system delivers the email to the Customer, the variable automatically converts to a URL that the Customer clicks to open the booking payment page, where they can complete payment.

You can include a text link in notification emails. Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the Notifications area (Manage > Notifications).
2. Click the + New Notification button to create a new notification or select an existing entry to edit it.
3. Highlight a word/phrase in the email content, e.g., Click here to pay now.
4. Click the Link menu button and then click Insert Link.
5. In the window that shows, place the variable in the URL field, such as {$BOOKING_PAYMENT_URL} or {$BOOKING_PAY_FULL_URL}, and click Insert.
6. After you finish setting up the notification, click the Save button.

When the system delivers the email to the Customer, the variable automatically converts to a text link that the Customer clicks to open the booking payment page, where they can complete payment.