DFC’s My Payments service is a revolutionary online portal that takes the pain out of gym payments, helping to boost revenue and retention while enabling operators to focus on delivering top quality fitness experiences, as DFC’s IT Development Manager Matt Clements explains

What makes My Payments stand out from other services on the market?
My Payments marks a significant step forward for processing Direct Debit payments for health clubs. It’s an online portal that makes it simple and easy for customers to pay defaulted fees quickly, securely and privately through a variety of platforms.

It’s simple to use and accessible 24/7, giving members payment flexibility outside working hours and saving health and fitness operators the arduous task of manually chasing up payments.

What is the impact of this on retention?
Massive. Rejected Direct Debit payments are a huge headache for operators and customers alike and one of the biggest causes of lapsed memberships. Customers tend to bury their heads and ignore the problem – either because they’re too busy or embarrassed by the situation – while the added admin is a significant burden for operators.

My Payments takes care of all these issues in minutes, meaning members can quickly get back into the gym and operators can free up more time for attracting new joiners and enhancing their offering.

How did DFC come to create My Payments?
We’re constantly working with our clients to ensure their needs are being best met and what quickly became clear was that there was a huge gap in the market for My Payments.
Since its introduction two years ago, the service has proven so successful that more than 50 per cent of members have chosen it to pay defaults.

As a result, DFC has seen a dramatic upturn in service at our call centre, because we’ve been able to dedicate more time to each caller to provide above and beyond customer care.

How have developments in the sector fed into the refinement of My Payments?
We’re seeing more and more operators launching apps and many DFC clients have now chosen to embed My Payments into their own app to further reduce friction in the customer journey. This has taken the strain off busy facilities that don’t have the time or knowledge to discuss queries, and created an easily accessible platform for them to track payments. We’ve also recently released additional features to My Payments to improve first contact resolution, such as automatically updating bank details for any cancelled Direct Debits to avoid further rejected payments and also updating customer contact details so we can effectively administer their account.

Have changing consumer trends also played a part in My Payments success?
I certainly think so. In the same way that DFC and my team of developers has grown since I joined as a computer science graduate in 2011, the fitness industry has significantly expanded and diversified in that time. Where once people would have a single membership at a big box gym which catered to all their needs, today’s consumer often has an array of memberships and payment plans incorporating a low-cost gym, boutique classes and perhaps outdoor training as well. This greater market segmentation means payments are more complicated than they once were, making it essential for us to provide a simple way to pay for fitness and the greater levels of customer service that they’ve come to expect.