How to Manage Affiliate Fees

Sports clubs are sometimes required to send annual affiliation fees to their governing body. This can sometimes be either optional or mandatory depending on the needs of the club and the governing body, and there are a variety of methods to manage affiliate fees within myClubhouse to depending on the situation.

Subscription Add-On

A common method for handling affiliate fees is to use a Subscription Add-On. This allows it to be included at the same time as Subscription renewal, as well as being mandatory or optional as needed. Accounting-wise it also allows the amount to be identified separately from the rest of the cost of the Subscription to make it easier for the Treasurer. To add a Subscription Add-On for affiliate fees:

1. Navigate to Subscriptions > Membership Categories.

2. Click “Edit” next to the appropriate Membership Category.

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3. Click on the “Add-ons” tab.

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4. Click the green plus.

5. Complete the wizard:

   1. Description: Enter a name for the add-on, something like “Affiliate Fees”.

   2. Category: Assigning a Product Category will make identifying these payments even easier in the finance pages of myClubhouse. Learn more about Product Categories in this guide: Product Categories

   3. Amount: Enter the amount for the affiliate fees.

   4. Options: You will likely want to select “Fixed Amount” as these fees are usually fixed, but you may want to select “Mandatory” if members MUST include affiliate fees with their Subscription, or “Promote” if it is optional but you want to encourage members so it will be added to their Subscription but they will have the option to remove it if they wish.

   5. How is the member going to pay: Select a Payment Scheme that the add-ons will be paid with, this is often the same as for the Subscription itself, but doesn’t have to be.

6. Click “Save Changes”.

Linked Subscription

A similar way to handle affiliate fees is to use a Linked Subscription. This allows it to be included at the same time as Subscription renewal, as well as being mandatory or optional as needed. This method only works if the affiliate fees align with your membership season.

1. Navigate to Subscriptions > Membership Categories.

2. Click “Add Category”.

3. Set up the new Membership Category as normal, paying close attention to the following fields:

   1. Membership Type: Make sure you select “Linked to one or more other categories”.

   2. Linked Core Category Options: Select all of the Membership Categories that this Category can be linked to. This should be anyone who is eligible for the affiliate fees, for example, including every playing Category but excluding social Membership Categories.

   3. Subscription Product Categories: Assigning a Product Category will make identifying these payments even easier in the finance pages of myClubhouse. Learn more about Product Categories in this guide: Product Categories

4. Once happy with the details, click “Save Changes”.

Separate Subscription

If the season for affiliate fees is different to your membership season, a linked Subscription or an Add-on may not work as well as their dates are tethered to someone’s core Subscription. For example, if your season runs from 1st September to 31st August, but the affiliate fees run from 1st April to 31st March, this could create some hurdles with charging the affiliate fees, so a separate Subscription is a good option.

1. Navigate to Subscriptions > Membership Categories.

2. Click “Add Category”.

3. Set up the new Membership Category as normal, paying close attention to the following fields:

   1. Membership Type: Make sure you select “Core/Standalone”.

   2. Start and End Dates: These are likely to be fixed dates, especially if the affiliate fees do not align with your membership season.

   3. Subscription Product Categories: Assigning a Product Category will make identifying these payments even easier in the finance pages of myClubhouse. Learn more about Product Categories in this guide: Product Categories

4. Once happy with the details, click “Save Changes”.

Included in Cost

The final option is to increase the Subscription cost by the amount of the affiliate fee. For example, if the fees are £10 and the Subscription cost is £40, you would set the Membership Category cost to £50. The main difference between this option and the others is that you won’t be able to automatically separate the two parts of the membership cost so accounting-wise, it is less clear.

To set the membership cost:

1. Navigate to Subscriptions > Membership Categories.

2. Click “Edit” next to the appropriate Membership Category.

3. Click on the “Costs” tab.

4. Enter the Subscription cost remembering to total the Subscription cost and the affiliate fees.

5. Click “Save Changes”.

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