Hello everyone! I need some help looking for some kind of integration or (if I have to) a custom-built solution for my issue.
I charge my customers a subscription to access our databases in Knack. Currently, I’m using Paypal for recurring subscriptions. It’s set up so that when customers complete their checkout, they click “Return to Merchant” at the bottom of the e-receipt, which takes them back to a special page in Knack where they click a button that activates their access. It’s not the best model because occasionally, customers won’t click the Return to Merchant button on their e-receipt, so I have to activate it manually, meaning there is sometimes a short delay in activating their access.
At minimum, I’d like a solution that automatically (and immediately) adjusts a user’s data in their in-app user record upon successful payment when they initiate a new subscription. That way, their user record can be adjusted automatically to grant them access to the database.
Ideally, this solution will also:
- Automatically (immediately) adjust data in their in-app user record upon cancellation of a new subscription.
- Allow users to change cards without interrupting service
- Allow users to change subscription plans (e.g., change a 1-month subscription to a 3-month subscription) without interrupting service
Is any of this possible with an integration, or will I have to pay a developer to custom-code it entirely?
Hi Jonathan,
Check out the Customer Portal by Stripe, which was designed for this exact purpose. It makes adding and managing recurring payments in an app a lot easier. You’ll usually need to create the integration with the help of a developer, either using a no-code tool like Make/Zapier or writing custom code.
Hope this helps.
Ian
Knack Pros
Go to this post https://forums.knack.com/t/integration-with-stripe-customer-portal/11306/9 and scroll to the bottom and read my reply and watch the video and see if this gives you some ideas that may work. I never completed the entire project as I am now integrating and using an entire CRM and digital marketing and automation system that integrates with Stripe and Paypal for this purpose that we will be marketing for purposes beyond Knack. But if you are interested in either solution, the one in the post requires an integration I mention in the post. The other is a much broader wholistic solution to manage a business which includes websites, funnels, communication, workflow automations, social integration… I then integrate the active vs inactive subscription back into Knack with Pabbly.
Thank you for the responses. I’m a bit reluctant with implementing too much of a custom code solution at the moment because of what I am hearing about custom code breaking whenever knack launches an update (example thread). And Zapier has a delay in its execution that just doesn’t work for me.
I’m looking into Make. Hopefully that helps.
WordPress has a free plugin to allow users to access the Stripe Customer Portal. You would then need to use Zappier or Make to sync with Knack.
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If you have a WordPress site you might consider using their plugin. However for Knack apps, you can achieve the same goal with Knack and Stripe alone.
Step 1:
Activate the Customer Portal link on the Stripe dashboard (see screenshot below).
Step 2:
Share the link with your customer. When the customer clicks the link, they enter their email address (see screenshot below).
This can be set up quickly and doesn’t require any code.
For other workflows, you can use Make and/or custom code when:
- The customer is a group, not an individual
- You want to trigger actions in response to events (e.g. canceled membership, new membership, etc.)
- The payment model is usage-based
- You want more control over the UI/UX design
- Etc
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Fortunately, there are options available to address your requirements. To automatically adjust a user’s data in their in-app user record upon successful payment for a new subscription, you can consider integrating a payment gateway that supports webhooks or real-time notifications. This way, when a payment is successfully processed, the gateway can send a notification to your application, triggering the necessary updates to grant the user access to the database immediately.
For handling subscription cancellations, you can utilize the same integration to receive notifications when a user cancels their subscription. Upon receiving such a notification, you can update the user’s in-app user record accordingly to reflect the cancellation.
To allow users to change their payment cards without service interruption, you can explore payment gateways that offer card updating functionality. These gateways typically provide a way for users to securely update their card information, ensuring a smooth transition without any interruption in their access to the database.
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Fantastic!! I didnt know that. It is fairly new from Stripe.
So indeed, even better since no use for an other plugin.
When I have time I’ll substitute to that.
You can utilize a plugin for this. Look out for a recurring payment software with simple renewal so the setup could be a lot smoother.
