Overview
Memberships are subscription-based offerings with recurring billing, included treatments, member discounts, and optional bonuses. They are one of the most powerful tools for building patient retention and predictable recurring revenue.
This article is the starting point for building a membership. It covers menu upload, membership basics, AI-assisted drafts, and how Smart Benefits fit together. For step-by-step setup of each benefit type, use the dedicated articles linked in How It Works and Next Steps.
Smart Benefits at a glance:
Benefit type | What it does | Detailed guide |
Sign-up bonus | Immediate reward when a patient enrolls | |
Membership benefits | Percentage, dollar-off, or free-service discounts across your shop | Configure in the membership builder (see Add Smart Benefits under Step-by-Step) |
Included treatments | Monthly or timed redeemables members receive on a cadence | |
Milestone bonus | Loyalty reward that unlocks after a set enrollment period |
This article is for practice owners, managers, and admins who are creating a new membership or reviewing an AI-generated draft before publishing.
Before You Start
You must have Administrator or Manager access to create and publish memberships.
Go to Catalog → Services and open the Memberships tab.
All memberships start as Draft until you publish them.
Have the following ready before you open the membership builder:
Membership name, price, and billing period (monthly or annual)
Which treatments are included as monthly redeemables, and whether unused treatments roll over
Your discount structure — what members save and on which services
Whether you want a sign-up bonus, a commitment period, or milestone bonuses
Upload your service menu in Catalog → Services if you have not already. The uploader can extract a membership draft only when your menu includes enough detail — at minimum, a clear description of what is included and how it is priced. A listing like “Gold Membership — $199/mo” alone is not enough; something like “Gold Membership — $199/mo, includes 1 facial + 10% off all services” gives the AI enough to work with.
Why It Matters
Memberships turn one-time patients into recurring revenue:
Predictable monthly income from enrolled members on a billing cadence you control.
Higher retention when patients have included treatments and member-only pricing across your shop.
Clear upsell paths — non-members see member pricing in the app, which encourages enrollment before their next purchase.
Flexible incentive design — stack sign-up bonuses, monthly redeemables, milestone rewards, and shop-wide discounts on a single plan.
How It Works
Draft vs. Active: New memberships begin as Draft. Review the name, pricing, benefits, billing terms and locations before publishing. Follow “Publish the membership” below to publish the membership as Active. Verify that the membership is Active and appears as intended in the patient app; creating or saving a draft is not proof that it has been published. Click Save as draft to finish later. Creating a membership opens on its own page, with a live preview of how it will look in your patient app.
Smart Benefits: Memberships combine several optional incentive types:
Sign-up bonus — optional immediate reward at enrollment. Does not expire once earned. Stacks with monthly redeemables. See the sign-up bonus article.
Membership benefits — percentage or dollar-off discounts that drive member pricing across your shop. Non-members see the incentive to enroll; enrolled members see their savings at checkout.
Included treatments — redeemables members receive on a monthly or timed cadence. Treatment option groups can unlock at sign-up or after a set number of months. See the included treatments article.
Milestone bonus — optional loyalty reward that unlocks after a member has been enrolled for a set period. See the milestone bonus article.
Billing options: Default memberships bill monthly or annually. For weekly, quarterly, or other cadences, see Set up flexible membership billing (Admin Panel). For credit-based memberships, see Set up and manage a Beauty Bank membership (Admin Panel).
First Month Free (optional): You can offer free membership for the first month using a Free Service discount configured outside the membership builder through Special Offers, Rewards, or Automated Offers. This discounts the first month only; the membership renews at full price afterward. Pair this offer with a minimum 3-month commitment to prevent patients from canceling before the second billing cycle. See Membership First Month Free.
Editing published memberships: Changes to active memberships can apply immediately to current and future enrollments. Be careful when adjusting pricing or included treatments for a membership with existing subscribers. If you need to change terms for future members only, see Edit a membership (Admin Panel) or contact support before making edits.
AI-generated drafts: From Catalog → Services, you can upload a service menu to create draft memberships. All AI output is a starting point — review name, pricing, benefits, and terms before publishing.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Upload your service menu (optional AI draft)
Log in to your Admin Dashboard.
Go to Catalog → Services.
Upload your service menu if you have not already.
If your upload includes enough membership detail, the uploader pre-fills Name, Description, and Price. Benefits, included treatments, billing terms, and bonuses must be configured manually after the draft is created.
Create a membership from scratch
Go to Catalog → Services and open the Memberships tab.
Click New membership.
Configure membership basics
Confirm the membership name: This is what patients see in your app. Use clear, tier-based names if you offer multiple levels — for example, Silver, Gold, Platinum.
Set locations: Open Location and Visibility Settings and select the location(s) where this membership is available.
Verify the price per billing period: Under Billing and Renewal, enter the amount in Members pay $ ___ every [number] [period]. The uploader fills in price from your menu — verify it is correct. The default billing period is monthly; adjust if needed. You cannot collect an upfront payment or offer pay-in-full at enrollment unless the membership is annual.
(Optional) Set a minimum commitment period: Enter the number of months in Minimum Commitment Length. We recommend keeping this between 3 and 6 months for best results.
Upload an image: This image appears on membership carousels (home and shop screens), the membership list, and the individual membership screen. You can Upload from your files, Choose from RMD library, or Create with AI.
Write the membership description: Explain the high-level benefits and any disclaimers for this membership.
Add Smart Benefits
Configure each benefit type from the membership builder. Use the dedicated articles for full step-by-step instructions:
(Optional) Sign-up bonus — in Bonuses, click Add a sign-up bonus. See Add a sign-up bonus to a membership (Admin Panel).
Membership benefits (discounts) — in Membership Benefits, add a benefit to set percentage or dollar-off discounts. Choose in-app for shop purchases or in-office for benefits not sold in the app. Use Include or Exclude to control which treatments the discount applies to. You can add multiple benefits.
Included treatments — in Treatments, add monthly or timed redeemables. See Add included treatments to a membership (Admin Panel).
(Optional) Milestone bonus — in Bonuses, click Add a milestone bonus. See Add a milestone bonus to a membership (Admin Panel).
Membership-only items: When adding treatments to any Smart Benefit, you can click Create a new treatment to include something not sold in your shop (retail, skincare, etc.). This creates a membership-only item tied to this membership — it does not appear in your shop catalog.
Publish the membership
When all required fields are complete, click Publish membership.
The membership publishes as Active and immediately appears in your patient app.
Patients can enroll from the home screen, shop, or membership carousel.
Best Practices and Pro Tips
Give the menu uploader enough detail. Include what’s in the plan and how it is priced so AI extraction produces a useful draft.
Keep commitment between 3 and 6 months for stronger conversion rates.
Match included treatment value to your monthly fee. Offer treatments that are approximately the same cost as the monthly membership fee so the perk is sustainable.
Turn on treatment rollover when offering included treatments so patients do not lose unused redeemables at the end of a period.
Use tier-based names (Silver, Gold, Platinum) when offering multiple membership levels.
Review AI drafts before publishing. Generated memberships are a starting point — confirm every field reflects your actual offering.
Coordinate sign-up bonuses with monthly redeemables. They stack, so plan the combined value before publishing.
Common Mistakes and FAQs
Q: My menu upload did not create a membership draft. Why?
A: The uploader needs enough detail to extract a membership — at minimum, a description of what’s included and how it is priced. A name and price alone are not sufficient.
Q: Can I collect payment upfront for a monthly membership?
A: No. You cannot collect an initial upfront payment or offer pay-in-full at enrollment unless the membership bills annually.
Q: Do sign-up bonuses stack with monthly included treatments?
A: Yes. Sign-up bonuses and monthly redeemables stack when both are configured on the same membership.
Q: Where do I set up First Month Free?
A: Outside the membership builder, through Special Offers, Rewards, or Automated Offers. See Membership First Month Free.
Q: What happens when I edit an active membership?
A: Changes can apply immediately to current and future enrollments. See Edit a membership (Admin Panel) for edit-scope options and locked fields.
Q: Can I use a billing cadence other than monthly?
A: Yes. See Set up flexible membership billing (Admin Panel).
Q: Who can create and publish memberships?
A: Administrators and Managers can create, edit, and publish memberships.
Next Steps and Support
Need help? Email support@repeatmd.com