From technology to payments: Embrace Orthodontics puts patients first
The team at Embrace Orthodontics often feels a sense of sadness when a patient's treatment plan comes to an end. Over the typical two-year treatment period, the twelve-person team, led by Dr. Cadman, forms strong connections with their patients, seeing them every 6-10 weeks.
“We really get to know them as they are coming through for treatment,” says Marley Ring, Orthodontic Assistant and Office Manager. “We’re usually a little bit sad when we dismiss them and don’t get to see them anymore.”
It’s obvious the Embrace team takes pride in the service they offer and cares about their patients.
“We are constantly evolving and adding in the newest technology and methods to our treatment approaches to make the patient experience as smooth as possible,” says Marley.
Located in Prince Albert, Embrace Orthodontics is the first office in Saskatchewan to offer LightForce braces, a custom 3D-printed bracket system that is patient-specific. Dr. Cadman also regularly attends conferences to acquire new skills and ensure they stay current with the latest advancements in orthodontic care.
Making sure their office runs smoothly is also important for their patients’ experience. This includes their payment process. Patients can pay for their treatment over time, on average making 18-24 monthly payments.
Based on a recommendation, Embrace Orthodontics started to process their patients' pre-authorized debit payments with Rotessa. According to Marley, using Rotessa has improved efficiency and convenience for both patients and staff.
“We were just using pre-authorized debits straight through our bank, and the system they used sucked honestly,” states Marley, “It was at least an hour a day going through and making sure everything is approved a couple of days in advance, and then go in a couple of days later and try and search for their reports to see if it was declined or returned for any reason.”
“Whereas with Rotessa, we set up the payments and forget about it until we have to post them,” says Marley. They also use Rotessa’s reporting tools to quickly get the status of their transactions, “It’s very very simple and a lot less work for us.”
Using Rotessa’s online authorization tools, they quickly get permission from their patients to debit payments from their bank accounts. “Getting them to fill in the information to get set up, we get that back within a half hour of sending it to them,” explains Marley, “Before we would have to send them a paper copy and beg for them to send it back and it would take weeks to get anything back from them. It’s way faster to get everyone set up and way easier.”
Although they do accept credit cards, Marley notes that the fees are high so they encourage patients to pay using pre-authorized debit, which they seem to prefer.
They have also found Rotessa’s Payment Reminders helpful, “We usually don’t really have that many that are insufficient funds or get returned but I find with the reminders it’s been even better,” says Marley, “People get that and ‘yeah I’ve got to make sure money is in the account’ and they know that payment is coming out.”
At Embrace Orthodontics, patient care goes beyond just treatment—it’s about building lasting relationships, staying up to date on the newest technology, and ensuring every aspect of the patient experience is as smooth as possible. With innovative approaches like LightForce braces and efficient payment solutions through Rotessa, Dr. Cadman and his dedicated team are committed to delivering top-notch orthodontic care with a personal touch.
Rotessa Rundown | Summer 2024
Hello summer ☀️
Can you believe we're almost halfway through 2024 already? As we reach this milestone, we want to share some exciting updates with you in this edition of the Rotessa Rundown. Meet Tom from Castle HR, an online HR consulting firm specializing in small businesses. Explore two new features that benefit you and your customers, mark our summer holiday closures on your calendar, and learn why June is a special month here at Rotessa.
User spotlight: Castle HR 👀
Tom Nickalls is the entrepreneur behind Castle HR, an online HR consulting firm that helps businesses scale by building exceptional teams, implementing effective processes, and driving growth. Learn more about Castle HR's impressive client success rates and how they use Rotessa to streamline their operations in our latest blog. Read it now.
Send reminders and receipts to your customers 📩
Have you been using Rotessa's new notification features?
Payment reminders allow you to automatically send email notifications to your customers three days before their payment date, ensuring they have funds available and reducing NSF charges.
Payment receipts provide your customers with payment confirmation and a transaction record, reinforcing credibility and trust in your business.
If you haven't already, now is the perfect time to start sending reminders and receipts to your customers! Learn more and get started today.
It's our 14th Rotessaversary! 🎉
June is a special month for Rotessa. 14 years ago, our founder Greg, decided to help make getting paid easier for small businesses. Fast forward to today, our commitment to our users is unchanged. We have met so many great people and great companies doing great things. We couldn't be prouder of how far we've come and we are excited about the future. Thank you for being part of our journey!
Another horrific tale 😱
"One of our tax clients still has not had their return filed because they had not paid our fees yet. We had spoken many times since April, usually there are excuses about food or gas, but the latest excuse was because they needed to get a tattoo." - Elysha
Have a payment horror story you want to share? Send it to [email protected]. If we publish it, we'll send you Rotessa swag!
Upcoming Summer closures 📆
We will not be processing payments and our support centre will be closed on the following dates:
Canada Day, Monday, July 1
Civic Holiday, Monday, August 5
Labour Day, Monday, September 2
Any transactions scheduled on these dates will be processed the following day.
In addition, for our US customers, transactions scheduled for Independence Day, Thursday, July 4 will be processed the following day.
Behind the scenes at Rotessa 🎬
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We’d love to hear from you
If you have any comments or feedback about any of our updates or changes, please let us know at [email protected]. Your input helps us continue to make Rotessa better. Stay tuned for the next Rotessa Rundown for more exciting news and updates.
Castle HR: Scaling Success
Tom Nickalls didn’t plan to build an online HR consulting firm. He’ll tell you it’s a long way from the job he once had in sandpaper distribution. Tom founded Castle HR to solve a problem and to use his entrepreneurial passion to help other businesses.
Two things happened. First, Tom had the misfortune of being let go from a successful tech career, building sales teams. “It was a brutal experience,” describes Tom, “If you had a checklist of all the things you could do wrong, they hit all the notes.”
Second, to figure out what to do next, Tom spoke with his software and tech company contacts. He saw a common theme, “I found out that none of them know what to do with HR,” he explains, “We all white knuckle it until we get to some magical number that we think we should hire an HR person and we have no idea what we need.”
This was the beginning of Castle HR in 2019. Today, Tom’s team provides services to SMBs from coast to coast. His staff are all senior HR professionals with at least 10 years of experience. Their clients are growing businesses with 15 or more employees.
“It’s an exciting time for businesses, let’s scale this and make this something bigger,” explains Tom, “It becomes no longer a focus on revenue and product, it’s how to build the best team, that’s where we come in.” Castle HR implements processes and teaches clients how to scale their business, from tech stack reviews to talent acquisition strategies.
The expertise Castle HR offers is working, “Clients that stay with us for two years, on average, grow by 68% in that time,” says Tom, “Year one is kind of building it out and year two is about really refining it and executing and making sure it’s working.” Eventually clients do outgrow Castle HR,“ We hand the keys to the car over when they get to the point that they need to hire someone full-time.”
Castle HR provides its services for a monthly subscription fee. They have used Rotessa to collect client payments from the beginning. Using Xero to automate invoices, Tom also wanted to find a way to automate payment collection. His search led him to pre-authorized debit services with Rotessa.
“Hands down this is the best money every single month that Castle spends, period, end of story,” says Tom, “It’s fantastic because I have zero time spent on account receivables.”
Rotessa’s reliability and ease of use allow Tom and his team to focus on what matters: facilitating the growth and success of clients.
“I’ve never had to call customer service, I’ve never had to complain, I’ve never had a problem with anything. It’s fantastic.”
From its start to now as an SMB leader in HR consulting, Castle HR stays focused on helping businesses. Rotessa helps make things smoother behind the scenes and leaves more time for what matters. Castle HR's commitment to its clients promises continued excellence in shaping the HR consulting game and scaling success for businesses.
Introducing payment reminders and receipts
We're dedicated to making your payment experience even better! That’s why we're thrilled to introduce two exciting new notification features that will improve the user experience for you and your customers.
https://vimeo.com/923030810/64b269f680?share=copy
Payment reminders
Now, you can send email notifications to remind your customers of their upcoming payments. When enabled in your account settings, a reminder email will automatically be sent to your customers three days before their payment date. This will help them remember to have funds available in their account. It also helps avoid NSF (non-sufficient funds) charges, reducing administrative work for you.
Payment receipts
You can now provide email receipts for your customers’ payments. When enabled in your account settings, a payment receipt will automatically be emailed to your customers on the same day as your settlement. Receipts are a great way to provide your customers with payment confirmation and a transaction record. Payment receipts are only sent out to customers with approved transactions.
Choose who gets payment reminders and receipts
You can enable payment reminders and receipts for all your customers, new customers, or only for the ones you choose. We also understand that not all customers may want to receive notifications. That's why we've included an option for them to unsubscribe. We want to ensure that your customers have the flexibility to tailor their experience to their preferences.
Learn more and start sending payment reminders and payment receipts today!
Note: These features are best suited for users who solely use Rotessa for their workflow. If you are integrating Rotessa with another software, these features are likely not for you.
Rotessa Rundown | Spring 2024
"Rundown" instead of Roundup? What’s going on?
So glad you asked! At Rotessa, we are constantly trying to improve, including how we communicate with our users. While our monthly newsletters have been a great way to stay connected, we believe that a shift to a quarterly format will allow us to deliver even more valuable and comprehensive content. We want to make sure we are bringing genuine value to your inbox.
Now back to the question. What better way to kick off our first quarterly newsletter than with a new name?! Welcome to the first quarterly edition of the Rotessa RUNDOWN!
Product update: two new features coming soon!
We're dedicated to making your payment experience even better! That’s why we're excited to announce that we'll soon be introducing two new features that will improve the user experience for both you and your customers: Payment Reminders and Payment Receipts! Watch for more details in your inbox this month.
Did you know?
Rotessa offers live chat support. We're not talking about a robot. A genuine, living, breathing human listens to your questions and provides you with awesome answers.
Monday-Friday, 9 am - 5 pm CT.
User spotlight: meet The Little Campus
Tami and Carl created The Little Campus (fittingly known as "TLC"), a best-in-class educational and childcare facility that goes beyond academics to instill a love for learning. Their commitment to excellence extends to everything they do, including seamless payment management. Rotessa saves them time and makes handling recurring payments a hassle-free experience. Read their story
Payment horror stories
“One time a customer couldn’t pay her invoice because she went on a vacation. She said she would have been able to pay me if she didn’t splurge it all on her out-of-the-country vacation.”
- Shane
Last year we invited our users to share their best payment horror stories (pre-Rotessa of course!). The stories we received were so entertaining that we've decided to make them a regular feature in our newsletter. Have your own payment horror story? Send it to [email protected]. If we publish it, we'll send you Rotessa swag!
Behind the scenes at Rotessa
Meet the two newest members of Rotessa - Dean and Regina!
As part of the Development team, Dean is putting his skills to work for Rotessa users.
Three fun facts about Dean:
- He kind of likes sushi, especially sashimi.
- He does not like working out but still does it anyway.
- He is interested in philosophy and likes talking about complex topics.
Regina is a member of the Compliance & Operations team.
Three fun facts about Regina:
- She grew up in the beautiful tropical country of Belize
- Her happy places include painting, a good book in front of the fireplace, and a fun hike with friends.
- She loves trying out new recipes to challenge herself, like marshmallows, bagels, and chicharrones (and only some of them turn into disasters).
Foosball and food
Some of the many things the Rotessa team enjoys together!
Upcoming holiday closures
We will not be processing payments and our support centre will be closed on the following dates:
Good Friday, March 29
Victoria Day, Monday, May 20
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We’d love to hear from you
If you have any comments or feedback about any of our updates or changes, please let us know at [email protected]. Your input helps us continue to make Rotessa better. Stay tuned for the next Rotessa Rundown for more exciting news and updates.
The Little Campus: commitment to excellence
While looking for childcare in Toronto for their young daughter, Carl Mercier and Tami Zuckerman found quality options lacking. They successfully addressed this by establishing The Little Campus, fittingly abbreviated "TLC."
“We kind of joked at first, that we should open our own [center], haha, and then we did,” says Carl, “We started working on it in 2019, 2018, so it took awhile because we had to find a location, and then construction, so it took a long time.”
The Little Campus opened in March 2021 as a childhood education and daycare center where quality care, highly trained educators, and specialized programming offer optimal learning and healthy development. They consider it a private school for little kids.
“We are not exclusively focused on academics,” explains Carl, “Making them good people, making them like to learn, love to learn, discover new things, what they are passionate about, and getting them ready to go to kindergarten.”
Carl’s tech entrepreneur background is complimented by Tami's passion for childhood education, supported by her extensive background as an elementary school teacher.
They see parallels between tech and education, “Ultimately any type of business is people-focused,” states Carl “It’s people management, it’s building culture, it’s building a strong team and making sure everyone is aligned behind the vision, but that’s also what we're doing with our school.”
It was important to Carl and Tami that their center be the best in town. This commitment to excellence made them seek out a streamlined solution for handling payments, benefiting the parents of their students and TLC.
“The first thing you do is like, ok credit cards, how much is that going to cost?” questions Carl, “That’s a lot of money every year for a recurring payment. It seemed really expensive.”
They didn’t want to have to pass on credit card fees to parents.
They also considered pre-authorized debit options through the bank,
“I knew about pre-authorized debits because I’ve actually done it,” explains Carl, “Doing the files, uploading them to the bank, and I know it’s a pain in the neck to do.”
They wanted a payment processor that didn’t charge a percentage-based fee.
They were referred to Rotessa where they appreciated the reasonable, flat-rate pricing, and integration capabilities with Xero and Rotessa’s API, “Wow, it’s exactly what I want,” states Carl, “It was like check all the boxes for us.”
Rotessa has optimized their workflow and saved them time.
"It's been great. We can create recurring invoices in Xero, and Rotessa picks it up automatically, bills the customer, reconciles back in Xero, so that's all a huge amount of time saved."
Carl and Tami’s vision has become a center that goes beyond academics to instill a love for learning. Their commitment to excellence has created a best-in-class educational facility as well as streamlined processes like payment management, ensuring a positive experience for their team, the students in their care, and parents.
Rotessa Roundup | December 2023
The December Rotessa Roundup wraps up 2023 and welcomes a new year. See how we celebrated the holiday season, meet a new member of our team, and view our front door greeting to guests and 2024!
1. Holiday season recap
We capped the year off at Rotessa with Secret Santa, a staff celebration, and our annual Christmas video.
We've already received suggestions for next year's video.
https://vimeo.com/894269056/9e98b0e2a0?share=copy
2. Meet John
John recently joined our development team at Rotessa. We are excited to have John on board and putting his skills to work for our users.
Three fun facts about John:
1. He has a three-legged cat
2. He loves to hike and forage
3. He is always thinking about cheeseburgers
3. Hello 2024
A huge thank you for your incredible support throughout the past year. Your business means the world to us! We're thrilled to have been part of your journey and are pumped to continue supporting your success in 2024.
Check out our front door's "hello" - it reflects the friendly service you can expect from us every step of the way!
Thank you for choosing Rotessa. Here's to an awesome 2024 together!
We’d love to hear from you
If you have any comments or feedback about any of our updates or changes, please let us know at [email protected]. Your input helps us continue to make Rotessa better. Stay tuned for the next Rotessa Roundup for more exciting news and updates.
A Rotessa Carol — 2023 Rotessa Christmas Video
Greg's lack of holiday spirit concerns the employees around him. Will a ghostly encounter revealing his past, present and future Christmas revive Greg's holiday spirit? Watch to find out!
https://vimeo.com/894269056/9e98b0e2a0?share=copy
See you in 2024!
Thank you to all of our amazing Rotessa users. Your partnership means so much to all of us. May you have a restful holiday season and a prosperous new year!
New compliance rules for PAD agreements
Please note there are changes to Rule H1 for pre-authorized debits by Payments Canada. These rules apply starting January 1, 2024.
Here are the changes and what we recommend to comply with them, whether you are using the Rotessa-provided PAD agreement or your own.
In Rotessa, PAD agreement Terms and Conditions can be edited under “Authorization settings”. Learn more about Terms and Conditions.
New rule: Your use of Rotessa as a payment service provider must be identified on your PAD agreement
How to comply:
In your PAD agreement terms, add a statement that names your third-party processor.
Example: “You understand our pre-authorized debits are processed by a registered third-party processor, Rotessa Payments.”
New rule: One-time transactions require their own PAD agreement, valid for only that transaction
How to comply:
When scheduling a one-time transaction, state the transaction date and specific amount in your PAD agreement terms.
Example: “You authorize your account to be debited in the amount of $XX on Month/Day/Year.”
Once a one-time transaction is completed, the PAD agreement is no longer valid for future payments. To schedule a subsequent transaction, acquire a new PAD agreement.
New rule: PAD agreement must identify the event that triggers a pre-authorized withdrawal when not on a set schedule (e.g. payments are sporadic)
How to comply:
In your PAD agreement terms, state the event that triggers a pre-authorized withdrawal.
Example: You acknowledge that the authorization is to allow the business with whom your agreement is with, to debit funds from your bank/credit union account for monthly payments and/or one-time payments based on outstanding charges that trigger an invoice.
If a trigger event cannot be specified, use a one-time PAD agreement for each transaction.
For more information, visit Payments Canada.
Rotessa Roundup | November 2023
The November Rotessa Roundup bursts with exciting updates! We're standardizing the monthly billing date, introducing a fresh report for declined transactions, and offering an exclusive behind-the-scenes peek at this year's Christmas video. Also, don't miss our holiday hours outlined below!
1. New standardized billing date and declined transactions report
Please take note that beginning January 2024, we will be debiting users’ accounts as early as the 5th day of every month. If the fifth day of the month coincides with a weekend or holiday, the withdrawal will occur on the following business day.
Why is the billing date changing?
We've revised our billing process to aid users in better cash flow planning. Previously, we delayed billing Rotessa user accounts to accommodate outstanding rejections and declines from the previous month. However, this variable billing date (with a deviation of a few days) posed challenges for cash flow planning. The due date on your invoice will still indicate the day we withdraw fees.
How will declines be handled now?
Declines will now be reported on the day they occur rather than the scheduled transaction day. Consequently, decline fees might not show up on your current month’s invoice but could appear in the following month if the decline date falls outside the billing month. This discrepancy could cause your transaction report and invoice to differ.
How to view and reconcile declines
We have created a declined transactions report that specifically allows you to see all declined transactions associated with your invoice. This report can be accessed from the “Settings” section for each monthly invoice.
2. Behind-the-scenes
Each holiday season, Rotessa team members transform into the cast for our annual Christmas video. The behind-the-scenes pictures might give you a hint about this year's classic Christmas movie parody we're filming. Keep an eye out for the release date, coming later in December!
3. Reminder: Holiday Season Hours
We will not be processing payments and our support centre will be closed on the following dates during the holiday season:
Monday, December 25
Tuesday, December 26
Monday, January 1
Wishing you happy holidays from the Rotessa team!
We’d love to hear from you
If you have any comments or feedback about any of our updates or changes, please let us know at [email protected]. Your input helps us continue to make Rotessa better. Stay tuned for the next Rotessa Roundup for more exciting news and updates.