Before applicants can pay to apply for an award, you need one Awards payment settings record in your Rhythm account. This record tells Rhythm where award application payments go and which payment options applicants can use. This article explains what the record controls, who can change it, and why applicants cannot start applications until it exists.
What It Controls
Your Rhythm account has exactly one Awards payment settings record, and every award uses it. It controls:
- The business unit, merchant account, and bank account that receive every award application payment.
- The payment methods applicants can use when they check out with an application fee.
- Whether applicants see a donation option along with the fee at checkout.
Because every award uses the same settings, you cannot route payments for one award to a different destination.
Where to Find It
Go to Awards & Nominations › Setup › Settings. You can also open these settings from the Awards setup overview’s "Almost Done...." checklist by selecting Configure awards financial settings.
Prerequisites
You need the Awards Administrator policy, or a custom staff role with the same setup permission, to open or change these settings.
The Settings
The form labels are still being reviewed, so the table describes each setting in plain language instead of quoting the screen.
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| Business unit | Records application payments under this business unit. It must already exist in your Rhythm account's Finance & Billing setup |
| Merchant account | Processes application payments through this merchant account. It must already exist |
| Bank account | Deposits application payments into this bank account. It must already exist |
| Payment methods | Sets which payment options applicants can use for an application fee at checkout |
| Donation option | Sets whether applicants are offered a donation in addition to their application fee |
Dependencies and Precedence
- These settings apply to every award’s application fees, and there is no per-award override in the Console.
- The business unit, merchant account, and bank account you choose here must already exist. If one is later deleted while these settings still use it, Rhythm refuses the delete so your payment settings always point to real accounts.
- An award's application process can also have its own checkout setting overrides, including options such as letting an applicant bill their organization or showing a donation prompt at checkout. It has not been confirmed whether the process checkout settings or these account-wide settings take precedence when both are set, so if you configure both, verify what applicants see at checkout for that process.
Warning
Applicants cannot start any application in your account, even one with no fee, until you save this record at least once. If applicants report that they cannot begin an application, check whether these settings have ever been saved.
Change Impact and How to Revert
When you save a change, Rhythm replaces the whole record. Orders that have already been processed keep the settings that were in effect when they went through, so later changes do not affect past orders. To revert any setting, edit the record again the same way you set it.
After you save a fee or payment-setting change, confirm it by starting a new award application and continuing to checkout. Do not rely on an existing order, because a new checkout is the reliable way to see whether applicants get the updated fee and payment options.
Permissions
Only staff with the settings permission can open or change this record. That permission is usually granted through the Awards Administrator policy. Portal members can never create or change it.
Portal members can see the whole record, including the business unit, merchant account, and bank account identifiers, because the application checkout step reads it to decide how to charge the applicant. There is no separate, limited view of the record. Members cannot open or edit it directly, and it is not exposed anywhere else to them.
Validation and Errors
If you choose a business unit, merchant account, or bank account that does not exist in your Rhythm account, Rhythm refuses the save. The first time you save these settings, Rhythm creates the record. Each later save replaces the record in full, so a field you leave blank on a later save is saved as blank instead of keeping its previous value.
Related
- Application Fees
- Coupons