How to take deposits for workshops and courses

A pottery evening, a weekend dance intensive or a six-week course has few places, often materials bought in advance, and no waitlist of regulars to fill a spot that frees up the day before. One empty seat can be the difference between a workshop that pays and one that doesn’t. A deposit protects you without asking people to pay everything weeks ahead.

1. Deposit or full payment?

Full payment at booking is simplest for one-off workshops at a modest price: nobody owes anything on the day, and people who’ve paid turn up. A deposit suits higher prices, events far in the future, or people who prefer to pay the rest in person. It still commits them, and makes it easier to book.

If you sell mostly to regulars who trust you, full payment is fine. Newcomers booking a €90 workshop a month ahead are more likely to book when they only pay a deposit.

2. How much to ask for

The deposit should be large enough that people don’t book casually, and it should cover what you lose if they don’t come. There are two simple ways to set it. You can cover your costs, such as the clay, glaze and firing for a pottery workshop or a share of the room hire for a dance intensive: if materials for one seat cost €18, a €20 deposit covers you. Or you can ask for a share of the price; 20 to 30% is common, so €20 to €25 for a €90 workshop.

Keep it a round number, and say how much is left to pay and when: “€20 now, €70 on the day, by card or cash.”

3. Decide what happens when someone cancels

Write the rule before anyone asks. A common version that people find fair:

• If someone cancels at least 48 hours before (or a week before a course), the deposit is refunded or moved to another date.
• If they cancel later or don’t come, you keep the deposit, because the materials and the place are lost.
• If you cancel or move the workshop, everyone gets a full refund.

Letting people move to another date instead of losing the deposit keeps them on your side, especially for workshops you run regularly. For more on windows and wording, see how to write a cancellation policy.

4. Multi-week courses

On a course, such as six weeks of wheel throwing or a term of beginner salsa, people commit to the whole thing, and a place freed after week one is almost impossible to fill. You can sell the course as one product paid up front, with a deposit to hold the place if it starts far ahead. Or you can sell a pass that covers the sessions of the course and expires when it ends, so people book each date with their pass.

Either way, say that missed sessions aren’t refunded, and offer a catch-up spot in another group if you can.

5. Show the numbers wherever people look

Put the deposit and the amount still to pay on the booking page, in the confirmation and in the reminder: “Your place is held with a €20 deposit. €70 is due on the day.”

How Groopla handles this

In Groopla you can ask for a deposit instead of the full price, for the whole studio or per activity. Clients pay it by card while they book, and their place is held for a few minutes while they pay. Every booking shows whether it was paid, covered by a pass or is still due. You can also sell course passes that cover a set number of sessions and expire after a number of months. Payments go to your own Stripe account. More about payments and deposits.