Fee-Cut Audit: HoneyBook Setup
HoneyBook Essentials plan · 22 weddings booked for the 2027 season · all payments currently by card
1 Summary
Marlowe & Co. is on HoneyBook's Essentials plan and takes 100% of client payments by card. Between the February 2025 HoneyBook price increase and card-processing fees on every invoice, the studio is paying more than it needs to in two separate places. Fixing the payment-method leak — without changing tools — saves an estimated up to $1,434 in the coming season if the studio moves fully to ACH, or roughly $1,000/yr at a realistic 70% client-adoption rate. None of the fixes require leaving HoneyBook; they're covered in the ACH & Fee Rescue tier ($397).
| Cost source | Current annual cost | After fixes (100% ACH) |
|---|---|---|
| HoneyBook plan (Essentials, annual) | $690 | $690 |
| Payment processing on 22 weddings (avg. $3,400/booking) | $2,182 | $748 |
| Total | $2,872 | $1,438 |
2 Where the money is actually going
HoneyBook's built-in card processing runs 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction — standard for the industry, but on 22 bookings averaging $3,400 each with a 50/50 retainer + final payment split, that's 44 separate card transactions a year at $1,700 each.
| Transaction type | Count/yr | Avg. amount | Fee per txn (card, 2.9%+$0.30) | Fee per txn (ACH, ~1%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retainer payments | 22 | $1,700 | $49.60 | $17.00 |
| Final payments | 22 | $1,700 | $49.60 | $17.00 |
| Total / yr | 44 | — | $2,182.40 | $748.00 |
3 ACH feasibility check
HoneyBook supports ACH (bank transfer) payments natively on every plan tier, including Essentials — this is not a plan-upgrade issue. ACH is available today; it's simply never been turned on as the default option in Marlowe & Co.'s payment forms and proposal templates.
- ACH is enabled at the HoneyBook account/processor level — no upgrade needed
- Business bank account already on file for payouts — reusable for ACH receiving
- State/entity type has no restriction on accepting ACH from individual clients
- Typical ACH cost on HoneyBook: ~1% flat, no card-network surcharge — roughly a third of the card rate on a $1,700 payment
4 The three fee leaks, and the fix for each
| Leak | Fix |
|---|---|
| Payment forms default to "Pay by card" with ACH buried as a second option clients never see | Reorder payment method options so ACH shows first with a one-line "no processing fee passed to you" note |
| Contract/proposal template has no language normalizing bank transfer as the expected method | Add a standard line in the proposal template: "Payment is by bank transfer (ACH) by default; card payment available for a small processing surcharge" |
| Retainer + final payment are both one-click card buttons in the automated workflow email | Rebuild the two payment-request emails in the workflow to link to the ACH-first payment page instead of a card-only quick-pay link |
5 What this does not require
Nothing above requires migrating off HoneyBook, changing the plan tier, or losing any existing workflow automation. It's a reconfiguration of payment defaults and client-facing copy — the ACH & Fee Rescue tier ($397) implements all three fixes directly in the account, tests one live payment end-to-end, and hands back a short screen-recording of the new client-facing flow.