Where did this value come from?
The payment event that created the credit stays attached to it, so the balance has an origin rather than an assumption.
Customer credit management
Keep Customer Value Ready for What Comes Next.
Store and manage customer credits within Bonza Payments so available value stays connected to the Salesforce customer and can be used in a future payment journey.
Part of the Salesforce-native Bonza Payments suite
SALESFORCE ACCOUNTAcme Customer
AVAILABLE CREDIT$550.00
AVAILABLE
CREDIT ACTIVITY
DATEEVENTAMOUNTBALANCE
12 JANCredit createdREF-104+$500$500
18 FEBCredit createdREF-131+$250$750
05 MARCredit appliedPAY-222−$200$550
Available now$550
FUTURE PAYMENT
Payment amount$1,200
Available credit$550
Credit applied−$550
REMAINING PAYMENT$650
Remaining amount handled through the configured payment gateway
Continue payment
BEFORE PAYMENT$550 availableCredit recorded against the customer
THIS PAYMENT$550 applied · $650 to paySelected by the paying party
AFTER PAYMENT$0 credit remainingCredit position and payment history updated
Interface shown is an illustrative representation of Bonza Payments inside Salesforce. Amounts, references and dates are sample values. Credit is a balance recorded and managed within Bonza — Bonza is not a wallet and does not hold customer funds.
Plain definition
What Is Customer Credit Management?
Customer credit management is the process of recording, tracking and using monetary value retained for a customer for future payment activity.
With Bonza Payments, customer credit can stay connected to the Salesforce customer and the wider payment lifecycle instead of being tracked as an isolated value outside the payment operation. Where the configured Bonza process allows value from a refund to be retained as customer credit, that available credit can subsequently be used toward a future payment.
Bonza Payments provides customer credit management for businesses using Salesforce: credit is recorded against the customer, maintained as part of the payment relationship, and used toward future payment activity where the configured payment process supports it.
THIS PAGE IS NOT ABOUT
Credit scoresCreditworthinessCredit limitsLoansTrade credit underwritingCredit risk managementLending or BNPL
Credit management means different things in financial software. Here it means one thing only: customer payment credit — value held for a customer that can go toward a future payment.
The real problem
Issuing Credit Is Easy. Remembering What Happened to It Is Harder.
A customer has credit. Weeks later, finance and customer-facing teams still need to answer all of this:
- 01Why does the customer have credit?
- 02How much was originally created?
- 03How much is available now?
- 04Has any of it already been used?
- 05Which customer owns the credit?
- 06What payment event created it?
- 07Can it be used toward the next payment?
- 08What happened when it was used?
- 09Does any value remain?
WITHOUT CONNECTED CREDIT MANAGEMENT, TEAMS FALL BACK ON
SpreadsheetsNotesManual balance calculationsGateway informationSeparate customer recordsDisconnected refund history
The deeper problem isn't “can we create a credit?” It's “can we understand the entire lifecycle of that customer value?”
How to think about it
A Credit Is Not Just an Amount. It's Customer Value With a History.
ISOLATED CREDIT
An amount someone has to remember
Customer
“Has $500 credit”
Spreadsheet / note
Future payment
Manual check
Manual adjustment
CONNECTED CREDIT
Value with a traceable life
Customer
Credit created
Available credit
Credit history
Future payment
Credit used
Updated payment history
A mature credit-management process can answer three questions at any point in that life:
How much value is available?
The customer's available credit is readable now, without adding up notes or asking whoever handled the refund.
What happened when it was used?
Credit use is recorded against the payment it went toward, so the position after the payment is as clear as the position before it.
The credit lifecycle
Follow Customer Credit From Creation to Use.
01Credit createdAn established Bonza event creates value for the customer.
02Credit availableThe value is recorded against the customer and readable in Salesforce.
03Customer returnsThe same customer has another payment to make.
04Future paymentAvailable credit is surfaced in the relevant payment process.
05Credit appliedCredit is used toward the payment, per the supported workflow.
06Updated credit positionThe customer's credit position and payment history reflect what happened.
Where only part of the available credit is used, the remaining value stays available for a later payment and the lifecycle begins again at step 02. [Confirm partial credit application and running-balance behaviour before launch.]
Core capability
Manage Customer Credit as Part of the Payment Lifecycle.
Create and record customer credit
Where the established Bonza workflow generates customer credit — for example, relevant refund value retained as credit instead of being returned — that value is recorded against the customer it belongs to.
CustomerOriginating payment eventCredit amount
WHY IT MATTERSThe value should have an identifiable customer and payment context, not just an amount.
See available credit
The customer's available credit is visible in the payment operation alongside the rest of their activity.
CustomerAvailable creditCredit statusCredit history
WHY IT MATTERSTeams shouldn't need to reconstruct a customer's credit position from disconnected records.
Understand credit history
Relevant credit events are readable over time — created, available, used — so the balance is explained rather than asserted.
WHY IT MATTERSA balance alone does not explain how the customer reached that balance.
Use credit in a future payment
Available credit connects to the customer's next relevant payment journey rather than sitting outside it, according to the supported workflow.
WHY IT MATTERSCredit becomes useful when it can return naturally into payment activity.
Keep the customer position updated
After credit is used, the customer's credit and payment position reflects it — so the next person to look knows where things stand.
WHY IT MATTERSTeams should know whether value remains available for later use.
Customer credit profile
Know the Customer's Credit Position Before the Next Payment.
SALESFORCE ACCOUNTAcme Corporation
ILLUSTRATIVE
AVAILABLE CREDIT$450
TOTAL CREDIT CREATED$750
CREDIT USED$300
| Date | Event | Reference | Amount | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 Jan | Credit created | REF-104 | +$500 | $500 |
| 18 Feb | Credit created | REF-131 | +$250 | $750 |
| 05 Mar | Credit applied | PAY-222 | −$300 | $450 |
Credit created+$500
Balance $500- Date
- 12 Jan
- Reference
- REF-104
Credit created+$250
Balance $750- Date
- 18 Feb
- Reference
- REF-131
Credit applied−$300
Balance $450- Date
- 05 Mar
- Reference
- PAY-222
Who owns the value, how much is available, where it came from and what happened to it — in one record. [Confirm which credit statuses and whether running-balance history are supported before launch; simplify this panel if not.]
Credit in a payment
Bring Available Credit Back Into the Payment Journey.
Credit earns its keep at the moment of the next payment. Here the paying party selects it — nothing is applied on its own.
Amount due$1,000
Customer credit available$300
Credit applied−$300
REMAINING AMOUNT TO PAY$700
Configured payment gateway
Continue payment
BEFORE PAYMENT$300Available credit
PAYMENT$300 applied$700 remaining to pay
AFTER PAYMENT$0Credit position and payment history updated
The arithmetic is illustrative. Whether credit is offered to the customer or applied by your team, and how it behaves when only part of the value is needed, follows your configured workflow — Bonza does not apply credit automatically, make it mandatory, or impose priority or split-tender rules of its own. [Confirm the supported credit-application workflow before launch.]
Where credit comes from
When a Refund Becomes Future Customer Value.
The established route into customer credit runs through a refund: when value needs to come back, retaining it as credit is one of the two configured outcomes.
ORIGINAL PAYMENT$1,000PAID
VALUE NEEDS RETURNING$250An adjustment, cancellation or change
CONFIGURED PATHRefund or creditTwo different post-payment outcomes
CREDIT SELECTED$250 availableRecorded against the customer
FUTURE PAYMENTCredit readySurfaced when the customer pays again
Bonza's refund and credit capabilities are two outcomes of the same moment. A refund returns relevant value through the configured refund process; customer credit keeps relevant value associated with the customer for future payment use. Neither is presented as the better option.
Side by side
Two Ways Value Can Move After a Payment.
The difference between a refund and customer credit is where the value goes next.
Refund
- WHAT HAPPENS TO THE VALUE?
- It is returned through the configured refund path.
- WHERE DOES THE VALUE GO?
- Outside the Bonza customer-credit balance, according to the relevant refund process.
- FUTURE BONZA USE?
- The refunded value is not being retained as customer credit.
Customer credit
- WHAT HAPPENS TO THE VALUE?
- It remains associated with the customer in Bonza Payments.
- WHERE DOES THE VALUE GO?
- Into the customer's available credit position.
- FUTURE BONZA USE?
- It can be available for a future payment.
Customer context
Credit Makes More Sense When You Can See the Customer Story.
InvoiceINV-1180 · collected 04 Jan$1,000 PAID
Refund / value changeREF-131 · 18 Feb$250
Customer creditRetained instead of returned$250 AVAILABLE
Future paymentPAY-222 · 05 Mar$600
Credit usedApplied to PAY-222$250
PaymentRemaining amount handled through the configured payment process$350
Customer credit should not exist as an anonymous balance. Read inside the customer's wider payment relationship, $250 of credit is an outcome with a cause and a consequence — not a number someone has to take on trust.
The next payment
Use Available Credit When the Customer Pays Again.
01Customer credit available
02Next payment begins
03Credit applied, remaining amount calculated
04Remaining amount through the configured gateway
Customer credit remains part of the customer's wider Bonza payment context alongside one-time and recurring payment activity. Which payment journeys can draw on available credit depends on your configured setup. [Confirm which payment types support credit application — including recurring — before launch.]
The wider picture
Customer Credit Can Change the Payment Picture.
If a customer has available credit, finance teams may want to read that value alongside the rest of the payment relationship.
OUTSTANDING$4,800
AVAILABLE CREDIT$450
PAYMENTS$12,400
REFUND ACTIVITY$1,150
Illustrative values, shown for payment context and visibility — not formal accounting, and not a claim that available credit automatically reduces accounts receivable. How credit interacts with an outstanding balance follows your configured process.
Explore Receivables →Customer payment experience
Make Existing Customer Value Visible When It Matters.
Bonza supports customer payment experiences, including Salesforce Experience Cloud payment scenarios. Where available credit is exposed in the configured customer payment experience, the customer sees the value they already hold at the moment they're paying.
Customers cannot transfer, withdraw, gift or cash out credit, manage anyone else's credit, or change how it behaves. Credit is a balance recorded and managed within Bonza against their account. [Confirm which customer-facing credit capabilities are in scope before launch.]
Payment due$1,000
Available credit$250
REMAINING PAYMENT$750
Select payment option · configured gateway or payment method
Architecture
Keep Customer Credit Above the Gateway Layer.
Customer credit belongs to the payment-management relationship, not to any one gateway. Gateways process the payments; Bonza keeps the credit position.
CUSTOMER CREDIT
BONZA PAYMENTS
Gateway Ae.g. Stripe
Gateway Be.g. Razorpay
Gateway Ce.g. PayU or another configured gateway
Gateways shown are examples. Customer credit is a balance recorded and managed within Bonza Payments against the Salesforce customer — Bonza is not a wallet, a bank, a stored-value issuer or a financial institution, and does not hold customer funds. Relevant payment processing is performed by the configured gateway according to its own capabilities. [Confirm the supported gateway list before launch.]
Payment Command Center
See Customer Credits in the Bigger Payment Picture.
Credit is not a side ledger hidden from the payment operation. It sits with everything else that happened to your customers' payments.
Collected Payments$11.6MThis quarter
Receivables$1.84MOutstanding position
Due / Overdue$298KPast the expected date
Refunds$18KProcessed this quarter
Customer Credits$42KAvailable to customers
Upcoming Payments$1.21MNext 30 days
Recent payment activity Illustrative
Payment collected · Harbor Academy$3,150
Refund processed · Acme Customer$500
Credit created · Northwind Traders+$250
Credit used · Acme Corporation−$300
Payment collected · Meridian Clinics$1,100
Customer credits
Credit createdRecorded against the customer it belongs to
Credit usedApplied to a payment and reflected in the position
Activity shown is illustrative.
Use cases
Customer Credit for the Moments When Value Needs to Stay Connected.
Value comes back, but not out
- NEED
- Instead of returning that value through the applicable refund path, retain it for future payment use.
- BONZA
- Records and manages the relevant customer credit against the customer.
- OUTCOME
- The customer has identifiable credit available within the future payment relationship.
The next payment arrives
- NEED
- Know that customer value already exists before the payment is taken.
- BONZA
- Surfaces the available credit within the relevant payment process.
- OUTCOME
- Existing credit can be used according to the supported workflow.
“Does this customer have credit?”
- NEED
- Answer without opening a spreadsheet or hunting through disconnected notes.
- BONZA
- Keeps relevant credit information connected to the Salesforce customer and payment context.
The question reaches a person
- NEED
- Understand the relevant customer credit and payment history behind the question.
- BONZA
- Provides connected payment context to authorised users.
Connected suite
Customer Credit Is One Part of a Connected Payment Lifecycle.
01Payment
02Refund / value change
03Customer credit
04Future payment
05Payment management
YOU ARE HERE
Credit Management
Value held for the next payment
Refunds
Where credit comes from Payment Management
The full lifecycle One-Time & Ad Hoc
Request and collect Recurring Payments
Scheduled collections Invoices
What was billed Receivables
The outstanding position Due & Overdue
What needs attention Customer Payment Experience
How customers pay Multiple Gateways
Your gateway strategy Payment Command Center
The whole operation Payment Intelligence
Insights and signals Explore the suite
Everything connected
Where credit comes from Payment Management
The full lifecycle One-Time & Ad Hoc
Request and collect Recurring Payments
Scheduled collections Invoices
What was billed Receivables
The outstanding position Due & Overdue
What needs attention Customer Payment Experience
How customers pay Multiple Gateways
Your gateway strategy Payment Command Center
The whole operation Payment Intelligence
Insights and signals Explore the suite
Everything connected
What changes
Customer Value Stops Being Something Someone Has to Remember.
CLEARER CREDIT VISIBILITYUnderstand available customer credit without relying on disconnected records.
CONNECTED CREDIT HISTORYKeep relevant credit activity associated with the customer's payment relationship.
BETTER POST-PAYMENT CONTINUITYKeep value connected after a refund or other established credit event.
EASIER FUTURE PAYMENT CONTEXTKnow when relevant customer credit exists before the customer's next payment.
LESS MANUAL CREDIT TRACKINGReduce reliance on spreadsheets or notes simply to understand a credit position.
ONE CONNECTED LIFECYCLEConnect credits with refunds, payments and future customer activity.
These describe operational visibility. We don't claim increased retention or revenue, lower refund costs, reduced churn, improved cash flow, higher lifetime value, or specific time or ROI savings.
Why Bonza
Keep Customer Value Connected to the Customer Who Owns It.
Salesforce-native context
Customer credit connects with the relevant Salesforce customer and payment relationship, where your teams already work.
Credit + refund connection
Manage the established transition from relevant refund value into customer credit as one continuous process.
Future payment use
Available credit stays ready for the customer's relevant future payment journey rather than expiring into a note somewhere.
Credit visibility
Understand available credit and the relevant credit activity that produced it.
Complete payment lifecycle
Credits connect with payments, refunds, receivables and customer payment activity instead of standing apart from them.
Multi-gateway payment platform
The credit and payment-management layer stays with Bonza while configured gateways handle relevant payment processing.
FAQ
Customer Credit Management in Salesforce, Answered.
What is customer credit management?
Customer credit management is the process of recording, tracking and using monetary value retained for a customer for future payment activity. It covers where the value came from, how much is available, and what happened when it was used.
Can I manage customer credits in Salesforce?
Yes. Bonza Payments is Salesforce-native, so customer credit is recorded against the Salesforce customer and managed as part of the payment relationship rather than tracked in a spreadsheet or an external system.
How does customer credit work in Bonza Payments?
Where the configured Bonza process creates customer credit — for example, when refund value is retained rather than returned — that value is recorded against the customer and stored within the application. It then remains visible as available credit and can be used toward a future payment where the configured payment process supports it.
Can a refund be retained as customer credit?
Yes — that is the established route into customer credit. When a refund is initiated, the relevant value can either be returned through the applicable refund path or retained as customer credit for future use, depending on the configured Bonza process and the customer's situation.
Can customer credit be used toward a future payment?
Yes. Available credit can be used in the customer's future payment journey, with the remaining amount handled through the configured payment gateway. Credit is not applied automatically — it is selected as part of the supported workflow.
How can I see how much credit a customer has available?
The customer's available credit is visible against their record in Salesforce, alongside the credit activity behind it, so teams don't have to reconstruct the position from disconnected notes or gateway information.
What is the difference between a refund and customer credit?
The difference is where the value goes next. A refund returns relevant value through the configured refund process, so it leaves the payment relationship. Customer credit keeps relevant value associated with the customer in Bonza, available for future payment use. Neither is universally better.
Can customer credit be used with one-time payments?
Available credit is surfaced in the relevant payment process so it can be applied to a customer's next payment, with the remaining amount taken through the configured gateway. Which payment journeys support credit application depends on your configured setup — worth confirming against your implementation.
Can customer credit be used with recurring payments?
Customer credit remains part of the customer's wider Bonza payment context alongside one-time and recurring payment activity. We don't claim automatic application to recurring schedules — whether credit can be applied to a recurring collection depends on the configured behaviour, so please confirm it for your setup rather than assuming it.
Can customers see their available credit?
Where available credit is exposed in the configured customer payment experience — including Salesforce Experience Cloud payment scenarios — the customer can see the credit they hold at the point of payment and select it. Customers cannot transfer, withdraw, gift or convert credit, or manage anyone else's.
Does customer credit work across multiple payment gateways?
Customer credit sits in the Bonza payment-management layer rather than inside any one gateway, so the credit position is held against the Salesforce customer regardless of which configured gateway processes a given payment. The gateway handles the relevant payment processing according to its own capabilities.
Does Bonza Payments hold customer funds?
No. Customer credit is a balance recorded and managed within Bonza Payments against the customer — Bonza is not a wallet, a bank or a stored-value issuer, and does not hold customer money. Relevant payment processing is handled through your configured payment setup.
Can customer credit expire?
We don't impose an expiry policy, and this page doesn't claim one. Whether any time limit applies to available credit depends on your configured Bonza setup and your own business terms — confirm it for your implementation.
Keep Customer Credit Ready for the Next Payment.
See how Bonza Payments helps you manage customer credit within Salesforce and keep available value connected from the original payment event through future payment activity.