How To Get Control Over Your Venue’s Cash
Even in the current time of declining cash use and rising digital transactions, it doesn’t appear as though pubs and clubs will stop operating on a cash-based system any time soon. In fact, due to strict regulation, gaming venues are still largely reliant on cash and today’s gaming managers are handling significant amounts in their venues. Getting control over this cash, with effective cash management, is key to combating risks like theft and human error and keeping your venue’s finances in the black.
Cash management challenges and solutions in venues
There are a number of challenges that gaming managers face when it comes to efficient cash management. Conveniently, savvy pub and club managers are using smart technology to overcome them. Let’s explore further.
CHALLENGE 1: COUNTERFEIT NOTES
While counterfeit note numbers are dropping, the RBA says they typically still receive 30,000 counterfeits a year. Criminals producing these notes typically target cash-dependent businesses like pubs, clubs and restaurants to ‘wash’ their money and get it into circulation.
Cash management solution: A cash recycler
Cash recyclers generally include note authenticators to detect and reject counterfeit currency, making the process of identifying false notes quick and easy.
CHALLENGE 2: SHRINKAGE AND HUMAN ERROR
Handling errors in payouts (whether at the bar or the gaming lounge), overpours, ineffective inventory systems and poor manual reporting all add up to make a dent in revenue at pubs and clubs. Even small amounts will result in cash leaks to your business that add up over time.
Cash management solution: A smart POS system
Point of Sale (POS) machines have come a long way, now with unique staff logins, staff rostering, performance tracking, inventory management and ordering, they are making it easier for your venue to stay ahead of the game and plug up cash leaks while they’re still small.
Cash management solution: A cash redemption terminal
Cash redemption terminals offer discreet self-service payouts for your gaming patrons. Freeing up staff usually chained to the cashier’s desk to get back on the floor improving the gaming experience for your patrons. Not only this, but by automating the process of payouts, you virtually eliminate costly human error.
CHALLENGE 3: STAFF STEALING
In a high paced and often dim environment, staff stealing is a real threat to pubs and clubs. Whether it’s an opportunistic employee skimming a little off the top or a disgruntled employee embezzling larger amounts of cash, employee theft can traditionally be hard to detect and even harder to prevent.
Cash management solution: A cash recycler
A cash recycler will issue a predetermined amount of cash in a matter of minutes to staff for their till and log it against their unique employee code. At the end of their shift, the employee will empty and deposit their till into the cash recycler where it is once again logged against their unique code. The amount can then be reconciled with the POS system and any discrepancies will be obvious and linked to a specific employee.
CHALLENGE 4: SECURITY AND THEFT
Running a cash-heavy business, like a pub or club, comes with the risk of robbery. With traditional methods of cash management in venues seeing cash lying on a back-office desk for up to two hours while processes are carried out, it’s no wonder pubs and clubs are in the firing line. Criminals target businesses with significant cash on the premises and will take special note of venues not taking the proper precautions.
Cash management solution: Limit cash handling
With cash holdings running into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, venues need to invest in intelligent safes, cash recyclers and other machines to keep cash safe and secure. By implementing smart cash management technology, gaming managers can reduce the time spent clearing cash at the beginning and end of each day from hours to just minutes. Look out for cash management machines with night rated safes, where money can be left in overnight (or longer) without jeopardising your insurance.
CHALLENGE 5: MANUAL COUNTING
Manually cashing up tills, reconciling floats and depositing money into a traditional combination lock safe is time-consuming and prone to error. From sorting out notes and coins in the first instance to then having to spend time investigating issues, the whole process is inefficient and costing your venue money.
Cash management solution: A cash recycler
Cashing up the till can now be done quickly, painlessly and error-free with a cash recycler doing the job staff used to manually do. This means your employees are spending less time on repetitive and time-consuming tasks, and are instead free to improve the customer experience for your patrons. With fewer errors, also comes less time spent investigating mistakes or issues freeing staff up for more valuable work.
Want to learn more about how Australia’s top pubs and clubs are using technology to get ahead of the game? Our free ebook Pubs and Clubs of the Future gives practical examples of how today’s best-performing venues stay current, productive and profitable. Download your copy now.
