Handling cash seems simple in principle: your business accepts cash currency, provides change, and your staff balances each till at the end of the day. However, when you break down those steps and consider the labour that goes into each one as well as the potential problems that can occur within each step, cash handling becomes increasingly complicated. There are risks associated with manually handling cash at every turn; your staff can make mistakes, your business may fall victim to counterfeit fraud, or miscounting and miscalculating the till may plague your cash management process.
There are costs of handling cash associated with each step in your cash management process. In this post, we are debunking some common myths about the costs of handling cash and offering suggestions for how your business can optimize cash management. You might be surprised to learn just how much your cash handling process costs you!
1. Manually Handling and Managing Cash is the Cheapest Option
It is easy to lose track of the time that you spend on managing cash. Manually going through your cash handling process can get quite costly, particularly when mistakes are made or when the till just won’t balance. You have to consider how much time you spend on cash handling from counting to depositing in the bank. Once you realize just what the costs of handling cash are for your business, automating that process can drastically reduce the price of your cash management. Investing in a single automated solution that performs a number of tasks can give your business a simple and efficient way to avoid spending too much time on cash handling.
2. Accepting Cash Payments Is Cheaper Than Credit Cards
You may think that accepting credit card payments is hugely expensive due to the invoices that you receive each month from credit card companies. At first glance, cash seems to be the least expensive option when considering all of the methods of payment that your company accepts. There are, however, a number of hidden costs of handling cash. Not only does your company need to supply the materials that you need to process cash (such as envelopes, coin wrappers, etc.) but there are costs that you may not think about. These could include the gas—and time—it takes to drive your cash to the bank to deposit, bank fees, and time spent on figuring out errors in balancing your tills. All of these hidden costs add up and can make cash handling quite a bit more costly and time consuming than processing credit card payments. Streamlining your cash management process gives you the opportunity to reduce excess costs associated with processing cash and allows you to focus on profitability.
3. Handling Cash Does Not Affect Profitability
Think about it: all of the hidden costs of handling cash can quickly add up! These costs, both hidden and expected, can affect your profitability over time. Hidden costs associated with handling cash can also be unreliable, particularly when it comes to the unpredictability of manually handling your cash. Once you consider just how much time it takes you to complete your cash handling process from start to finish, you may be surprised at how much money it is costing your business. Introducing efficient policies and procedures into your business can drastically reduce your cash processing costs. Additionally, adopting technology into your business can provide you with secure and efficient cash management that will save you money over time. Re-thinking and transformingthe costs of handling cash for your company can boost productivity and efficiency.
Author: Robin Steinberg September 28th, 2016