With e-commerce booming in 2016, it is a common misperception that cash is becoming an obsolete method of payment for retailers. As well, the inception and popularity of e-wallets like Apple Pay, Google Wallet, and tap-and-go debit and credit cards, has made transactions simple and easy to complete—just the way customers and cashiers like it. Or has it? At times, cash may be cumbersome, tricky to identify as counterfeit, and difficult to keep track of in terms of discrepancies, but it is by no means an irrelevant method of payment. Cash is universal, widely accepted, untraceable, and un-hackable to boot. Cash is here to stay for the foreseeable future, so automating retail cash management is a smart investment.
Here are five good reasons for investing in automation:
1. Reduces Labour Costs, Not Staff
Canada’s labour costs continue to rise as of January 2016, forcing retail employers to make tough decisions about layoffs and pay cuts. But reducing staff not only harms the morale of employees, it consequently lowers the quality of customer service, which in turn affects the store’s daily operations. For large retailers that require a lot of manpower, this can be very damaging to their productivity levels.
Cash automation machines like recyclers, which handle the depositing, balancing and dispensing of cash, reduce labour costs in various ways.
2. Efficiency Goes up for Front and Back End Staff
Automating retail cash management increases the efficiency of your cashiers. The health and safety of cashiers also increases, as there is less manual handling of cash. Transactions speed up, allowing for more customers to be served, and less cashiers needed on the floor per shift.
Counterfeit bill detectors are also highly recommended, as bank notes account for 40 per cent of all retail transactions in Canada. We weren’t kidding when we said cash is widely accepted!
Retailers have to remain confident in their staff and their customers alike. Encountering counterfeit bills ultimately impacts customers, as losses incurred can lead to price increases in products to recoup costs. Confidence is key to running retail businesses.
3. More Independence for Employees
With both front end and back end productivity being handled in a secure manner by cash automation machines, there is less need to have supervisors regularly monitor employees. Employees can also breathe easier knowing there’s less chance of shoplifting.
More independence for all departments means a higher morale as well, as redundancy of tasks is reduced.
4. And Speaking of Shoplifting…
Automating retail cash management reduces both shoplifting and internal theft at once! Cash shrink is a prominent cause of lost revenue for retailers, so it is in retailers’ best interests to make their cash management more secure. By implementing a cash management solution, you will free up your employees, allowing them to keep an eye on customers and any potential shoplifters.
5. Higher ROI
The best reward for retailers regarding automated cash solutions is a much higher ROI.
Automation increases productivity, which in turn offers more independence for staff and allows for redistribution of employees to maximize a store’s efficiency. More independence for staff raises their morale, resulting in quality customer service. Secure cash handling improves the health and safety of staff too, and prevents cash shrink both internally and externally.
All of these reductions in labour costs means that savings are made on several fronts of the retail operation. Clearly, automating retail cash management is not only a smart investment, it’s a critical one. It’s an opportunity that retailers both large and small cannot afford to miss.
Author: Robin Steinberg August 29, 2016