Higher discounts, price changes and items on the house
Each register sets three discount bands: what a cashier gives alone, what a supervisor approves and what only a POS manager approves. Items or whole bills given on the house need a reason and an approval, and their value is reported apart from discounts.
PLANSFrom Growth
Why it matters
Most shops either let every cashier give any discount, or call the owner for every small one. SmartMy POS lets each register set three bands: what the cashier gives alone, what a supervisor approves, and what only a manager approves. The band is judged on the price actually paid, so a lowered price cannot slip past it. Free items are kept apart from discounts, with a reason, an approver and their value at list price. The owner sees at night who gave what, why, and who said yes.
The problem it solves
- One discount limit for everybody means either the cashier calls the owner for every 12 % or gives 40 % alone.
- A cashier lowers the price instead of typing a discount, and the limit never notices.
- Free items for a regular or a guest of the owner disappear as a 100 % discount, with no reason and no value on record.
- At night the owner sees a lower total but not who gave what, why, and who said yes.
How it works
- On the register's Discounts tab the POS Administrator sets Discount Without Approval (10 % to start with). They also set Discount With a Supervisor (25 %) and Most Discount (50 %).
- The cashier gives a line or bill discount, or types a lower price, with a reason. The limit is judged on how far the price paid is below the list price, whichever way it was typed.
- Before payment the screen says what is needed: "Supervisor needed" or "Manager needed", with the product and the %.
- At payment a supervisor approves up to the supervisor band; above it, a POS manager. Above Most Discount it is refused for everyone.
- To give something free, the cashier ticks On the house on a line, or The whole bill on the house. They pick a reason such as Service recovery. A supervisor, or a manager where the register says so, approves.
- The receipt shows Complimentary with the reason and the value. The X and Z reports and Discounts by Cashier show who gave what, why and who approved.
Everything it does
The three bands
- Discount Without Approval (%): 10 to start with; the cashier decides
- Discount With a Supervisor (%): 25 to start with; a Supervisor approves
- Most Discount (%): 50 to start with; a POS Manager approves; above it, refused for everyone
- Each band is between 0 and 100; a higher band is never taken below a lower one
- Judged per line on the result: a % off, a lower price, a bill discount spread over the lines, or all of them together
- A cashier who is a supervisor approves the supervisor band; a POS manager approves both
Price changes
- Price May Be Changed at the Counter on the product: any price, including a higher one
- On other products a lower price counts as a discount against the bands; a higher one is refused
- Each line keeps its list price, so the reports compare with it
On the house (complimentary)
- One item or the whole bill, with a Complimentary Reason; reasons that Need a Note ask for one
- Reasons to start with: Guest of the house, Service recovery, Staff meal, Tasting, Other (with a note)
- Complimentary Needs: A Supervisor (to start with) or A Manager
- Complimentary Above Needs a Manager: above this value per bill a POS manager approves; 0 means the amount never decides
- Never counted against the discount bands; no income and no tax are booked for it; its value at list price with tax is kept
- Not allowed on gift cards, deposits, products with No Discount at the Counter, or refunds
What is recorded
- On each line: the discount, its reason, who typed it, and whether a supervisor or a manager had to approve
- On the order: Approved By and the Approval Level
- Discounts by Cashier: Needed Approval, Complimentary Value and Items, grouped by Approved By or Complimentary Reason
- X and Z reports: Complimentary (list value), discounts by cashier, by reason and by who approved
- Counter Approvals: every approval, Supervisor or Manager, with who asked and who decided
Who uses it
CashierGives discounts within the first band and asks for approval above it.
SupervisorApproves discounts in the second band and items on the house.
POS ManagerApproves the third band and large amounts on the house; reads the reports.
POS AdministratorSets the bands, the complimentary rules and the reasons per register.
Where you use it
- Web: Point of Sale > Configuration > Registers and Payments > Registers, tab Discounts; Point of Sale > Configuration > Registers and Payments > Complimentary Reasons
- Web: the cart of Point of Sale > Counter > Sell and the back-office order (On the House, Discount on the Bill)
- Web: Point of Sale > Reports > Discounts by Cashier and Counter Approvals
- The SmartMy POS app: Discount, Bill discount, On the house and Bill on the house, with the supervisor's or manager's PIN or password. It is built and in testing, not in the app stores yet
What you control
Settings
- Discount Without Approval (%): 10
- Discount With a Supervisor (%): 25
- Most Discount (%): 50
- Complimentary Needs: A Supervisor
- Complimentary Above Needs a Manager: 0 (the amount never decides)
- All per register, so a busy outlet and a quiet one can differ
Approvals
- Counter approval: discounts above the cashier's band and items on the house. They are decided at the counter in one step by a supervisor or, at the manager's band, a POS manager
Questions
Is the limit checked on the % or on the price?
On the price paid compared with the list price. A 10 % discount on a price already lowered by 10 % counts as 19 %.Can a supervisor approve 40 %?
Only up to Discount With a Supervisor, 25 % to start with. Above that a POS manager approves, up to Most Discount. More is refused for everyone.How does the supervisor approve without taking over the till?
They type their login and password on the cashier's screen, or their PIN on a shared counter. The cashier stays signed in, and the approval works once.Why not just give a 100 % discount for a free item?
A 100 % discount is above Most Discount and is refused. On the house keeps the item's value and reason, books no income or tax on it, and reports it apart.Does it work in the app without signal?
Yes. The app shows who must approve and sends the approval with the sale. The server checks it when the sale arrives; if it fails, the sale waits under App Conflicts.Which plan has it?
Growth and above. On Starter, anything above the cashier's limit is refused, and there is no on the house.Related features
SELLINGRefunds and discounts with a supervisor PINRefund the lines and quantities that come back, with a reason, found by receipt number or customer. Give line or bill discounts with a reason up to the cashier's limit. A supervisor approves each refund on the cashier's screen with a password or a PIN that works once.SET-UPRoles, branches and a shared counter with PINsFour roles decide who sells, who approves and who sets up, and each person sees only the stores they may switch to. On a shared counter, staff sign in with their own PIN, so every sale shows who made it.SESSIONS AND CASHSupervisor for cash moves and differences above a limitEach register has two cash limits. A cash in or out above the first, and a closing difference above the second, need a supervisor's approval at the counter. Below them a reason is enough.STORES AND REPORTSSales analysis and discounts by cashierSales Analysis shows paid sales and refunds in a pivot table or a graph, by day, register, cashier, customer or session. Discounts by Cashier shows who gives how much off, why and who approved it. Every list of registers, sessions, orders, products and payment methods can be searched, grouped and exported.ACROSS SMARTMY POSApproval chainsTwo kinds of approval run through the approval chains of SmartMy POS. Counter approvals are decided on the spot by a supervisor or POS manager at the cashier's screen. Promotions can wait for one or several approvers before they run. Each Entity has its own chain of each kind, and every decision is kept with who made it.LOYALTY, PROMOTIONS AND DEPOSITSPromotions, happy hours and coupon codesSet up an offer once and the counter applies it by itself when the cart fits. It can be a % off, an amount off each unit, buy X get Y free, or another product free or cheaper. Or mix and match, a bundle price or a bill over an amount. Limit it to dates, weekdays, hours, registers, products, customer tags or a coupon code. A branch can have promotions approved through an approval chain first.
See a day at your counter, start to close.
Tell us what you sell and how many counters you run. We will show you the opening count, a sale without internet, a refund and the closing report.