Marketing Essentials

n Chapter 16 Using Math in Sales

Section 16.1 Cash Registers

Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 1

SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers

What You'll Learn

The three general functions of all cash

registers
The arrangement of currency and coins in a
cash register drawer
The two methods of making change
The two most important rules for safeguarding
money at the cash register
The general content of sales checks and the
basic ways of generating them
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SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers

Why It's Important

Your customer's decision to buy does not

conclude the sales process. You must
record the transaction and present the
customer with proof of paymentor secure
a promise to pay in the future. In this
section, you will explore cash register
operations. You will learn the basics of
operating both manual and electronic
registers.
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SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers

Key Terms

sales transaction
Universal Product Code (UPC)
Universal Vendor Marketing (UVM) code
till
opening cash fund

Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 4

SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Cash Register Operations

The sales transaction is the process of

recording a sale and presenting the customer
with proof of payment. Most retailers today use
cash registers for this. Cash registers fill three
important functions of sales transactions:
recording sales
storing cash and sales documents
providing receipts
Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 5
 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Electronic Cash Registers
Electronic cash registers automatically perform
many functions of a sales transaction:
totaling quantity purchases
figuring sales tax
subtracting refunds and returns
calculating the change due a customer
Information can be entered by:
manual key entry
electronic wand entry
optical scanning
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 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Electronic Cash Registers
Two types of codes are widely used for
electronic entry.
The Universal Product Code (UPC) is a bar
code composed of a series of vertical parallel
black and white lines and a row of numbers.
Each item has its own distinctive UPC.
The Universal Vendor Marketing (UVM)
code appears as a series of numbers across
the top of a price tag.

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 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
POS Terminal Functions

POS computer terminals are connected to

an in-store network that keeps track of
sales, inventory, and often how much new
merchandise to be ordered. POS terminal
functions include:
scanning products
transferring information
recording sales

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 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
POS Terminal Functions

Scanning Products The checker passes

each item over the optical scanner so that it
can read the code printed on the package.
The checker will key in the sale amount if
code label is torn or missing.

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 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
POS Terminal Functions

Transferring Information The terminal shows

the price and name of each item, and the total
amount of the sale after any special discounts.
The terminal sends the information to a central
computer, where inventory is updated and new
merchandise can be ordered if stocks are low.

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 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
POS Terminal Functions

Recording Sales The terminal calculates

the change due to the customer, and prints a
paper receipt listing each item sold along
with prices, the date and time, and
sometimes the customer's name and account
information.

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SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
The Cash Drawer

Checks and currency collected in sales

transactions are generally deposited in
the till. The till is the cash drawer of a
cash register.

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SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Cash Drawer Arrangement

The till normally has ten compartments

five in the back and five in the front. Bills are
usually kept in the back compartments of the
drawer (with checks on the far left, and other
bills in descending order: $20s, $10s, $5s,
and $1s), and coins in the front compartments
(also in descending order, half-dollars on
the far left, then quarters, dimes, nickels,
and pennies).

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SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Opening Cash Fund

The opening cash fund consists of the coins

and currency designated for the register for a
given day's business. To verify the fund, count
the coins and the currency. When the amount
is more than planned for the register, the fund
is over; if there is less than planned, the fund
is short.

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 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Making Change

Be thorough and accurate when making change,

and follow these five steps:
1. Once the transaction has been entered
in the cash register, announce to the
customer the total amount of the sale.
2. Announce the amount tendered
when the customer offers payment in cash.

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 SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Making Change
3. Place the money on the cash drawer ledge
and leave it there until you have
completed giving change to the customer.
This eliminates most disputes over the
amount tendered.
4. Count silently while removing change from
the cash drawer.
5. Count aloud when handing the change to
the customer.
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SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Sales Tally

Salespeople and cashiers who use cash

registers must account for the day's sales
and money at closing. This is also called
balancing the cash or balancing the till.

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SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Safeguards Against Theft
Every employee who uses a cash register should
be familiar with some safeguards against the theft
of money.
Always close the cash drawer between
transactions.
Always lock the register if you leave it.
Ignore interruptions while you are making
change.
Learn how to recognize counterfeit money
and look at money you receive very closely.
Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 18
SECTION 16.1 Cash Registers
Sales Check
A sales check is a written record of a
sales transaction that includes:
the date of the transaction
the items purchased
the purchase price
Many businesses use electronic cash
registers and POS systems that produce
computer-generated sales checks.
Smaller businesses write them by hand.
Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 19
16.1 ASSESSMENT

Reviewing Key Terms and Concepts

1. What are three functions that all cash registers
perform?
2. From left to right, how are the coins arranged in
a typical cash register drawer? The bills?
3. A customer gives you a $50 bill for a purchase of
$37.73. How will you count the change back?
4. What can you do to help prevent theft from a
cash register?
5. What sort of information does a sales check use
to detail a sales transaction?

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16.1 ASSESSMENT

Thinking Critically
What advantages do you think using an
electronic optical scanning wand would
have over manually entering prices?

Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 21

16.1 Graphic Organizer

Cash Drawer Arrangement

BACK ROW

Checks
and $20 $10 $5 $1
Special bills bills bills bills
Items
Dollar Coins 25 10 5 1
and
50 coins coins coins coins coins
FRONT ROW

Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 22

Marketing Essentials

End of Section 16.1

Chapter 16 n Using Math in Sales 23