Cash Management Gets a Boost from Smart Safes

By John Clatworthy | Published: August 2020

In this new normal, businesses need to be more certain than ever about their cash flow.

Knowing how much cash is coming in – and going out – allows you to evaluate your business’ financial standing and make necessary operational decisions to keep your business healthy. One way to make this happen is through smart safe technology, a fast-growing system of cash management. Here are some common questions about smart safes that I hear from businesses of all sizes:

What does a smart safe do?
Smart safes allow for a more expedited deposit of cash to your business’ bank account. We all know how the cash cycle typically works for a business. Employees take cash from a customer and put it in a register. Then at some point the money is moved to a safe and then ultimately taken to the bank. At any step in the process, things can go wrong – whether it’s miscounting or, unfortunately, even theft. But with a smart safe, you or your employees deposit money in a secure safe where it’s calculated electronically. The result? You know almost instantaneously how much money will be posted to your account. The amount that’s deposited is validated daily, eliminating risk, substantial wait time and allowing you to get to other business needs.

A smart safe can also provide business intelligence, by providing a breakdown of who deposited the money into the safe, as well as your business’ total cash balance for that given day.

Is now a good time to invest in a smart safe?
COVID-19 has shifted consumer habits in ways that are affecting how business owners operate. For instance, as of July 11, 2020, 54 percent of U.S. consumers polled in a biweekly survey conducted by Deloitte said they plan to keep their home stocked with more items than they immediately need. For small retailers, that means certain products will fly off the shelves and need to be replaced quickly.

This is where smart safe technology can help. A smart safe gives you quicker access to your money to pay suppliers and vendors quickly and ensures you can keep your shelves stocked and customers happy.

How does a smart safe help me manage my cash?
Cash flow is about knowing what’s happening with your money daily. That’s especially important for a small business owner.

When you use a smart safe, you can manage your cash with greater ease, efficiency and transparency. That’s good for the now, but it’s also good for the future because a smart safe provides data and trends that help you forecast your future cash needs. That allows you to plan for the unexpected and make informed financial decisions.

In short, a smart safe will help make your cash work better for you, letting you focus on what you do best, serving your customers.

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About the Author – John Clatworthy
John Clatworthy is Senior Vice President, Chief Customer & Strategy Officer at Cash Connect^®, a division of WSFS Bank, which is a premier provider of ATM cash and Smart safe related services to over 30,000 retail locations in the United States. He has more than 20 years of experience in the cash, payments and financial services field.