Vending Machine Business Record Keeping Basics
Keeping good records of the status of each of your vending machines when servicing them is critical and very easy practice. Even for those who dislike record-keeping a lot and struggle with practice, the process is not overly taxing. The benefits, after all, far outweigh the minor drawbacks. After all, by keeping records, you will be able to see how you are doing over time so you know exactly which machines are performing the best, how many products are selling, and what profit you can anticipate over the weeks. and months to come.
As a business owner, this is the information you need. Even with the most basic record keeping, you will have a much deeper understanding of your business and how it fares from machine to machine. This allows you to continue what you are doing right with some machines and consider relocating other machines that just aren’t working the way they should.
With that said, your efforts to keep accurate records when tax time rolls around will also be greatly appreciated. Nothing is more painful than trying to put together exact numbers of records that are incomplete or nonexistent.
The two types of records you’ll want to consistently keep within your vending machine business are a basic ledger and a report of all the locations on your route. The basic ledger is essentially your general ledger. You must document all total income and expenses for all locations on your route. You can do this on paper, but it is much easier and faster if you use a simple accounting program on your computer. By saving all of your receipts and keeping a good route report, you can quickly and easily update your ledger each time you complete a service route.
While on your service route, you should keep track of the status of all your machines at each location. Each machine should have its own page where you can take notes of each service. In this way, you will be able to go to the page of any given machine to see its performance, including expenses, income, product placement and popularity of each of the products.
When your business is still small enough that you can perform all the routes yourself, you are responsible for all the records of both the general ledger and the route. However, once your business grows large enough that you need to hire someone to run some or all of your routes for you, you will need to make sure that person also keeps the detailed and accurate records you need to make a difference. to understand the success of your business.
The same is the case if you want to hire an accountant to keep track of all the income, expenses, and other data collected by the people who run your service routes for you. The trick is to make sure these records are never left behind, are always complete, and are always accurate.
Be sure to actually use the information you have collected. Keeping records is just a practical process when you examine and analyze the data that has been collected. Keep a close eye on the performance of each of your machines so you always know where attention is needed.