Buyer identification at the checkout: bonuses, VIP clients and verification

The problem of fast and secure service for regular customers is one of the most common reasons entrepreneurs turn to trade automation. On the one hand, the cashier needs to find the customer in the database within seconds so as not to create a queue. On the other hand, business owners regularly face abuses: dishonest sellers process sales using their own discount cards or their friends’ cards, misappropriating other customers’ bonuses and discounts. In addition, there may be difficulties with controlling debts of «trusted» customers and confusion when a customer has made an advance payment and then asks to reissue the order to another person. To solve these tasks, the accounting program provides special modes: quick identification, strict SMS verification for bonus write-offs, and flexible settings for VIP customers.

Below is a complete list of settings for these processes in Torgsoft.

1. Quick customer search at the checkout

To allow the customer to quickly receive their discount or accrue bonuses, the program offers several instant identification methods directly in the «Sale» window:

• Scanning a discount card. This is the fastest method. The seller simply scans the card barcode or reads it from the customer’s smartphone screen, provided that the cursor is in the «Barcode/Article» field. Customer information instantly appears on the panel.

• Search by phone number. If the customer has forgotten the card, they can be found by mobile phone number. The search ignores separators and other characters such as spaces, hyphens, plus signs, and so on, which allows the cashier to enter the number in any convenient format. If the customer is not found, the program can immediately offer to create a new customer card.

For additional protection, you can use the «Discount card verification via SMS» option. In this case, when adding a customer to a sale by phone number, the program sends the customer an SMS with a confirmation code. The customer is added to the sale only after the correct code is entered, which helps apply discounts and bonuses specifically to the card owner.

2. Protection against abuse: verification when writing off bonuses

To prevent situations where a seller writes off someone else’s bonuses for their own benefit, you can also use the additional option «Discount card verification via SMS».

The owner can configure the program so that phone confirmation is required specifically at the moment of writing off bonuses.

How to configure it and how it works:

1. In the program settings (Settings — Parameters — Additional functions — Discount card verification via SMS), activate the «To confirm bonus write-off» switch.

2. When the customer wants to pay with bonuses in the «Sale» or «Sale with invoice issuance» window, the cashier clicks «Pay with bonuses» and enters the amount of bonuses to be written off.

3. After clicking the «Pay» button, the program automatically generates and sends the customer an SMS or Viber message with a secret code.

4. A window for entering this code appears on the cashier’s screen. Without entering the correct code from the customer, it is impossible to write off bonuses.

3. Rules for working with VIP customers: sale on credit

For special, privileged customers, the program has VIP customer status, which allows goods to be issued on credit with deferred payment.

How to configure and sell on credit:

1. In the customer card (Marketing — Customers), select the «VIP customer» checkbox.

2. There you can also set a trust limit by filling in the «Maximum debt amount» field. A VIP customer will not be able to take goods on credit for an amount exceeding this limit.

3. For proper debt accounting, it is recommended to use the «Partial payment with item-by-item breakdown» mode, which is set in Settings — Parameters - VIP customers. This allows you to see the debt not as a total amount, but broken down by each specific unpaid item.

4. Sale process: the cashier adds the product to the sale, identifies the VIP customer, and clicks the «Pay» button. In the VIP customer payment window, to issue goods without payment, that is, on credit, the cashier simply needs to click the «Continue» button. The entire purchase amount will automatically be transferred to the customer’s debt.

4. Replacing a customer after an advance payment has been made

 IMPORTANT WARNING

One of the critical mistakes users often make is trying to change the customer in an already created order after an advance payment has been made for it.

Why can’t this be done? 

If you try to change the customer in an order that already has a payment, the program will display an error: "Action prohibited... there are already sales that use the advance payment". This happens because the financial document, the advance payment, is already strictly linked to the financial balance of the first customer. Simply changing the name in the order will lead to accounting discrepancies: the money will remain on the balance of the first customer, while the goods will be assigned to another one.

How to correct this situation properly? 

If you need to reissue a paid order to another person, follow this algorithm:

1. Return the advance payment to the customer for whom it was originally made. This will balance their financial account.

2. After that, change the customer in the order to the correct one, or cancel the old order and create a new one for the required person.

3. Register the advance payment again, this time for the new, correct customer.

Following these rules helps avoid cash discrepancies, protects against discount manipulation, and makes financial accounting of debts and advance payments transparent.