Cashless payments have a number of advantages over cash and checks. It is far more convenient and efficient as a mode of payment.
They aid in increasing efficiency by reducing the time and effort required for counting cash, reconciling money in the cash register with items sold, transporting that money to the bank, and encashing cheques. Furthermore, funds collected electronically will be credited directly to bank accounts, making them far safer.
Common problems of cash payment
Through serving over 1500 schools in over 12 countries, some common problems highlighted to us were as follows:
- Fee collection takes a toll on your manpower and resources
- Financial transactions are recorded manually on excel sheets, which is time-consuming and prone to errors
- Human error occurs in fee calculation, invoices, and fee reconciliation
- You don't have an organised overview of fee statuses – completed payments and outstanding fees to follow up
Errors like these will cost your school, not just money, but the trust of your partners and parents too. This alone could be reason enough for you to begin considering more secure methods of handling your preschool's fee process.
Benefits of a cashless payment system for schools
1. More Secure Payments
Cashless payment systems take the responsibility of handling, processing and tracking payments out of teachers' hands. It also can include things like permission slips within the transaction to track receipts and avoid the risk of data loss. All of that teacher time can be focused on more important educational activities.
Cashless payment also eliminates the risk of cash transactions. With digital payments, we won't have to trust children to safely transport cash from home to their teachers. Cashless payments rely on banking infrastructure that is tried, tested and highly secure.
2. More Time-Efficient
Administrators save time on processing payments by eliminating manual steps such as:
- Initiating direct credit and debit transactions
- Handling and delivering physical cash
3. Fewer Late Payments
Sending automatic reminders to parents through a digital fee system means fewer late payments (and fewer awkward face-to-face reminders).
4. Safer Data
Schools can effectively remove any risks associated with keeping credit/debit card details. They do not have to constantly update the database when card details become outdated too.
"By building payment capabilities into the existing school management system, we have made banking invisible and seamless so pre-school operators can channel their energy and resources back into building their business," said Joyce Tee, group head of SME Banking at DBS Bank at the official launch, with Minister for Education Ong Ye Kung as the guest of honour.
5. Organised Financial Records
Payment transaction activity and related information (permission slips and invoices) are securely stored online. This ensures that records are consistent, easily accessible and at very low risk of being lost. The digitisation of such transactions allows admin staff to easily track and trace transactions that have been made. Reports can also be generated anytime for auditing purposes.
6. Convenient
Parents will be able to make payment on their own time and at their own convenience. This is especially important to working parents, who would greatly benefit from being able to get it done on the go.
7. Easier User Experience
Cashless payment streamlines parent payments, making it easier to make payment punctually by removing as many friction points as possible. It makes for a more pleasant experience all around.
To sum it up
A smart school management system is designed to make your life easier. It is the nervous system for your institution around which other technologies are incorporated. It is, in fact, a master plan to regulate administrative operations in a consolidated, integrated, efficient and smooth way to increase the productivity of your school.
If you are still looking for a system that will work well for your school's operations, you can contact LittleLives to see how we can help!
