Buy Goods till or Paybill?
| Buy Goods till | Paybill | |
|---|---|---|
| What the customer enters | Till number and amount | Business number, an account number and amount |
| Best for | Walk-in shops where people pay at the counter | Businesses that need to know which account a payment belongs to |
| For a butchery | Usually the simplest choice | Useful if you have many credit customers paying their balances |
Charges and requirements change from time to time, so check Safaricom's current M-PESA for Business terms before you apply.
Several branches
If you have more than one shop, ask Safaricom for a separate store for each branch under your business. Then each branch's payments arrive under its own store number and you can see each shop's takings separately instead of one mixed total.
How to reconcile M-Pesa every day
- At closing, note the total M-Pesa received on the till for the day.
- Compare it with the M-Pesa figure your staff recorded for the day's sales.
- Look for payments that arrived after closing, reversals, and payments meant for a credit balance rather than today's sales.
- Investigate any gap the same day.
Doing this daily, rather than at the end of the month, means a missing payment is found while everyone still remembers it.
Let payments record themselves
BSIS connects to your till through Safaricom Daraja or Kopo Kopo. Every customer payment shows up in the day's entry within seconds, with the name, amount and receipt number, and reversals are taken off automatically. Your money still goes straight to your M-Pesa account; BSIS only receives the notice.
Common questions
Is a Buy Goods till or Paybill better for a butchery?
For a walk-in butchery a Buy Goods till is usually simpler for customers. A Paybill helps when customers need to pay against an account, for example credit balances.
How do I check M-Pesa payments against sales?
Each evening compare the till total for the day with the M-Pesa amount recorded for sales, then explain any difference the same day.