Rebates, loyalty and promotions
Modisoft offers tobacco scan data, loyalty and digital promotions, and each one moves money differently. A rebate arrives weeks later, a discount never reaches the register total, and a promotion costs you margin. This page explains how to record each so your books show what they really earn and cost.
Works with your POS, back-office & accounting stack
A scan data rebate arrives later as a deposit, and is usually recorded as a reduction of cost of goods or as other income, consistently and in its own account. A loyalty discount lowers what you collect at the sale. A promotion costs you margin on that item.
By the FuelCFO team. Where this page describes a vendor's product, the details come from the vendor's own public descriptions and can change, so confirm them with the vendor. Figures in diagrams are illustrative.
Modisoft lists scan data and tobacco loyalty among its features, describing the scan data integration as a way to meet manufacturer requirements for rebate programs. It also lists loyalty tools and a digital display for menus and promotions. Which of these you have depends on your plan and your manufacturer agreements, so confirm yours with Modisoft. We are not part of Modisoft. This page is about what each one does to your numbers.
The sale happens at the register, but the money comes later from a manufacturer program, usually as a deposit with no sale attached. If nobody records it, it sits in the bank as an unexplained deposit. Weeks later no one remembers what it was for, and it gets lumped into sales by mistake.
Many stores treat a rebate as a reduction of cost of goods, and some record it as other income. The right choice depends on the program and on how your accountant keeps your books. What matters is that it is consistent and in its own account, so you can compare one year with the next.
A loyalty discount is applied at the sale, so the customer pays less than the shelf price. If the register total is posted without the discount, sales look higher than the money you took in. The gap then shows up as a puzzling shortfall against your deposits at month end.
A promotion, including one shown on a digital display, sells the item for less than usual. The cost shows up as a lower margin on that category, not as a separate bill. If you run a deal on a popular item, check margin by category afterward to see whether it paid for itself.
A deposit of a few hundred dollars from a manufacturer looks like nothing on a statement. A saved rebate statement is what turns it into a number you can place. Without it, your bookkeeper has to guess, and guesses get mixed into the wrong account. A saved file also helps if the manufacturer later asks you to prove a payment.
To see what to save from each program, go to the program records. To see how the numbers drift, go to where it goes wrong. If you want a team to book rebates and discounts properly, what we do covers it. Save the program statements as they arrive.
Rebates, loyalty discounts and promotion costs each get a clear place in QuickBooks.
Every manufacturer deposit is tied to a rebate statement.
Loyalty discounts are compared with what the register collected.
Categories with heavy promotions are reviewed so margin is read fairly.
Rebate statements, loyalty reports and promotion lists for the month.
Rebate statements, loyalty reports and promotion lists for the month.
Ask your manufacturer reps if you are not sure where to find them.
Each manufacturer deposit is matched to a statement.
Each manufacturer deposit is matched to a statement.
A deposit with no statement is held until it can be explained.
Rebates, discounts and promotion costs go to their own accounts.
Rebates, discounts and promotion costs go to their own accounts.
The method is written down so it stays the same.
Promotion-heavy categories are checked against last month.
Promotion-heavy categories are checked against last month.
This shows whether a promotion paid for itself.
You get the books and a list of any deposit we could not place.
You get the books and a list of any deposit we could not place.
You may know where it came from.
Programs, statements and report names vary by manufacturer and plan. Ask Modisoft and your manufacturer reps what yours are called.
A rebate lands in the bank and nobody knows what it is.
Revenue is inflated by money that was never rung up.
Sales are posted before the loyalty discount, so they look higher than the cash collected.
One month as income, the next as a cost reduction.
A category looks weak and nobody knows a promotion caused it.
Scan data was not submitted, so the rebate never came.
Rebates are a real part of your margin.
You want to see what it costs and what it earns.
Money arrives from manufacturers and you cannot place it.
Do not have the statements? Tell us which manufacturers you have agreements with and we will help you find them.
A 30-minute call and about 48 hours of review, free, of how Modisoft Scan Data and Loyalty shows up in your Modisoft reports and in QuickBooks today.
We write down the QuickBooks account each item goes to, and why.
The first month is posted that way and tied to the bank.
Any fuel side of Modisoft Scan Data and Loyalty recorded where it belongs.
5 services →Modisoft Scan Data and Loyalty: store income and cost of goods kept in separate accounts.
9 services →Tax and pass-through money from Modisoft Scan Data and Loyalty recorded as a liability.
4 services →Modisoft Scan Data and Loyalty handled the same way at every store.
3 services →FAQ
More guides on the same system, or send us a day or a month for a free review.
Monthly bookkeeping for stores that run Modisoft: daily reconciliation, month-end close and Modisoft totals posted into QuickBooks Online.
Read more →What the Modisoft daily close shows, what to check each day, and how it ties to your bank and QuickBooks Online.
Read more →Where rebates, loyalty discounts and promotion costs belong in QuickBooks.
Read more →Send us a day or a month and we'll show you where the three systems disagree.
Get started →See all Modisoft guides →| Every gas station software guide →
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