The Ledger Tells
· -another method, and a good one, too,
of recording equipment income.
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HERE are filing systems galore. There
are salesbooks which meet most all of
the needs af an operator. But no
matter how good the system and how ade·
quate the sa les records, most operators usu-
ally /ind that something is lacking. Some-
times it is on ly a little quirk from some
other operator's pet system. Sometimes it
is the addition of a single entry which serves
to give an absolutely complete picture of
what is going on at the financial end of the
operator's business.
Here, at any rate, is another method
which a service man who has called on
thousands of operators throughout the coun-
try has termed "one of the best." It was
devised by G. F. Johnson, head of the G. F.
Johnson Music Co. of Portland, Ore., in
order that he might "know the exact earn-
ing on each unit in order to conduct his
business with reasonable wisdom."
In quoting Johnson's statement it is not
intended that any other operator shall take
offense and feel that his method has been
belittled. Rather it is hoped that here and
there an operator who may have been grop·
ing about in an attempt to /ind something
that gives him a better picture of what his
business is doing may /ind it useful. Per-
haps others may like some particular phase
of it and wish to add it to a bookkeeping
process already in use.
Actually the method is very simple and
embraces only three steps. By that token
three forms, and only three, are needed.
Form one, and the first step, is used
in the field, and it involves the operator and
the location owner. On making the collec-
tion the operator produces a standard sales-
book bearing the name of his firm and the
telephone number. Because the location
owner has a carbon copy of this and keeps
it as a partial record of his regular income,
the telephone number is always convenient
in case a service call is needed. Naturally
the slip has a space for date and the name
and address of the location owner. Blocked
off in one corner of the actual entry space
is room for listing the number of slugs
which have been inserted in the machine in
place of the usual nickel s, dimes and quar-
ters. Next to this there appears a space for
the meter reading and the total cash. Below
that is room for deduction of the guaran-
teed minimum, and following that space for
the amount due the customer, usually pre-
ceded by the percentage which has been
fixed for the individual location. Farther
down the page is space for the customer's
signature, indicating receipt of payment,
and for the signature of the operator on be-
half of the firm. Also included on this
sheet is a space for remarks and requests.
As earlier stated, one copy is kept by the
operator, and the carbon goes to the loca-
tion.
At the end of the day the operator tabu-
lates all of his collections on a single cash
report form a little larger in size•',than the
salesbook sheet. All the locations are listed,
together with meter reading, gross collec-
tion (and location's portion in the same
space just below the other figure) a[ld net
income. Totals are indicated at the bottom
of the page with deductions for slugs, the
number of which is also entered. Again
there is a space for remarks, for this report
goes directly to the office, and this is a most
worth-while feature, since the operator, in
calling on a good many locations during the
day, may forget. Johnson wou ld far rather
read "Mr. Johnson should call on John Doe
- wants more commission" on an operator's
cash report than discover later on that the
lessee has decided to change over to some-
one else. That should be equally true of all
operators having employees in the field, and
of all operators who hope some day to have
their own equipment with men under them.
In the office a clerk enters the cash re-
ports on a loose-leaf ledger form which, be-
ing visible, reveals at a g lance the exact net
earnings of each machine and each location.
Here, of course, each account is again sep-
arate.
SUBSCRIPTION ORDER
POPULARITY INCREASES
COIN MACHINE REVIEW
1113 Venice Boulevard
e Keeney's Bowlette said to be
reviving interest in amusement
games.
Los Angeles. California
Please enter my subscription to THE REVIEW for:
................ ! year - $1.00
.... 3 years - $2.00
to start with the .......................... ............... .issue. A remittance in full
is attached hereto.
Name .................................... .
Address ................ ...................................... ·-·············•·· .................. .
City ......................................... .
Operator ...................................... J obber ........................ .
NOVEMBER, :: l 9 3 ·6
Ruled off in columns, the third form,
never taken from the office, shows at the top
of the oblong page the date the equipment
was purchased and the date it was placed in
the particular location which it records. The
numbers of key and machine are entered
here, too, so that the office record is always
complete.
Below that there is a space for entering
the amounts brought forward from preced-
ing pages, and then, in four separate col-
umns following the date of entry there ap-
pear the figures on gross income, amount
paid as commission to the location, net re-
turns and meter reading. At the foot of the
page, where it is easily noted in leafing
through the book that holds it, appear th e
name and address and telephone number of
the spot owner. The particular form which
Johnson uses has two complete sets of col-
umns for figure entries to each page, pro-
vidi ng an economy of effort and space.
Although this firm•s forms are printed in
Portland and copyrighted so that they may
not be duplicated here, it shou ld be no par•
ticular problem for the operator to adapt
the entry methods to any simi lar sheet made
by some other company. If his experience
parallels or equa ls that of the G. F. John-
son Music Co., he will /ind it well worth
the trouble, and if he has been uncertain
about some phases of his records he will
/ind that his problem is largely solved.
No amateur at the business, Johnson ha s
been engaged in selling musical equipment
- pianos, radios , records and home phono-
graphs-for a great many years. Yet when
he entered the field of music operating
shortly after it came into vogue, his regular
method of bookkee..,ing did not meet hi s
needs. The system which he worked out,
and which has here been described, is thus
the result of a number of years of experi-
ence in regular bookkeeping methods and
an ample period of experiment with meth-
ods wh ich have led to the adaptations which
he now terms "satisfactory."
SilJlilarly, in keeping with this business•
like procedure, Johnson has a system for
keeping track of his recordings which is
comparable to that used by the disc manu-
facturers themselves. Partly this was"brought
about by reason of his stocking the record·
ings demanded by music lovers for their
own home use, and partly to meet the need
for keeping track of the platters used in the
automatic equipment. At any rate he·s all
for keeping adequate records of his equip•
rnent and his cash co llections, and he de-
clares that in the long run it pays to be
careful.
. ..... State ..... .
. .... Manufacturer
COIN
CHICAGO.- So popular with all types
of players on location has Keeney' s Bowlette
been, that many operators are said to have
reported a greater-than-ever interest in coin
operated devices generally. Word of its
pulari ty has spread, Keeney declares, and
an increasing numbers ot players have be-
come familiar with its play and amusement
features.
This plaver-interest, according to Keen•
ev"s man Becker, has meant a contmual
operation of three plants in production of
the bowling-type game, and now a new 10
foot edition has been introduced to mak e
installation possible in locations where the
larger model could not have been placed.
It is pointed out that all the popular feat-
ures have been retained in the new machine .
MACHINE
REVIEW
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109
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