Introduction
House accounts allow businesses to offer a line of credit to regular customers, making it easier to manage payments and build long-term relationships.
What are House Accounts?
House accounts function as store-managed credit accounts for frequent shoppers. Instead of paying immediately, customers can charge purchases to their house account and pay later.
Key details include:
Credit-Based System – The account balance typically runs negative, representing the customer’s accrued debt.
Flexible Payment Schedule – Payments are made outside of the POS based on a schedule set by the retailer.
Customer Loyalty – House accounts help strengthen relationships with frequent customers by offering a convenient way to shop now and pay later.
Accessing House Accounts
Log into the Back Office.
On the lefthand menu, select Loyalty within the Loyalty & Marketing tab.
Within the Loyalty page, select the House Accounts tab.
House Accounts Page Overview
Account No. - Unique ID number for account.
Balance - Total accrued debit or credit.
In the example above, John Smith has an accrued debt of ($99.00). Kayla has a credit of $45.30.
Last Used - Date and time of the last transaction linked to the account.
Account Name - Customer name attached to the account.
Phone Number & Email - Optional contact information linked to the account.
Account Status -
Active - Visible on the POS and can be attached to transactions.
Suspended - Visible on the POS but cannot be attached to transactions. The balance can still be modified.
Deactivated - Only visible in Back Office when the “Deactivated” filter is applied. It cannot be attached to transactions, and the balance cannot be modified until the account is reactivated.
How to Manage House Accounts in Back Office
In back office, users can create and edit house accounts as well manually adjust their balances.
1. Creating a New House Account
On the House Accounts tab, select Create New House Account.
Fill in all required fields marked with the red asterisk ( * )
When finished, click Create House Account.
💡Certain account information like phone number and email are not required to create a house account but may be added later.
2. Modifying House Account Balances
The debt attached to a house account automatically accrues as it's attached to transactions on the POS. In back office, this balance may be manually adjusted to track payments against the account's debit or apply added debt against an account outside of tracked POS transactions.
To modify a house account’s balance:
Select the account from the House Accounts page.
On the account’s page, select Modify Balance.
In the Modify Balance tool, choose one of the following options and enter the amount:
Add to Balance / Apply Payment: Reduce the account’s debt by adding an offline payment.
Subtract from Balance: Increase the account’s debt by adding an offline transaction.
Under Reason for Balance Adjustment, add a note for tracking purposes.
🎥 Watch It in Action - Tracking a Payment Against a House Account Balance
In the example above, the user clicks on John Smith’s house account and selects Modify Balance on the account’s page.
In the Modify Balance tool, the user selects Add to Balance / Apply Payment to track a payment made by the customer toward their debt. After entering the payment amount, the new balance is previewed at the top of the tool. Finally, the user adds a note to the modification for tracking purposes.
3. Updating a House Account's Status
A house account's status may be change to disable or re-enable the ability to attach transactions to it on the POS. A house account may be in one of three statuses:
Active - Visible on the POS and can be attached to transactions.
Suspended - Visible on the POS but cannot be attached to transactions. The balance can still be modified.
Deactivated - Only visible in Back Office when the “Deactivated” filter is applied. It cannot be attached to transactions, and the balance cannot be modified until the account is reactivated.
Suspend / Restore an Account
Select the account from the House Accounts page.
On the account’s page, select Suspend Account if the account is Active or Restore if the account is Inactive.
On the confirmation window, enter a reason for the account status change.
Deactivate an Account
Select the account from the House Accounts page.
On the account’s page, select Edit within the House Account Details section.
On the detail edit window, select Deactivate.
On the confirmation window, enter a reason for the account status change.
Reactivate a Deactivated Account
Select the account from the House Accounts page.
On the account’s page, select Restore.
On the confirmation window, enter a reason for the account status change.
How to Charge House Accounts on the POS
House accounts are a selectable option on the POS payment screen.
To charge a POS transaction to a house account:
Select Other on the POS payment screen, then select House Account
On the House Accounts search window, either scroll or type to search for the house account
Once the house account is selected, finalize the amount of the transaction to be charged to the account then tap Confirm Amount
🎥 Watch It in Action - Charging a House Account on the POS
In the example above, the cashier is ringing up John Smith, a customer with a house account. On the payments screen, the cashier navigates to the House Accounts page and selects the customer’s account name. After tapping Confirm Amount, the transaction is applied to the account, completing the sale.
How House Account Transactions are Tracked in Sales Reporting
House account transactions are tracked in both the End of Day and Sales Overview reports. The sales attached to house accounts are tracked as negative amounts against the total payments expected.
End of Day Report
Sales Overview Report
Best Practices with House Accounts
Because Vori does not digitally collect payments for house accounts, business owners must manage their payment collections. Here are some best practices:
Establish clear payment terms with customers using house accounts.
Regularly review and manage account balances.
Use the suspend and deactivate features to manage delinquent accounts.