Help, FAQ & Troubleshooting

Help and Support

In-App Help Centre

SabiBooks has a built-in help centre with guides for the most common tasks.

Look for the help icon (question mark) in the navigation or on individual pages
The help centre includes:
- Step-by-step guides for key features
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Tips and tricks for each feature

Available Help Guides

Guide	What It Covers
Add Your First Product	How to add products to your inventory
Recording a Sale	How to record when a customer buys something
Managing Customer Credit	How to sell on credit and track debts
Checking Your Debtors	How to see who owes you money
Viewing Your Reports	How to check your business performance
Adding Staff Members	How to give employees their own login
Adjusting Stock Levels	How to fix stock numbers
Scanning Barcodes	How to use your camera to scan barcodes
Working Offline	How to use SabiBooks without internet
Business Settings	How to set up your business profile

Contextual Help

Some pages show helpful tooltips and tips relevant to what you are currently doing. For example:

The POS page shows tips about payment methods
The product form shows tips about pricing and categories
The customer form shows tips about credit limits

Contact Support

If you need help that is not covered in the guides:

In-App Support: Use the help section in Settings
WhatsApp: Send a message to the SabiBooks support number
Email: Contact the SabiBooks support team

Security and Data Privacy

How Your Data is Protected

SabiBooks takes the security of your business data very seriously.

Protection	How It Works
Encryption in Transit	All data sent between your phone and our servers is encrypted (like a secret code). Nobody can read it while it is being transmitted.
Encryption at Rest	Your data stored on our servers is also encrypted. Even if someone accessed the server, they could not read your data.
Phone-Based Authentication	You log in using your phone number and a one-time code (OTP). No passwords to forget or steal.
Session Management	If you do not use SabiBooks for a long time, it automatically logs you out for safety.
Role-Based Access	Staff members only see what their role allows. A cashier cannot see your profit reports.
Audit Trail	Every action in SabiBooks is logged — who did what, when, and from which device.

What Data We Collect

SabiBooks collects only the data needed to run your business:

Your phone number (for authentication)
Your business information (name, address, type)
Product data (names, prices, stock levels)
Sales records
Customer information (names, phone numbers, credit)
Expense records

We do NOT collect:

Your personal bank account details
Your BVN (Bank Verification Number)
Your NIN (National Identification Number)
Your personal social media data
Data from other apps on your phone

Who Can See Your Data

You and the staff you invite can see your business data (according to their role)
SabiBooks support team can access your data only to help you solve problems (and only when you request support)
Nobody else — we never sell or share your data with third parties

Data Backup

Your data is backed up in multiple ways:

On your phone — SabiBooks keeps a local copy so you can work offline (see Offline Mode)
On our servers — Your data is synced to secure cloud servers
Redundant backups — Server data is backed up regularly to prevent data loss

If your phone is lost, stolen, or broken, you can log in on a new phone and recover all your data.

Tips for Keeping Your Account Safe

Do not share your phone with strangers. Your SabiBooks session stays active on your phone.
Use your phone’s screen lock. Set a PIN, pattern, or fingerprint lock on your phone.
Do not share your OTP code. Nobody from SabiBooks will ever call and ask for your OTP. If someone asks, it is a scam.
Remove staff immediately when they leave. This prevents them from accessing your data. See Staff Management.
Log out on shared devices. If you use SabiBooks on a shared computer, log out when you are done.

Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR)

SabiBooks complies with the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR). This means:

We collect your data with your consent
You have the right to see what data we have about you
You can request deletion of your data
We store data securely and protect it from unauthorised access

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I use SabiBooks without internet?

A: Yes! SabiBooks works offline. You can record sales, add products, and manage your shop without internet. When your phone connects to the internet again, SabiBooks will automatically sync all your changes. See Offline Mode for full details.

Q: How much does SabiBooks cost?

A: SabiBooks has a free plan that includes basic features for small shops. The premium plan gives you extra features like advanced reports, unlimited staff accounts, and priority support. Check Settings then “Subscription” to see the current plans and pricing in Naira.

Q: I made a mistake in a sale. How do I fix it?

A: If you just completed the sale, you can void it from the sale details page. Tap on the sale in your recent sales list, then tap “Void Sale”. This will reverse the transaction and return the items to your stock. For older sales, you can record a return or adjustment instead. See Voiding a Sale.

Q: Can I manage multiple shop branches?

A: Yes! SabiBooks supports multiple branches under one business account. Go to Settings, then “Branches” to add a new branch. Each branch has its own inventory and sales records, but you can see combined reports for all branches. Staff can be assigned to specific branches.

Q: Can I download my sales data to Excel?

A: Yes! Go to Reports, choose the time period you want, then tap the download icon. You can export as PDF or Excel (CSV). This is useful for your accountant or for keeping records.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

”I cannot receive the OTP code”

Check your phone number. Make sure you entered the correct number with the right digits.
Check your network signal. Move to a location with better reception.
Wait 30 seconds and tap “Resend Code”.
Check your SMS inbox carefully — the message might be from an unfamiliar sender.
Check if your phone has SMS issues. Some phones block certain SMS senders. Try restarting your phone.
If none of these work, contact SabiBooks support.

”My products are not showing”

Check your internet connection. If you are offline, SabiBooks shows locally cached products. Go online to fetch the latest data.
Check your search and filters. Clear any active search text or filters that might be hiding products.
Pull down to refresh the product list.
If products are still missing, check if they were deleted by another user (if you have staff).

”The barcode scanner is not working”

Allow camera access. When SabiBooks asks for camera permission, tap “Allow”.
Check the lighting. Barcodes need good lighting to scan properly.
Hold steady. Keep your phone still and at a reasonable distance from the barcode.
Clean the barcode. Dirt or damage on the barcode can prevent scanning.
Try typing the number. You can always enter the barcode number manually. See Barcode Scanning.

”My sale did not save”

Check if you completed the sale. A sale is only saved after you tap “Complete Sale” or “Charge” and the payment is processed.
Check offline mode. If you were offline, the sale is saved on your phone and will sync when internet returns. Check Offline Mode.
Check for error messages. Red text on the screen indicates an error — read it carefully.

”Customer credit balance is wrong”

Check the customer’s transaction history. Open the customer profile and scroll to Purchase History. Review every sale and payment to find discrepancies.
Check if a sale was voided. Voided sales reduce the credit balance.
Check if a payment was recorded. Make sure all cash or transfer payments from the customer were recorded.
If you find an error, record a manual adjustment to correct the balance. See Recording Credit Payments.

”The app is slow”

Clear your browser cache. Go to your phone’s browser settings and clear cached data for SabiBooks.
Close other apps. Too many open apps can slow down your phone.
Check your internet speed. A slow connection makes data loading slower.
Restart your phone. This often fixes temporary performance issues.
Update your browser. Make sure you are using the latest version of Chrome or Safari.

”I cannot see my data on a new phone”

Make sure you are using the same phone number. Your data is linked to your phone number, not the device.
Ensure your old phone synced. Before switching phones, open SabiBooks on your old phone while connected to the internet. Wait for all changes to sync (check Offline Mode).
Wait for data to download. On the new phone, data might take a few minutes to download, especially if you have a large inventory.

”POS terminal payment is stuck on ‘Processing’”

Check the POS terminal screen. The terminal might be waiting for the customer to insert/tap their card or enter their PIN.
Wait up to 60 seconds. POS payments can take time, especially with slow networks.
Cancel and retry. Tap “Cancel” in SabiBooks and try the POS payment again.
Try a different payment method. Ask the customer to pay by cash or transfer instead.
Check with your POS provider. If payments consistently fail, contact Moniepoint, Opay, or Palmpay support. See POS Integration Settings.

”I forgot to record some sales”

You can still add them. Create new sales for the transactions you missed in the POS. The sale date will be today, not the original date, but the amounts will be tracked correctly.
For future, record immediately. The best practice is to record every sale the moment it happens. Do not wait until the end of the day.
Keep a backup jotter. If your phone battery dies mid-day, write sales in a notebook and enter them into SabiBooks when your phone is charged again.

”My cash does not match SabiBooks total”

If the cash in your register does not match the “Cash Sales” total shown in SabiBooks:

Check for unrecorded sales. Did you or a staff member make a cash sale without recording it?
Check for wrong payment method. Maybe a sale was recorded as “Cash” but the customer actually paid by transfer, or vice versa.
Check for voided sales. A voided cash sale reduces the total but does not put money back in the register.
Check for expenses paid from the cash box. If you paid for an expense (like transport) from the cash register, record it as an expense in Expense Tracking.
Check for change errors. Did you give too much or too little change to a customer?

”My product prices are showing wrong”

Check the product. Go to Products, find the product, and check its selling price.
Edit if needed. If the price is wrong, edit the product and update the price.
Note: Changing the price only affects future sales. Past sales will keep the price that was recorded at the time of the sale.
Check for staff edits. If a staff member has Inventory Manager or Full Access, they might have changed the price.

”SabiBooks is using too much storage on my phone”

Clear browser cache. Go to your phone’s Settings > Apps > Browser > Clear Cache. This removes temporary files without deleting your data.
SabiBooks data is small. Even with thousands of products and sales, SabiBooks typically uses less than 100MB. If your phone is running out of storage, the issue is likely other apps, photos, or videos.
Delete old product images. If you uploaded many large product photos, they take more space.

Glossary

Terms used in this guide and in SabiBooks:

Term	Meaning
Aging Report	A report that groups outstanding credit by how many days old the debt is. See Credit Aging Report.
Barcode	The black-and-white striped label on product packaging that can be scanned
Cart	The list of items a customer is buying during a sale
Category	A group that products belong to (e.g., “Beverages”, “Electronics”)
Cost Price	How much you paid for a product from your supplier
Credit	When a customer takes goods now and pays later. See Credit Management.
Credit Balance	How much a customer currently owes you
Credit Limit	The maximum amount you allow a customer to owe you
CSV	A file format that can be opened in Excel or Google Sheets
Dashboard	The main screen showing your business overview. See Dashboard.
Debtor	A customer who owes you money
Discount	A reduction in the selling price (percentage or fixed amount)
E.164	The international phone number format used by SabiBooks (+234XXXXXXXXXX)
Held Cart	A sale that has been paused and can be resumed later
Inventory	All the products and stock in your business. See Products.
NGN	Nigerian Naira, the national currency
Offline Mode	Using SabiBooks without an internet connection. See Offline Mode.
Onboarding	The setup process when you first start using SabiBooks. See Getting Started.
OTP	One-Time Password — the 6-digit code sent to your phone for verification
P&L	Profit and Loss report. See Reports.
POS	Point of Sale — the screen where you record sales, or a card payment terminal. See POS.
POS Terminal	A physical device that accepts bank card payments (Moniepoint, Opay, Palmpay)
Receipt	A record of a sale that you can share with the customer
Reorder Level	The stock quantity below which SabiBooks warns you to restock. See Low Stock Threshold.
Selling Price	The price you charge customers for a product
SKU	Stock Keeping Unit — your own code for a product
Split Payment	Paying for a sale using two or more payment methods. See Split Payments.
Stock	The quantity of a product you have available to sell
Stock Adjustment	Manually changing the stock quantity (for receiving goods, damage, etc.)
Stock Movement	A record of any change in stock quantity
Sync	The process of uploading offline changes to the server and downloading new data. See Offline Mode.
Void	Cancelling a completed sale (reverses the transaction). See Voiding a Sale.
WAT	West Africa Time, the timezone for Nigeria (UTC+1)