Friday, July 3, 2020

Letter from Retail Realm About RMS End of Life

I've had multiple calls and emails this week from retailers who received an email from Retail Realm about the July 2021 end of life date for the Microsoft RMS point of sale software.  

There are a few comments and clarifications that need to be shared about the email:
  1. That was a great video - well done! I remember the days of QuickSell 2000 and QuickSell HQ very well!
  2. Only Microsoft is ending support for RMS in July 2021. RMS will not cease to function come July 2021 and you will still have support via various RMS Partners across the US for several more years.
  3. What will end is the ability to issue new or replacement license keys for RMS. If you lose your license key - you will likely not be able to obtain a new license key.
  4. Using native EDC in RMS for payment processing is no longer supported. You need to be using stand alone payment terminals or a third party plug in like Card Defender.
  5. Over the next 2-4 years, it will become more and more difficult to fully support RMS. As I have recommended multiple times, you should look at RMS replacement options even if you want to keep using RMS for a few more years.
  6. The email mentions Dynamics 365 (D365) as a potential replacement for RMS. Keep in mind that D365 has a monthly software cost starting around $70/month per user (that adds up to $4200 for one user over the course of 5 years).
  7. Another replacement program, Retail Management Hero (RMH), is potential RMS replacement and RMS to RMH discounts have been extended through June 2020. I've personally upgraded around 20 retailers from RMS to RMH and you are welcomed to contact me for personal experiences in working with RMH.
  8. There is also the Cloud Retailer software that is designed as a direct replacement for RMS and carries a much lower cost than D365 or RMH since the licensing is lane based (not per user and no charge for manager licenses like D365 and RMH require).
  9. Here is a video comparing RMS, RMH and Cloud Retailer:
That about covers the questions that retailers have been asking me about RMS end of life and the email from Retail Realm. If I can be of further assistance, please contact me at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com

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