Liquor Store Feeback on the Cloud Retailer Liquor Store Profit System

 What Liquor Stores Across the United States Have to Say About the Cloud Retailer Liquor Store Profit System: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sz9CHGonWTk&list=PL06Av0s2MXXVVgGR3KQkpkDfANejm_hE5

Liquor Stores: What a Texas Liquor Store Owner Has to Say about Cloud Retailer

 Honest feedback from a liquor store owner in Texas about their experience using the Cloud Retailer Liquor Store POS Profit System. Learn more about the Cloud Retailer Liquor Store POS Profit System by emailing sales@cloudretailer.com, calling 888-267-7483 or visiting https://www.cloudretailer.com/

 

 

The Results are In! Why Liquor Stores Love the Cloud Retailer POS software for Liquor Stores!

 Customer feedback says is all! The folks at RITE have been overwhelmed with the positive feedback from Liquor Stores who use the Cloud Retailer point of sale software for liquor stores! The additional $2000+ in month profit that these liquor stores are obtaining through the use of Dual Pricing is icing on the cake. More information at https://www.cloudretailer.com/dualprice-pos/, sales@rite.us or 888-267-7483.

More detailed information:

Retail Management Hero Feedback from Retailers & Resellers

Over the last 2 months I have been involved in the deployment of Retail Management Hero (RMH) to 5 different retailers across the US. These are all specialty retail stores with between 1 and 3 check out lanes. Each store uses name brand computers, receipt printers, cash drawers, etc. None of the stores use any special add-ons for RMH like e-commerce/shopping carts.

Overall the feedback has been positive. Time was spent during the pre-sales process to ensure that the retailers knew some of the limitations within RMH when it comes to reporting and credit card processing.  About the only issues that came up was needing to upgrade SQL server for 2 of the 5 customers and error messages when trying to edit purchase orders (which appears to have been corrected by upgrading to SQL 2014).

However, I was contacted by four retailers who went from RMS to RMH in 2018 and are both searching for a POS system to replace RMH. Main issues are the following:

1. Having to pay for bug fixes (labor for re-installing RMH)
2. General slowness of RMH (RMH is not like RMS speed-wise but is similar to other POS programs)
3. Lack of drill down capabilities in Reports
4. Lack of ability to add a new item at POS screen
5. Poor reseller / VAR / Dealer support (these are Positive Technology and EZB Solutions customers)

I've also had 3 different RMH Partners/Resellers contact me via phone. Combined, they have installed around a dozen RMH systems over the last 4 months. These resellers have also provided positive overall feedback on RMH.

This is making me feel somewhat better about RMH as a solution for new retailers as well as retailers using the Microsoft Dynamics RMS point of sale software. I will continue to keep in touch with these retailers and pass along feedback as time allows.

If you would like more information, please contact me at kevinantosh@gmail.com or 208-340-5632.

Review of RITE in St. Cloud Minnesota

One of my main reasons for joining the team at RITE in Sartell/St Cloud, MN was the companies reputation as a retail point of sale dealer/VAR/partner/reseller.  Not only did I meet with the companies leadership twice but I also spoke with some of their customers as well as some of their competators.

No one had any complaints about RITE or the retail point of sale solutions offered by RITE which made me comfortable in adding my name to RITE's roster of point of sale experts.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Bindo Point of Sale Reviews

Update 6/12/2016: I've been called or emailed by three businesses currently using Bindo POS concerned about the future of Bindo as a company. These businesses cite employee turnover and customer attrition at Bindo as being cause for concern.

I will post more updates as they become available.


Update 11/18/2015: I've seen some recent valid positive reviews of Bindo Point of Sale so hopefully the issues have been corrected and are just part of some growing pains.

Original Post:

I've been made aware of multiple recent negative reviews specific to the Bindo point of sale software. While Bindo POS has proven to be very popular and I know of over 25 stores happily using Bindo POS, the recent complaints (of which 3 are businesses that I have personally spoken with) have me somewhat concerned.

Until Bindo can correct the situation and produce more positive reviews, I've archived all my Bindo related blog posts and videos. I will give Bindo credit for responding to the reviews and hopefully this is part of some growing pains.  If you are curious, here is a link to the reviews and the response from Bindo: http://www.softwareadvice.com/retail/bindo-profile/

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Point of Sale Company Reviews

Over the last 17 years not only have I been able to use and review multiple point of sale programs but I have also gotten to know the companies actually selling point of sale systems in the United States. In my travels I have had a chance to spend some time visiting many of these companies in person (commonly referred to as Point of Sale VAR's, Partners, or Dealers).

If you are in need of a referral or just want to make sure that you are dealing with a reputable company, please get in touch with me and I'll be happy to pass along brutally honest feedback if it happens to be a company that I am familiar with.

Continued Cover Complaints

As I don't always have time to post every time that someone is kind enough to provide me with feedback on their POS system, I did want to mention that I continue to receive regular negative feedback on Clover POS. Several folks have taken the time to call or email me with recent details about their negative experience with Clover.

The complaints similar to what I have posted about Clover in other posts (excessive fees, long term contracts, promised features/functions not available, etc). You can always contact me if you need more details but obviously Clover is not on my recommendation list when it comes to reliable and reputable point of sale systems.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Businesses Leaving Shopkeep and Revel for Bindo

Interesting - I've had a few stores contact me to let me know that they recently stopped using ShopKeep. LightSpeed or Revel and have switched to Bindo point of sale.  I'm not sure on all the details but obviously something happened which was big enough to make these retail owners stop using their current point of sale systems.

I have had complaints in the past about Revel sometimes locking up when swiping a credit card as payment and past complaints about ShopKeeps tax setup - not sure if that applies in these cases or not. I'll be sure to pass along details if I get a chance to talk to any of these businesses.

I'd say things bode very well for Bindo! More reviews on Bindo POS can be found here: https://bindopos.com/reviews

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Gravity Payments is Making National News

Update: I do have a meeting scheduled with Gravity Payments in Mid May and will pass along more information after the meeting along with any personal recommendations and/or special offers.

As regular readers and watchers of my blog site and YouTube channel know, I focus mainly on cash register and point of sale advice.  However, with the upcoming EMV Liability Shift date as well as many businesses and organizations searching for new or updated point of sale systems,  some of you have mentioned to me that you are actively searching for a better merchant services company to work with.

As the above are all good reasons to shop around for better rates for debit and credit card processing, I wanted to pass along that Gravity Payments has been making the national news lately - in a good way!

The founder and CFO of Gravity Payments (who graduated from a Christian High School that I am very familiar with) has made a commitment to take a lower salary so all the companies employees will eventually make $70,000 or more annually. That is a pretty bold move and speaks well about the company itself. I checked around for reviews and feedback on Gravity Payments from customers and employees and there is actually very little feedback out there. What I found was mostly positive and Gravity Payments does have an "A+" rating with the BBB.

The limited number of reviews and "A+" BBB rating are positive indicators - especially of you search for reviews and complaints for other similar merchant services companies.

As always, perform some due diligence and take some time to watch for the following when working with any merchant services company:

• Will the equipment be compliant to meet the EMV Liability Shift deadline coming up on October 1st, 2015 in the United States
• Early termination fees
• Any sort of long term contract commitment
• Any long term lease requirements
• Ensure that the companies processing will work seamlessly with your point of sale system
• What the real rates/fees are for all types of credit and debit cards (especially check the rates for rewards and airline miles cards)
• Any statement, PCI, chargeback, or similar one-time, monthly or annual fees
• That the average sale/transaction amount in the contract matches what your records show

If you are in the position of wanting to compare rates, you may want to take a look at the Gravity Payments website at http://gravitypayments.com/

Please visit my contact page for information on how to reach me.

PS - as I have a couple of trips planned to Seattle, I may swing by the offices at Gravity Payments and have a cup of coffee to learn more about their company.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

More Advice for Microsoft Dynamics RMS Users - the 7 year rule

A quick reminder that sales of Microsoft Dynamics RMS and HQ to new users as well as mainstream support ends next year (2016) so please keep that in mind if you are thinking of purchasing RMS or HQ as point of sale software for your business or organization.

Updated information on the upcoming Retail Management Hero Software (or what I am coining "RMS 3.0 for 2015 and beyond") can be found here: http://retailpospondering.blogspot.com/2015/06/new-option-for-rmshq-users-retail.html

As I continue talking to businesses using the Microsoft Dynamics RMS point of sale software as well as talking to businesses considering purchasing RMS, I wanted to pass along reasons why investing in RMS as a new point of sale system for your business or organization is a poor decision (those of you already using RMS have different options available which are covered in this blog post).

1. EMV Liability Shift date. This is coming up in October of this year (2015) in the United States and related to who is liable for fraudulent transactions when a chip credit or debit card is used for payment. Based on information from Microsoft, if you purchase RMS now, you will need to also purchase additional software and hardware to meet the EMV liability shift date. I am extremely disappointed that Microsoft Dynamics RMS Partners in the US are selling RMS to businesses without explaining how to handle the EMV Liability Shift Date (as well as the costs involved).
2. RMS and HQ End of Life. Back in May 2014, Microsoft released information related to the future of RMS and HQ with mainstream support and sales ending in July of 2016 and all support ending in July of 2021.
3. What else will come around? Once EMV is past us, what sort of new standard or requirement will come up in 2016 or beyond that will require further investments?
4. 7 Year Rule. Typically, I have found that a good point of sale system should last about 7 years. If full support for RMS ends in 2021 then, if you purchase RMS today, you will only have 6 years before you need to look at replacing or upgrading RMS.

Point being, buying RMS now as a point of sale system for your business is not a wise choice. 

Comments and questions are always welcomed!

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Negative Feedback on Lightspeed

While I have personally had positive experiences with Lightspeed point of sale, I have been made aware of some stores who have had negative experiences with Lightspeed.

The main issue appears to be related to the multi-location version of Lightspeed not correctly handling the inventory at all locations (ie: transferring the wrong item to the wrong store or the different store inventory databases not syncing correctly which causes on hand counts to be incorrect).

That is all that was communicated to me so I don't know if the problem lies with the user or with Lightspeed but the situation was bad enough that at least one store stopped using Lightspeed and switched to another point of sale system.

I'd advise anyone looking at Lightspeed to do a little research and be sure to talk to stores using Lightspeed to see if they have experienced any issues.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

One Step Retail Solutions Complaints and Reviews

Some time ago I posted feedback and reviews about One Step Retail Solutions in Phoenix, AZ. The complaints related to no shows for scheduled appointments as well as being quoted excessive fees for simple technical support.

I have not received any response or reply from anyone at One Step Retail Solutions so the lack of communication means that I can not recommend considering them as a source for point of sale systems and support.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Review of The Retailer POS Software

I want to thank a user of The Retailer point of sale software for sending me a nice review to share.

The Positives:

• Low cost
• Local support (the user is in the greater Denver, CO area)
• Multiple price levels for items
• Very good customer service and support

The Negatives:

• Issues with not calculating a correct gross margin or inventory cost
• No ability to export custom reports

Summary (from the user):

" I'd recommend for a non-demanding customer who doesn't care about margins and who wants to save $$$"

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Video Review of Bindo POS in a Marijuana Dispensary/Retail Store

I've mentioned before that I have received calls and emails from folks who have opened, or are planning on opening retail stores dealing with the sale of Marijuana. With more and more states legalizing the retail sale of Marijuana, I thought that a quick video overview of how some Marijuana stores are using Bindo Point of Sale to track sales and customer information would be helpful.

Obviously requirements vary from state to state but something that tracks sales and taxes collected is much better than tracking everything by hand.

You can always contact me for more nformation on anything point of sale related - if I can't help you then I am usually able to point you in the right direction.

For a full demo and more information on Bindo Point of Sale, please visit www.bindopos.com or call 800-MY-BINDO.

Here is the video:

More Customer Reviews of One Step Solutions in Phoenix, AZ

As much as I don't like posting negative information - I have received more complaints specific to One Step Retail Solutions in Phoenix, AZ who sells and services a variety of point of sale systems.  The complaints are specific to overcharging and no-show issues for sales and service appointments.  If the service is bad enough that folks are contacting me for help and advice then it is obvious that One Step Retail Solutions has some sales, service, and support issues to resolve.

Of note - the more unusual complaints relate to no-shows by sales representatives so that is a huge warning sign that One Step Retail Solutions may not be the wisest choice for as a point of sale partner/dealer to work with.

Since these complaints have been on-going, it would be great if someone from One Step would contact me so we can figure out what is going on.

Please visit my contact page for information on how to reach me.

New Features in Shopkeep Point of Sale & Reviews/Feedback

I mentioned a few posts back that open bar tab and tip/total functions are what prevents most retail point of sale systems from being used in most food service businesses.

Well, the folks at Shopkeep have now added both the open bar tab function and tip/total functions to Shopkeep which opens up Shopkeep point of sale for iOS devices to those with food service businesses.

My main concern with Shopkeep Point of Sale is the lack of valid reviews from people actually using the Shopkeep point of sale solution here in the United States. I receive frequent calls and emails from folks asking about Shopkeep but none of us can find valid reviews from actual end users. That being said, you can find more information on the Shopkeep website at http://www.shopkeep.com/

UPDATE: I may have spoken to soon. Here is a link to a Shopkeep review but ignore the review (the person who wrote the review does not state that they have retail or restaurant management experience) and jump down to the comments to see some feedback on Shopkeep - it is pretty easy to spot the valid and invalid comments: http://www.merchantmaverick.com/reviews/shopkeep-review/


With a background in retail and restaurant management plus 15 years of working with various point of sale solutions, I have become quite skilled at pulling out the valid information in the reviews.  For those of you not wanting to read through the comments, here is what you need to know:

"As of about a week ago, suspended tickets have now been added"
"Shopkeep does not support integration with ANY webstore applications that I can find. They had made a decision to move away from Shopify in early 2013,"
"Shopkeep still has NOTHING in place to offer for web integration"
"expect the second tax rate to be available in the very near future"
"the interface seems easy and clean, and it’s a breeze to set up"
"no long-term agreements and no cancellation fees"
"The customer service is great and they are obviously a company on the right track"
"However, not having gift card integration is TERRIBLE and extremely frustrating...."
"...only one tax rate and only one special tender type…those are limitations I cannot live with."

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Recent Reviews & Feedback on Clover Point of Sale

Update July 6, 2015: no shortage of complaints against Clover specific to expensive long term contracts, costly buyout clauses, unable to transfer licensing if the business is sold, and sales reps making promises for features/functions that Clover just can't do.  I believe the overall tally is over 400 verified complaints against Clover.

In the last 2 weeks I have received a larger than usual number of calls and emails related to the Clover point of sale solution for Android devices. Since many of you appear to be considering Clover as a possible point of sale solution for your business, here is the feedback/reviews that folks have been sharing with me:

• "Returned it (Clover) the next day"
• "(sales rep) couldn't even demo the system"
• "they will raise my (merchant services) rates"
• "don't want to be locked in to a credit card contract"
• "good step up from a cash register"
• "missing features"
• "went with Bindo which does more and doesn't require me to use a specific company for credit and debit card processing services"

The Bindo solution was mentioned a couple of times.  Folks noted that Bindo does more than Clover and is even offering some various incentives like free hardware currently. If you are curious about Bindo Point of Sale, check them out at www.bindopos.com.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Retail Pro Reviews

One of the things that I try to stay on top of are user reviews of different point of sale solutions.  The reviews have been the most popular posts on this site and have also generated the most phone calls and emails from folks searching for free point of sale help and advice.

While it is easy to link to a review, I prefer to paraphrase the review for the following reasons:

1. Over the years I have figured out how to 'read between the lines' to find the key points of each review
2. I'm also able to easily spot reviews that may have been written from someone attempting to increase or decrease a products reputation (not truly a fake review but a review written with an intent that goes beyond just sharing personal experiences)
3. The biggest reason is that a popular point of sale software review website exists only to sell your information to multiple point of sale companies - that's right, they make money by selling your information

Over the last couple of months there have been a large number of Retail Pro reviews posted online. Here are the key points gleaned from all the reviews which appeared to come from retailers of all sizes within the US:

• Users really like the support and service that they receive from their Retail Pro Partner - especially Big Hairy Dog (BHD) 
• Overall, Retail Pro received high marks for functionality and reliability
• Both short and long term users mentioned that the software was very reliable
• About the only minor issues noted are that the ease of use could be better and that the latest version of Retail Pro seemed to operate slower than the previous versions

Overall, some great reviews of Retail Pro which is what would be expected since Retail Pro is the type of point of sale solution that includes installation, training, and ongoing support as part of the price when purchased from a Retail Pro partner like BHD.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Feedback on Bindo POS - A New 90/10 Rule

In my follow-ups with folks that have contacted me for free advice, I try and follow-up to see what they ended up purchasing and then again to see how well the solution is working for them and their business.  I've already established that Bindo has emerged the clear winner for Q2 of 2014 with about a 5-1 margin over other solutions like NCR CounterPoint, Microsoft Dynamics RMS, QuickBooks POS, NCR Silver, Retail Pro, and Clover.

Do keep in mind these are only the folks that have contacted me via my humble blog site but they do represent a good cross section of specialty retail stores in the US when it comes to number of locations and size.

I normally refer to the 90/10 or 80/20 rule as meaning that 80 or 90 percent of your sales revenue comes from 10 to 20 percent of your customers. This is why having loyalty marketing, customer purchase history, and detailed reporting are so essential within point of sale solutions.

However, a retailer shared with me his reason for selecting Bindo over NCR Counterpoint:  "Bindo can do 90% of what NCR Counterpoint can do at only 10% of the price - why wouldn't I choose Bindo over Counterpoint?".

I completely agree.  Thus the 90/10 rule has a new meaning! More reviews on Bindo POS can be found here: https://bindopos.com/reviews

Can I help?  Over the last 15 years I have worked with thousands of retail stores, museums, and government entities to help them find the best point of sale solution. You can reach me at kevinantosh@gmail.com or on my cell at 208-340-5632 for free point of sale help and advice.