R.O. Writer Software

Pros

This product makes us money. Not only in grosses on sales, but on efficiencies. It makes ordering part very easy and you can compare competitors pricing.

Cons

Hard to learn, but the best product once you do learn it. The system does lock up from time to time, but easy to restart. Sometimes takes quite a while to get through to customer support.

Pros

Lots of configurations to fit your needs. Electronic ordering parts and labor matrix help with profits.

Cons

Sometimes support can be slow, luckily we are usually able to work around most issues, Thankfully there are not many

Pros

I like the speed with which I am able to determine availability for products and create repair order estimates. Find quite accurate.

Cons

At times will ask questions like 4wd vs 2wd, automatic vs standard shift but then will display both options on parts screen even after I have narrowed down the search.
I dislike that you have to get out of an estimate for any other work in rowriter- example I am estimating brakes on customers vehicle when receive call from another customer for an appointment- have to exit estimate in order to set appointment in scheduler- I am constantly having to go back into or restart estimates.
Also would like to be able to look at part pictures from the ro once on a ticket- with current system have to go back into smart jobs if I would like to reference picture again.

The Support team at RO Writer are awesome. CSR respond to all our issues in a prompt manner. The Level 1 and 2 support staff can fix any issues we have in the same day. It happens on all software packages these days.

Pros

What we like about RO Writer is the ease of use and the ability to navigate through the Software. It is very user friendly even for new users. The Accounting side of RO Writer is a must for shops looking to increase their profitability, knowing where the Margins are is very important. Our CPA recommends it also as it is very powerful in that feature. The Support team is awesome.

Cons

Speed issues, but we are on an older version and soon moving to the newer 2.3 version. Sometimes the older version will run sluggish but our database has grown leaps and bounds over the last few years.

My sales and support reps are great and are ready to offer any advice or guidance needed to continue to improve our experience with RO Writer.

Pros

Very user friendly and great customer support- New user can use this software almost immediately without too many obstacles. Great and almost seamless integration to QuickBooks!!!!!

Cons

Some of the more technical parts of the program are not as easy to navigate through but with research through online help and training, etc. -It is a great program for any repair shop.

Customer support were very quick to respond to our issue which is very much appreciated!

Pros

Easy to Use- even for first time users
Customer Service is very Helpful
Quick Response Time

Cons

Unable to think of a con at this time!

great cust service and my customer rep was a great help too

Pros

ro writers customer service technitions where of great help finding us a usable backup so we could restore the system
worked as fast as possible

I have used it for 5 years in both of my shops. As an owner I have the data I need even if I'm not at the shop. It has streamlined our flow 10 fold. Love it. Highly recommend it.

Pros

Reports are plentiful, repair orders are easy to read, ease of use, and has more than you will use for a shop. Easy to open and process repair orders. Ro touch is the bomb. Awesome product

Cons

Theres a lot of stuff to use. But sometimes it just takes time to decide wHt u need to use cor your situation to run your shop profitable and productive

The support staff work together well to get us what we need, at a price we can afford.

Pros

It does exactly what any of the newer generation shop software should be doing. We are no longer using the same software that our fathers used. With the newer technology in cars its nice to know that our shop software is keeping up.

Cons

The iTunes app could use some work. It improves all the time, but would like to see this improved...

love this product, WE USE IT ON 3 COMPUTERS IN MY SHOP AND ALL WORKS WELL. THE CUSTOMER SUPPORT IS DONE BY KNOLEGABLE PEOPLE IN THEIR FIELD. CONSTANTLY UPGRADING AND IMPROVING THE PRODUCT!

Pros

R O WRITER easy to use, great support. CAN CONNECT TO MULTIPLE SUPPLIERS FOR PART PRICING. KEEPS CUSTOMER DATA ORGANIZED AND IS EASY TO ACCESS .

Cons

none! THERE ARE NO CONS I'M APPLING ON LINE AND CHECKING FOR PRICES ON UPDATES AND IMPROVEMENTS. DIDNT KNOW ABOUT ALL OF THE BENNIFITS AVALIABLE TO US.

Pros

Thank you to the customer rep for always assisting myself and my coworkers. He always gives us fantastic customer service.

Cons

The only issue we have ever had with RO Writer is that the wait times are very long on the phone when trying to get through.

I would really like a response!

Pros

There aren't any. Their customer support is the worst I've had. I've been having problems for several months now and they still haven't been addressed or fixed. There is no urgency to keep your business running and they are expensive compared to other Point of Sale Systems.

Cons

System crashes constantly every day.
The Tech Support is the worst. They don't have trained people. It takes days to get them to call you back while your system is down and you can't process your customers. My emails to Managers emails kicked back to me stating their email is full. I leave phone messages and get no return calls to help fix the multiple problems we are having. I was told by the tech support that they were training people and didn't have anyone who could help me. Carfax isn't populating vehicles correctly, smart e jobs isn't working correctly.

it's a shame this company took such a bad turn to the worst. after all these years I am actively looking

Pros

there are none it's just aggravation there behind the times the marketing aspect of the program is terrible you cannot even pull up a declined items so you can reach out to your customers

Cons

constant crashes customer support is ill equipped to handle any questions they always say we need to get you two tier 2 that will take a couple days for them to call you back... if they call. in the meantime your system is down you can't collect any money of nor write any invoices

I would not recommend this software to anyone. Any new system needs to be cloudbased. It will cause your Service adviser to quit.

Pros

Smart E Cat was nice to use when it worked. I like the parts return system. You need to run AutoApps with it to run efficiently.

Cons

Tech support was not good. Software would crash DAILY. Loses information constantly. Slow to update or improve any features. Expensive.

Pros

Not many, reports no very detailed, very limited. Smarter at works sometimes. Updates are scarey. Support is terrible

Not likely to recommend this product as it is very inefficient and seems to be not working most of the time with no tech support as I was promised ,

Cons

Tech support is the very worst, never call you back and the system is down for days and they expect you to pay a fee each month even after you pay minimum amount for the system as it is down and very rude if you try to get a commitment for efficiency , They say windows is the problem but that doesn't solve the info you lose while the program is not working, My workers just refuse to use it anymore, Very unreliable business !

I would never recommend this to anyone. If you are looking for a system that does it all, do not waste your hard earned money on this system.

Cons

Everything about this system is a con. It cost way to much to begin with. Nothing flows or is easy to use in this system. The inventory is a useless feature, along with everything else.

Been using software since 1999, this company keeps going down hill with support n service. Once was the best. I’ve got over 30k invested so I’m held hostage. What’s good is I’m seeing some well thought options from competitors. Support people are good, their just not supported by corporate

Pros

Old platform that really simple. It turns on every time we turn it on I guess that’s a Pro. Needs work

Cons

No good improvement. Took years change database. Glacial tech-support week support to call back...

I would NOT recommend this software. We will not be renewing when our contract ends!!

Pros

There is absolutely nothing good about this software. It is a total waste of dollars spent. Unfortunately I can't come up with a single pro.

Cons

Customer support is not friendly to work with, the software is always glitching out on us, you can't track invoices/emails sent

When we first bought in RO Writer in 2009 was among the best available. Had many features other software didn't address. At first the company was actively interested in feedback and improvements. As time and versions went by no changes or improvements were made. As updates rolled out, critical faults were repaired, but we noticed a slow loss of screen handling ability. With version 2.0, we lost significant mouse functionality in critical screens, and many useful features regarding inventory handling were eliminated. Version 2.0 is a significant downgrade. This is not an isolated incident as a scan of reviews and forums will support our experiences.

Pros

Integrates with 3rd party software. Basic point of sale functionality. With a paid Pro support subscription response is fairly quick, Tier 1 personel are fairly knowledgeable.

Cons

Screen handling, Window sizing, and placement, Field Navigation. Inventory control process. Loss of automated backup processes. Tier 2/3, and programming support ineffective when they respond. Improvements promised but never delivered. Follow-up non-existant.