Instore Software

It's been a journey

Nice folks. If not for the fact that we're tied in to the gift cards that we've sold, we would probably experiment with different POS options. We're not convinced that other apps are better, we suspect that they all have pluses and minuses. But it would be nice to have the freedom to explore a bit more.

Pros

Generally speaking, it does what we need it to do in a way that makes sense.
We often go months without thinking about it or worrying about it.
The team at Instore genuinely cares, and while they don't listen to all of our feedback, we can see that our feedback has led to improvement.

Cons

I don't think the back end is robust enough. Sometimes it's impossible to download reports because the server times out before it processes and packages the reports.
We've never felt that the "end of day" functionality made much sense.
We'd like more flexibility with how it interacts with individual staff members.
Sometimes changes are made without us being informed that don't feel like improvements.
It would be nice if there were more flexibility in settings about how the app is set up.

Excellent POS for Bar Based Businesses

For the money, its hard to beat Instore as a great POS system for our cigar bar.

Pros

The user interface of Instore is very simple to use. The way it presents categories and then items in those categories allows for fast input of orders for customers. The recently added Tab feature allows us to store credit card numbers without having to hold customers cards for tabs they want to run. The ability to add employee payroll cost, as well as COGS allows you to quickly see what your true profit for the day was after each shift closing.

Cons

The reporting system isn't as robust as I'd like, however the basic reporting does provide you with access to most items. I'd like to see more details around breakdown of sales per hour and day, etc.

My experience with Instore is overall favorable, but not without some frustrations

THANKS FOR ADDING TABS!!!!!

Pros

I like that usually when I call for assistance, I get a response within an hour. I also appreciate the ease of adjusting items through the back end of things. The ability to control tax on each item has also been vital to being able to use the system for my business.

Cons

The system isn't as intuitive as it could be. I'd also like to see more specifics in terms of back end reporting.

Easy, Intuitive - iPad Based POS Application for Restaurants and Retail

The folks behind this software know what they do well and understand their limitations. They do not "over sell" and provide great support.

Pros

Very Easy to Learn!
Great Reporting!
Great Customer Service!
They have a nice size install base with "real world reference cases".

Cons

Not ready for Multi-Unit use quite yet but close. Would like to see a Kitchen Video Display solution for restaurants.

Great POS program

At times when updates have occurred some information has been lost or repositioned

Pros

Its'simicity yet able to handle just about everything. Easy to make adjustments when necessary and communication with tech support is fast!

Cons

The lack of control we have over the rewards program, points, etc. I want to be able to handle customer issues immediately

Competitive

Overall great system. Just need better communication with in store reps.

Pros

Price and full control of menu everything is done in store. No need to contact anyone or call unless it’s really bad

Cons

I feel that the Credit card processing is a bit off. I would gave power outages often and also lost lots of money on offline processing.

Perfect for our shop

Pros

The Instore team is responsive to our needs and problems. Many times when I have had an issue, I have called to find them in the final stages of an update to resolve that very problem. They have a robust system that is very easy to use for our coffee shop. Menu updates are simple and can be pushed out immediately. Employee timesheets are kept automatically. They are worth every penny of our subscription, and I especially appreciate the use of third party hardware. We saved literally thousands of dollars in hardware alone. Bottom line: Instore is clean, easy to operate, easy to update, and simple. It's one less thing to consume my very limited time.

Cons

Some of the finer points of the software are a little clunky, such as item modifier management, and some of the backend is less user-friendly than desired. But again, I've been informed that a major backend overhaul is in the works to address these very issues. As far as complaints about the Vendor themselves, I have none!

Ease of use and great customer service!

Pros

The ability to see your companies daily and monthly sales. Customer service is great and they respond quickly when problems arise.

Cons

Have not been able to figure out how to assign a cashier to each register transaction. This is something that is needed to track cash loss prevention.

GREAT POS FOR A SMALL SHOP

Customer service communication via email is great. Everyone is very accommodating and helpful.

Pros

It has all the features we need for a small cheese/wine/beer shop. Very easy to use, clean and simple user face. We sell cheese so the integrated scale is extremely useful. Not many other POS systems have integrated scale. Instore is always working on updates to improve the POS system. Since we've been using the system, they've added a new feature on sales tax which is quite useful for when we need to file sales tax.

Cons

There are a few features that we would like to have -- I can't easily get a master list of all my inventory, a request would have to be sent to the engineers and it takes a few days to turnaround. Customer service is great through email but not as helpful when we have issues in real time. Normally, can't reach anyone on the phone, would have to leave vmail or email and have someone return your call within 24 hrs.

Instore

Pros

I like the emails we get about updates & the interface. For the most part it's really easy to use and the FAQ are very helpful.

Cons

It's not always the most intuitive POS system. It took a long time got an update to be created that allowed us to start tabs.

Overall Good product but could be much better.

Pros

Ease of use and stability. System rarely has any problems and the credit card processing is stable.

Cons

Key features missing for food service business. Missing ingredient level inventory and a feature to track waste so that your end of day numbers are exact.

So Happy in Austin

Support is great and I’m so happy I chose instore for our first shop!

Pros

Ease of use, detail of reports, reward system is loved by most, hold orders are very convenient and the overall look!

Cons

That there is no FINAL screen after the customer signs or pays . . . Something to say, “Thank you! See you tomorrow”
Customers are often confused and say, “am I done?” When it jumps to the next order screen

Good, not bad for start up

I love the rewards.

Pros

It is very easy to create an item. Once created you can easily send it right to the pos from anywhere. I don’t always have to be at my store to up date.

Cons

There is not a very good inventory system. Or maybe it is just difficult to understand. I find myself guessing what I need because the system doesn’t let me track it.

Overall the system is fairly easy to use.

I don’t like the fact that you don’t need to open a shift in order to sell.

Pros

It’s Easy to use. You can take the iPad anywhere. I like having the employee hours on the same system.

Cons

The individual shift reports. I would like more detail on the individual’s shift, not just cash, When there’s more than one shift open on the same date at the same time.

Does Pretty Good

I like the Instore product it is easy to use, they are constantly updating it with new features, and I like the metrics it measures. However, I am afraid my business might be a bit too busy for it to keep up with.

Pros

The overall product is very clean and intuitive. It was easy to program and is easy for my employees to learn how to use.

Cons

I have a small soda fountain and when we get busy during peak hours, the system will occasionally lag. This can be very frustrating when we have a line out the door and need to pick up the pace.

Needs more features

No

Pros

It is easy to use but needs to add more features, such as an ability to hold and sort orders. This is vital for a business that takes orders for a few weeks out.

Cons

The iPad and system together are very glitchy (I don’t know if they sell used iPads) but within six months our system became very hard to work with.

It's good to start

It needs to be easier to add inventory. Ounces, containers etc.

Pros

It's easy to train employees on and easy to navigate. I like that I can see the daily reports on my phone.

Cons

My accountant doesn't like the profit and loss report at all. He said it's not a true profit and loss report.

Like it but don’t love it

Pros

Reports are good and what I can see remotely with regards to sales

Cons

Grayscale, not really user friendliness

Good value but we have had to work out some "bugs" the good news is support fixes problems quickly.

We are happy with the system and we are hoping that because we have had bugs worked out so quickly that that is a sign that the software is still evolving and can grow with us!

Pros

The customer support is really good. We communicate problems with a customer representative and he gets right back to us!

Cons

Just some "bugs" in the system and times that there is a syncing delay with the two terminals we have.

Easy to use and fast to setup

good experience with my first POS ever used.

Pros

multiple locations, ability to set up different items at each location, all in one registers available

Cons

layout need to be changed to make more user friendly. I have a large menu with many categories where more category space would have been useful