Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on August 27, 2010 at 2:33pm

We will talk more about this Mike. I'm not sure if what I'm talking about quite exists in the drive thru industry yet. Your 85% on track with what I am thinking. Like you pointed out though it mostly depends on customer training. I do believe what I'm thinking about would really speed up lines drive thru or not. I'll look you up at the show or contact you directly on this.
Joe

Mike Spence said:

You mean like when a customer comes up, either swipe (magcard) or scan (barcode) the users card? That would then pull up the account and show you the last order? Then on close out deduct the amount from the card?

We have done that for years. . . I usually tell people it's a matter of "training" your customers (horrible way to say it I know!). I'm a fan of it because in a busy environment it can move the flow along .

I believe (off memory here so bear with me) that CSM does this by going to the register screen, customer and entering the id - that then pulls up a standing order for them?

Are you thinking of mounting the cs outside so the customer does it? I have had a customer do that but it was a little involved depending on the weather. I'd love to talk more about this at the show! Our ideas have to come from our customers . . . I don't own a coffee shop :)

Joseph Robertson said:

I do have a card swipe need that I have not found a solution to yet. I will talk in depth at the show if I get to see you there. Basicly I would like my customers to be able to swipe their cards over a scanner to pull up their acct. A scanner that works in conjunction with the system. Just something to ponder on. This would be especially benificial at a drive thru station. Point of interest here, I no longer am bound by my current POS provider, we could not afford their support package.

Mike Spence said:

Thanks Joe, After 16 years of doing POS with SelbySoft, I feel that we finally hit our stride when we found the coffee industry 7-8 years ago. I'm excited about the directions the industry is headed and the ways that we plan on helping with some of them. Bx is where we usually find customers that match what we are all about as well - it's why I sponsor the site!

BTW, are you coming to Seattle for the Coffee Fest? If so, stop and say hi or I'm sure I'll see you at a Bx function.

Joseph Robertson said:

Mike,
Thanks for your chime and your time here. I for one know what you mean about passion for your business. My passion for coffee is only matched by my passion for people. People like you who feel the same. I plan on opening more coffee shops so this cutting edge information you have here is exactly what I'm looking as a business owner.
Thanks again,
Joe

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Spence on August 27, 2010 at 2:40pm

Hey Joe, With our software we can have you swipe the customer card (barcode or magswipe), pull up the last order for the customer and allow a duplication of the order. The balance can then be taken off the card as well. We allow tracking of names, emails, phone numbers as well.

I think CSM (and I'm quoting from memory here) does it by hitting register, customer, and then entering an id. I think they have a standing order capability there as well but not sure about the overall functionality.

I like this system because it can speed the line along. I do have a customer that put one outside his drive thru but it was dependent on the weather. Let's talk in Seattle about this more!
Mike.
Joseph Robertson said:

I do have a card swipe need that I have not found a solution to yet. I will talk in depth at the show if I get to see you there. Basicly I would like my customers to be able to swipe their cards over a scanner to pull up their acct. A scanner that works in conjunction with the system. Just something to ponder on. This would be especially benificial at a drive thru station. Point of interest here, I no longer am bound by my current POS provider, we could not afford their support package.

Mike Spence said:

Thanks Joe, After 16 years of doing POS with SelbySoft, I feel that we finally hit our stride when we found the coffee industry 7-8 years ago. I'm excited about the directions the industry is headed and the ways that we plan on helping with some of them. Bx is where we usually find customers that match what we are all about as well - it's why I sponsor the site!

BTW, are you coming to Seattle for the Coffee Fest? If so, stop and say hi or I'm sure I'll see you at a Bx function.

Joseph Robertson said:

Mike,
Thanks for your chime and your time here. I for one know what you mean about passion for your business. My passion for coffee is only matched by my passion for people. People like you who feel the same. I plan on opening more coffee shops so this cutting edge information you have here is exactly what I'm looking as a business owner.
Thanks again,
Joe

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on August 27, 2010 at 5:13pm

Yes, mike. Your pretty much dialed in with the customer loyalty card functionality. One thing as an owner / operator day to day user, it does not take long to see the short comings of the system as it is built and programed. I'm not a programer or software guy but I have built computers for many years because, well it's an old passion of mine plus I could built in any thing that was missing from over the counter systems. Not to mention I have complete control over the quality of the components I was sourcing for the project.
Most morning coffee people want their coffee and just a little quicker than most barista's can provide it. With that thought in mind, how can we get the $ exchange done quick so the drink can go out the window or door as fast as possible. I'm talking a one person station as I discuss this as you probably guessed.

Mike Spence said:

Hey Joe, With our software we can have you swipe the customer card (barcode or magswipe), pull up the last order for the customer and allow a duplication of the order. The balance can then be taken off the card as well. We allow tracking of names, emails, phone numbers as well.

I think CSM (and I'm quoting from memory here) does it by hitting register, customer, and then entering an id. I think they have a standing order capability there as well but not sure about the overall functionality.

I like this system because it can speed the line along. I do have a customer that put one outside his drive thru but it was dependent on the weather. Let's talk in Seattle about this more!
Mike.
Joseph Robertson said:

I do have a card swipe need that I have not found a solution to yet. I will talk in depth at the show if I get to see you there. Basicly I would like my customers to be able to swipe their cards over a scanner to pull up their acct. A scanner that works in conjunction with the system. Just something to ponder on. This would be especially benificial at a drive thru station. Point of interest here, I no longer am bound by my current POS provider, we could not afford their support package.

Mike Spence said:

Thanks Joe, After 16 years of doing POS with SelbySoft, I feel that we finally hit our stride when we found the coffee industry 7-8 years ago. I'm excited about the directions the industry is headed and the ways that we plan on helping with some of them. Bx is where we usually find customers that match what we are all about as well - it's why I sponsor the site!

BTW, are you coming to Seattle for the Coffee Fest? If so, stop and say hi or I'm sure I'll see you at a Bx function.

Joseph Robertson said:

Mike,
Thanks for your chime and your time here. I for one know what you mean about passion for your business. My passion for coffee is only matched by my passion for people. People like you who feel the same. I plan on opening more coffee shops so this cutting edge information you have here is exactly what I'm looking as a business owner.
Thanks again,
Joe

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on August 27, 2010 at 5:19pm

Mike,
I'm not changing the subject here as much as running more questions by you.
After we spent 5K for our POS system I told my partner that I could have piece mealed a system together for much less by purchasing the software and hardware separately. She came back with "Don't TELL me that" Well I shut up after that.
Looking back I'm glad we did what we did because I did not need another project so slow our flow to our Grand Opening.
After all that introduction, do you sell your software package to go with already operating or built systems? I would assume but I'm learned that is not a safe practice.
Joe

Mike Spence said:

You mean like when a customer comes up, either swipe (magcard) or scan (barcode) the users card? That would then pull up the account and show you the last order? Then on close out deduct the amount from the card?

We have done that for years. . . I usually tell people it's a matter of "training" your customers (horrible way to say it I know!). I'm a fan of it because in a busy environment it can move the flow along .

I believe (off memory here so bear with me) that CSM does this by going to the register screen, customer and entering the id - that then pulls up a standing order for them?

Are you thinking of mounting the cs outside so the customer does it? I have had a customer do that but it was a little involved depending on the weather. I'd love to talk more about this at the show! Our ideas have to come from our customers . . . I don't own a coffee shop :)

Joseph Robertson said:

I do have a card swipe need that I have not found a solution to yet. I will talk in depth at the show if I get to see you there. Basicly I would like my customers to be able to swipe their cards over a scanner to pull up their acct. A scanner that works in conjunction with the system. Just something to ponder on. This would be especially benificial at a drive thru station. Point of interest here, I no longer am bound by my current POS provider, we could not afford their support package.

Mike Spence said:

Thanks Joe, After 16 years of doing POS with SelbySoft, I feel that we finally hit our stride when we found the coffee industry 7-8 years ago. I'm excited about the directions the industry is headed and the ways that we plan on helping with some of them. Bx is where we usually find customers that match what we are all about as well - it's why I sponsor the site!

BTW, are you coming to Seattle for the Coffee Fest? If so, stop and say hi or I'm sure I'll see you at a Bx function.

Joseph Robertson said:

Mike,
Thanks for your chime and your time here. I for one know what you mean about passion for your business. My passion for coffee is only matched by my passion for people. People like you who feel the same. I plan on opening more coffee shops so this cutting edge information you have here is exactly what I'm looking as a business owner.
Thanks again,
Joe

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mike Spence on August 27, 2010 at 6:58pm

Joe and everyone else - sorry about the double reply earlier. I was not paying attention and thought I had accidently canceled the earlier one. Joe as to the system . . . we should talk more about this. We do sell software only - there are a number of things to watch for (compatibility being one). I'm comfortable doing this if a customer has the skill set for the equipment. Our fear is the customer that has zero computer knowledge and then orders a cheap computer from best buy and expects us to completely configure windows, security, trouble shoot hardware issues etc. In those cases it does not make sense.

If you want to talk off line about some specifics let me know!

Joseph Robertson said:

Mike,
I'm not changing the subject here as much as running more questions by you.
After we spent 5K for our POS system I told my partner that I could have piece mealed a system together for much less by purchasing the software and hardware separately. She came back with "Don't TELL me that" Well I shut up after that.
Looking back I'm glad we did what we did because I did not need another project so slow our flow to our Grand Opening.
After all that introduction, do you sell your software package to go with already operating or built systems? I would assume but I'm learned that is not a safe practice.
Joe

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on August 27, 2010 at 7:07pm

Mike,
Thank you, I know your concerns and I would have the same ones.
We will talk more.
Joe

Mike Spence said:

Joe and everyone else - sorry about the double reply earlier. I was not paying attention and thought I had accidently canceled the earlier one. Joe as to the system . . . we should talk more about this. We do sell software only - there are a number of things to watch for (compatibility being one). I'm comfortable doing this if a customer has the skill set for the equipment. Our fear is the customer that has zero computer knowledge and then orders a cheap computer from best buy and expects us to completely configure windows, security, trouble shoot hardware issues etc. In those cases it does not make sense.

If you want to talk off line about some specifics let me know!

Joseph Robertson said:

Mike,
I'm not changing the subject here as much as running more questions by you.
After we spent 5K for our POS system I told my partner that I could have piece mealed a system together for much less by purchasing the software and hardware separately. She came back with "Don't TELL me that" Well I shut up after that.
Looking back I'm glad we did what we did because I did not need another project so slow our flow to our Grand Opening.
After all that introduction, do you sell your software package to go with already operating or built systems? I would assume but I'm learned that is not a safe practice.
Joe

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