Re: expensive products. Micros charges about $3000 for a terminal, we're charging $1500 for the first one ($999 for our app + $500 iPad) and $500 (per iPad) apiece after. Not to mention the iPod is really just as good for servers taking orders.
Big features? Price, wireless connectivity, commodity hardware. I can't lie and pretend we're as rock solid as Micros, and I'd like to charge a fair price. $999 is low in my opinion, but not that low.
1) Price is never, ever, ever, ever a feature. Price is determined by the features (it is the other side of the equation).
2) I haven't done market research, but are you telling me no other POS has wireless?
3) Who will provide iPods? How many will be lost or broken, this seems to add additional expense.
4) As a potential pivot, could you enable your system to run in restaurants with no servers, just food runners and have patrons order the food themselves? There is competition here as well, but it is less entrenched and probably easier to displace.
1) Fair, but to a restaurant owner who is staring at Micros package X that is $15K for a basic two terminal + a few printers set up, we look pretty darn good.
2) Not reasonably priced. I know Micros does, but their handhelds are propietary hardware that costs in multiples of iPod touches. Their terminals are, again, in multiples of iPads.
3) Up to the restaurant. They don't get broken, them 'walking off' is an issue, but a management issue. If you have 3 at 5 PM, you better have 3 at 10 PM or your staff has to answer.
4) Certainly, but I'm not a big fan of that because it compounds issue #3 dramatically and I'm not sure any restaurant would want to do that. Also, it would require a dramatic 'prettying up' of the UI to make it more lively.
Big features? Price, wireless connectivity, commodity hardware. I can't lie and pretend we're as rock solid as Micros, and I'd like to charge a fair price. $999 is low in my opinion, but not that low.
Thank you for your feedback!