Lightspeed

Pros

I like that all departments are integrated.

Cons

Quirks that are different from previous Lightspeed platforms. Off the top of my head the precheck report is cumbersome and hard to read. It is annoying when writing a group of checks. I have to mark the checks in Preview to verify the totals then I have repeat the process in Pay Invoices only there is no total to balance to. Many times I thought I checked a vendor but unless I go slowly and watch to see if it actually checked the vendor I may have missed a vendor. There should be number of checks to be written and dollar total. I wish they put a first and a last name field in security. I cannot alphabetize my timecard reports by last name. I have to settle for first name. I switched it and then their name looks weird on invoices. Not to mention I have an employee with 2 first names and another with the same first name as one with a first name as his last name!
I wish I could refund service contract tax on a sales deal when processing a cancellation refund. It is not acceptable to run it through parts when it is a commissionable sales department transaction. I have a work around but it is lengthy and time consuming.
These are things that come to mind. I could keep going.

Pros

That it integrates with lots of other programs/websites that we were already using. That it works for all of the facets of our business, with room for us to grow into as well (additional modules that can be purchased). Love that pricing can be automatically updated, both in the parts module and the major unit module. The scheduler for our service department has worked wonderfully. The colour coding in the estimates and repair order screen is awesome at helping us stay organized. At a glance, the sales team can tell how many deals have a deposit or at what part in the sales process a lead may be at. I love that similar parts can be tied together (think multiple supplier selling the exact same part - you can see if you have inventory for that one part)
Our service team appreciated the app for repair orders - clocking on and off a job, entering notes, etc. The service advisor can just simply copy and paste notes into the repair order then edit as needed

Cons

Our staff tend to leave Lightspeed open, logged off or locked out, but open. We don't know an update it going to happen until we come in the next morning to find Lightspeed shut down for the update. We don't necessarily lose information, but we tend to leave RO's or Invoices open to remind ourselves to complete a certain task or update information, etc. So that pseudo reminder gets lost.
Anytime we have a price update, the package priced items don't get the proper retail price for the individual item (cost gets calculated correctly), so we have to manually go through those listings to correct... due to the shear qty of packaged products (think fuel hose, bilge hose, fasteners, bulk oil, etc.), I end up waiting for someone to tell me the parts record needs to get updated because they're trying to sell it. We've spoken to tech support numerous times about this issue and after years of complaints, we still do not have a solution.
For Canadian dealers, we seem to have to figure out a bunch of workarounds. For example, we can't enter in the HST on sublet invoices through the RO's because the software isn't developed properly for some reason (not an issue apparently for American dealers). Some features aren't available to Canadian dealers, like the ability to call a customer through the program. Recently an exchange calculator of sorts has been implemented, but it still doesn't really serve us the way we were used to with Sage

Pros

capable of keeping certain employees out of certain areas with security requirements

Cons

There are many features that this software doesn't have that seem pretty common sense for a power sports dms. Getting help when you really need it takes forever. The chat was taken away. They close your case before actually giving you a fix many times. Things the system had when we first started no longer there. The fact that I can't process a special order in a repair order for something we currently have on hand is frustrating. Many accessories are on display and will not be removed from machines or display walls and need to be ordered as needed. With the change in how manufacturers are fulfilling orders this is a VERY important change that needs to happen. Need to have a pop up on invoices asking if sure want to process a special order (inventory is not always correct). CRM system continues to add customers into our system as a duplicate or not provided as the name and the phone number not in the proper format xxx-xxx-xxxx. need to be able to deactivate customers units. need to be able to delete customers (because of CRM). Parts invoices are confusing to read. no option currently to make a previously ordered item into a special order for someone without undoing the order in L/S and reprocessing.

Pros

It has a good amount of features that are very meaningful .

Cons

Support is Horrible. It is Brutal, Torturous, Ridiculous, and Extremely Stressful.

Implementation of new features including Extra Cost Add-Ons is Terrible. Things don't work as represented, and then you can't get decent support to get things resolved.

Pros

Integration among the modules is mostly complete so there's usually more than one place to look for information.
There are available options in how to manage Inventory, according to the individual company needs.
Many User and WorkStation preferences are available to customize who's working in what area - one example is the printer selection, which can depend on the task and which store you're working in at the moment.
Many defaults are flexible per store within the same parent company. This is an important feature for companies with multiple locations.
The huge Custom Reporting module makes it easy to track and extract almost any combination of factors into one place for easy editing, copying, and sharing.
Entry is user-friendly because the screens are laid out logically.

Cons

Still no way to import or connect a customer-owned unit with Consignment Sales so to sell a customer boat, a duplicate unit has to be created. This inefficiency can also cause confusion.
There are inconsistencies in how information has to be entered into the different modules. It seems as if no single department oversees upgrades and changes to make sure the different modules perform the same way as the others.
The system can to bog down, and there's occasional loss of connection. According to customer service, server upgrades are planned, but the overall time needed is still within an acceptable range.