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Lightspeed Retail vs. Strategy Analytics vs. Aloha Cloud

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Lightspeed Retail

    Score9.2 out of 10
    N/ALightspeed Retail is a retail PoS system from Lightspeed headquartered in Quebec. Core retail POS features are expanded on higher service tiers with ecommerce option and payments gateway, an accounting system, and a customer loyalty program.N/A

    Strategy Analytics

    Score8.4 out of 10
    N/AMicroStrategy Analytics is an enterprise business analytics and mobility platform. Key features include automatic big data analysis and reporting, data discovery and visualization, digital security credentials, and support for mobile devices.N/A

    Aloha Cloud

    Score7.3 out of 10
    N/AAloha POS is a point-of-sale software solution with features such as highest market share in the industry and streamline food preparation and delivery.N/A
    Pricing
    Lightspeed RetailStrategy AnalyticsAloha Cloud
    Editions & Modules
    Basic
    $79.00 ($69.00)
    per month (when billed annually)
    Starter
    $119.00 ($99.00)
    per month (when billed annually)
    Standard
    $139.00 ($119.00)
    per month (when billed annually)
    Advanced
    $189.00 ($169.00)
    per month (when billed annually)
    Pro
    $259.00 ($229.00)
    per month (when billed annually)
    Enterprise
    Contact Sales
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Lightspeed RetailStrategy AnalyticsAloha Cloud
    Free Trial
    NoNoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsMust contact sales team for pricing information.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Lightspeed RetailStrategy AnalyticsAloha Cloud
    Considered Multiple Products
    Lightspeed
    No answer on this topic
    Strategy
    No answer on this topic
    NCR VOYIX
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    60%
    Would buy again
    6 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    70%
    Delivers good value for the price
    7 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    70%
    Happy with the feature set
    7 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    70%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    7 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    80%
    Implementation went as expected
    8 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    Lightspeed RetailStrategy AnalyticsAloha Cloud
    BI Standard Reporting
    Comparison of BI Standard Reporting features of Lightspeed Retail and Strategy Analytics and Aloha Cloud
    Feature
    Lightspeed Retail
    -
    Ratings
    Strategy Analytics
    10.0
    26 Ratings
    20% above category average
    Aloha Cloud
    -
    Ratings
    Pixel Perfect reports00 Ratings10.023 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customizable dashboards00 Ratings10.023 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Formatting Templates00 Ratings10.024 Ratings00 Ratings
    Ad-hoc Reporting
    Comparison of Ad-hoc Reporting features of Lightspeed Retail and Strategy Analytics and Aloha Cloud
    Feature
    Lightspeed Retail
    -
    Ratings
    Strategy Analytics
    10.0
    24 Ratings
    22% above category average
    Aloha Cloud
    -
    Ratings
    Drill-down analysis00 Ratings10.022 Ratings00 Ratings
    Formatting capabilities00 Ratings10.024 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integration with R or other statistical packages00 Ratings10.016 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report sharing and collaboration00 Ratings10.023 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Output and Scheduling
    Comparison of Report Output and Scheduling features of Lightspeed Retail and Strategy Analytics and Aloha Cloud
    Feature
    Lightspeed Retail
    -
    Ratings
    Strategy Analytics
    10.0
    23 Ratings
    20% above category average
    Aloha Cloud
    -
    Ratings
    Publish to Web00 Ratings10.022 Ratings00 Ratings
    Publish to PDF00 Ratings10.023 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Versioning00 Ratings10.020 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Delivery Scheduling00 Ratings10.022 Ratings00 Ratings
    Delivery to Remote Servers00 Ratings10.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Data Discovery and Visualization
    Comparison of Data Discovery and Visualization features of Lightspeed Retail and Strategy Analytics and Aloha Cloud
    Feature
    Lightspeed Retail
    -
    Ratings
    Strategy Analytics
    10.0
    22 Ratings
    22% above category average
    Aloha Cloud
    -
    Ratings
    Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)00 Ratings10.020 Ratings00 Ratings
    Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization00 Ratings10.019 Ratings00 Ratings
    Predictive Analytics00 Ratings10.018 Ratings00 Ratings
    Pattern Recognition and Data Mining00 Ratings10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Access Control and Security
    Comparison of Access Control and Security features of Lightspeed Retail and Strategy Analytics and Aloha Cloud
    Feature
    Lightspeed Retail
    -
    Ratings
    Strategy Analytics
    10.0
    21 Ratings
    16% above category average
    Aloha Cloud
    -
    Ratings
    Multi-User Support (named login)00 Ratings10.019 Ratings00 Ratings
    Role-Based Security Model00 Ratings10.020 Ratings00 Ratings
    Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)00 Ratings10.020 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report-Level Access Control00 Ratings10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Single Sign-On (SSO)00 Ratings10.09 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile Capabilities
    Comparison of Mobile Capabilities features of Lightspeed Retail and Strategy Analytics and Aloha Cloud
    Feature
    Lightspeed Retail
    -
    Ratings
    Strategy Analytics
    9.7
    19 Ratings
    22% above category average
    Aloha Cloud
    -
    Ratings
    Responsive Design for Web Access00 Ratings10.019 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile Application00 Ratings10.015 Ratings00 Ratings
    Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile00 Ratings10.019 Ratings00 Ratings
    Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding
    Comparison of Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding features of Lightspeed Retail and Strategy Analytics and Aloha Cloud
    Feature
    Lightspeed Retail
    -
    Ratings
    Strategy Analytics
    10.0
    8 Ratings
    25% above category average
    Aloha Cloud
    -
    Ratings
    REST API00 Ratings10.06 Ratings00 Ratings
    Javascript API00 Ratings10.07 Ratings00 Ratings
    iFrames00 Ratings10.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Java API00 Ratings10.04 Ratings00 Ratings
    Themeable User Interface (UI)00 Ratings10.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customizable Platform (Open Source)00 Ratings10.06 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Lightspeed RetailStrategy AnalyticsAloha Cloud
    Small Businesses
    Square POS
    Score9 out of 10
    Cyfe
    Score4 out of 10
    Lightspeed Restaurant
    Score9.9 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    No answers on this topic
    Qlik Cloud Analytics (Qlik Sense)
    Score8.2 out of 10
    Toast Point of Sale
    Score8 out of 10
    Enterprises
    No answers on this topic
    Jaspersoft Community Edition
    Score7 out of 10
    No answers on this topic
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Lightspeed RetailStrategy AnalyticsAloha Cloud
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.5
    (15 ratings)
    10.0
    (50 ratings)
    8.8
    (8 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.9
    (27 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    9.5
    (3 ratings)
    3.2
    (5 ratings)
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.8
    (4 ratings)
    2.2
    (5 ratings)
    8.5
    (3 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (4 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Data Sharing and Collaboration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (21 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Data Sources
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.8
    (21 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Lightspeed RetailStrategy AnalyticsAloha Cloud
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Lightspeed
    It is perfect for any small business looking for inventory control, Tracking purchase history, and just an all round easy to use software for retail and beyond. I would not use it if I have only a few hundred items or was a larger company that can afford to build my own POS software.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Strategy
    MSTR is great for any organization that is looking for a way to deliver complicated data in an uncomplicated way. From business teams to marketing and finance, several departments benefit from using MSTR to keep track of KPIs enabling teams to make optimizations along the way. MSTR provides great visual representations of data enabling team members to distill thousands of data points into easily digestible charts and graphs
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    NCR VOYIX
    Aloha POS is well suited for any kind of full-service restaurant, from high volume establishments to low volume, intimate fine dining settings. The universality to the system makes it an asset for any operation. I don't see much need for Aloha POS when it comes to fast casual, or fast food establishments, as Aloha POS is geared more toward constant communication and planning between the front of house service and back of house prep. For counter service, I believe this would be underutilized, and these establishments would be fine with a simpler service.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Lightspeed
    • Lightspeed Retail has great reports that are very easy to read and understand.
    • Lightspeed Retail is great to train new employees on because of its ease of use. There are not lots of different things that you have to learn just basics.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Strategy
    • They sell the product well, and make promises you will actually believe
    • "checks the box" for most features a company would need. Doesn't actually deliver them though
    • They answer the phone in a timely manner. Can't answer your questions or provide support, but the queue time isn't bad
    • They have online documentation. It's not up to date, and likely doesn't reflect the version of software you are using, but hey... they can point to it.
    Read full review
    NCR VOYIX
    • Extremely user-friendly. The layout and simplicity of the program made for fast, accurate transactions. This was an easy system to learn for all of our users and made training a much more streamlined process.
    • Versatility - even in the largest of transactions, my options for payment were wide-ranging (from charging to house accounts to accepting check, cash, or card). My ability to update price keys and users was extremely helpful where other systems have proven to be difficult to navigate.
    • Great support. As we transitioned to newer versions of Aloha, we always had a great line of communication with customer support, and fast, friendly service.
    Incentivized
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    Cons
    Lightspeed
    • With a larger SKU assortment size, the software really starts to struggle with doing physical inventory after scanning in a few hundred items.
    • Several times throughout each year Lightspeed went down on us (not our internet connection but actually Lightspeed verified).
    • Special order system could use a lot of modern improvements (ability to schedule ahead of time, etc.)
    • Reports are very basic, and will likely require there Lightspeed Analytics to actually get reports useful for day to day operations.
    • Weak system for receiving purchase orders.
    • Does not handle items and cases for reordering very well. Have used multiple Point of Sale systems in the past 10 years that allow to set reorder points based on single items, but reorder the case automatically, Lightspeed has no support for this.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Strategy
    • The graph options are not as robust as an Excel user might want.
    • The metadata layer can sometimes be slower, and it takes a long time for reports to run.
    • Viewing the data feed entered can be cumbersome at times, in terms of validation with reports.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    NCR VOYIX
    • Sometimes you need tech support to help add or delete tabs.
    • The programs are always growing and updating so sometimes you need assistance.
    • The tech support isn't always available or takes time for them to respond.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Lightspeed
    No answers on this topic
    Strategy
    I would always choose to renew MicroStrategy as long as they lead the market in features, functionality and price. The support of MicroStrategy is timely and professional, I frequently get answers to my questions within 24 hours and normally have solutions within 48 hours. Training available for MicroStrategy completely covers everything required to be able to expertly use MicroStrategy and understand data warehousing.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    NCR VOYIX
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    Lightspeed
    Simply well designed with obvious icons per component, making it easy to interface with.
    Incentivized
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    Strategy
    The standard grid reporting could look more like the styling and object used for the Import and Visual Insight products. In addition, object properties almost seem to be hidden when first using the product. It's as if they are asking the engineers to only use the presets we make available...and, these presets are 10+ years old. On the positive side, Microstrategy seems to be the only product, not named Cognos, which can scale to Big Data. The product is "hackable" via the SDK or tricking the Intelligence Server to do uncommon things. The Microstrategy development team also seems to be very involved with their OEM partners; especially when it comes to features and enhancements. A large majority of the improvements we suggested have made it into the product or on the roadmap for future enhancements. Only suckas fall for the shiny objects from most other vendors; Microstrategy is really the only choice for Enterprise BI.
    Read full review
    NCR VOYIX
    Overall, Aloha POS's usability is phenomenal. The interface is extremely easy to navigate through. All buttons and tabs are easy to add or delete. Having a piece of software that is easy to toggle through creates a much more efficient workplace. I love the ease of use. A brand new employee can jump right into the system and use it with no issues.
    Incentivized
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    Reliability and Availability
    Lightspeed
    No answers on this topic
    Strategy
    I've never had an issue with MicroStrategy not being available due to MicroStrategy application malfunction. It is very robust and only failures I've seen were due to user error or the platform the machine running the service failed some how.
    Incentivized
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    NCR VOYIX
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Lightspeed
    No answers on this topic
    Strategy
    Being able to customize the performance based on the business need is extremely powerful. Proper configuration and understanding of the usage pattern is key, if the technical ability of the architect is not at top level, then the product will not be configured correctly which will lead to poor performance.
    Incentivized
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    NCR VOYIX
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Lightspeed
    I gave the rating of a 9 because ninety percent of the time when I talk to their support they're very helpful. One of the only real issues I have is there are times where the queue will be 7-9 people deep. When you have an error you don't know how to fix, sometimes this is very troubling. But overall their support is usually quick and friendly.
    Incentivized
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    Strategy
    Good user community. Support team is available if you are under AMC. You get decent support after raising the support ticket. If it is product bug they will inform you and let you know which patch will resolve the same.
    Incentivized
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    NCR VOYIX
    There were a lot of instances where I had to call back or a problem wasn't resolved, specifically with Aloha loyalty.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Lightspeed
    No answers on this topic
    Strategy
    I have attended many trainings offered by MicroStrategy; both distance and in-person training. I earned my CRD (Certified Report Developer) certification via the online training. I found the training to be well organized and concise. Overall I will definitely continue to increase my knowledge with MicroStrategy via the online training offering.
    Read full review
    NCR VOYIX
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Lightspeed
    No answers on this topic
    Strategy
    We measured following KPI for the success
    • Increase in Business Feeds Loads
    • Reduction in Controllers Manual Work.
    • Conversion of Manual Work into Systematic Workflows.
    • Increase in Customer Spend
    • Reduction in Service costs
    • Reduction in time-to-market for new campaigns
    • Increase in cross sell and Up sell
    • Error reduction in customer Identification
    • Existing client retained
    Incentivized
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    NCR VOYIX
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Lightspeed
    Lightspeed is faster, sleeker and more modern than our previous POS system. I can’t express enough how easy the online store portion of Lightspeed is - it just intuitive and sometimes, is TOO easy, I feel like I have to be forgetting something. Lightspeed is staying modern and current where our previous POS was not
    Incentivized
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    Strategy
    Tableau is probably MicroStrategy Analytic's biggest competitor I've noticed over time, and I'm not sure why. Tableau only covers visualizations independently for each business user, which then creates the issues of every employee creating their own version of the data, and then you have 20 versions of the truth. A enterprise data warehouse and MicroStrategy's Visual Insight is a better method.
    Incentivized
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    NCR VOYIX
    Aloha is much better than Revel and MICROS. Revel is not set up to handle very large volume of transactions & use. Aloha has many more features than the other two, with more thorough reports, etc. I personally have used ALOHA at several restaurants through the years, but I have never been a part of the implementation process.
    Incentivized
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    Scalability
    Lightspeed
    No answers on this topic
    Strategy
    This software is extremely scaleable, one can add more core servers which performs as a load balancing. The configurations available to manage usage patterns and daily activity are as high a caliber as any other enterprise level software. This product can be installed on both a windows and unix platform allow for integration on a budget.
    Incentivized
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    NCR VOYIX
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Lightspeed
    • Certainly has saved money on cash-outs/ accounting due to QuickBooks integration.
    • Faster processing through tills means happier customers and more sales per hour.
    • Expensive product at $5K a year has taken away some profitability for this small business. It's way, way over priced.
    Read full review
    Strategy
    • MicroStrategy was helpful for reducing the amount of time we needed to spend number crunching large data sets, and in doing so, allowed me as the primary users to spend more time gleaning insights from the data that in turn informed our leadership team to make strategic decisions.
    • By creating numerous canned reports available to all members of the team through email distribution or basic access to the platform, we were able to reduce the time I spent showing people how to pull the data in Microsoft Excel by nearly 40% .
    • We ended up needing to make many changes to the way our DMP was feeding data into MicroStrategy due to incorrect reporting that caused complications in accounting and finance.
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    NCR VOYIX
    • Through reprint, we were able to identify an issue around drink sales and create a plan to increase them.
    • We were able to speed up the check-out process, allowing us to move people through faster.
    Incentivized
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    ScreenShots

    Aloha Cloud Screenshots

    Screenshot of Aloha bundle