Do yourselves a favor and NEVER sign up with Mitchell

[mspecperformance]

I absolutely can't stand that company. They are the leader in the market (auto repair shop management software) and arguably the biggest company however move at a snail's pace when it comes to making any sort of productivity or efficiency changes. They know they have a lock on their subscribers so they are just milking the cows for all they are worth. Even through that annoyance the most annoying thing is their billing department. I have heard horror stories from others but from my experience they are absolutely garbage. I had a QB integrator on the account that I had tried to cancel multiple times. I kept on getting billed for it even though it showed in their records that I had cancelled months prior. 

I can't wait to move on from these turds.

 

/end rant

[xrac]

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[Joe Marconi]

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[litljenarey]

We just signed with them. I'd really like some more information on what to watch out for. We looked as a bunch of other systems and I thought this would be good. Is it not?

 

So far I have only gotten the software. What I've found is it comes preloaded with all the stuff you aren't using, and then it runs all those additions in the background and causes the computer to absolutely crawl. (I have to close all those background processes manually.) I have a brand new, custom built top of the line desktop with nothing on it. It should be blazing fast. I couldn't imagine this as an upgrade on an older system.

 

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[Sandyolivo]

We have been using Mitchell TeamWorks for about 2 years now. And I have absolutely no complaint. I feel some of their add-on service are a little bit expensive. But I'm happy with everything I have. Definitely cheaper than RO writer and AllData Manage


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[xrac]

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[mspecperformance]

If you want to be an advanced user the program is absolutely horrible. There are definitely highlights to it however there are so many holes. But regardless of functionality the company itself are a bunch of crooks. I can't wait til the R+W Conference because whoever is repping Mitchell is going to get a piece of my mind.

[mmotley]

I hear a lot of complaints and I agree that Mitchell has room to improve, but is there any alternative software that anyone recommends?

[mspecperformance]

1 hour ago, mmotley said:

I hear a lot of complaints and I agree that Mitchell has room to improve, but is there any alternative software that anyone recommends?

I'll be using Protractor for the new shops and will convert the original store after I have a good familiarity with the program. Its awesome. 

[mmotley]

7 minutes ago, mspecperformance said:

I'll be using Protractor for the new shops and will convert the original store after I have a good familiarity with the program. Its awesome. 

I would love to hear your feedback on protractor once you get it up and running. I've heard good things about it

[mspecperformance]

Just now, mmotley said:

I would love to hear your feedback on protractor once you get it up and running. I've heard good things about it

Hard program to learn but literally everything you ever wanted (psssstttt.... INTEGRATED TIME CLOCK)

[marentetteservice]

What problems are you having? I've been using Mitchell as a tech for over a decade and as an owner for four. It works pretty good for my needs. 

[OTPAuto]

I forget the name of it, but what about the software thats offered by Identifix?

[Top Dog]

I have been using Mitchell for 3 years and no complaints. I call the help desk about once a month to figure stuff out and they are great.

The only thing I don't like is they don't train you on how to use the system. The want you to watch videos. For the money I am spending I would think they could come out and train shops.

[JimO]

I have been using BayMaster shop management software for over six years and I only have good things to say about them. Their support staff is excellent, the program more than meets my needs and it is affordable. They are very receptive to our needs and will listen to suggestions or ideas and implement changes when possible. From my expieriance Mitchell would never take the time to review a suggestion or make a change based on my input. I do use Mitchell Pro Demand information system which for the most part is very good. Over the years I have sent Mitchell numerous messages from within their own program concerning observed mistakes in Pro Demand information or with questions concerning Pro Demand content but they NEVER respond. It is for that reason that I have always been happy that I chose BayMaster over Mitchell for shop management. 

[Jeff]

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[BrianJeffrey]

I agree. I switched from Mitchell to Protractor in November 2015. I love the time clock, parts integration and the accounting all together. We never tracked the parts returns until Protractor, 2nd week I had it a supplier transposed a number and could have cost me $50 on the return, we caught it right away. That would add up over the years. I never tried the Mitchell integrator with quick books, everyone I asked told me it wasn't worth the money and didn't do as much as they wanted. Reporting in protractor is cool, I need more education on excel but will get there. I miss copy and paste and being able to build 3 or 4 estimates that way. I will not go back. Mitchell Enterprise is exactly the same, different people on the support end though FYI. We started the visual inspection integration with Autoserve1 September will be the first month, last week seemed promising from the feedback we received from the few we did a trial on.

[5 Star Auto Spa]

We use Mitchel SMS.  We switched over from All Data Manage.  So far so good for us, crossing our fingers we don't have some of the bad luck that others have stated above.....

[mspecperformance]

I am still in dispute with them over 8 months they charged me for QB integrator for $39 per month. These A-holes even say, "OH... I see that you did cancel but I don't know why you are continuing to be charged..." I am making it my life's mission to convert any shop friends from them. Protractor has been awesome so far at one of our other stores. I can't wait to convert my original store over. I'm going to give these idiots an earful at the RW Conference thats for sure. 

[xrac]

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[mmotley]

3 hours ago, mspecperformance said:

I am still in dispute with them over 8 months they charged me for QB integrator for $39 per month. These A-holes even say, "OH... I see that you did cancel but I don't know why you are continuing to be charged..." I am making it my life's mission to convert any shop friends from them. Protractor has been awesome so far at one of our other stores. I can't wait to convert my original store over. I'm going to give these idiots an earful at the RW Conference thats for sure. 

Adam, have you tried calling Back Office about this? That's probably who you should talk to I think

[marksnyder]

I've heard from one local auto shop owner who uses Mitchell that the Snap-on version of Mitchell, ShopKey Management , has much better support. Can anyone confirm this?

He also said the agreement between Mitchell and Snap-on makes it almost impossible for him to switch to ShopKey.

[PAPShop]

We were promised the rainbow when switching to Mitchell.  We were very specific and some areas we had questions about and were told that they could handle that aspect of what we were looking for.  The guy that came to install the software was a joke.  Knew nothing about computers or how to use the software.  After 2 months of getting information transferred from Quickbooks to get ready to go live..... we jumped in both feet and went live.  Ha.  2 weeks later I quit and walked out of the shop. (I'm the owner's wife and bookkeeper and resident IT person).  I was told over and over by tech support "you can't do that with our software".  It became "stump the dummies" whenever I called them. I think there is a note on our file that I'm the crabby b!tc# when I call. The original integrator was a joke.  We now use The Back Office for Quickbooks integration and it works wonderfully!  When we opened our second shop, the representative that came and installed the software was great and gave a short training and was helpful, it was night and day.  Over a year later and we are still learning how to use the software.   //Rant over**

[3PuttFever]

I signed up for a trial last fall - Shopkey/ProDemand. I use All Data and Identifix also so there was duplication. My CRM and POS software handles my scheduling, inventory, time-clock, and SMS messaging and works great. I cancelled by phone per their instructions. They give me one more month to try it based on my concerns and reasons for cancelling. Now they say the extra month voided out the opt-out option and after four months of nothing they start billing me again. Never explained to me that way or I would have refused the extra month and continued with the original cancellation. I called today and like Xrac detailed, you get nowhere. I'm now sending a letter and will hire an attorney hoping they allow me to cancel without dinging my credit. That's my concern. It's an 'ok' product but nothing more. Their sales tactics are just like software companies of the 1990's and early 2000's. Get a customer excited, make promises, give them an 'out', but then hold them to the contract as if the 'out' really wasn't viable. It's not a huge sum of money but on principle they're not getting away with it if I can avoid it. 

[xrac]

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[mspecperformance]

AMEN!!!!! 

[Jeff]

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[TheTrustedMechanic]

Here is a preposterous suggestion for those who have billing issues with Mitchell that they won't correct.  I say it's preposterous because it involves something so many small business owners think has no use, no value and is onerous.  Try utilizing the government.  Yes, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau can help.  I know, you're told by your favorite radio talk show "Entertainers" that the government is evil, no good and useless.  But it's really there to help in many instances and this could be one of them.  I had a fight with AT&T Yellow Pages over an ad that I specifically told them I did not approve.  They hounded me for a year after they published the ad that I told them I did not approve and then sent the file to a collection agency.  After fighting with the collection agency where they would provide NO documentation I told them to stop calling me.  They then started emailing me and sending threatening letters.  I contacted the CFPB and the last correspondence I received from the law offices that were the collection agency was that they understood I wanted the to stop contacting me.  Well DUH!  They then sold the file to a new collection agency and the process started all over again.  That is until I informed the new firm of the CFPB complaint and that unless they could provide proof where I agreed to the ad that I explicitly did not approve, then they would be reported to.  So give it a try, the government will work for you, if you ask it to.  Of course, in certain partisan circles it's just more fun to complain.  As for the issues with Mitchell and the billing, thankfully I never fell prey to their schemes.  The first and biggest red flag was having to sign a two year contract.  If they demand you sign a contract that is the first indication that they will NOT be concerned with solving your problems.  Why should they?  You can't stop paying for the service you aren't getting. 

[MINI4U]

Disputing through your credit card company is another option.

[Jerrys Auto Center]

On 8/27/2017 at 5:33 PM, JimO said:

I have been using BayMaster shop management software for over six years and I only have good things to say about them. Their support staff is excellent, the program more than meets my needs and it is affordable. They are very receptive to our needs and will listen to suggestions or ideas and implement changes when possible. From my expieriance Mitchell would never take the time to review a suggestion or make a change based on my input. I do use Mitchell Pro Demand information system which for the most part is very good. Over the years I have sent Mitchell numerous messages from within their own program concerning observed mistakes in Pro Demand information or with questions concerning Pro Demand content but they NEVER respond. It is for that reason that I have always been happy that I chose BayMaster over Mitchell for shop management. 

I have been with BayMaster since it was a DOS program!!! Amazing support, has stayed current with integration, texting, emails and postcard marketing. Wish they had better tutorials on their advanced features but I know that they are working on it! Great team, especially Tina!