In the demo: twelve things to ask them to do, not describe

A vendor demo is a rehearsed performance on prepared data. Everything works because everything was set up to work. You learn almost nothing from watching one.

You learn a great deal from making them go off-script. Here are twelve requests. Make them do each one, in front of you, on the day.

1. "Import my product file."

Bring your real catalogue on a USB stick. Not a sample — the actual messy file with inconsistent units and duplicate codes.

What it reveals: whether import is a real feature or a professional-services engagement. Watch what the system does with the rows it cannot parse — a good one reports them, a bad one silently drops them.

2. "Unplug the router."

Then: complete a sale with a modifier and a discount, take a card payment, print the invoice, scan the QR with your phone.

What it reveals: everything. See theoffline comparison.

3. "Ring up nine more, then reconnect."

What it reveals: whether sync is reliable or whether you get duplicates. Check the back office yourself; do not accept a summary.

4. "Onboard a new terminal with ZATCA, now."

What it reveals: whether adding a till is a five-minute self-service task or a support ticket. See theonboarding guide.

5. "Split this bill three ways, one paying cash."

What it reveals: how many taps, and whether each payer gets a complete compliant invoice or a slip of paper.

6. "Refund one item from a five-item sale from two days ago."

What it reveals: whether returns start from the original invoice, whether a credit note is issued correctly, and whether stock goes back to the right place.

7. "Apply 10% off a basket where two items have different VAT treatments."

What it reveals: whether the discount apportions correctly. Check the VAT on the printed invoice with a calculator. See theVAT basics guide.

8. "Stop this cashier from issuing refunds."

What it reveals: whether permissions are real and granular, or a single "manager" toggle. Then test it by logging in as that cashier and trying.

9. "Close the shift and show me the cash variance."

What it reveals: whether the end-of-day report is something a manager can act on in five minutes, or a wall of numbers.

10. "Change a price and show me it live on every terminal."

What it reveals: the self-service model. Time it. If it needs their intervention, your menu will be out of date within a month.

11. "Show me last month's gross margin by product."

What it reveals: whether cost prices are actually tracked, which tells you whether the inventory layer is real.

12. "Export everything, right now, and give me the file."

What it reveals: the most important thing on this list. A vendor who can hand you a full export during a demo is a vendor you can leave — which is exactly why you can trust them enough to join.

How to run the session

• Two hours, not forty minutes. Twelve scenarios need time.
• Bring your slowest cashier, not just the manager. Let them drive for the last twenty minutes.
• Write down each answer as demonstrated, stated, or deflected.
• Do not let them "take that away and follow up". A follow-up email is a stated answer, not a demonstrated one.

The tell

Watch what happens when something does not work. Every system has rough edges, and a vendor who says "that's a known limitation, here is the workaround, here is when it is being fixed" is far more trustworthy than one who says everything is perfect.

The vendors worth buying from will fail at least one of these twelve and tell you why. Ours are on thecomparison page, listed as gaps in the same table as the strengths.