Compared to what I do today

• How is this different from Square POS?+

  Square is a register — payments and receipts. We’re the event layer above it. Guests order from their phones, the cart isn’t a checkout line, the couple shapes the bar beforehand, and there’s a keepsake after. Most operators keep Square for the rare paid-drink event; the two don’t overlap.

• Why not just use a paper ticket pad?+

  Paper works. We replace it with three things you can’t do on paper: (1) the guest gets an SMS the moment their drink is ready, no name-yelling at the bar; (2) walk-ups + QR orders share one queue with cup-label tracking so nothing falls through; (3) the host gets a magazine-style recap of the event. If those don’t matter for your gigs, paper is genuinely fine.

• How is this different from Toast / Clover?+

  Those are full POS systems with hardware, payment processing, inventory tied to SKUs, and a monthly fee designed for restaurants. We’re event-software-only — no card reader, no payment processing, no monthly base fee at the per-event tier. Toast is for a cafe; we’re for the cart that pops up at a wedding or a private celebration.

• Can I use Alongside alongside my existing POS?+

  Yes. Lots of operators run Square at their main shop and Alongside at their event side-gigs. They don’t share data — by design. Your Square sales stay your Square sales; your event clients stay in your Alongside client list.

• What’s in Alongside that bare-bones QR-ordering tools don’t have?+

  Three things the QR-only tools don’t ship. First, the host’s bar — a customizable page with their palette, monogram, welcome note, and signature drinks they name themselves. Second, the keepsake — a magazine-style recap they share the next morning, with a cover they choose, the guest notes they star leading the page, and a share pack of Instagram-ready cards in story, post, and square sizes. Third, the operator-side rig that makes the day-of calm — per-drink ready station, walk-up POS with TCPA-safe consent, drink-cap policies, priority code for VIPs, cross-iPad sync, vendor-staff link, client roster, analytics, print-ready signage, and a native iOS cart app. Plus the quiet safeguards that keep the day calm — spam protection, safe test events, a guardrail on every text. Price: first event free, $30 per event after, or $79/month. No per-cup fees. No contract.

• Does Alongside work for events that aren’t weddings?+

  Yes. Pick “private event” when you create it and the surface adapts: a guest-of-honor field, an occasion picker (birthday / anniversary / housewarming / dinner), themed palette presets, a hero photo for the recap, and a scheduled toast-prompt SMS that nudges guests to leave a note partway through the night. Same price — first event free, $30 each after. Corporate offsites (cost centers, brand co-display, multi-day) are in a design-partner preview; email us if that’s your calendar.

• Are there any per-event SMS limits?+

  100 sends on the free first event, 1000 on paid events. That covers ~500 orders. If you have a bigger event coming, email us and we’ll raise it.

Features

• Do you take a cut of my drink sales?+

  No, never. Alongside doesn’t touch payment for drinks — operators charge guests their own way (free for the couple, drink tickets, tabbed bar). We just run the ordering and the keepsake. The $30 is the platform, not a per-cup share.

• Do I need a printer?+

  No. Barista mode shows the queue on the iPad and the barista writes the order number on each cup with a Sharpie — fast, foolproof, no extra hardware. Label printer integration is in private beta on our own carts; if you specifically want it for your event, email us and we’ll set it up by hand.

• Can the host actually customize their page?+

  Yes — colors, typography, monogram, background effects, the welcome note, and the drinks themselves. The couple names their own signature drinks (we offer a quick questionnaire if they want help shaping them). They get an edit link before the event and can tweak anything without you in the loop. The page they shape is the page their guests scan into.

• What does the AI barista actually do?+

  A guest taps “Ask the barista” on the menu and chats in plain language — “something sweet and iced, not too strong?” — and it recommends from your live menu and drops the drink straight into their cart, built the way they asked (iced, oat, caramel). It knows your real options per drink, honest caffeine numbers, allergens the operator flagged, the live wait, what’s been popular tonight, and — if your espresso machine is connected — whether the bar is warming up or pouring. It only ever suggests real menu drinks, and always points guests to confirm allergens at the cart. It can even answer “can I book this cart for my own party?” with your booking link.

• Can it connect to my espresso machine?+

  If you run a compatible La Marzocco Home machine, you can link it — optional, opt-in, and currently Beta. The barista screen then watches your shot times and flags grind drift (“running ~4s slow, check the grind”), and the couple’s keepsake recap can show real, machine-verified numbers: shots pulled, the busiest fifteen minutes, and a shot-consistency score. It’s an unofficial integration with La Marzocco Home — they don’t publish an API — so it’s best-effort and can change if their app does. We never store your password — change it and the machine disconnects instantly.

• Is the SMS to guests TCPA-compliant?+

  Yes. A guest checks an explicit opt-in on the order form before any text fires, and every message identifies the sender, names the reason, and carries STOP / HELP. Most guests get two — an order confirmation and a ready alert. If they enter the giveaway and win, you can send them their prize as well; you read that one first and send it by hand. A guest who replies STOP hears from you again never.

• How do I get guests to actually leave reviews?+

  Turn on the giveaway. While a guest waits for their drink, their order screen shows what’s on offer — a gift card you bought, presented as a real card they can tilt in their hand — and the three small things that enter them: a number, a note for the couple, and a review. At the end of the night you draw from everyone who did all three, and the winner opens their card on their own phone. Any brand, any amount — you type in the card you bought. The notes and photos reach the couple’s keepsake either way.

• Where does my data live? What about my guests’ data?+

  Your data is yours alone — no other operator can read your client list, your menu, or your guest contacts. Guest phone numbers are deleted about a week after the event. We never sell, mine, or share them. Full details in our privacy policy.

• What if I get slammed mid-event?+

  Two safety nets. Auto-throttle pauses new orders for a couple minutes when the queue hits a depth you set. Manual pause is a one-tap button. Orders sitting more than 15 / 30 minutes glow louder on the queue so nothing slips.

• What if I’m working the cart solo vs with a second barista?+

  Toggle Solo mode in the barista header. Solo collapses everything into one screen for a single barista. Pair mode splits across two iPads when you have help.

How it works

• How long does setup take?+

  A couple of minutes once you’ve done it once. The first event is the longest — that’s where you pick templates, add your menu, upload the cart photo. After that it’s mostly clone-and-adjust per booking.

• What do guests use to order?+

  Their own phones. They scan the QR, the microsite loads, they pick a drink. Nothing to download — works in any modern browser. We text them once when the drink is ready.

• What’s the recap microsite?+

  A private magazine-style keepsake the couple gets the morning after — cover with their monogram, photos guests took, handwritten notes, drinks of the night. Save as PDF or share to Instagram. Yours forever.

• What’s adaptive flow?+

  Set a lean (iced or hot) and the guest menu quietly re-ranks so the matching drinks land on top. No banner. No nag. The menu just leans.

• Can I see the operator side of things before signing up?+

  Yes — book a 20-minute walkthrough with Roman. He’ll spin up a sample event, run a few orders through the queue, and show you the recap. No slides.

Studio (analytics + client roster)

• What does the $79/mo Studio plan add?+

  Unlimited events at no per-event charge, plus the analytics and client roster that turn Alongside into the booking system itself. You see booked revenue YTD, what’s outstanding, repeat-client rates, and a pipeline view of every event from inquiry to wrapped — the same numbers you’ve been keeping in a spreadsheet.

• Who is Studio actually for?+

  Operators booking three or more events a month. At that volume the per-event charges match the subscription, and you’re keeping a separate spreadsheet anyway. Studio replaces the spreadsheet and pays for itself from the third event.

• Can I see clients across years?+

  Yes. The client list is org-scoped (only you see your clients) and tracks every event ever attached to that client — repeat bookings, total spend, last booked date. New event creation lets you attach to an existing client so the history compounds.

• Can I filter the analytics and build my own reports?+

  Yes. Filter every number by date range, event type, or client, and save a filtered view for one-click recall. The report builder groups your events by type, client, month, or single event — or switches to a by-drink report — lets you pick the columns, and exports any of it to CSV for your accountant or a corporate client.

• Is my client data safe?+

  Your data is walled off from every other operator — no one else can read your client list. Photos and brand assets stay private, never public. The full details are in our privacy policy.

Pricing

• What counts as one event?+

  A single date + venue. A weekend with a Saturday wedding and a Sunday brunch is two events. Your first event is always free; after that it’s $30 each — or unlimited under Studio.

• Should I pick per-event or Studio?+

  Run the math: at three or more events a month, Studio pays for itself and you get the client roster + analytics on top. Below that, per-event is cheaper and you don’t lose any of the event-day features. There’s no lock-in either way.

• Are there per-drink fees or hidden costs?+

  None. We don’t see drink prices and we don’t take a cut. The $30 (or your Studio subscription) covers the platform: ordering, barista mode, SMS to guests, the recap microsite, all of it.

• What if the event gets cancelled?+

  You only pay when an event actually runs. Drafted-but-cancelled events cost nothing — and you can keep the work in case the host reschedules.