What was said
What this says
Current to 13 Oct 26Mark Siddall, Managing Director, said yes to Growth from 1 Dec 2024 after pressing on price. The £44k is a total deal value, and finance wants the subscription and implementation split in writing.
What happened: On the 29 Oct 2024 negotiation call, Mark Siddall joined late and asked for the bottom line. After questions on value and price he said: Growth, from 1 Dec 2024.
Customer view: Mark called the price a lot more than they pay now, but backed Liam Doherty's account of rising question volume and depot adoption. He asked what happens if they stay on Starter, and Tom Ashdown said they could.
Commercial: Tom said £44k is the total value of the deal, not a straight annual number, with the split to follow in writing. The current Starter term is £20k a year, running to 30 Nov 2024.
Watch: This is a verbal yes, not a signed order form. The finance director has not seen the numbers, and Liam mentioned a setup note in case someone else picks it up.
Themes
Current to 9 Oct 26Who was there
BB-Demo
Them
Follow-up
Next steps
Current to 9 Oct 26- Tom Ashdown sends the order form with the split shown to Liam and Mark by the end of that week.
- Liam Doherty sends the list of systems to connect and briefs finance.
- Marcus, the customer success manager, arranges onboarding of the extra teams and the depot training.
Risks
Current to 9 Oct 26- The yes is verbal: the order form with the subscription and implementation split has not yet been sent or signed.
- The finance director has not seen the numbers and Liam expects questions.
- Liam Doherty is the champion and hinted that someone else might pick up the setup from him.
Opportunities
Current to 9 Oct 26- Growth from 1 Dec 2024 with dashboards for depot managers.
- Further systems to connect, to be listed by Liam and written into the order form.
- A depot training session in the first couple of weeks after the Growth term starts.
Transcript
- Tom Ashdown NoneAfternoon, Liam. Can you hear me alright? I've got the little bars jumping about on my side.
- Liam Doherty NoneLoud and clear, Tom. Afternoon! Mark's just grabbing a coffee, he said start without him, but he's about two minutes.
- Tom Ashdown NoneNo drama. How's your week been? Busy?
- Liam Doherty NoneMad. Month end, a couple of depots short on drivers, and the retail team want a view on everything by Friday. Love it really, but yeah. You?
- Tom Ashdown NoneSame sort of thing. Diary Tetris, mostly. I've been trying to get a proper lunch since Monday and it's not happening.
- Liam Doherty NoneHa. Right, I can see him coming down the corridor. Mark, we're on, mate.
- Mark Siddall NoneAfternoon. Sorry. Right. Bottom line?
- Tom Ashdown NoneAfternoon, Mark, good to see you. Bottom line is you've outgrown Starter, and we'd like to move Brackwell to Growth when the current term ends. That's what today's about. If we can get it agreed, I'd love to.
- Mark Siddall NoneOutgrown. What does that mean?
- Tom Ashdown NoneIt means more of your people are using it than the plan was built for. You're licensed for fifteen users on Starter, and Liam's been getting the depot account managers on, which is exactly what we hoped. Liam, you want to say how that's gone?
- Liam Doherty NoneYeah. So when we started it was me and a couple of the revenue ops team. Now the account managers from the depots are in there most days. Trafford Park first, then the others picked it up. Honestly, can we get the depots on it, that was always the question, and they're just doing it.
- Mark Siddall NoneGood. What's it doing for us?
- Liam Doherty NoneFair. Short version, Mark. Before, if a retail customer was getting unhappy, I'd find out when they rang you. Now I can see the delivery exception tickets, the calls and the account notes together. We've caught a couple of contracts going wobbly before anyone phoned. One view, that's the point.
- Mark Siddall NoneI remember the one. The big retailer.
- Liam Doherty NoneThat's the one. We got in early, sorted the delivery windows, and nobody had to ring you at seven in the morning.
- Mark Siddall NoneLove that. Go on, Tom.
- Tom Ashdown NoneSo the picture is this. You've been with us since 1 Dec 2023 on Starter. You pay nineteen and a half thousand a year, that's £19,500, and the contract runs to 30 Nov 2024. You've never been late on an invoice, which, between us, isn't something I can say about everyone.
- Mark Siddall NoneWe pay people. Crack on.
- Tom Ashdown NoneHa, noted. So what Growth gives you is room for more teams, more users, more connectors if you want to bring other systems in, and the dashboards builder. You also get a proper quarterly review with Marcus, rather than the six-monthly check-in you get now.
- Liam Doherty NoneThe dashboards are the bit I care about, to be honest. Right now I'm building the view for the depot managers by hand and sending it round. If they could open their own dashboard first thing, that's the end of my Monday morning.
- Tom Ashdown NoneThat's exactly the use case. Depot manager opens it, sees their at-risk contracts, the exception tickets, last conversation with the customer. No emailing round.
- Mark Siddall NoneDo the depot managers want that?
- Liam Doherty NoneThey've been asking. Two of them asked me last week if they could have their own login. I said I'd see what I could do.
- Mark Siddall NoneRight. Price.
- Tom Ashdown NoneRight, so, I'll be straight with you. The figure on the deal is forty-four thousand pounds, £44,000. That's the total value of the deal, not a straight annual number, so there's an implementation element in there as well. I'm not going to quote you the exact split off the top of my head. I'll confirm it in writing so you can see what's subscription and what's the one-off.
- Mark Siddall NoneThat's a lot more than we pay now.
- Tom Ashdown NoneIt is, and I won't dress it up. It's a different size of plan. You'd be going from one team on Starter to several teams on Growth. But it's fair to ask whether it's worth it, and that's why I wanted you on the call.
- Mark Siddall NoneWhat if we stay on Starter?
- Tom Ashdown NoneYou can. No pressure, genuinely. You'd renew at the end of November, you'd keep your fifteen users, and you'd have what you've got now. The fifteen is a soft limit, so nothing falls over if you go a bit above. But you wouldn't get the dashboards, and Liam would still be doing his Monday morning by hand.
- Liam Doherty NoneAnd we're already pushing at the fifteen, Mark. I've been asking people to share, which is not really the point of the thing.
- Mark Siddall NoneSharing logins. Don't.
- Liam Doherty NoneI know, I know. I haven't, not properly. Just saying that's where we are.
- Tom Ashdown NoneAnd I'd rather you weren't tempted, Liam. That's what Growth is for.
- Mark Siddall NoneFine. How do I know it's worth forty-four?
- Tom Ashdown NoneGood question. Two things. One, the quarterly reviews. Marcus sits down with you and Liam and we look at what's actually being asked, who's asking, and what it's turned up. If it's not earning its keep we'll see it together. Two, you've got a year to see it. Nobody's locking you into something you can't judge.
- Liam Doherty NoneAnd for what it's worth, it's the number of questions that's gone up. People are asking it things I never would have thought of. That's a good sign. If they were bored it'd be flat.
- Mark Siddall NoneI trust Liam on this.
- Tom Ashdown NoneI appreciate that, Mark.
- Mark Siddall NoneI'll need finance to see it. In writing. They'll want the split you said.
- Tom Ashdown NoneAbsolutely. Leave that with me. I'll send the order form with the numbers laid out properly, subscription and implementation shown separately, so your finance director isn't guessing. Liam, is there anyone in finance you want copied?
- Liam Doherty NoneJust put me and Mark on it for now. I'll forward it on. Easier than a third inbox. He'll have questions, he always does, so I'll flag it first.
- Tom Ashdown NoneSound. Now, timing. Your current term runs to 30 Nov 2024. What I'd propose is Growth starts on 1 Dec 2024, so there's no gap and no overlap. You don't pay twice for the same month.
- Mark Siddall NoneWhy not start now?
- Tom Ashdown NoneYou could. But then we'd be talking about co-terming and credits and all sorts, and honestly I'd rather keep it clean. Start of December, one contract ends, the next one begins. The prep can happen in the meantime, so the day it starts, you're not at square one.
- Liam Doherty NoneI like that. Gives me November to get the depot lists sorted. Who needs access, who's just looking, that sort of thing.
- Mark Siddall NoneRight.
- Liam Doherty NoneMark, can I just say one more thing?
- Mark Siddall NoneGo on.
- Liam Doherty NoneThe one ticket we've had in the last month, it was a how-to thing. Tom's lot got back to me quickly. It's not been a headache. I'd tell you if it was.
- Mark Siddall NoneYou would.
- Tom Ashdown NoneCheers, Liam. That's good to hear. And just so everyone's clear, we're not fixing anything with this. It's you growing into the thing, not us patching it.
- Mark Siddall NoneSo. Is there a catch?
- Tom Ashdown NoneNo catch. The order form sits under the same agreement you've already got. I'll go through it line by line with Liam before it comes to you, so there's nothing in there that surprises you.
- Mark Siddall NoneRight. Then yes. Growth. From 1 Dec 2024. Do it.
- Tom Ashdown NoneBrilliant. Thanks, Mark. So just to say it back so there's no doubt: Brackwell moves from Starter to Growth, starting 1 Dec 2024, and I'll get you the order form with the split shown.
- Mark Siddall NoneThat's it. Crack on.
- Liam Doherty NoneLove that. Thanks, Mark.
- Mark Siddall NoneDon't thank me. Make it work for the depots.
- Liam Doherty NoneWill do. That's the plan.
- Mark Siddall NoneRight, I'm off. I've got a retailer on the other line. Liam, you've got the rest. Tom, cheers.
- Tom Ashdown NoneCheers, Mark. Speak soon.
- Mark Siddall NoneMark.
- Liam Doherty NoneHe's gone. He does that. Never says goodbye properly, just vanishes.
- Tom Ashdown NoneHa. That's a yes from Mark Siddall, though, so I'll take it however it comes. Right, Liam, let's use the time we've got left. Practical stuff. What do you need from us before December?
- Liam Doherty NoneOkay. List time. One, I want to know who gets what. Which depot managers get dashboards, which ones just get search. Two, I want to bring more systems in. We've talked about the warehouse side before, and I think there are a couple more. Three, I want somebody to show the depot managers how to use it, because if I do it they'll nod and forget.
- Tom Ashdown NoneGood list. On the first, Marcus will want a proper chat about who's in, and he'll take you through the roles. On the second, give me the systems you've got in mind and I'll make sure they're in the order form, so there's no surprise later. On the third, there's a training session we can do. I'll get Marcus to put something in the diary.
- Liam Doherty NonePerfect. Can we do the depot training in the first couple of weeks after it starts? Before people drift.
- Tom Ashdown NoneThat's the plan. Get it in quick while it's fresh. Let's get something in the diary for it, I'll ask Marcus to send you some options.
- Liam Doherty NoneGreat. And I should say, I'll do a proper note on the setup so whoever picks it up from me, if it comes to that, knows how it's all wired. I'd just rather it was written down.
- Tom Ashdown NoneAppreciated. That's the sort of thing that saves everyone a headache. So, to recap who's doing what. I'll send the order form with the split shown, to you and Mark, by the end of this week. You'll forward it to your finance director. Marcus will be in touch about onboarding the extra teams and the training. And you'll send me the list of systems you want connected.
- Liam Doherty NoneYep. And I'll tell finance it's coming so it doesn't land cold. Mark's already said yes, so it's more a formality, but you know what finance are like.
- Tom Ashdown NoneI do. Any questions before I let you go?
- Liam Doherty NoneNot from me. No, I think that's it. Oh, actually. The extra users, when they're added, they come on at the start of December, yeah? Not before?
- Tom Ashdown NoneStart of December, with the Growth term. Until then you stay on the fifteen. Try not to share logins in the meantime, bless you.
- Liam Doherty NoneHa. Right, I'll hold the line. Cheers, Tom. Really good call.
- Tom Ashdown NoneCheers, Liam. Speak soon. Mind how you go.