What was said
What this says
Current to 13 Oct 26On the 22 Nov 2024 check-in, Liam Doherty described a clear win from the brain and agreed a depot training session. Price for the 1 Dec 2024 renewal was left to Tom Ashdown. Liam is the only person who knows the set-up.
What happened: Marcus Bell reviewed usage, support and the renewal with Liam Doherty. Active users were about eight of 15 licensed, up roughly three quarters on the quarter before.
Customer view: Liam gave a concrete value story: he saw a retail contract going wrong before the customer rang the MD. He also called himself a very expensive search box, because account managers still ask him instead of the brain.
Commercial: Liam asked about price so he could warn his finance director, and Marcus left it to Tom Ashdown. Marcus advised filling the Starter seats before asking for more, and Liam raised connectors and finance data as a possible next step.
Watch: Liam said he is the one who knows where everything is, with no stand-in. He also mentioned the morning data is sometimes a little late.
Themes
Current to 9 Oct 26Who was there
BB-Demo
Them
Follow-up
Next steps
Current to 9 Oct 26- Marcus Bell asks Tom Ashdown to send the renewal paperwork early the following week, with the usage picture.
- Liam Doherty lines up a depot manager session and names a second person to share the set-up.
- Liam floats the finance data idea with his finance director before the renewal conversation.
Risks
Current to 9 Oct 26- Liam Doherty is the only person who knows how the brain is set up, so the account depends on one person.
- Price for the renewal starting 1 Dec 2024 was left open, and Liam wants to warn his finance director.
- Liam said the morning data is sometimes later than he would like, with no examples given yet.
Opportunities
Current to 9 Oct 26- Starter use is about half of the 15 licensed users, and a depot training session could fill the rest.
- Liam wants finance data in the brain, which would test the Starter connector limit and could point to a step up.
Transcript
- Marcus Bell NoneHello Liam, can you hear me alright? I've got a bit of lag on my side.
- Liam Doherty NoneYeah, loud and clear. Afternoon, Marcus. Sorry, I'm just walking back from the yard, give me a minute to find a room that isn't somebody's lunch.
- Marcus Bell NoneNo rush at all. I'm eating a sandwich at my desk, so we're even.
- Liam Doherty NoneRight, I'm in. Room four, which is basically a cupboard with a window. How's your week been?
- Marcus Bell NoneBusy, but the good kind. A lot of paperwork and a lot of rain, so nothing unusual for Manchester. You?
- Liam Doherty NoneSame on the rain. It's Friday, so I'm just trying to get to the weekend without a delivery exception landing on me. Quiet so far, touch wood.
- Marcus Bell NoneFingers crossed. Okay, I'll share my screen and say what I'd like to cover, if that works for you. Can you see it?
- Liam Doherty NoneI can see a chart with a very nice upward line. Love that already.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat's the one. So, three things. Usage since the last quarter, the support side, and then the renewal, because your term runs to 30 Nov 2024 and renews on 1 Dec 2024, so it's not far off. And then anything you want to raise. Does that sound all right?
- Liam Doherty NonePerfect. List first, that's how I like it.
- Marcus Bell NoneI've pulled the numbers. Over the last thirty days, active users average about eight. That's up by roughly three quarters on the quarter before.
- Liam Doherty NoneThree quarters. Wow. I knew it felt busier, but I didn't think it was that much.
- Marcus Bell NoneYeah, it's a proper jump. And that's out of 15 licensed users, so you're using about half of what you've got.
- Liam Doherty NoneWhich is the bit I'm thinking about. About half. Can we get the depots on it? That's the whole plan, really. The Trafford Park lot are in there most days, from what I can see, but the other depots dip in and out.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat fits what I'm seeing. It's the same people coming back more often, plus a few new faces. Which is good, because it means it's becoming a habit and not a one-off look.
- Liam Doherty NoneRight. And that's what I wanted. One view, that's the point. Account, the delivery exception tickets, the calls, all in one place so nobody's got to open four tabs and a spreadsheet.
- Marcus Bell NoneYeah. Can I ask, is that how it's landing with the account managers? Do they say it's easier, or is it still a bit of a chore for some of them?
- Liam Doherty NoneMixed, honestly. The ones who've tried it properly love it. The ones who haven't are still ringing me and asking me to look things up, which, you know, defeats the object.
- Marcus Bell NoneHa. Right. So, they ask you and you ask the brain.
- Liam Doherty NoneExactly. I'm a very expensive search box at the moment.
- Marcus Bell NoneWell, that's a good one to fix. I'll come back to it. Let me do the support bit first so we don't lose it. In the last month there's been a single ticket from your side, nothing high priority. Does that ring a bell?
- Liam Doherty NoneYeah, that was me, I think. A small thing. I'd rather ask than guess. It got sorted anyway, so no complaints.
- Marcus Bell NoneGood. That's all I wanted to check. And on the finance side, I can see nothing overdue, so no loose ends there either.
- Liam Doherty NoneOur finance team would be mortified if there were. They're very good about paying on time. Almost annoyingly.
- Marcus Bell NoneNot annoying for us. Okay. So, the numbers look healthy. But I always like to hear it from you. What's it actually done for you in the last few months? Not what the chart says.
- Liam Doherty NoneOkay, so, go on, I'll give you a proper one. A few weeks back one of our retail contracts started going sideways. Delivery exceptions piling up, a couple of grumpy calls. Before, I'd have heard about it when the customer rang our MD.
- Marcus Bell NoneMm.
- Liam Doherty NoneThis time I saw it first. Exceptions and calls in one place, and I could see the pattern building. I rang the depot account manager, we sorted it, and the customer never had to chase us. That's what I bought it for, that exact thing.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat's a great example. Do you mind if I note that down? It's the sort of thing I like to be able to say back to our own team.
- Liam Doherty NoneCourse. Put it in. Just don't name the customer.
- Marcus Bell NoneNo, no, I'd keep it general. Thanks. Right, let me move on to the renewal, and I'll be upfront about what I can and can't say, because the commercial side sits with Tom.
- Liam Doherty NoneTom Ashdown, yeah. I know. Go on.
- Marcus Bell NoneSo you're on Starter, with 15 users. The order form says £19,500 a year, and that matches what's been invoiced, so everything lines up on our side. The term ends on 30 Nov 2024 and the new one would start on 1 Dec 2024.
- Liam Doherty NoneOkay. And what happens on price? I'm not trying to get a number out of you, I just need to know whether to warn our finance director.
- Marcus Bell NoneFair question. I don't want to say anything on price that turns out wrong, so that's Tom's to confirm. What I can do is make sure he has the usage picture and your feedback before he sends the paperwork.
- Liam Doherty NoneFine. That's fair. I'd rather hear it from the person who knows. Will he send it over soon?
- Marcus Bell NoneSoon, yes. I'll ask him to get it to you early next week, so you've got time to read it properly and not do it on a Friday afternoon.
- Liam Doherty NoneLove that. Thank you.
- Marcus Bell NoneNow, the seats thing. You said you're about half used. I wouldn't change anything on the plan today. Starter's got room. The better move is to fill what you've got before anyone talks about more.
- Liam Doherty NoneYeah, that makes sense to me. I'd feel daft asking for more when half are sat there. But if we do get all six depots going, would we run out?
- Marcus Bell NoneIt's possible. It depends how many people at each depot actually need it. Do you have a feel for that? Roughly how many account managers at each site?
- Liam Doherty NoneA couple at most sites, a few more at Trafford Park. So, probably not far off what we've got, honestly. It's the connectors I'd worry about more than seats, if we start adding things.
- Marcus Bell NoneRight, yes. Starter has a fixed number of connectors, so it's worth having a think about which systems you'd actually want next. Is there something in mind?
- Liam Doherty NoneNothing firm. I keep saying I want the finance data in there so we can see which contracts are actually worth the hassle, but that's a conversation with our finance director, not something I can promise today.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat's a good thing to take to him. I'd say, bring it to the renewal conversation with Tom, and he can tell you what's possible within the tier and what would be a step up.
- Liam Doherty NoneOkay. I'll float it internally first. No point asking for a thing and then finding out nobody wants it.
- Marcus Bell NoneSensible. Back to the depots, then. What do you think is stopping them?
- Liam Doherty NoneHonestly? Time and habit. They're in the cab or on the dock half the day. They've got a way of doing things that works. If it's not easier in the first thirty seconds they go back to what they know.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat's the pattern with most logistics teams I look after. They don't want a training course. They want to ask one question and get an answer.
- Liam Doherty NoneYes. Exactly that. If someone can show them, say, how to ask for every open exception on one customer, in one go, that'd convert them. Show, don't explain.
- Marcus Bell NoneSo here's a thought. I'm happy to jump on a call with the depot managers. Short one, thirty minutes, on their own data, with questions they'd actually ask. Shall we book thirty minutes?
- Liam Doherty NoneYes, please. Could you do it as one session with all the depots on, or would you do it site by site?
- Marcus Bell NoneI'd say one session to start with. Everyone sees the same thing, and people ask questions the others wouldn't have thought of. If a site needs more after that, we can do a second one for them.
- Liam Doherty NoneBrilliant. I'll get the depot account managers in a room. Well, a call. I'll pick a slot that doesn't clash with the morning runs. Next week, or the week after?
- Marcus Bell NoneNext week would be ideal, ahead of the renewal. Then Tom can see the extra use coming through when he looks at the account. But whatever works for them. Don't force it.
- Liam Doherty NoneNo, that's good thinking. I'll try for early next week and send you a couple of options.
- Marcus Bell NonePerfect. And would it help if I pull together a short list of the five or six questions people asked most, so I can use real examples on the session?
- Liam Doherty NoneThat'd be great. Use the ones the Trafford Park team ask. The others will recognise them.
- Marcus Bell NoneWill do. I'll tidy them up so nobody's embarrassed by their spelling.
- Liam Doherty NoneHa, I'm the worst one.
- Marcus Bell NoneNoted. Anything else on your side before we wrap up? Anything not working that you've been putting up with?
- Liam Doherty NoneNot really. I mean, the only thing is I'd love the morning data to be there a bit earlier some days, but, no, I'm being picky. It's fine. It's there when people need it.
- Marcus Bell NoneIf it's been late on specific days, tell me which ones and I'll look into it properly. I don't want to wave it away. I can't promise a fix myself, but I can get it in front of the right people.
- Liam Doherty NoneOkay, I'll make a note when it happens and send you a couple of examples. Not a big deal. Just so you know.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat's helpful. Thank you. Last thing. You've been the one pushing this from the start. Is there anyone else who could stand in for you if you were off, or on holiday? Somebody who knows how it's set up?
- Liam Doherty NoneGood question. Not really, no. It's mostly me. There's a couple of the account managers who are pretty good, but I'm the one who knows where everything is.
- Marcus Bell NoneOkay. It might be worth thinking about, not because of anything urgent, just so it isn't all sitting with one person. Could one of those account managers be a second pair of hands?
- Liam Doherty NoneYeah. I'll pick one and bring them to the depot session so they see how it's done. Then they've got a bit of ownership.
- Marcus Bell NoneLove that. That'd make me feel better, honestly. Right. Let me recap so we're on the same page.
- Marcus Bell NoneI'll send you a short usage summary after this call, with the numbers I've just shown you, so you can use it internally. I'll ask Tom to get the renewal paperwork across early next week. You'll line up a slot with the depot managers, early next week if you can, and send me a couple of options. And you'll float the finance data idea with your finance director.
- Liam Doherty NoneAnd I'll send you a note on when the morning data is late. And pick someone to be my second pair of hands.
- Marcus Bell NoneExactly. That's everything I've got.
- Liam Doherty NoneCan I ask one more thing? Quick one.
- Marcus Bell NoneOf course.
- Liam Doherty NoneWhen the depots do start using it, is there a way to see who's asking what? Not to spy on anyone. Just so I know where to put my effort.
- Marcus Bell NoneYes, I can show you usage by person. I'd add that to the summary, so you can see who's active and who isn't. It's a useful way of knowing who to help, rather than who to chase.
- Liam Doherty NonePerfect. That's the kind of thing I'm after.
- Marcus Bell NoneDone. I'll include it.
- Liam Doherty NoneRight, then. Honestly, Marcus, this has been a good one. I came in thinking it'd be a status update and I'm leaving with a plan.
- Marcus Bell NoneThat's the best way to leave a check-in. And it's your numbers that did it. Three quarters up is a big move for a team that wasn't sure at the start.
- Liam Doherty NoneYeah. We weren't, to be fair. I had a few people who said it was just another dashboard. They don't say that now.
- Marcus Bell NoneGood. Hold on to that. When Tom talks to you about the renewal, that's the story to tell.
- Liam Doherty NoneWill do. Oh, and Marcus, the bit about the second pair of hands. I should have done that months ago. Thanks for nudging.
- Marcus Bell NoneNo problem. It's just good practice. Anyone I look after, I say the same.
- Liam Doherty NoneFair enough. Well, I should get back before somebody takes my cupboard.
- Marcus Bell NoneHa. Go on, then. Have a good weekend, and I hope the exceptions stay quiet.
- Liam Doherty NoneTouch wood. Cheers, Marcus. Speak soon.
- Marcus Bell NoneThanks, Liam. Speak soon. Bye.