What was said
What this says
Current to 13 Oct 26At the QBR Steven Holroyd questioned paying for 40 licences and using a fraction, and could not get a figure for savings. He wants a short usage page with the renewal and will not renew on autopilot.
What happened: Natalie Eze ran the 27 Aug 2025 QBR with Kelly Swainston, Steven Holroyd and Josh Pearce. Active users and questions asked are both rising, from several people rather than one or two.
Customer view: Steven challenged the gap between 40 licences and active users. Kelly named prep time and spotting returns problems early as the value, but could not put a number on it.
Commercial: Natalie confirmed £44k a year, matching the order form and invoices, with the term running to 3 Apr 2026 and renewal on 4 Apr 2026. Josh reported no tickets and nightly refresh landing on time.
Watch: The decision-maker is a finance director asking for evidence of value. A short usage page with Kelly's examples is the answer.
Themes
Current to 9 Oct 26Who was there
BB-Demo
Them
Follow-up
Next steps
Current to 9 Oct 26- Natalie Eze to draft a one-page usage summary and send it to Kelly before it goes to Steven.
- Kelly Swainston to add examples from service reviews.
- Natalie Eze to get the renewal paperwork to Steven well ahead of the notice period.
Risks
Current to 9 Oct 26- Steven Holroyd sees 40 licences against low active use and the savings cannot be quantified.
- Steven will not renew on autopilot and wants evidence alongside the renewal paperwork.
Opportunities
Current to 9 Oct 26- Usage and questions are rising across several people, so the brain does not depend on one champion.
- Kelly Swainston will add concrete review examples to a one-page usage summary.
Transcript
- Natalie Eze NoneGood afternoon, everyone. Thanks for joining. I can see Kelly and Steven. Josh, are you there yet?
- Josh Pearce NoneHere, sorry. My camera's being awkward, but I can hear you fine.
- Kelly Swainston NoneAfternoon, Natalie. Right, we've got an hour, so I'm hoping we can be brisk. I've got a review at five.
- Natalie Eze NoneUnderstood. I'll keep it tight. This is the quarterly review, so I'll go through how the brain's being used, what's changed since the last one, and then leave plenty of time for questions.
- Steven Holroyd NoneBefore you start. Who's using it?
- Natalie Eze NoneFair question, and a good place to begin. Active users are up by around a quarter on the quarter before. The growth is mostly in the client management team, and it's spread across more people than it was.
- Steven Holroyd NoneOut of how many licences?
- Natalie Eze NoneYou're licensed for forty. The people active in a typical month are well under that, so there's a lot of room still.
- Steven Holroyd NoneSo we're paying for forty and using a fraction.
- Natalie Eze NoneThat's a fair way of putting it, yes. It's a bigger gap than I'd like to see, and I'd say that to anyone. But the direction is the right one, and it's been rising steadily rather than in a spike.
- Kelly Swainston NoneCan I come in on that, Steven? When we started, it was two of us. It's now most of the client managers, and I'd expect the rest to follow. It's not that they don't want it. It's that they're mid-peak and have no time to learn something new.
- Steven Holroyd NoneRight. What does it save us?
- Kelly Swainston NoneHonestly? Prep time for service reviews, and the returns problems we spot before a brand raises them. That second one is the real value. If a brand rings up angry, we're already on it, with the facts.
- Steven Holroyd NoneCan you put a number on it?
- Kelly Swainston NoneNot hand on heart, no. I'd be making it up. I can tell you what the reviews look like now compared with last year, which is that they start from the facts and nobody argues about whose spreadsheet is right.
- Steven Holroyd NoneHm. Fair enough. Go on, Natalie.
- Natalie Eze NoneThanks. So, a quick look at the questions people are asking. They're rising too, and what I like is that they're coming from several people, not one or two. That matters, because it means it doesn't depend on a single champion.
- Kelly Swainston NoneWhich I'm very happy about, because I'm not going to be the one asking everything.
- Natalie Eze NoneQuite. And on the support side, there's nothing to report. No tickets raised over the last month, and nothing outstanding. Josh, is that how it feels from your end?
- Josh Pearce NoneYes. It's been quiet. Nightly refresh has been landing when it should, and I've not had anyone come to me saying the data's old. I check it most mornings anyway, out of habit.
- Natalie Eze NoneThat's useful, thank you. Is there anything on the admin side that's been awkward? Adding people, permissions, that kind of thing?
- Josh Pearce NoneNot awkward. I do have a couple of new client managers starting soon, and I wanted to check I can add them myself and I'm not going to hit a limit.
- Natalie Eze NoneYou can add them yourself, and you're well inside the forty. Nothing to ask us for.
- Josh Pearce NoneGreat. That's all I had, really.
- Steven Holroyd NoneNow. The invoice. What am I being charged?
- Natalie Eze NoneForty-four thousand a year, which is £44,000, and that matches the order form and what's been invoiced. Nothing overdue on your side, and no surprises on ours.
- Steven Holroyd NoneGood. I don't like surprises.
- Natalie Eze NoneNo, understood. And the term runs to 3 Apr 2026, with renewal on 4 Apr 2026. I'll make sure you have the paperwork well ahead of the notice period, so it isn't a rush.
- Steven Holroyd NoneSend me the renewal in good time. And I'll want to see usage with it. I'm not renewing on autopilot.
- Natalie Eze NoneI wouldn't expect you to. What would make that easiest for you? A single page with active people, questions asked and how that's trended?
- Steven Holroyd NoneThat'd do. Short. Plain English. Who's using it and what it saves us.
- Kelly Swainston NoneAnd I'll give you a couple of examples from the reviews, Natalie, so it's not only numbers. Let's take the facts to the review.
- Natalie Eze NoneThat would be ideal, Kelly. I'll draft the page and send it to you first, then you can add your examples before it goes to Steven.
- Kelly Swainston NoneDeal.
- Natalie Eze NoneAnything else anyone wants to raise before I wrap up? Josh? Steven?
- Steven Holroyd NoneNo. That'll do me.
- Josh Pearce NoneNothing from me. Thanks, Natalie.
- Natalie Eze NoneBrilliant. So, to recap: I'll draft the one-page summary and send it to Kelly, Kelly adds the examples, and I'll make sure the renewal paperwork reaches Steven in good time. Josh adds the new starters himself. Thank you all, I really appreciate it.
- Kelly Swainston NoneThanks, Natalie. Speak soon.