What was said
What this says
Current to 11 Oct 26Finance Director Gareth Whitlam objects to the Growth renewal price rise and believes few people use the brain. He wants a price explanation, a usage report and a view of what non-renewal would lose. Marcus Bell admits usage has fallen.
Ask: Gareth Whitlam wants three things before going further: why the price is higher, a by-person usage report for the last year, and an honest view of what Brackwell would lose by not renewing. The Growth term ends on 30 Nov 2026.
Customer view: Gareth is not minded to accept an increase on the strength of a notice letter. He reads the silence in tickets as people having stopped bothering.
Next: Marcus Bell conceded that usage has fallen sharply on the previous quarter and offered a call on value. He passed the price question to Tom Ashdown, who owns commercial terms.
The thread
Updated 9 Oct 26Messages
- Gareth Whitlam 2 Sep 2026 10:28Marcus, I have received the renewal notice for the Growth subscription, which ends on 30 Nov 2026. The price is going up and I cannot see why. As far as I can tell, very few people at Brackwell are using the brain now. Nobody has raised a ticket in weeks, which tells me either that everything is fine or that people have stopped bothering. I suspect the second. So I would like three things before I take this any further: - a clear explanation of why the price is higher than what we pay today - a usage report covering the last year, by person, showing questions asked and the connectors that are actually live - an honest view of what we would lose if we chose not to renew I am not minded to agree to an increase on the strength of a notice letter. Gareth Whitlam, Finance Director
- Marcus Bell 3 Sep 2026 09:43Hi Gareth, Thanks for coming back so quickly. I've pulled the numbers and I'll send you the usage report by person, covering the last twelve months, as soon as I have checked it against the connector list. I don't want to send you something half-finished. To be straight with you, usage has fallen, and quite sharply compared with the previous quarter. The report will show that, and I'd rather you saw it from me than found it yourself. On the price: the notice reflects the change in our price list that all existing customers were told about earlier in the year. The detail of how that applies to Brackwell, and any room there is on it, is a conversation for Tom Ashdown, who owns the commercial terms. I'll ask him to get in touch with you directly this week, and I won't try to argue the point myself. What I can help with is the value question, which I think is the fairer one to ask. Shall we book half an hour once you have the report in front of you? I'm happy to jump on a call and go through it line by line, including the connectors that have gone quiet and what it would take to get them loading again. Thanks, Marcus