The Angus & Pete Show CX Podcast

• Ep 34 | S1 Recap: Boardroom Blunders

  In this recap of season one, Angus and Pete explore why a seemingly perfect sales proposal can get rejected at the final hurdle: the boardroom. They discuss the common pitfalls sellers face and offer a guide on how to equip your internal champions to successfully navigate the C-suite, especially the CFO. The Champion's Dilemma: Never assume your internal champion can effectively sell your solution to their board. Buyers often have little to no experience presenting business cases, so as a seller, it's crucial to coach and prepare them. Consider working with multiple champions to get a triangulated view of the organisation's priorities. Speak the Board's Language: Executives are laser-focused on the bottom line and want absolute clarity. The pitch must be concise, covering the problem you're solving, the cost of inaction, and your solution in simple terms. Use the company's own data to make your case, as generic case studies won't resonate. Know Your Audience: Understand the different priorities within the C-suite. The CFO is focused on financial impact and investment, while the CEO cares more about strategic alignment. Be aware of other influencers, including non-executive directors who may sit on multiple boards. Master the Financials: For the CFO, price isn't everything; being the cheapest can even be a red flag. Your champion must be prepared to discuss Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), payback periods (ideally under three years), and potential bill shock from usage-based models. Be precise with financial terms like ROI versus cost savings. Address Risk Head-On: Boards are risk-averse, so proactively address financial, operational, and execution risks. Remember to factor in opportunity cost—what the business can't do if it chooses your project. Emphasise how your solution minimises both business risk and the personal risk to board members' reputations. Prepare and Role-Play: Support your champions by helping them prepare a concise, one-page summary of the business case. Role-play the board presentation with them to build confidence and anticipate objections like "it's too expensive" or "the current system is fine". This preparation ensures they can deliver a quick, punchy, and compelling message.

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• S1 Ep 33 | S1 Recap: The Great Analyst Debate

  We revisit our conversations on customer engagement, CX, and industry analysts. We focus the first of our CX Insider guests, Steve, a former Gartner analyst. He shared his views on the real purpose of analysts, the work behind Magic Quadrants, and how analyst events have changed. Steve's "three wishes" give great advice for the CX industry and beyond. We reinforce that bringing people and operations together is vital for seamless customer journeys. Here are three things we learned: Analysts, especially at big firms like Gartner, primarily focus on helping end-user clients spend their money wisely, not just serving vendors. Creating seamless customer journeys depends on the convergence of people and operations. Technology isn't the main blocker; internal silos and personal agendas are. Industry reports, such as Gartner's Magic Quadrant, are often out of date by the time they are published. The lengthy production process means they can be "ancient history" in today's fast-moving market.

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• S1 Ep 32 | S1 Recap: Taming the RFP Monster

  Angus and Pete revisit their "RFP Trilogy" (Episodes 5–7) with bonus insights from CX6 insider Terry (Episode 21). RFPs in a Nutshell: RFPs are structured buying processes designed for transparency, competition, and clarity. For Buyers: You’re selling too—make the opportunity attractive. Set clear goals, engage stakeholders, and publish evaluation criteria. Communicate well and stick to timelines. For Sellers: RFPs are costly (£30k per bid) and win rates are low (often under 10%). Default to "no bid" unless it’s a strong fit. Cold RFPs rarely convert. Terry’s Four RFP Types: Full and Fair, Not So Open, Fantasy Shoppers, Free Consultancy. Use BLUF—answer clearly and early; focus your summary on requirements, price, and value. Price often decides—be competitive. Be honest; fake social value is just a hidden discount. RFPs aren't going away—but with structure and realism, they can work for everyone.

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• S1 Ep 31 | S1 Recap: What CX Buyers Want

  In the first of the Season 1 recaps, Angus and Pete reveal what CX buyers really want and how to stand out in the riveting world of customer engagement sales. Learn to focus on the buyer's journey, not your own sales process. Simplify your message by offering clear recommendations and limiting options, as too many choices lead to confusion. Use compelling stories instead of bullet points to help buyers visualize solutions. Tailor product demos to the audience and buying stage, showing what truly matters. Crucially, reduce buyer risk and anxiety to overcome apathy and secure the sale. Here are 5 key takeaways: • Prioritise the buyer's process. • Offer clear recommendations, limit options. • Tell relatable stories, avoid bullet points. • Tailor demos to the audience and buying stage. • Reduce buyer risk and anxiety.

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• S1 Ep 30 | The Whistlestop Tour

  Welcome to Episode 30 of The Angus and Pete Show. This special episode serves as a comprehensive recap of the first 29 episodes. The idea was inspired by avid listener Cyrille from Nairobi, who found episode recaps useful for weekly podcasts to revisit content or catch up on missed episodes. Finding their own back catalogue "heavy going," Angus and Pete enlisted their friendly AI assistant to summarise their journey so far, providing quick rundowns and reasons to revisit specific segments. Key themes covered across the first 29 episodes include: Analysts & Industry Evolution: Understanding the influential, yet often opaque, role of analysts like Gartner, and the history and jargon of the CX industry. AI: Explored across multiple episodes, focusing on business value over technical jargon, hybrid human-AI collaboration, personalisation, ethics, sustainability, cost of ownership, and early findings on savings and workforce impact. RFPs & Sales Strategy: A multi-part series on running effective Request for Proposal processes for buyers, and crafting high-quality, honest proposals for sellers. Building a Practice & Go-to-Market: Advice for sellers and resellers on transitioning to cloud solutions, choosing partners, and aligning product, marketing, and sales for consistent messaging and successful launches. EMEA & Cultural Nuances: Highlighting that EMEA is not a single market, emphasising the need for country-specific research, local trust, and understanding cultural impacts on business. Boardroom & Business Cases: Discussions on why business cases are rejected, equipping champions with financial metrics, and understanding CFO and board priorities like strategic alignment, ROI, TCO, and risk mitigation over short-term gains. Customer Interaction: Covering effective discovery, making pitches stand out, demonstration types, and the evolving role of outbound contact with a shift towards messaging and the concept of "Uber agents". Proposition & Sales Engineers: Defining the difference between brand, product, and proposition, and the crucial role of sales engineers in selling product value. Angus and Pete hope this overview encourages listeners to re-immerse themselves in the show. Don't forget to follow The Angus and Pete Show page on LinkedIn and subscribe on your favourite podcast platform.

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