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Everyone says seat-based pricing is dead, but do you actually have an outcome you can charge for? In episode #377, Ben Murray breaks down the 12 steps to building an outcome-based pricing plan, drawn from analyzing real, live outcome-based pricing pages and the fine print buried in their terms and conditions. Outcome pricing is complex to design and even harder for customers to understand: when are they charged, and where is the failure point at which they aren't? For SaaS founders and CFOs weighing a move to outcome- or agentic-AI pricing, getting the unit, success criteria, and spend controls right is the difference between a model customers trust and one that creates budget anxiety and billing disputes. How to decide whether you even have a billable outcome, and why a completed customer result is not the same as an activity. How to define the outcome unit and write success criteria twice, with real examples from Intercom's Fin, Help Scout's AI Answers, and Zendesk's 72-hour resolution window. Why failure forgiveness is a conversion tool, not just billing logic, and how measurement windows protect you from outcomes that unravel later. How to choose your commercial structure, anchor price to labor savings, revenue, or risk avoidance, and plan for the training lag before charges begin. Why spend controls and auditable billing events are non-negotiable, and how to know when outcome pricing is the wrong model entirely. Tune in for the full framework, then grab the deep-dive blog post before you design your next AI pricing plan. Resources Mentioned Ben's blog post: 12 Steps to Creating an Outcome-Based Pricing Plan: https://www.thesaascfo.com/how-to-build-outcome-based-pricing/
Is per-seat pricing dying a slow death, and is your SaaS expense structure ready for its replacement? In episode #373, Ben Murray breaks down the shift from per-seat subscriptions to usage and outcome-based pricing, and what it means for your finance org. Bloomberg projects subscription pricing falling from 60% to 30% of SaaS models over the next decade, while outcome-based pricing climbs from 10% to 60%. This is no longer a thesis on a slide. GitHub, Salesforce, Zendesk, Intercom, Figma, HubSpot, and others are already repricing, and public companies are reporting AI ARR in the hundreds of millions. If you cannot answer what your AI margins are when the board asks, you are already behind. See exactly how legacy SaaS leaders are repricing, from Zendesk charging per automated resolution to Salesforce billing per AI conversation plus flex credits, and what GitHub's June 1 move to token-based billing signals for the rest of the market. Understand why a single bucket of cloud hosting that blends traditional infrastructure with inference spend leaves you blind, and what instrumentation to put in place before budget season. Learn the questions your board will ask about AI margins, and how to answer whether low-usage customers are quietly subsidizing your heaviest users. Get the case for reconvening your pricing committee now to align product roadmap, AI features, and the expense framework that tracks them. Know which AI unit economics to track by revenue stream and by usage bucket so you can defend margin as your pricing model changes in real time. Listen now and put the tracking framework in place before the AI margin questions land on your desk. Resources Mentioned Ben's blog post: https://www.thesaascfo.com/saas-per-seat-pricing/ New course on AI unit economics and metrics: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ai-finance-metrics-saas
At NAB Las Vegas, Madeleine Budd, Marketing Manager for Saramonic Audio, introduces the Air SE, a tiny dual wireless mobile microphone system with USB-C and optional Lightning receivers, and magnetic charging. No larger than a lipstick, it features AI noise cancellation, and a strikingly low price. She also demos the WeTalk 9X intercom system, built for scalable team communication, noisy environments, remote apps, and professional production flexibility. Show Notes: Chapters: [0:03] Introduction from NAB 2026[0:28] Saramonic Air SE wireless mobile microphone system[1:15] AI noise cancellation and pricing for USB-C and Lightning options[2:41] Battery life, charging bar, and portable creator use[3:21] Professional and consumer uses for the compact microphone[4:23] WeTalk 9X intercom system introduction[4:41] On-device AI noise cancellation and security clarification[5:46] WeTalk 9X hub, headset capacity, compatibility, and battery life[6:37] Noise reduction, duplex communication, modular headset options, and remote apps[8:11] Saramonic's broader audio market and product philosophy[9:54] WeTalk 9X pricing and expansion value[10:43] Where to find Saramonic products[11:03] Closing comments from NAB Links: Saramonic Air SE Wireless Mini Microphone for iPhone 17/16/15https://amzn.to/4wKxu98 Saramonic WiTalk-WT5S Wireless Intercom Headset System 5-Person Full-Duplex 1.9GHz Single-Ear Communication Headsetshttps://amzn.to/4dJTZSV Support: Become a MacVoices Patron on Patreon http://patreon.com/macvoices Enjoy this episode? Make a one-time donation with PayPal Connect: Web: http://macvoices.com Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/chuckjoiner http://www.twitter.com/macvoices Mastodon: https://mastodon.cloud/@chuckjoiner Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/chuck.joiner MacVoices Page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/macvoices/ MacVoices Group on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/macvoice LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckjoiner/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chuckjoiner/ Subscribe: Audio in iTunes Video in iTunes Subscribe manually via iTunes or any podcatcher: Audio: http://www.macvoices.com/rss/macvoicesrss Video: http://www.macvoices.com/rss/macvoicesvideorss
At NAB Las Vegas, Madeleine Budd, Marketing Manager for Saramonic Audio, introduces the Air SE, a tiny dual wireless mobile microphone system with USB-C and optional Lightning receivers, and magnetic charging. No larger than a lipstick, it features AI noise cancellation, and a strikingly low price. She also demos the WeTalk 9X intercom system, built for scalable team communication, noisy environments, remote apps, and professional production flexibility. Show Notes: Chapters: [0:03] Introduction from NAB 2026 [0:28] Saramonic Air SE wireless mobile microphone system [1:15] AI noise cancellation and pricing for USB-C and Lightning options [2:41] Battery life, charging bar, and portable creator use [3:21] Professional and consumer uses for the compact microphone [4:23] WeTalk 9X intercom system introduction [4:41] On-device AI noise cancellation and security clarification [5:46] WeTalk 9X hub, headset capacity, compatibility, and battery life [6:37] Noise reduction, duplex communication, modular headset options, and remote apps [8:11] Saramonic's broader audio market and product philosophy [9:54] WeTalk 9X pricing and expansion value [10:43] Where to find Saramonic products [11:03] Closing comments from NAB Links: Saramonic Air SE Wireless Mini Microphone for iPhone 17/16/15 https://amzn.to/4wKxu98 Saramonic WiTalk-WT5S Wireless Intercom Headset System 5-Person Full-Duplex 1.9GHz Single-Ear Communication Headsets https://amzn.to/4dJTZSV Support: Become a MacVoices Patron on Patreon http://patreon.com/macvoices Enjoy this episode? Make a one-time donation with PayPal Connect: Web: http://macvoices.com Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/chuckjoiner http://www.twitter.com/macvoices Mastodon: https://mastodon.cloud/@chuckjoiner Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/chuck.joiner MacVoices Page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/macvoices/ MacVoices Group on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/macvoice LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckjoiner/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chuckjoiner/ Subscribe: Audio in iTunes Video in iTunes Subscribe manually via iTunes or any podcatcher: Audio: http://www.macvoices.com/rss/macvoicesrss Video: http://www.macvoices.com/rss/macvoicesvideorss
This Week In Startups is made possible by:Pilot - https://Pilot.com/TWISTGrasshopper Bank - https://Grasshopper.bank/TWISTQuo - https://Quo.com/TWiSTPlaud - https://Plaud.ai/twistAnthropic just declared every unauthorized secondary sale of its stock "void" — naming Hiive, Forge, Sydecar, Upmarket, and others in a public hit list. Jason and Alex sit down with Jenny Fielding (Everywhere Ventures), Dave McClure (Practical VC), and Sam Lessin (Slow Ventures) to unpack what the AI lab's move to limit secondary trades means for SPV operators, brokers, and the founders trying to keep control of their cap tables. Plus: a real story of a founder who returned a $15M Series A six months after closing because Claude was going to eat his startup, SaaS moats, and just what does it mean to be rich?Timestamps:0:00 Guest introductions0:48 Anthropic voids unauthorized SPV trades8:41 Accredited investor reform & the SEC sophisticated investor test8:58 Quo (formerly OpenPhone) - Quo gives you a clean, modern way to handle every customer call, text, and thread all in one place. Try it free at https://quo.com/TWiST11:43 Naval's USVC closed-end fund as a workaround16:41 Plaud: If your work depends on conversations — interviews, meetings, calls — you need a Plaud NotePin. You can check it out at https://Plaud.ai/twist and use code TWIST for 10% off!17:48 Pro-rata rights battles: when Series A investors push seed investors out19:36 Grasshopper Bank: Time is money. Don't waste either. Go to https://grasshopper.bank/twist and get an exclusive $500 cash bonus just for opening an account.29:13 Pilot: Focus on your product, let Pilot handle your bookkeeping. Pilot provides the most reliable accounting, CFO, and tax services for startups and small businesses. Head to https://pilot.com/twist and get $1,200 off your first year.30:23 Storing wealth in stories vs. cash flows34:19 Cerebras and Fervo Energy IPOs — meaningful liquidity?37:54 Will SpaceX, Anthropic, OpenAI IPOs redistribute capital or compound it?45:58 The $15M Series A founder who returned the money because of Claude50:01 Should founders pivot or return capital when the world changes?56:43 OpenAI's $6.6B tender and Shruti Gandhi's viral SF cost-of-living tweet1:00:25 Intercom rebrands to Fin: the AI-first late-stage pivotSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisCheck out all our partner offers: https://partners.launch.co/Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason's suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanisFollow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.com
Hey CX Nation,In this week's episode of The CXChronicles Podcast #281, we welcomed Carl Lenocker, Senior Customer Success Executive at Splunk, based in San Francisco, CA. He is also the Chief Unicorn at Rockstar Unicorn Consulting. Carl has an interesting story as he's a a top-1% Customer Success Executive ($50M ARR) who built a career by owning relationships, telling the truth early, and tying outcomes to dollars—not dashboards.He's also the author of Success Plan for Life, where he breaks down how the same principles used to protect multi-million-dollar enterprise accounts can be applied to career, wealth, love and long-term leverage.In this episode, Carl and Adrian chat through the Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback. Plus share some of the ideas that his team think through on a daily basis to build world class customer experiences.**Episode #281 Highlight Reel:**1. What it takes to be a top 1& CSM 2. Bringing CX & customer success into your future investments3. Where are things headed for CS in the next 1,000 days?Click here to learn more about Carl LenockerClick here to learn more about SplunkHuge thanks to Carl for coming on The CXChronicles Podcast and featuring his work and efforts in pushing the customer experience & contact center space into the future. For all of our Apple & Spotify podcast listener friends, make sure you are following CXC & please leave a 5 star review so we can find new members of the "CX Nation". You know what would be even better?Go tell your friends or teammates about CXC's custom content, strategic partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, & Freshworks) & On-Demand services & invite them to join the CX Nation, a community of 15K+ customer focused business leaders!Want to see how your customer experience compares to the world's top-performing customer focused companies? Thanks to all of you for being apart of the "CX Nation" and helping customer focused business leaders across the world make happiness a habit!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles TodayTweet us @cxchroniclesCheck out our Instagram @cxchroniclesClick here to checkout the CXC websiteEmail us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
Artificial intelligence has changed the way companies work, and now a new phase is emerging. Whereas earlier systems could only respond to prompts, Agentic AI is designed to handle entire workflows. For companies, the shift is profound, as it promises greater efficiency, faster decision-making and entirely new ways of structuring work. At the same time, it raises important questions around control, accountability and integration into existing business processes. Germany, with its strong industrial base and growing AI ecosystem, is positioning itself as a key player in this transformation. Companies and institutions across the country are exploring how agentic AI can be scaled responsibly and effectively. And there's lots of room for international companies to enter the market. Our guests: Daniela Rittmeier is a supervisory board member, advisor and head of Capgemini's Generative AI Accelerator, leading AI integration and scaling across industries and value chains. With over 20 years of experience driving transformation and innovation, she's a thought leader in sustainable, anthropocentric AI and an advocate for women in technology and digital education. Des Traynor is co‑founder and chief strategy officer of the customer messaging and support platform Intercom, which has expanded to Germany. He has driven Intercom's shift toward AI‑first product strategy and development, including the creation of AI agents such as Fin.
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In this episode, I sit down with Mark Hughes, co-founder and CEO of Solid Road, for a real conversation about how AI is reshaping customer experience and what that means for leaders today. We explore how tools like the Claude coworking system are changing team communication and improving transparency, and why Mark sees radical transparency as a key to building trust and ownership across an organization. We also get into how leadership evolves as companies scale, why hiring specialists matters, how your role shifts as a leader, and what it takes to step into a more strategic mindset. Mark shares his own journey through that transition, along with the lessons he's learned along the way. We wrap up by looking at how embracing AI isn't just about efficiency, but about fostering a culture of continuous learning, adaptability, and growth. Episode Highlights & Time Stamps 6:34 The Power of AI in Customer Experience 8:41 Managing Team Burnout 10:02 Core Leadership Principles 11:34 The Importance of Ownership 13:52 Defining Radical Transparency 17:17 Future of AI-Driven Leadership 23:34 Evolving Leadership Practices About Mark Hughes Mark Hughes is the co-founder and CEO of Solidroad, a company focused on using AI to improve how customer-facing teams train, perform, and deliver support. His work centers on building AI agents that help companies coach their teams, analyze conversations, and raise the overall quality of customer experience at scale. Before launching Solidroad, Mark founded Gradguide, a mentorship and coaching platform for recent graduates, where he raised funding, built a team, and successfully exited the company. He also brings deep experience from roles in sales, support, and customer success leadership, previously leading EMEA teams at Chargify (now Maxio) and working as an early sales hire at Intercom. Through Solidroad, Mark is helping organizations rethink how teams learn and improve, combining AI-driven insights with real-world training to accelerate onboarding, boost performance, and create more consistent customer experiences. How to Connect with Mark Hughes: LinkedIn: Mark Hughes https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-hughes-a36915a7 Company Website: Solidroad https://www.solidroad.com/ Resources & Next Steps Ready to take your leadership energy to the next level? Explore free training and resources at https://training.coreelevation.com/ to help you identify energy leaks, strengthen your leadership presence, and elevate your team's performance.
Does AI really break B2B positioning, or is it exposing deeper product problems? In this roundtable, Refine Labs' VP of Innovation Matt Sciannella sits down with Fletch PMM founders Anthony Pierri and Rob Kaminski to unpack what's actually happening when companies try to position themselves for the AI era.They cover why AI mandates from VCs create confusion (not clarity), how Intercom, Palantir, Salesforce, and Owner.com handle multi-product positioning, and why delegating positioning to LLMs is a race to mediocrity.What is product positioning in B2B SaaS?Product positioning defines who your product is for, what problem it solves, and why it's different from alternatives. It's the upstream decision that drives homepage messaging, paid media, and GTM clarity.How does AI affect B2B positioning strategy?AI doesn't break positioning fundamentals — it adds market uncertainty and product pressure. Companies still must answer: what problem do you solve, for whom, and better than what?Can AI write your positioning for you?No. LLMs can accelerate research and fill in details, but they can't generate non-obvious strategy from scratch. They're best used when humans provide 80% of the thinking first.Why do multi-product companies struggle with positioning?Most markets are fragmented. Customers think narrowly — they're not shopping for "everything." Leading with one clear use case (like Apple with iPhone, Owner.com with restaurant grading) outperforms breadth.What is a go-to-market positioning framework?A GTM positioning framework defines your category, ideal customer profile (ICP), competitive alternatives, differentiated value, and homepage message — in that order, before messaging or campaigns.#b2bmarketing #ProductPositioning #GTMStrategy #B2BSaaS #DemandGeneration #ProductMarketing #AIMarketing #ContentMarketing #SaaSMarketing #RefineLabsRoundtable #FletchPMM #MarketingStrategy #ICPMessaging #HomepageCopywriting #GoToMarket
Dave "CAC" Kellogg and Ray "Growth" Rike tell the full story of how Intercom, a $400M ARR company that stalled at 4% growth, executed one of the most dramatic AI-first transformations in B2B SaaS. From writing off tens of millions in ARR to building a proprietary vertical AI model, this episode breaks down what it actually took to reinvent a mature SaaS business from the ground up.Topics CoveredFrom 4% to 26% Growth: The Numbers Behind the Turnaround. Intercom hit rock bottom with five straight quarters of declining net new ARR before founder Eoghan McCabe returned and went all in on AI following the ChatGPT launch in November 2022. Ray and Dave walk through the growth trajectory and what made the timing of the reset both urgent and actionable.The "Burn the Ships" Organizational Decision. Intercom rotated roughly 80% of its R&D team onto the new AI product, deliberately wrote off 50 to 60 million in ARR, and created small startup-like teams of 10 to 15 people with directly responsible individuals leading each workstream. Ray and Dave discuss why half-measures fail and how a stuck business actually has an advantage: very little to lose.Board Dynamics and Why Committees Kill Bold Moves. Dave shares a candid take on how PE boards versus VC boards respond differently to dramatic pivots, and why the committee nature of multi-partner VC boards tends to drive toward measured, middle-ground responses that often produce no real outcome.AI Economics: Gross Margins, Inference Costs, and Building Your Own Model. The shift from SaaS to AI-native changes the cost structure fundamentally. Ray puts current gross margin ranges in context (40 to 55% for pure AI-native, 55 to 70% for blended), explains why inference spend is actually rising despite lower per-token costs, and discusses why Intercom built its own vertical customer agent model for both performance and COGS optimization.Outcome-Based Pricing and the 99-Cent Resolution. Customer support is one of the clearest use cases for outcome-based pricing because the natural unit is obvious: a resolved ticket. Ray and Dave break down how Intercom priced Fin at 99 cents per resolution, validated the model against an 81% internal resolution rate, and watched NRR climb from 112% to 146% as adoption scaled across 8,000 customers.Never Waste a Good Crisis. Dave frames the broader lesson for SaaS CEOs: two paths exist now, dramatic AI reinvention or a Rule of 60/70 efficiency play. The Intercom story illustrates what the reinvention path actually demands. Ray adds that many SaaS companies sitting at 10% growth and 25% EBITDA are already in a slow-moving crisis and just haven't admitted it yet.If you lead a B2B SaaS company navigating the shift to AI, this episode is the most concrete case study available on what full commitment actually looks like in practice. Ray and Dave go beyond the headlines to examine the organizational design, board dynamics, cost structure, pricing model, and retention metrics behind Intercom's transformation. Whether you are considering an AI-first pivot or trying to understand why incremental approaches tend to stall, this episode gives you the analytical framework and the real numbers to think it through.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Hey CX Nation,In this week's episode of The CXChronicles Podcast #280, we welcomed Josh Schachter, SVP @ Gainsight, Creator of [Un] Churned Podcast & Writing Book on how the world's most exceptional founders build businesses centered around human relationships. On July 21st, 2025 Gainsight announced it acquired Update.ai: Accelerating the Age of Atlas Agents. This also brought forward Josh Schachter, founder of UpdateAI and one of the first to build in post-sales AI, stepping in as SVP & GM of Atlas. Josh is a product thinker through and through – someone who's lived the day-to-day pain of customer teams and built UpdateAI from that front-line perspective. In this episode, Josh and Adrian chat through the Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback. Plus share some of the ideas that his team think through on a daily basis to build world class customer experiences.**Episode #280 Highlight Reel:**1. AI is here to amplify human effort, not replace it entirely2. Defining & living your core business values3. Learning from podcast interviews & conversations 4. Building a business into an acquisition target for larger companies5. Learning from public companies & their NPS performanceClick here to learn more about Josh SchachterClick here to learn more about GainsightClick here to learn more about UpdateAIClick here to learn more about [UN] Churned PodcastHuge thanks to Josh for coming on The CXChronicles Podcast and featuring his work and efforts in pushing the customer experience & contact center space into the future. For all of our Apple & Spotify podcast listener friends, make sure you are following CXC & please leave a 5 star review so we can find new members of the "CX Nation". You know what would be even better?Go tell your friends or teammates about CXC's custom content, strategic partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, & Freshworks) & On-Demand services & invite them to join the CX Nation, a community of 15K+ customer focused business leaders!Want to see how your customer experience compares to the world's top-performing customer focused companies? Thanks to all of you for being apart of the "CX Nation" and helping customer focused business leaders across the world make happiness a habit!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles TodayTweet us @cxchroniclesCheck out our Instagram @cxchroniclesClick here to checkout the CXC websiteEmail us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
Start a free trial of HubSpot's new AEO tool: https://clickhubspot.com/apeo Get the AEO playbook that made HubSpot the #1 most visible CRM in AI search: https://clickhubspot.com/mfle Ep. 418 Did you know tools like ChatGPT and Claude are already telling your customers to buy from your competitors—and you might not even know it? Kipp dives into the rise of Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and how AI search engines are transforming the way businesses are found and recommended online. Learn more on why traditional Google search is no longer enough, how AI-driven recommendations are shaping customer decisions, and the must-do strategies to ensure your brand shows up across every major AI-powered search engine. Mentions ChatGPT https://chatgpt.com/ Claude https://claude.ai/ Perplexity https://www.perplexity.ai/ Zendesk https://www.zendesk.com/ Intercom https://www.intercom.com/ Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt We're creating our next round of content and want to ensure it tackles the challenges you're facing at work or in your business. To understand your biggest challenges we've put together a survey and we'd love to hear from you! https://bit.ly/matg-research Resource [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip We're on Social Media! Follow us for everyday marketing wisdom straight to your feed YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGtXqPiNV8YC0GMUzY-EUFg Twitter: https://twitter.com/matgpod TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@matgpod Join our community https://landing.connect.com/matg Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain! Don't forget to hit subscribe and follow us on Apple Podcasts (so you never miss an episode)! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/marketing-against-the-grain/id1616700934 If you love this show, please leave us a 5-Star Review https://link.chtbl.com/h9_sjBKH and share your favorite episodes with friends. We really appreciate your support. Host Links: Kipp Bodnar, https://twitter.com/kippbodnar Kieran Flanagan, https://twitter.com/searchbrat ‘Marketing Against The Grain' is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.
Hey CX Nation,In this week's episode of The CXChronicles Podcast #279, we welcomed Jack Siney, Co-Founder & Chief Revenue Officer at FrontRace. FrontRace brings together your team's real activity data and connects it across systems, and apply powerful AI to reveal what's working, what's not, and what to do next.This is the future of AI transformation: grounded in truth, built on your data, and tailored to how your company actually works.In this episode, Jack and Adrian chat through the Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback. Plus share some of the ideas that his team think through on a daily basis to build world class customer experiences.**Episode #279 Highlight Reel:**1. Leveraging & configuring your data to drive growth 2. Connecting your customer data across the whole journey 3. Understanding which metrics matter most 4. Ensuring your team understands what drives the business 5. Always be learning & course correcting Click here to learn more about Jack SineyClick here to learn more about FrontRaceHuge thanks to Jack for coming on The CXChronicles Podcast and featuring his work and efforts in pushing the customer experience & data configuration space into the future. For all of our Apple & Spotify podcast listener friends, make sure you are following CXC & please leave a 5 star review so we can find new members of the "CX Nation". You know what would be even better?Go tell your friends or teammates about CXC's custom content, strategic partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, & Freshworks) & On-Demand services & invite them to join the CX Nation, a community of 15K+ customer focused business leaders!Want to see how your customer experience compares to the world's top-performing customer focused companies? Thanks to all of you for being apart of the "CX Nation" and helping customer focused business leaders across the world make happiness a habit!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles TodayTweet us @cxchroniclesCheck out our Instagram @cxchroniclesClick here to checkout the CXC websiteEmail us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
Clint, Meg and Dan kick off Tuesday’s Edge Breakfast chatting about breakfasts, throwbacks and celebrity gossip, including stories about Nicole Scherzinger and debate over Drake, Whoopi Goldberg and Cameron Diaz in their A/B/C-lister game. They play “More or Less” on inventions, take early calls, and run the 50K Fuel wheel (Bex and Rosie miss out on the $5,000 spin but keep $100 vouchers). Clint shares an embarrassing stress-ball mishap, they discuss Sabrina Carpenter controversy, and reveal podcast keywords to fast-track Fuel Lead entries. Other highlights include parenting toilet confessions, ‘irresistible’ marriage advice from an old book, a “front foot” confession segment, what made friends seem rich growing up, a honey thief in Otago, NZ ranking #1 for work-life balance, and Charlie Puth’s NZ tour announcement with tickets given away. 00:00 Show Opener01:08 Pussycat Dolls Drama03:03 Wu Tang Confusion04:37 Nicole Vocal Praise05:22 Pikachu Text Mixup08:19 More Or Less Quiz11:04 Scandal12:07 First Call of the day16:41 Stress Ball Explosion20:24 Sabrina Culture Debate24:14 Fuelette27:05 A B C Listers35:43 Toddlers Bathroom Watch39:21 Books By Boomers43:04 Melania Press Conference Parody44:41 Front Foot Confessions52:20 Rich Kid Household Clues01:01:53 Honey Heist Small Town News01:05:33 NZ Work Life Balance Ranking01:14:11 Charlie Puth Tour Reveal
“We charged for outcomes with Fin…we're charging when we did the work properly, and we weren't charging when we didn't,” Des Traynor, Intercom's co-founder and chief strategy officer, tells Anurag Rana, senior technology analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. In this Tech Disruptors episode, Traynor explains why Intercom chose to cannibalize its seat-based support software as a service to launch an AI agent that targets 60–70% resolution, and why outcome pricing changes everything from product design to unit economics. They also dig into what separates resolution from “deflection,” why most companies shouldn't self-build support agents, how Intercom mixes models — including its own CX models — to optimize quality/cost and why 2026 is about expanding Fin from support into broader customer-facing roles.
The AI Breakdown: Daily Artificial Intelligence News and Discussions
Intercom and Cursor have both shown that post-training open-weight models on domain-specific interaction data can match or beat the best frontier models — cheaper and faster. It's a development that could reshape the business model of the major AI labs and validate the idea that experience data, not just scale, is the next frontier of model performance. In the headlines: Anthropic's Claude Mythos model leaks, Google drops a real-time voice model, Shopify launches Tinker, and OpenAI shelves adult mode.Brought to you by:KPMG – Agentic AI is powering a potential $3 trillion productivity shift, and KPMG's new paper, Agentic AI Untangled, gives leaders a clear framework to decide whether to build, buy, or borrow—download it at www.kpmg.us/NavigateMercury - Modern banking for business and now personal accounts. Learn more at https://mercury.com/personal-bankingRecall - The API for meeting recording. Get Get started today with $100 in free credits at https://www.recall.ai/aidbAIUC-1 - Get your agents certified to communicate trust to enterprise buyers - https://www.aiuc-1.com/Blitzy - Want to accelerate enterprise software development velocity by 5x? https://blitzy.com/AssemblyAI - The best way to build Voice AI apps - https://www.assemblyai.com/briefRobots & Pencils - Cloud-native AI solutions that power results https://robotsandpencils.com/The Agent Readiness Audit from Superintelligent - Go to https://besuper.ai/ to request your company's agent readiness score.The AI Daily Brief helps you understand the most important news and discussions in AI. Subscribe to the podcast version of The AI Daily Brief wherever you listen: https://pod.link/1680633614Our Newsletter is BACK: https://aidailybrief.beehiiv.com/Interested in sponsoring the show? sponsors@aidailybrief.ai
Customer support software is one of the most crowded SaaS categories out there. Intercom, Crisp, and dozens of others have been around for years. Building something new in that space and actually finding customers takes more than a good idea. It takes clarity.That's exactly what Preet Mishra brought to Helploom. A flat-rate pricing model, a simple interface, and a Reddit strategy that drove most of his growth. When the time was right, he listed on Acquire.com and closed in four days.You'll hear:How Helploom competed on pricing and simplicity in a saturated marketWhy Reddit drove more growth than SEO, paid ads, and social media combinedWhat made him decide to sell a profitable, growing productHow Acquire.com connected him with 15-20 buyers and 4-5 LOIs in two daysWhy he chose vision and alignment over the highest offer3 Lessons from HelploomSimplicity Is a Competitive Advantage: In a crowded market, being easier and more predictable than the incumbents is enough to build a loyal customer base.Know Which Race You're Running: Scaling Helploom would have required becoming a different kind of founder. Recognizing that early was the smartest move Preet made.Preparation Closes Deals Fast: Clean documentation and a realistic asking price turned a four-day listing into a completed acquisition.For solo founders and bootstrapped builders, this episode offers a clear and honest look at what it takes to grow, decide, and exit on your own terms.Follow the guest:LinkedInX (Twitter)Helploom
Intercom gave up $60 million in contracted seat-based ARR to bet the entire company on an AI agent named Fin. The result? They passed $400 million in total ARR, with Fin driving over $100 million in revenue and 35% growth. In this episode, Sam Jacobs, AJ Bruno, and Asad Zaman break down what went into this massive turnaround. The conversation starts with the problem: the SaaS market cap dropping by $600 billion, and how this creates an urgent need for structural pivots. The hosts discuss the financial reality of agentic business models, why historic 90% SaaS gross margins are disappearing, and how scaling compute costs will impact your GTM strategy. The episode wraps up with tactical advice on managing board support, handling leadership pushback, and executing a burn-the-boats transition before your legacy product-market fit evaporates. Link to Intercom CEO Eoghan McCabe's essay: https://ideas.fin.ai/p/there-is-exactly-one-way-that-saas Key Episode Takeaways: - Shifting to an AI-first product fundamentally changes your financial model, requiring exponential revenue generation to offset massive compute costs, which Sam Jacobs points out by stating, "You are trading a good business for a worse business... you have to grow at exponential rates as an agentic business because your gross margins are so much lower than SaaS." - Comfort is the enemy of innovation for established software companies, and survival often requires a massive operational reset, as AJ Bruno explains when noting that "Intercom had five straight quarters of zero net new ARR growth" before they took drastic action. - The cost of human capital is rising as top performers require heavy compute access to execute their roles effectively, a reality Asad Zaman highlights by predicting that "Every recruiter at STA will probably have $10K, $20K, $30K worth of inference calls in the next couple of years... That's like a mini assistant for each person." Connect with the Hosts: Host: Sam Jacobs - https://www.linkedin.com/in/samfjacobs/ Host: AJ Bruno - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajbruno3/ Host: Asad Zaman - https://www.linkedin.com/in/azaman1/ Topline is more than a YouTube Channel: -Subscribe to Topline Newsletter: https://www.joinpavilion.com/topline-newsletter -Tune into Topline Podcast, the #1 podcast for founders, operators, and investors in B2B tech: https://www.joinpavilion.com/topline-podcast -Join the free Topline Slack channel to connect with 600+ revenue leaders to keep the conversation going beyond the podcast: https://www.joinpavilion.com/topline-slack Chapters: 00:00 Intro and Episode Overview 01:21 Intercom 400M ARR Turnaround 03:41 The Massive SaaS Market Cap Reset 05:27 Executing a Burn the Boats Pivot 09:05 Gross Margins of AI vs Legacy SaaS 12:00 Defending App Commoditization 18:16 Returning to Founder Mode 27:29 Why You Need Full Board Support 32:26 The Danger of Comfortable Growth 36:31 The Real Cost of AI Inference 42:27 Rising Talent Compute Economics 49:25 Tracking the Right Churn Metrics 52:38 Shifting GTM to Vertical SaaS
Episode Summary: The "SaaS is dead" narrative is generating real confusion for enterprise buyers trying to make procurement decisions right now. In this solo episode, Maribel Lopez breaks down the two legitimate arguments driving the disruption narrative — AI coding tools and agentic AI — separates what's real from what's overstated, and gives enterprise technology leaders the two questions that actually matter for evaluating their SaaS stack in an AI-first world.What You'll Learn:Why AI coding tools like Claude Code and Codex are not a SaaS replacement strategy — and what they should be used for insteadWhere agentic AI creates genuine revenue model pressure for SaaS vendors, and which vendors are already respondingThe specific conditions that would have to be true for SaaS to decline significantly — and which are not yet metHow to evaluate your SaaS vendors' agentic AI readiness beyond roadmap promisesWhy the liability and compliance math still heavily favors established SaaS platforms for most enterprise use casesKey Takeaways:Rebuilding mature systems of record with AI coding tools is not a competitive advantage — it's a distraction from building software that reflects your actual differentiationThe per-seat revenue model is under real pressure, but vendors moving on agentic capabilities are finding new revenue: Salesforce is generating $540M ARR from AgentForce; Intercom crossed $200M from its AI-first pivotCommodity SaaS with no data moat or compliance depth faces the hardest disruption; platforms with systems of record have a path forwardThe right test for any SaaS vendor right now: what can they show you working in production — not a roadmap, not a demoCompanies and Examples Referenced:Salesforce / AgentForce: $540M ARR from agentic capabilitiesIntercom: $200M ARR from AI-first product pivotWorkday: Certified connector ecosystem as an example of integration moats that can't be replicated quicklySAP: Proactive procurement optimization as an example of SaaS becoming more valuable, not lessResources:Read the full article: SaaS Isn't Dead. But Its Revenue Model Is Under Pressure — Lopez ResearchReferenced: Cathay Capital on agentic AI and B2B softwareConnect with Maribel on LinkedInSubscribe to AI with Maribel Lopez on your podcast channel of choice — links at lopezresearch.com.SEO Keywords: enterprise AI adoption, SaaS revenue model, agentic AI enterprise, AI agents B2B software, enterprise software evaluation, AI coding tools enterprise, SaaS disruption, enterprise AI strategy
I sit down with Cody Schneider, growth engineer and co-founder of Graph, for a live, hands-on crash course in GTM (go-to-market) engineering powered by Claude Code. Cody walks through how he runs multiple AI agents simultaneously to handle everything from bulk Facebook ad creation and LinkedIn outreach to cold email campaigns and live data analysis — tasks that used to require a team of dozens. By the end of the episode, you'll have a full understanding of how to set up your own agent workflow, the specific tools involved, and why domain expertise paired with AI is the real competitive advantage right now. Cody's GTM Toolkit: AI/Agent Tools: Claude Code, Perplexity API, OpenAI Codex Marketing & Outreach: Instantly AI (cold email), Phantom Buster (LinkedIn scraping/automation), Apollo API (data enrichment), Million Verifier (email verification), Raphonic (podcast host scraping): Advertising: Facebook Ads API, Facebook Ads Library (competitor research), Nano Banana Pro (AI image generation), Kai AI (bulk image generation), HeyGen API (UGC/video generation) Infrastructure & Deployment: Railway.com (servers, on-the-fly databases/Postgres), Vercel (deployment) Data & Analytics: Graphed / Graphed MCP (data warehouse, live data feeds), Google Analytics 4 CRM & Communication: Salesforce (mentioned as comparison), Intercom, SendGrid API, Slack, Cal.com API Productivity & Design: Notion, Super Whisper (voice transcription), Claude Code front-end design skill, HTML to Canvas (for converting React components to PNGs) Timestamps 00:00 – Intro 02:02 – What Is GTM Engineering? 05:12 – Setting Up Your Agent Workspace & Environment File 07:54 – Live Demo: LinkedIn Auto-Responder 09:56 – Live Demo: Bulk Facebook Ad Generator 12:31 – Live Demo: Cold Email Campaign Automation (Raphonic + Instantly) 14:47 – Live Demo: Creating Notion Documents via Claude Code 16:46 – Live Demo: Bulk Ad Creative Generator 26:05 – Live Demo: LinkedIn Engagement Scraper to Cold Email Pipeline 28:16 – Context Switching Across Tasks 29:19 – Live Demo: Bulk Ad Generator 31:41 – Live Demo: Data Analysis: Turning Off Low-Performing Ads 35:28 – Summary of GTM Engineering Workflow 37:48 – Deploying Agents and On-the-Fly Databases with Railway for Data Analysis 41:28 – The Dream of Autonomous Marketing 48:50 – Building API-First Products and Agent-Native Infrastructure Key Points GTM engineering has evolved from Clay-style data enrichment workflows into full-stack agent orchestration — where one person running multiple Claude Code agents can replace the output of a large team. The practical setup starts with a single folder containing your environment file (API keys for every tool in your stack), transcription software like Super Whisper, and Claude Code. Cody demonstrates running seven or more agents simultaneously across LinkedIn outreach, Facebook ad creation, cold email campaigns, Notion document generation, and live data dashboards. Code-generated ad creative (React components exported as PNGs) costs nearly nothing to produce at scale and allows rapid testing of messaging variations before investing in polished visuals. Deploying proven workflows to Railway turns one-off agent tasks into always-on, autonomous processes that run 24/7. Domain expertise is the real multiplier — the vocabulary you bring from your field determines the quality of output you can extract from these tools. The #1 tool to find startup ideas/trends - https://www.ideabrowser.com LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/ The Vibe Marketer - Resources for people into vibe marketing/marketing with AI: https://www.thevibemarketer.com/ FIND ME ON SOCIAL X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/gregisenberg Instagram: https://instagram.com/gregisenberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gisenberg/ FIND CODY ON SOCIAL: Cody's startup: https://www.graphed.com/ X/Twitter: https://x.com/codyschneiderxx Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@codyschneiderx
Hey CX Nation,In this week's episode of The CXChronicles Podcast #278, we welcomed Ryan Wang, Co-Founder & CEO of Assembled based in San Francisco, CA.Industry leaders like Etsy, Robinhood, and Stripe trust Assembled to provide customer-facing AI agents and workforce planning at scale. Assembled automatically resolves millions of interactions through chat, email, and phone while optimizing staffing for hundreds of thousands of support professionals. Their mission is to elevate customer support through AI-powered software that makes life easier for customers and employees.In this episode, Ryan and Adrian chat through the Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback. Plus share some of the ideas that his team think through on a daily basis to build world class customer experiences.**Episode #278 Highlight Reel:**1. Building a high-performing team in the AI age 2. Shift towards AI-driven skill sets in the workforce 3. Creating a culture of continuous learning 4. Focusing on customer feedback early & often 5. Keeping your team lean & flexible as you scale Click here to learn more about Ryan WangClick here to learn more about AssembledHuge thanks to Ryan for coming on The CXChronicles Podcast and featuring his work and efforts in pushing the customer experience & contact center space into the future. For all of our Apple & Spotify podcast listener friends, make sure you are following CXC & please leave a 5 star review so we can find new members of the "CX Nation". You know what would be even better?Go tell your friends or teammates about CXC's custom content, strategic partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, & Freshworks) & On-Demand services & invite them to join the CX Nation, a community of 15K+ customer focused business leaders!Want to see how your customer experience compares to the world's top-performing customer focused companies? Thanks to all of you for being apart of the "CX Nation" and helping customer focused business leaders across the world make happiness a habit!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles Today Tweet us @cxchronicles Check out our Instagram @cxchronicles Click here to checkout the CXC website Email us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
Intercom's Fin has already transformed customer service with 81% automation. Now, it's moving into sales. Senior Director of AI Support Ruth O'Brien and Senior AI Conversation Designer Fred Walton unpack how Fin Sales Agent qualifies leads, grows pipeline, drives revenue, and creates a seamless, unified customer journey - without exposing internal silos.Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/rThtx2VcLtQ?si=ePC1XdncDM2FpFbWFollow the peoplehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/ruthieob/https://www.linkedin.com/in/fred-w-06a41814a/NewsletterSign up for The Ticket on LinkedIn: A newsletter bursting with insights and advice for support leaders who are navigating the shift to AI-first CS. https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-ticket-7158151857616355328/Say hiLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/intercom/X: https://x.com/intercomhttps://www.fin.aiSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Hey CX Nation,In this CXWeekly Update episode #277 we walk through ideas, goals & CTAs the team at CXC has been focused on, not only internally but from the learnings we're being exposed to from clients & strategic partners on a regular basis. In this episode we walk through a few emerging trends around how AI is impacting the future of Sales, CX, Customer Success & Support + the future of work. Thanks to our friends at GoTo, Intercom & TriNet for supplying some amazing market reports that fuel this week's episodes. They collectively went out & interviewed & surveyed thousands of business leaders from across the world to see where they are in their AI foundation building efforts. Click here for GoTo Pulse of Work Report 2025Click here for Intercom Customer Service Transformation Report 2026Click here for Tri-Net State of Workplace Report 2025Don't worry we have a ton of amazing brand new guest interviews & episodes coming down the pipeline.We're also working on new forms & mediums of customer focused business content -- including my 2nd book "Make Happiness A Habit" that we are launching in the New Year. We've also been building a few new podcasts behind the scenes to take all that we've learned with CXCP & start finding other podcast areas ripe for more content. A big part of CXC's mission is to continue creating valuable customer & employee focused business leader content, including CXWeekly updates like this that are digestible, actionable & most importantly entertaining. The CXChronicles Podcast is approaching a huge milestone in the upcoming months that most podcasts will never achieve. We closing in on 300+ episodes of customer focused business content from incredible Founders & Executives from all over the world. CXC is partnered with several leading software & technology providers including Hubspot, Intercom, Freshworks, & several others who might be the difference in your CX/EX performance moving forward. We provide our clients with audits, assessments & scorecards and we provide custom CTAs centered around your content engine to drive CX/EX health, utilization & health performance for our partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, Freshworks), & on-demand managed services (partner led implementation, utilization performance & training for several of our partner solutions).If you enjoy The CXChronicles Podcast, stop by your favorite podcast player and leave us a review today.You know what would be even better?Go tell one of your friends or teammates about CXC's content, CX/CS/RevOps services, our customer & employee focused community & invite them to join the CX Nation!For you non-readers, go check out the CXChronicles Youtube channel to see our customer & employee focused video content & short-reel CTAs to improve your CX/CS/RevOps performance today (politely go smash that subscribe button).Contact us anytime to learn more about CXC at INFO@cxchronicles.com and ask us about how we can help your business & team make customer happiness a habit now!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles Today Tweet us @cxchronicles Check out our Instagram @cxchronicles Click here to checkout the CXC website Email us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
Honeycomb Co-founder and CTO Charity Majors explains why measuring the right engineering metrics in the age of AI matters more than chasing numbers.Topics Include:Charity Majors introduces Honeycomb as the original observability company for complex systemsHoneycomb solves high cardinality problems across millions of individual customer experiencesTheir MCP tool ranked top five in Stack Overflow's most-used listCanva lets developers interact with production software directly from their IDEAI acts as an amplifier requiring strong reliability and observability foundationsMeasuring success requires multiple metrics to avoid gaming single numbersHoneycomb adopted Intercom's 2X productivity challenge enlisting employees to identify gainsWriting code was never the hard part even before generative AI arrivedHoneycomb created AI values prioritizing transparency and emotional safety for employeesStaff tested boundaries on resources and environmental impact prompting honest discussionsHoneycomb acquired Grok and shipped Query Assistant Canvas and MCP productsFuture concerns include AI economics shifting and AI-native developers lacking foundational expertiseParticipants:Charity Majors – Co-Founder/CTO, Honeycomb.ioSee how Amazon Web Services gives you the freedom to migrate, innovate, and scale your software company at https://aws.amazon.com/isv/
Yep - we are at the start of a new world - a world where AI is going to be 'even bigger than the internet'. And as the leaders of challenger brands in CPG, we've gotta lean in. In this episode of Brand Growth Heroes, I'm joined by one of my oldest and best friends, Paul Adams, CPO & Marketing at a multi-billion dollar company, Intercom AND he is building Fin.ai. If you're not in 'Tech' you may not have heard of him, but Paul Adams is one of the world's most prominent tech product designers, researchers, and authors - recognised as one of the world's leading thinkers on the the intersection between humans and technology... and now between humans, commercialisation and AI.... amongst many other aspects of tech that most of us are not even privy to! Described as "one of Silicon Valley's most wanted", he's also one of my closest friends, and I can't tell you how proud we are of the young man who rocked up to live with us in Balham in 2002 to work at Dyson, his very first job. After only a few years he was poached by Facebook, where he made the platform 'mobile' and then Google, where he worked on making Gmail, Google and YouTube mobile too. It was while working for these behemoths that he moved to San Francisco with his wife Jennifer, who's one of my three besties (Love you, Jen), and became globally renowned on the Tech speaker scene. In this episode, Paul argues that AI isn't just another new channel or tool. It's a platform shift on the scale of the internet and potentially bigger. We talk about why the moment we're in feels eerily similar to 1999, why marketing is getting less effective across the board, and why the brands that win next will look very different to the ones that won the last cycle.A bit more background on Paul:"Most Wanted" Status (2011): Paul Adams was highlighted by Fortune as a highly sought-after talent in Silicon Valley following his significant contributions to major tech firms.Google (Social Research): At Google, he led the social research team, and his work directly influenced the creation of "Circles," which became the foundational feature of Google+. He also worked on Gmail, YouTube, and mobile products.Facebook (Brand Experience): He later joined Facebook as the Global Brand Experience Manager, where he focused on research, design, and product strategy, working with marketers and advertising agencies.Intercom (Product Strategy): He joined Intercom as VP of Product in 2014, later becoming the Chief Product Officer.Thought Leadership: Adams is the author of Grouped: How Small Groups of Friends are the Key to Influence on the Social Web. His work on "The Real Life Social Network" is widely recognized as one of the most viewed presentations on the evolution of social networks.Background: Before his time in tech, he worked as a product designer at Dyson, where he designed electronic appliances. Current Status: As of September 2023, he was working as the Chief Product Officer at Intercom, focusing on product strategy in the age of AI.This isn't a tactical 'AI' for the sake of AI episode. It's a big-picture conversation about what's actually changing, what's already changed, and what brand builders need to understand to stay relevant over the next decade. it was this conversation that made me set up a buzzing new community called NextGen CPG - a community for AI-native founders. Take a look and see if you're eligible to join us hereUseful linksConnect with Paul Adams on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/pauladams/Connect with Intercom The #1 AI Agent https://www.linkedin.com/company/intercom/Join the NextGen CPG WhatsApp community and LinkedIn page ============================================================Thanks to Brand Growth Heroes' podcast sponsor - Joelson, the commercial law firm=============================================================If you're a founder, you already know how much of your energy goes into building the perfect product, creating standout branding and connecting with your consumers.But don't forget that scaling a CPG business also comes with a maze of legal complexities that can make or break your business journey. From contracts, term sheets and regulatory compliance to protecting your brand's intellectual property as you expand, it's essential to get it right.And that starts with the right legal partner.So we're thrilled to introduce you to Joelson, a leading commercial law firm that specialises in guiding the founders of scaling CPG brands, as Brand Growth Heroes' sponsor.With long-term relationships with clients like Little Moons, Trip, Eat Natural, Bear Graze, and Pulsin, Joelson is also famous for advising the innocent founders in their landmark sale to Coca-Cola! As a female team, we are especially impressed by Joelson's commitment to championing female founders in CPG.Not many law firms are also BCorps, nor do they specialise in helping founders navigate the legal challenges of scaling without stifling the creativity and momentum that got you here in the first place. So thanks, Joelson—we're delighted to have you on board for the second year running.If you'd like to get in touch to find out more, why don't you drop them a line at hello@joelsonlaw.com==============================================.Please don't hesitate to join our Brand Growth Heroes community to stay updated with captivating stories and learnings from your beloved brands on their path to success!Follow us on our Brand Growth Heroes socials: LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.Thanks to our Sound Engineer, Gyp Buggane, Ballagroove.com and podcast producer/content creator, Kathryn Watts, Social KEWS.
Hey CX Nation,In this week's episode of The CXChronicles Podcast #276, we welcomed Todd Breton from Hippo Insurance & Eileen Potter from Smart Communications to talk through CX's role in the insurance industry. Smart Communications is the trusted choice for regulated enterprises looking to modernize complex processes and connect with customers in the moments that matter most. More than 650 enterprises worldwide—including Zurich Insurance, Priority Health, The Pacific Financial Group, and The Bancorp—rely on Smart Communications to reduce compliance risk, boost operational efficiency, lower costs, and fast-track digital transformation that fuels business growth and elevates the customer experience.500,000+ homeowners are insured today by Hippo with 70+ insurance carrier partners to boot. In this episode, Todd, Eileen and Adrian chat through the Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback. Plus share some of the ideas that their teams think through on a daily basis to build world class customer experiences.**Episode #276 Highlight Reel:**1. Technology's role in the insurance industry2. How AI is changing the insurance space 3. Why most insurance companies are doubling down on CX4. Relationships still matter for most insurance customers5. The future of insuranceClick here to learn more about Todd BretonClick here to learn more about Eileen PotterClick here to learn more about Smart CommunicationsClick here to learn more about Hippo InsuranceHuge thanks to Todd & Eileen for coming on The CXChronicles Podcast and featuring their work and efforts in pushing the way that customer experience fits inside of the insurance industry in the future. For all of our Apple & Spotify podcast listener friends, make sure you are following CXC & please leave a 5 star review so we can find new members of the "CX Nation". You know what would be even better?Go tell your friends or teammates about CXC's custom content, strategic partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, & Freshworks) & On-Demand services & invite them to join the CX Nation, a community of 15K+ customer focused business leaders!Thanks to all of you for being apart of the "CX Nation" and helping customer focused business leaders across the world make happiness a habit!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles Today Tweet us @cxchronicles Check out our Instagram @cxchronicles Click here to checkout the CXC website Email us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
The majority of support teams are now using and investing in AI – but only a select group who've gone deep with their implementation are truly pulling ahead. Bobby Stapleton, Senior Director of Human Support at Intercom, sits down with Ruth O'Brien, Senior Director of AI Support at Intercom, to unpack the key findings from "The 2026 Customer Service Transformation Report." Together, they explore how deeper AI integration is driving measurable ROI, reshaping support roles, and freeing teams to focus on higher-value, more consultative work. For all the insights, download the full report here: https://www.intercom.com/blog/customer-service-transformation-report-2026/Follow the peoplehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/bobbystapleton/https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruthieob/NewsletterSign up for The Ticket on LinkedIn: A newsletter bursting with insights and advice for support leaders who are navigating the shift to AI-first CS. https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-ticket-7158151857616355328/Say hiLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/intercom/X: https://x.com/intercomhttps://www.fin.aiSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Dan Griggs, CFO of Intercom, to break down how finance leaders should think about pricing, forecasting, and resource allocation in the AI era. Dan explains why “it's not zero” is his guiding forecasting principle, how Intercom landed on 99 cents per AI resolution for Fin, and what it means to build an AI product that could eventually cannibalize a successful SaaS core. A candid look at managing uncertainty while still making bold bets.—SPONSORS:Brex is an intelligent finance platform that combines corporate cards, built-in expense management, and AI agents to eliminate manual finance work. By automating expense reviews and reconciliations, Brex gives CFOs more time for the high-impact work that drives growth. Join 35,000+ companies like Anthropic, Coinbase, and DoorDash at https://www.brex.com/metricsMetronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comRightRev is an automated revenue recognition platform built for modern pricing models like usage-based pricing, bundles, and mid-cycle upgrades. RightRev lets companies scale monetization without slowing down close or compliance. For RevRec that keeps growth moving, visit https://www.rightrev.comRillet is an AI-native ERP built for modern finance teams that want to close faster without fighting legacy systems. Designed to support complex revenue recognition, multi-entity operations, and real-time reporting, Rillet helps teams achieve a true zero-day close—with some customers closing in hours, not days. If you're scaling on an ERP that wasn't built in the 90s, book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/cjTabs is an AI-native revenue platform that unifies billing, collections, and revenue recognition for companies running usage-based or complex contracts. By bringing together ERP, CRM, and real product usage data into a single system of record, Tabs eliminates manual reconciliations and speeds up close and cash collection. Companies like Cortex, Statsig, and Cursor trust Tabs to scale revenue efficiently. Learn more at https://www.tabs.com/runAbacum is a modern FP&A platform built by former CFOs to replace slow, consultant-heavy planning tools. With self-service integrations and AI-powered workflows for forecasting, variance analysis, and scenario modeling, Abacum helps finance teams scale without becoming software admins. Trusted by teams at Strava, Replit, and JG Wentworth—learn more at https://www.abacum.ai—LINKS:Dan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-griggs-0970181/Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:Inside Rocket Companies: M&A, Metrics, and Mortgage Moats | Brian Brownhttps://youtu.be/ttedn4AULt8—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Cold Open00:01:03 Intro to Dan Griggs and Intercom's AI Pivot00:02:45 From Ice Cream to SaaS: Early Finance Lessons00:04:19 Learning the Business by Living the Operations00:06:26 Why Operational Reality Shapes Better Forecasts00:08:00 “It's Not Zero”: Forecasting the Unknowable00:10:09 Scenario Planning, Ambiguity, and Psychological Safety00:11:23 Sponsors — Brex | Metronome | RightRev00:14:43 Keeping a Mental Model of Key Business Metrics00:16:15 Using Mental Math to Sanity-Check Forecasts00:17:28 Core Ratios Every CFO Uses to Vet Decisions00:19:13 The Burn-the-Boats Moment for Intercom's AI Pivot00:20:53 Why AI Was an Existential, Not Incremental, Bet00:22:21 Which SaaS Categories AI Can Fully Replace Work00:23:04 Why Finance Hasn't Had Its AI Moment Yet00:23:39 Sponsors — Rillet | Tabs | Abacum00:27:05 Why Fin Needed Outcome-Based Pricing00:28:59 The Tradeoff Behind $0.99 Per Resolution00:30:46 Why Support Conversations Vary in Complexity00:32:01 What Drives the Unit Economics of AI Resolutions00:33:08 How Intercom Chooses Models as Costs Fall00:35:19 Replacing Generic LLMs With Domain-Specific Models00:36:08 Selling an AI Product That Could Cannibalize the Core00:38:50 Founder CEOs Versus Professional CEOs00:41:47 Hiring Mistakes and Acting on Instincts00:44:28 Intercom's Finance Software Stack00:45:49 The Craziest Expense Request#RunTheNumbersPodcast #Intercom #AICustomerSupport #OutcomeBasedPricing #CFOInsights This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com
A deep-sea oil executive discovers that delegating a catastrophic emergency to subordinates works best when someone actually answers the intercom.IN THIS EPISODE: "The Engineer" by Frederick Pohl and C. M. Kornbluth (Infinity Science Fiction, February 1956)MORE Stories Like This: https://www.auditoryanthology.com=====Originally aired: January 27, 2026EPISODE PAGE (includes sources): https://weirddarkness.com/TheEngineerABOUT WEIRD DARKNESS: Weird Darkness is a true crime and paranormal podcast narrated by professional award-winning voice actor, Darren Marlar. Seven days per week, Weird Darkness focuses on all thing strange and macabre such as haunted locations, unsolved mysteries, true ghost stories, supernatural manifestations, urban legends, unsolved or cold case murders, conspiracy theories, and more. On Thursdays, this scary stories podcast features horror fiction along with the occasional creepypasta. Weird Darkness has been named one of the “Best 20 Storytellers in Podcasting” by Podcast Business Journal. Listeners have described the show as a cross between “Coast to Coast” with Art Bell, “The Twilight Zone” with Rod Serling, “Unsolved Mysteries” with Robert Stack, and “In Search Of” with Leonard Nimoy.DISCLAIMER: Ads heard during the podcast that are not in my voice are placed by third party agencies outside of my control and should not imply an endorsement by Weird Darkness or myself. *** Stories and content in Weird Darkness can be disturbing for some listeners and intended for mature audiences only. Parental discretion is strongly advised.
SaaStr 839: Why Most SaaS Companies Will Fail at AI (And How to Avoid It) with Intercom's CPO The Brutal Truth About Transforming a SaaS Company into an AI Company Intercom's Chief Product Officer, Paul Adams, shares the unfiltered story of how they transformed from a struggling SaaS company with 5 quarters of declining growth into an AI-first company with a breakthrough product (Fin) that now handles 1M+ customer resolutions per week. What You'll Learn: Why AI transformation requires "refounding" your entire company - not just adding AI features The self-harming decisions you must make to win (including parting ways with ~33% of your team) How to go from 0 to 6,000+ AI customers with 65% average resolution rate Why demos ≠ products and the "marketing overhang" problem The complete shift in how you build software (empirical evaluation vs. traditional product development) Why designers now ship code to production at Intercom How the buyer has changed (hint: it's no longer just the department head) --------------------- This episode is Sponsored in part by HappyFox: Imagine having AI agents for every support task — one that triages tickets, another that catches duplicates, one that spots churn risks. That'd be pretty amazing, right? HappyFox just made it real with Autopilot. These pre-built AI agents deploy in about 60 seconds and run for as low as 2 cents per successful action. All of it sits inside the HappyFox omnichannel, AI-first support stack — Chatbot, Copilot, and Autopilot working as one. Check them out at happyfox.com/saastr --------------------- Hey everybody, the biggest B2B + AI event of the year will be back - SaaStr AI in the SF Bay Area, aka the SaaStr Annual, will be back in May 2026. With 68% VP-level and above, 36% CEOs and founders and a growing 25% AI-first professional, this is the very best of the best S-tier attendees and decision makers that come to SaaStr each year. But here's the reality, folks: the longer you wait, the higher ticket prices can get. Early bird tickets are available now, but once they're gone, you'll pay hundreds more so don't wait. Lock in your spot today by going to podcast.saastrannual.com to get my exclusive discount SaaStr AI SF 2026. We'll see you there.
Hey CX Nation,In this week's episode of The CXChronicles Podcast #275, we welcomed Sagi Reuven, Chief Revenue Officer at Deepdub based in Tel Aviv, Israel. Deepdub is the enterprise voice infrastructure powering AI in production. Deepdub built their credibility in the most demanding voice environments in the world: Hollywood studios, global broadcasters, and premium content pipelines where voice quality, emotional accuracy, and reliability are non-negotiable.Deepdub enables zero-shot voice cloning, voice-to-voice, ADR, accent control, and ultra-low latency delivery designed for systems that operate live, at scale, and in front of real customers.Get started here> https://deepdub.ai/ FYI even better if you let them know that CXC sent you their way!In this episode, Sagi and Adrian chat through the Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback. Plus share some of the ideas that his team think through on a daily basis to build world class customer experiences.**Episode #275 Highlight Reel:**1. Personalize for problems, not people.2. Keeping top talent by building smarter teams3. AI's impact on leadership & strategy4. The Partnership Economy is here5. Changes to prepare for in the work placeClick here to learn more about Sagi ReuvenClick here to learn more about DeepdubHuge thanks to Sagi for coming on The CXChronicles Podcast and featuring his work and efforts in pushing the customer experience & contact center space into the future. For all of our Apple & Spotify podcast listener friends, make sure you are following CXC & please leave a 5 star review so we can find new members of the "CX Nation". You know what would be even better?Go tell your friends or teammates about CXC's custom content, strategic partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, & Freshworks) & On-Demand services & invite them to join the CX Nation, a community of 15K+ customer focused business leaders!Want to see how your customer experience compares to the world's top-performing customer focused companies? Check out the CXC Healthzone, an intelligence platform that shares benchmarks & insights for how companies across the world are tackling The Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback & how they are building an AI-powered foundation for the future. Thanks to all of you for being apart of the "CX Nation" and helping customer focused business leaders across the world make happiness a habit!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles Today Tweet us @cxchronicles Check out our Instagram @cxchronicles Click here to checkout the CXC website Email us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
Ep 58 - How Non-Technical Employees Can Build the Right AI SkillsIn this episode of Career Coaching Xs and Os, Mark breaks down one of the most urgent questions facing today's workforce: How can non‑technical employees stay competitive in an AI‑driven world? Drawing from his work at the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurship and his hands‑on experience coaching emerging leaders, Mark outlines a clear, accessible roadmap for developing practical AI fluency — no coding required.He explains why AI literacy is becoming the new baseline skill, how effective prompting can dramatically improve productivity, and why understanding where AI fits into everyday workflows is more important than understanding how the technology is built. Mark also highlights the human skills that become even more valuable in an AI‑enabled workplace — judgment, communication, creativity, and ethical reasoning.This episode gives listeners a grounded, confidence‑building framework for embracing AI as a collaborator rather than a threat. Whether you're an early‑career professional, a mid‑career manager, or someone re‑entering the workforce, Mark offers the Xs and Os you need to stay relevant, adaptable, and future‑ready.****************************************Want To Co-host An Episode of Career Coaching Xs and Os? If you want to be entered into a drawing where the winner(s) are offered the opportunity to co-host the Career Coaching Xs and Os podcast, please do the following: Buy My Book - Career Coaching Xs and Os: How to Master the Game of Career Development from Amazon - https://a.co/d/f7irTMLWrite a review for my book on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review/?ie=UTF8&channel=glance-detail&asin=B0CXMM24R1Follow me on one of the following social media platforms: X.com - @ceyeroconsltg Instagram - @ceyeroconsulting Facebook - @ceyeroconsulting Post a message on one of the Social Media platforms above stating that you submitted a review on Amazon. We will randomly select the winner(s) from the list of reviewers on August 31, 2024. **************Want to improve your negotiation skills? Take the 100 Days of Rejection Therapy Challenge. The goal of the 100 Days of Rejection Therapy Challenge is to desensitize yourself to the pain of rejection and to overcome fear. Check out the website at https://www.rejectiontherapy.com/100-days-of-rejection-therapy. I took several challenges. Click the links to see if I got rejected during my negotiations: (1) Rejection 7: Speak Over Costco's Intercom - https://youtu.be/AycKKgP21fQ (2) Rejection 43: Hug a Walmart Greeter - https://youtu.be/GSjyly_C8pM Subscribe to Ceyero Consulting's YouTube Channel. Track my progress as I complete all 100Challenges.https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7lxMSEtBOAgNBOPrmA9O_w Need help launching your startup or small business? Please check out my book, #Guerrillapreneur: Small Business Strategy for Davids Wanting to Defeat Goliath, available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple Books. If you like the Career Coaching Xs and Os podcast, you might also like my other business podcasts, #Guerrillapreneur: The Art of Waging Small Business Warfare (Mastermind Interviews with Entrepreneurs, Consultants, and Business Mavericks) and #Gigging: Everything and Sharing Economy (news and predictions about the Sharing Economy).BUY MY NEW BOOKSI have a new book! It is called Career Coaching Xs and Os: How To Master the Game of Career Development. Transform your career trajectory with insider knowledge and actionable advice, all packed into one game-changing guide. Get your copy on Amazon at https://a.co/d/f7irTMLI have an old book! It is called Guerrillapreneur: Small Business Strategy For Davids Wanting To Defeat Goliaths. If you're a fan of the Gig and Sharing Economy, you'll love how I applied this thinking to outsmart corporate giants. Get your copy on Amazon. SUPPORT MY SPONSORSThe Cumin ClubWebsite: https://www.thecuminclub.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_cumin_club/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecuminclubusa/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@the_cumin_clubDiscount Code: COACH (enter at checkout)Strong Coffee CompanyWebsite: https://strongcoffeecompany.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/strongcoffeecompany/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/strongcoffeecoX: https://x.com/strongcoffeecoYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StrongCoffeeCompanyBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/career-coaching-xs-and-os--3047801/support.
For years, we've heard about AI transforming software development. But what if that same level of agentic, AI-driven collaboration could be applied not just to writing code, but to writing your entire go-to-market playbook?Agility requires that your go-to-market teams operate at the speed of insight, not at the speed of manual data entry and fragmented workflows. This means empowering them with tools that don't just provide data, but automate action based on strategic intent.Today, we're going to talk about the concept of an 'agentic' go-to-market platform, where AI doesn't just assist, but actively collaborates with sales and marketing teams to automate entire workflows, from strategy to execution.To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Marcio Arnecke, Chief Marketing Officer at Apollo.io. About Marcio Arnecke As Apollo.io's Chief Marketing Officer, Marcio Arnecke brings a visionary approach to scaling high-growth B2B SaaS marketing in the AI-driven sales landscape. With over two decades of experience driving revenue acceleration across global markets, he has consistently transformed early-stage technology companies into market-defining brands. His expertise in AI-powered go-to-market strategies uniquely positions him to accelerate Apollo's mission of empowering sales teams through intelligent data and automation. Previously, he played a pivotal role in scaling marketing functions at SaaS giants like Intercom and Zendesk, where he drove remarkable growth from $40M to $1.7B, culminating in a successful IPO that raised $100 million in 2014. Leveraging his comprehensive background in demand generation, product marketing, and strategic storytelling, Marcio is focused on positioning Apollo as the go-to AI sales platform for SMB and mid-market teams. His approach combines data-driven insights with targeted narrative strategies, translating Apollo's technological capabilities into practical business value. Drawing from his global experience across Silicon Valley and international markets, Marcio aims to expand Apollo's brand and demonstrate how AI can meaningfully improve sales engagement for growing businesses. Marcio holds advanced degrees from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and Golden Gate University, complemented by a BS in Business Administration from Universidade Feevale in Brazil. Marcio Arnecke on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcioarnecke/ Resources Apollo.io: https://www.apollo.io Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code AGILE at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/agile The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Palm Springs, Feb 23-26 in Palm Springs, CA. Go here for more details: https://etailwest.wbresearch.com/Drive your customers to new horizons at the premier retail event of the year for Retail and Brand marketers. Learn more at CRMC 2026, June 1-3. https://www.thecrmc.com/ Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://ratethispodcast.com/agileConnect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, andMartechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
For years, we've heard about AI transforming software development. But what if that same level of agentic, AI-driven collaboration could be applied not just to writing code, but to writing your entire go-to-market playbook? Agility requires that your go-to-market teams operate at the speed of insight, not at the speed of manual data entry and fragmented workflows. This means empowering them with tools that don't just provide data, but automate action based on strategic intent. Today, we're going to talk about the concept of an 'agentic' go-to-market platform, where AI doesn't just assist, but actively collaborates with sales and marketing teams to automate entire workflows, from strategy to execution. To help me discuss this topic, I'd like to welcome, Marcio Arnecke, Chief Marketing Officer at Apollo.io. About Marcio Arnecke As Apollo.io's Chief Marketing Officer, Marcio Arnecke brings a visionary approach to scaling high-growth B2B SaaS marketing in the AI-driven sales landscape. With over two decades of experience driving revenue acceleration across global markets, he has consistently transformed early-stage technology companies into market-defining brands. Hisexpertise in AI-powered go-to-market strategies uniquely positions him to accelerate Apollo's mission of empowering sales teams through intelligent data and automation. Previously, he played a pivotal role in scaling marketing functions at SaaS giants like Intercom and Zendesk, where he drove remarkable growth from $40M to $1.7B, culminating in a successful IPO that raised $100 million in 2014. Leveraging his comprehensive background in demand generation, product marketing, and strategic storytelling, Marcio is focused on positioning Apollo as the go-to AI sales platform for SMB and mid-market teams. His approach combines data-driven insights with targeted narrative strategies, translating Apollo's technological capabilities into practical business value. Drawing from his global experience across Silicon Valley and international markets, Marcio aims to expand Apollo's brand and demonstrate how AI can meaningfully improve sales engagement for growing businesses. Marcio holds advanced degrees from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and Golden Gate University, complemented by a BS in Business Administration from Universidade Feevale in Brazil. Marcio Arnecke on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcioarnecke/ Resources Apollo.io: https://www.apollo.io Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code AGILE at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/agile The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Palm Springs, Feb 23-26 in Palm Springs, CA. Go here for more details: https://etailwest.wbresearch.com/ Drive your customers to new horizons at the premier retail event of the year for Retail and Brand marketers. Learn more at CRMC 2026, June 1-3. https://www.thecrmc.com/ Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://ratethispodcast.com/agile Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstrom Don't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
Most of what you've been told about making money online is outdated or straight-up garbage.I'm going to break down exactly what works (and what doesn't) in 2026, based on data from real companies doing✅ Get your FREE Sell by Chat Playbook here: https://go.danmartell.com/4qRbPIATools mentioned:Fiverr: https://www.fiverr.com/YourAtlas: https://youratlas.com/getstarted Stripe: https://stripe.com/Zapier: https://zapier.com/HeyGen: https://www.heygen.com/ElevenLabs: https://elevenlabs.io/Adobe After Effects:https://www.adobe.com/products/aftereffects.htmlFlex-Pay: https://getflex.com/Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/Canva: https://www.canva.com/Gamma: https://gamma.app/ChatGPT: https://chat.openai.com/Midjourney: https://www.midjourney.com/Jasper: https://www.jasper.ai/Captions: https://mirage.appFlux: https://blackforestlabs.ai/Runway: https://runwayml.com/Suno: https://suno.com/Vizard: https://vizard.ai/▸▸ Subscribe to The Martell Method Newsletter: https://bit.ly/3XEBXez▸▸ Get My New Book (Buy Back Your Time): https://bit.ly/3pCTG78
Tiered pricing is becoming the simplest way to sell AI-powered SaaS without turning your pricing page into a technical explanation. In my interview with Dan Balcauski, founder and Chief Pricing Officer at Product Tranquility, we talked about why AI is forcing new pricing decisions earlier than ever—and why "good, better, best" packaging often works because it keeps buying decisions clear while helping companies manage real AI costs. The AI era is making pricing margin-aware again. Tiered pricing helps you protect margins without forcing buyers to learn your cost structure. About Dan Balcauski Dan Balcauski is the founder and Chief Pricing Officer at Product Tranquility, where he helps high-volume B2B SaaS CEOs define pricing and packaging for new products. He is a TopTal certified Top 3% Product Management Professional and helps teach Kellogg Executive Education course on Product Strategy. Over the last 15 years, Dan has managed products across the full lifecycle—from concept incubation to launch, platform transitions, maintenance, and end of life—across consumer and B2B companies ranging from startups to publicly traded enterprises. He previously served as Head of Product at LawnStarter and was a Principal Product Strategist at SolarWinds. Why Tiered Pricing Is Winning in the AI Era For years, SaaS companies could price mostly around value because marginal costs were relatively stable. AI changes the math. Dan points out that companies are now cutting meaningful monthly checks to model providers, and leadership teams can't pretend cost-to-serve is irrelevant anymore. That's a big reason tiered pricing is showing up everywhere right now. It gives teams a way to: Keep the offer simple for buyers Put premium capabilities where they belong Create a natural upgrade path that aligns with value and cost Most importantly, tiered pricing keeps you out of the weeds. The customer conversation stays focused on outcomes, not infrastructure. What Makes Tiered Pricing Actually Work Dan's point isn't "just shove AI into the top tier." Tiered pricing works when plan differences are easy to understand and tied to value drivers customers already recognize. Here are three practical patterns from the discussion that hold up well in the AI era. 1) Put AI in higher tiers when it boosts a user's output If an AI feature makes a person more effective—faster drafting, better triage, higher quality responses—tiering can be straightforward. The buyer already understands why a "Better" or "Best" plan costs more: it changes the capability of the team. This is also why seat-based pricing can still make sense for many AI-enhanced tools. If the value driver is still "help my team do better work," then users/seats remain an intuitive anchor. If AI increases team productivity, tiered pricing can stay aligned to seats—because seats still map to value. 2) Use add-ons when AI changes the value driver Sometimes AI doesn't just "help" the user—it replaces work entirely. When that happens, forcing it into the same tier structure can distort value and create confusion. Dan points to Intercom as a strong example of handling this well: The core support platform stays priced per user (agents), because the value driver is agent effectiveness. Their AI agent ("Fin AI") is priced separately because the agent isn't involved—the value is the number of issues the AI resolves. That's why per-resolution pricing makes sense. 3) Don't make buyers learn token math Dan's strongest warning is about token pricing. Customers don't want to learn what tokens are, and sales teams don't want to explain them—especially when you're selling a business outcome like faster support or better customer experience. Token-based pricing also shifts the conversation away from value and toward your vendor bill. As Dan puts it, customers don't care about your infrastructure costs, and pushing that complexity into the buying motion adds friction. If your tiered pricing requires a footnote explaining tokens, you're adding sand in the gears. A Tiered Pricing Checklist for AI Features Here's a simple way to apply this immediately: Good: Core workflow value, minimal AI (or AI where costs are predictable) Better: AI that boosts team output (speed, quality, throughput) Best: AI that drives outcomes at scale (automation, deflection, resolution) Add-on: Use when AI has a different value driver than the base product (example: per-resolution) Stay Connected: Join the Developreneur Community We invite you to join our community and share your coding journey with us. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just starting, there's always room to learn and grow together. Contact us at info@develpreneur.com with your questions, feedback, or suggestions for future episodes. Together, let's continue exploring the exciting world of software development. Additional Resources Setting Your Development Pricing Fixed or Hourly Project Pricing A Project Management and Pricing Guide for Success Building Better Foundations Podcast Videos – With Bonus Content
Patrick McKenzie (patio11) sits down with Intercom co-founder Des Traynor to examine customer support through the lens of Conway's Law, Goodhart's Law, and several decades of accumulated organizational scar tissue. They discuss how AI agents are democratizing white-glove service, why modern LLMs have retrained user expectations around “chatbots” very quickly, and the surprisingly liberating effect of talking to something that will never judge you for missing a loan payment.–Full transcript available here: www.complexsystemspodcast.com/des-traynor/–Sponsor: MongoDB Tired of database limitations and architectures that break when you scale? MongoDB is the database built for developers, by developers: ACID compliant, Enterprise-ready, and fluent in AI. Start building faster at mongodb.com/build–Timestamps:(00:00) Intro(00:29) Intercom and its evolution(00:51) Challenges in customer service systems(02:54) Scaling customer support in startups(04:53) Organizational inefficiencies and customer experience(06:53) Metrics and their impact on customer support(12:40) Human capital issues in customer support(15:53) AI's role in customer support(17:01) Future of customer support roles(20:09) Sponsor: MongoDB(20:53) Future of customer support roles (continued)(26:19) AI and customer interaction(26:55) The myth of artisanal customer support(27:45) Fin Guidance: Evolution and user behavior(29:10) Fin's impact on customer support efficiency(33:30) Expanding Fin's capabilities beyond support(42:50) AI in government and other sectors(49:20) The future of AI connectivity and integration
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In this AI Christmas special of OPTO Sessions, we revisit standout moments from this year's conversations on how AI is changing products, cost bases and competitive moats, from Better.com and Upstart in lending, to Box and Intercom in enterprise workflows and customer service, and SoundHound in voice AI. We look at near-term execution over the next year, longer-term positioning over five years, and the best criteria for spotting real AI advantage.
In our last episode of 2025 Bobby Stapleton, Senior Director of Human Support at Intercom, is joined by Franka Martinovic, Director, Customer Support, Intercom, to reflect on a year of rapid change for Intercom's support team. They discuss how AI has shifted support from a reactive function to a consultative, revenue-driving motion, what it takes to scale human support alongside high automation, and the challenges of retaining knowledge while teams evolve. A candid look at what an AI-first support transformation really feels like from the inside.Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxdtQGNN0IcFollow the peoplehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/bobbystapleton/https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankamartinovic/NewsletterSign up for The Ticket on LinkedIn: A newsletter bursting with insights and advice for support leaders who are navigating the shift to AI-first CS. https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/the-ticket-7158151857616355328/Say hiLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/intercom/X: https://x.com/intercomhttps://www.fin.aiSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Eoghan McCabe is an Irish entrepreneur, co‑founder and Chairman of Intercom. | Cape: America's privacy-first mobile carrier. Click https://cape.co/trigger | Promo Code - TRIGGER33 for 33% off. Triggernometry is proudly independent. Thanks to the sponsors below for making that possible: - Fresspoke: internet search for free thinkers. Go to https://freespoke.com/TRIG and get the whole picture. - Augusta Precious Metals: Protect Your Retirement with Physical Gold. Rated #1. Click to learn more: https://bit.ly/4as3C6J - Ground News shares our values on independent thought and transparency. That's why they've been a partner for years. Get 40% off this season at https://ground.news/triggernometry. Join our exclusive TRIGGERnometry community on Substack! https://triggernometry.substack.com/ OR Support TRIGGERnometry Here: Bitcoin: bc1qm6vvhduc6s3rvy8u76sllmrfpynfv94qw8p8d5 Shop Merch here - https://www.triggerpod.co.uk/shop/ Advertise on TRIGGERnometry: marketing@triggerpod.co.uk Find TRIGGERnometry on Social Media: https://twitter.com/triggerpod https://www.facebook.com/triggerpod/ https://www.instagram.com/triggerpod/ About TRIGGERnometry: Stand-up comedians Konstantin Kisin (@konstantinkisin) and Francis Foster (@francisjfoster) make sense of politics, economics, free speech, AI, drug policy and WW3 with the help of presidential advisors, renowned economists, award-winning journalists, controversial writers, leading scientists and notorious comedians. 00:00 - Introduction 01:40 - What Is AI? 04:19 - People Don't Understand What's Coming 12:00 - Driving Jobs Probably Won't Exist In The Next Ten Years 19:59 - AI Is Inevitable 24:53 - Does Having Free Speech Give Us An Advantage With AI? 30:13 - AI Drones And Using Them As Weapons 37:06 - Some AI Models Are Woke 45:05 - Regulating AI 56:54 - People In Tech Get A Bit Utopian When Talking About AI 01:04:53 - Generalised Intelligence 01:13:20 - AI And The Fertility Crisis 01:17:24 - What's The One Thing We're Not Talking About That We Really Should Be? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Hey CX Nation,In this week's episode of The CXChronicles Podcast #274, we welcomed Dave Rennyson, President & CEO at SuccessKPI based in the Washington, DC area. SuccessKPI is an on-demand insight and action platform that removes the obstacles that agents, managers, and executives encounter in delivering exceptional customer service.SuccessKPI is trusted by some of the world's largest government, BPO, financial, healthcare, and technology contact centers in the United States, Europe, and Latin America.In this episode, Dave and Adrian chat through the Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback. Plus share some of the ideas that his team think through on a daily basis to build world class customer experiences.**Episode #274 Highlight Reel:**1. Why the best organizations & teams invest in constant training efforts 2. How music and business are wildly similar 3. Leveraging & investing in AI over the next 1,000 days 4. Understanding the power of your data architecture 5. Tomorrow's leading tech-companies will bring solutions, not headaches Click here to learn more about Dave RennysonClick here to learn more about SuccessKPIHuge thanks to Dave for coming on The CXChronicles Podcast and featuring his work and efforts in pushing the customer experience & contact center space into the future. For all of our Apple & Spotify podcast listener friends, make sure you are following CXC & please leave a 5 star review so we can find new members of the "CX Nation". You know what would be even better?Go tell your friends or teammates about CXC's custom content, strategic partner solutions (Hubspot, Intercom, & Freshworks) & On-Demand services & invite them to join the CX Nation, a community of 15K+ customer focused business leaders!Want to see how your customer experience compares to the world's top-performing customer focused companies? Check out the CXC Healthzone, an intelligence platform that shares benchmarks & insights for how companies across the world are tackling The Four CX Pillars: Team, Tools, Process & Feedback & how they are building an AI-powered foundation for the future. Thanks to all of you for being apart of the "CX Nation" and helping customer focused business leaders across the world make happiness a habit!Reach Out To CXC Today!Support the showContact CXChronicles Today Tweet us @cxchronicles Check out our Instagram @cxchronicles Click here to checkout the CXC website Email us at info@cxchronicles.com Remember To Make Happiness A Habit!!
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This week we want to introduce you to a new podcast from Intercom - Fin Meetups: Conversations with AI Leaders.Explore the promise and practice of AI, from the leaders building it. Hear conversations from founders, engineering, product and customer service leaders, as they discuss the key opportunities and challenges of the AI era.Episode 1 is our Fin x LangChain meetup in Amsterdam, where Fergal Reid, Chief AI Officer, Intercom, building Fin and Marco Perrini, Deployed Engineer, LangChain, shared how Fin evolved from hand-coded experiments to a complex, multi-model system powered by LangGraph.Make sure to follow Fin Meetups: Conversations with AI Leaders:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fin-meetups-conversations-with-ai-leaders/id1852609029Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2Ae5VqOQ0ftClgEI8ltqOqOr wherever you listen to podcasts.If you'd like to join future Fin meetups, subscribe on Luma → https://luma.com/FINSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
In the latest solo episode of the Happy Hustle Podcast, I dive into 24 AI tools that you can integrate into your business to streamline operations, enhance customer service, and boost productivity. Whether you're a small startup or a booming enterprise, these tools are game-changers. Here's a sneak peek of what you'll discover:Task Automation: Streamline your operations with tools like Zapier and IFTTT.Scheduling: Say goodbye to endless back-and-forth emails with Calendly and Acuity Scheduling.Inventory Management: Keep track of your stock effortlessly with TradeGecko and Fishbowl Inventory.Financial Management: Simplify your bookkeeping with QuickBooks and Expensify.Customer Service: Enhance your customer interactions with Drift, Intercom, and Zendesk.Market Research: Get ahead of trends with Crimson Hexagon and TalkWalker.And that's just the beginning! Listen to the full episode now and discover how all these AI tools can help you save time, reduce costs, and scale your business faster than ever before. Plus, I've included some awesome pro tips to ensure you make the most out of each tool.Connect with Cary!https://www.instagram.com/cary__jack/https://www.facebook.com/SirCaryJackhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cary-jack-kendzior/https://twitter.com/thehappyhustlehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFDNsD59tLxv2JfEuSsNMOQ/featured Get a free copy of his new book, The Happy Hustle, 10 Alignments to Avoid Burnout & Achieve Blissful Balance (https://www.thehappyhustlebook.com/)Sign up for The Journey: 10 Days To Become a Happy Hustler Online Course (http://www.thehappyhustle.com/Journey)Apply to the Montana Mastermind Epic Camping Adventure (https://caryjack.com/montana)“It's time to Happy Hustle, a blissfully balanced life you love, full of passion, purpose, and positive impact!”Episode sponsor BIOptimizers Magnesium BreakthroughThis stuff is a game-changer! Magnesium Breakthrough packs all 7 forms of magnesium, designed to support stress management, promote muscle relaxation, regulate the nervous system, control stress hormones, boost brain function, increase energy, and enhance sleep.I take 2 capsules before bedtime, and it's been a game-changer for me. The best part is, BIOptimizers offer a risk-free.
Support our Halloween “Overcoming the Darkness” campaign to help people with depression: https://weirddarkness.com/HOPEA haunted apartment intercom becomes a conduit to the past. A woman begins hearing ghostly voices coming through it — voices apparently from a former tenant who was brutally murdered. CBC's Deep Night presents “The Intercom!” | #RetroRadio EP0532CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Show Open00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “Your Move, Mr. Ellers” (December 30, 1976)00:47:55.652 = The Crime Club, “Death Never Doubles” (June 26, 1947) ***WD01:16:52.742 = CBC Deep Night, “The Intercom” (July 15, 2005)01:50:50.462 = The Devil and Mr. O, “The Cemetery” (February 25, 1972)02:20:55.299 = Diary of Fate, “David Dexter” (May 04, 1948) ***WD02:50:22.449 = Dimension X, “Report On Barnhouse Effect” (April 22, 1950)03:19:07.702 = The Strange Dr. Weird, “When Killers Meet” (April 10, 1945) ***WD (LQ)03:31:17.994 = The Creaking Door, “White Scarf Strangler” (1964-1965) ***WD (LQ)04:00:04.123 = The Eleventh Hour, “Runaway Kid” (1959-1971)04:29:34.180 = Escape, “Evening Primrose” (September 12, 1948)04:59:00.871 = Show Close(ADU) = Air Date Unknown(LQ) = Low Quality***WD = Remastered, edited, or cleaned up by Weird Darkness to make the episode more listenable. Audio may not be pristine, but it will be better than the original file which may have been unusable or more difficult to hear without editing.Weird Darkness theme by Alibi Music LibraryABOUT WEIRD DARKNESS: Weird Darkness is a true crime and paranormal podcast narrated by professional award-winning voice actor, Darren Marlar. Seven days per week, Weird Darkness focuses on all thing strange and macabre such as haunted locations, unsolved mysteries, true ghost stories, supernatural manifestations, urban legends, unsolved or cold case murders, conspiracy theories, and more. On Thursdays, this scary stories podcast features horror fiction along with the occasional creepypasta. Weird Darkness has been named one of the “Best 20 Storytellers in Podcasting” by Podcast Business Journal. Listeners have described the show as a cross between “Coast to Coast” with Art Bell, “The Twilight Zone” with Rod Serling, “Unsolved Mysteries” with Robert Stack, and “In Search Of” with Leonard Nimoy.= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2025, Weird Darkness.= = = = =#ParanormalRadio #ScienceFiction #OldTimeRadio #OTR #OTRHorror #ClassicRadioShows #HorrorRadioShows #VintageRadioDramas #WeirdDarknessCUSTOM WEBPAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/WDRR0532