web02.fireside.fm Sun, 12 Apr 2026 10:42:42 -0500 Fireside (https://fireside.fm) CX without the BS - Episodes Tagged with “Channel Sales” https://cswithoutthebs.fireside.fm/tags/channel%20sales Wed, 25 Mar 2026 13:15:00 -0400 CX without the BS is a refreshingly honest and engaging podcast that dives deep into the world of Customer Experience (CX). Hosted by industry veterans Tom Milligan and Brian Nichols, the show aims to cut through the jargon and hype to deliver real, actionable insights for CX professionals and business leaders. Each episode features candid conversations with CX experts, thought leaders, and practitioners who share their experiences, challenges, and successes in the field. The hosts and guests discuss a wide range of topics, from emerging technologies like AI and automation to the human elements of empathy, creativity, and problem-solving that are essential to delivering exceptional customer experiences. What sets CX without the BS apart is its commitment to authenticity and practicality. Tom and Brian aren't afraid to call out the "BS" in the industry - the buzzwords, the fads, and the overhyped solutions that don't deliver real value. Instead, they focus on strategies and tactics that have been proven to work in the real world, drawing on their own extensive experience as well as the insights of their guests. Whether you're a seasoned CX professional or just starting out in the field, CX without the BS offers valuable perspectives and actionable advice to help you navigate the complex and ever-changing landscape of customer experience. With its engaging hosts, expert guests, and no-nonsense approach, this podcast is a must-listen for anyone who wants to stay ahead of the curve and deliver exceptional experiences to their customers. en-us episodic CX without the BS is a no-nonsense podcast that cuts through the jargon to deliver real insights into the Customer Experience (CX) industry. Each episode features candid conversations with industry experts, focusing on practical solutions and honest discussions about the latest trends and challenges in CX. Brian Nichols CX without the BS is a refreshingly honest and engaging podcast that dives deep into the world of Customer Experience (CX). Hosted by industry veterans Tom Milligan and Brian Nichols, the show aims to cut through the jargon and hype to deliver real, actionable insights for CX professionals and business leaders. Each episode features candid conversations with CX experts, thought leaders, and practitioners who share their experiences, challenges, and successes in the field. The hosts and guests discuss a wide range of topics, from emerging technologies like AI and automation to the human elements of empathy, creativity, and problem-solving that are essential to delivering exceptional customer experiences. What sets CX without the BS apart is its commitment to authenticity and practicality. Tom and Brian aren't afraid to call out the "BS" in the industry - the buzzwords, the fads, and the overhyped solutions that don't deliver real value. Instead, they focus on strategies and tactics that have been proven to work in the real world, drawing on their own extensive experience as well as the insights of their guests. Whether you're a seasoned CX professional or just starting out in the field, CX without the BS offers valuable perspectives and actionable advice to help you navigate the complex and ever-changing landscape of customer experience. With its engaging hosts, expert guests, and no-nonsense approach, this podcast is a must-listen for anyone who wants to stay ahead of the curve and deliver exceptional experiences to their customers. yes CX podcast, customer experience, CX industry, CX trends, CX best practices, CX strategies, CX technology, CX analytics, CX metrics, CX optimization, CX automation, CX AI, CX chatbots, CX omnichannel, CX digital transformation, CX cloud, CX contact center, CX as a service, CX software, CX platform, CX solutions, CX innovation, CX thought leadership, CX experts, CX interviews, CX case studies, CX success stories, CX challenges, CX pain points, CX journey mapping, CX personalization, CX employee experience, CX voice of the customer, CX customer feedback, CX customer loyalty, CX customer retention, CX customer satisfaction, CX customer engagement, CX customer service, CX call center, CX workforce management, CX quality assurance, CX compliance, CX security, CX privacy, CX integration, CX implementation, CX adoption, CX ROI, CX budgeting, CX vendor selection, CX partner ecosystem, CX community, CX events, CX webinars, CX training, CX certification, CX career development, CX jobs, CX hiring, CX diversity and inclusion, CX leadership, CX management, CX coaching, CX mentoring, CX networking Brian Nichols brian@briannicholsconsulting.com Business Phone System NIGHTMARE: Why Vendors Are Killing Their Own Deals https://cswithoutthebs.fireside.fm/businessphonesystemnightmarewhyvendorsarekillingtheirowndeals d2ded8f4-f8b6-4bdd-99d9-4dd5c5c11006 Wed, 25 Mar 2026 13:15:00 -0400 Brian Nichols full Brian Nichols UCaaS vendors spent a fortune building a moat around their pricing — and now they're spending another fortune trying to lure buyers across it. 19:33 no Brian Nichols exposes why buying a business phone system in 2026 is nearly impossible and why UCaaS vendors are sabotaging their own sales process. With 49% of B2B buyers demanding transparent pricing and 61% preferring to purchase without ever talking to a sales rep, the unified communications industry is facing a customer experience crisis it created. Brian breaks down the broken buying journey — from hidden pricing and gated demos to a channel ecosystem drowning in middlemen — and reveals why the average B2B conversion rate sits at a dismal 1.8%. This episode exposes the uncomfortable truth that UCaaS vendors are spending millions on AI tools and marketing automation to re-engage the exact same leads they drove away with their own buying process. Brian delivers a four-part prescription for fixing B2B customer experience — from pricing transparency to respecting the buyer's timeline — and explains why the companies that simply make it easy to buy are the ones that will dominate. If you've ever tried to purchase business technology and wanted to pull your hair out, you need to hear this. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro: You Ever Try to Buy a Phone System? 1:00 - The Buying Journey From Hell 3:00 - The Channel's Dirty Little Secret 5:00 - Vendors Made This Hard ON PURPOSE 8:00 - This Is a CX Problem Not a Sales Problem 12:00 - The Invisible Deals You're Losing 15:00 - The 4-Part Prescription to Fix It Brian Nichols Show, CX Without the BS, UCaaS, business phone system, unified communications, B2B sales, customer experience, pricing transparency, B2B buying process, phone system 2026, UCaaS vendors, channel sales, technology advisors, TSD, B2B conversion rate, sales process broken, cloud phone system, VoIP business, contact center, sales strategy, buyer experience, B2B marketing, SMB technology, business communications, SaaS sales, digital transformation, CX strategy Brian Nichols exposes why buying a business phone system in 2026 is nearly impossible and why UCaaS vendors are sabotaging their own sales process. With 49% of B2B buyers demanding transparent pricing and 61% preferring to purchase without ever talking to a sales rep, the unified communications industry is facing a customer experience crisis it created. Brian breaks down the broken buying journey — from hidden pricing and gated demos to a channel ecosystem drowning in middlemen — and reveals why the average B2B conversion rate sits at a dismal 1.8%.

This episode exposes the uncomfortable truth that UCaaS vendors are spending millions on AI tools and marketing automation to re-engage the exact same leads they drove away with their own buying process. Brian delivers a four-part prescription for fixing B2B customer experience — from pricing transparency to respecting the buyer's timeline — and explains why the companies that simply make it easy to buy are the ones that will dominate. If you've ever tried to purchase business technology and wanted to pull your hair out, you need to hear this.

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro: You Ever Try to Buy a Phone System?
1:00 - The Buying Journey From Hell
3:00 - The Channel's Dirty Little Secret
5:00 - Vendors Made This Hard ON PURPOSE
8:00 - This Is a CX Problem Not a Sales Problem
12:00 - The Invisible Deals You're Losing
15:00 - The 4-Part Prescription to Fix It

]]> Brian Nichols exposes why buying a business phone system in 2026 is nearly impossible and why UCaaS vendors are sabotaging their own sales process. With 49% of B2B buyers demanding transparent pricing and 61% preferring to purchase without ever talking to a sales rep, the unified communications industry is facing a customer experience crisis it created. Brian breaks down the broken buying journey — from hidden pricing and gated demos to a channel ecosystem drowning in middlemen — and reveals why the average B2B conversion rate sits at a dismal 1.8%.

This episode exposes the uncomfortable truth that UCaaS vendors are spending millions on AI tools and marketing automation to re-engage the exact same leads they drove away with their own buying process. Brian delivers a four-part prescription for fixing B2B customer experience — from pricing transparency to respecting the buyer's timeline — and explains why the companies that simply make it easy to buy are the ones that will dominate. If you've ever tried to purchase business technology and wanted to pull your hair out, you need to hear this.

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro: You Ever Try to Buy a Phone System?
1:00 - The Buying Journey From Hell
3:00 - The Channel's Dirty Little Secret
5:00 - Vendors Made This Hard ON PURPOSE
8:00 - This Is a CX Problem Not a Sales Problem
12:00 - The Invisible Deals You're Losing
15:00 - The 4-Part Prescription to Fix It

]]> SMB Buyers KEEP STALLING | Here’s the Truth Vendors HATE https://cswithoutthebs.fireside.fm/smb-buyers-keep-stalling-here-s-the-truth-vendors-hate 9af9f8e9-ec83-4331-a794-c342a95a453a Tue, 13 Jan 2026 17:00:00 -0500 Brian Nichols full Brian Nichols SMB buyers aren’t “hard to close.” They’re reacting rationally to slow responses, forced contracts, and bloated sales processes. In today’s CX Without the BS, I break down why the tech industry keeps losing SMB deals to indecision - and how to fix it. 16:35 no Are SMB buyers actually “hard to close”… or are we just making it miserable to buy from us? For years, the tech industry has blamed small and mid-sized businesses for stalled deals, ghosting, and indecision - but what if the real problem is us? In this episode of CX Without the BS, Brian Nichols turns the mirror back on vendors, advisors, and channel leaders who claim to care about customer experience while quietly sabotaging it with slow responses, rigid contracts, bloated quotes, and seller-first processes. This is a blunt, no-fluff gut check for anyone selling into the 5 to 1,000 employee market. Brian breaks down five specific ways the industry is breaking the SMB buyer experience - and exactly how to fix it without buzzwords, gimmicks, or enterprise theater. If you care about liberty, trust, and actually helping people make confident decisions, this episode will challenge how you think about sales, CX, and who the process should really serve. SMB sales, small business technology, CX without the BS, customer experience, tech sales mistakes, SMB buyer experience, UCaaS sales, CCaaS sales, channel sales, technology advisors, vendor fatigue, small business trust, sales process friction, buyer confidence, sales transparency, liberty mindset sales, real world sales, business freedom Are SMB buyers actually “hard to close”… or are we just making it miserable to buy from us?

For years, the tech industry has blamed small and mid-sized businesses for stalled deals, ghosting, and indecision - but what if the real problem is us? In this episode of CX Without the BS, Brian Nichols turns the mirror back on vendors, advisors, and channel leaders who claim to care about customer experience while quietly sabotaging it with slow responses, rigid contracts, bloated quotes, and seller-first processes.

This is a blunt, no-fluff gut check for anyone selling into the 5 to 1,000 employee market. Brian breaks down five specific ways the industry is breaking the SMB buyer experience - and exactly how to fix it without buzzwords, gimmicks, or enterprise theater. If you care about liberty, trust, and actually helping people make confident decisions, this episode will challenge how you think about sales, CX, and who the process should really serve.

]]> Are SMB buyers actually “hard to close”… or are we just making it miserable to buy from us?

For years, the tech industry has blamed small and mid-sized businesses for stalled deals, ghosting, and indecision - but what if the real problem is us? In this episode of CX Without the BS, Brian Nichols turns the mirror back on vendors, advisors, and channel leaders who claim to care about customer experience while quietly sabotaging it with slow responses, rigid contracts, bloated quotes, and seller-first processes.

This is a blunt, no-fluff gut check for anyone selling into the 5 to 1,000 employee market. Brian breaks down five specific ways the industry is breaking the SMB buyer experience - and exactly how to fix it without buzzwords, gimmicks, or enterprise theater. If you care about liberty, trust, and actually helping people make confident decisions, this episode will challenge how you think about sales, CX, and who the process should really serve.

]]> Why UCaaS Quotes NEVER Match the Bill https://cswithoutthebs.fireside.fm/why-ucaas-quotes-never-match-the-bill f0939e34-6ee2-47df-a0a5-9f1889a1707e Tue, 16 Dec 2025 08:00:00 -0500 Brian Nichols full Brian Nichols Why do UCaaS quotes never match the bill? In this episode of CX Without the BS, Brian Nichols and Stephen Howard break down the pricing games, broken incentives, and quiet BS that keep customer experience stuck. 48:38 no Why do phone system quotes never match the bill, and why does everyone just accept it? If you have ever signed a contract that felt great on day one and confusing on month two, this episode is going to hit a nerve. Brian Nichols digs into why unified communications feels broken, why customers keep getting talked past instead of listened to, and why the industry keeps selling shiny features instead of fixing real problems. In this episode of CX Without the BS, Brian is joined by Stephen Howard to pull apart the biggest lies in UCaaS, how mergers quietly wreck customer experience, and why transparency is the one thing vendors keep avoiding. This is a real-world conversation about trust, incentives, and what happens when companies stop treating customers like adults. No buzzwords. No fluff. Just the uncomfortable truth most vendors hope you never question. CX Without the BS, customer experience, UCaaS, unified communications, CCaaS, tech sales, business phone systems, customer support, hidden fees, phone system pricing, vendor transparency, mergers and acquisitions, M&A impact, customer journey, tech advisors, channel sales, business communication, customer trust Why do phone system quotes never match the bill, and why does everyone just accept it?

If you have ever signed a contract that felt great on day one and confusing on month two, this episode is going to hit a nerve. Brian Nichols digs into why unified communications feels broken, why customers keep getting talked past instead of listened to, and why the industry keeps selling shiny features instead of fixing real problems.

In this episode of CX Without the BS, Brian is joined by Stephen Howard to pull apart the biggest lies in UCaaS, how mergers quietly wreck customer experience, and why transparency is the one thing vendors keep avoiding. This is a real-world conversation about trust, incentives, and what happens when companies stop treating customers like adults. No buzzwords. No fluff. Just the uncomfortable truth most vendors hope you never question.

]]> Why do phone system quotes never match the bill, and why does everyone just accept it?

If you have ever signed a contract that felt great on day one and confusing on month two, this episode is going to hit a nerve. Brian Nichols digs into why unified communications feels broken, why customers keep getting talked past instead of listened to, and why the industry keeps selling shiny features instead of fixing real problems.

In this episode of CX Without the BS, Brian is joined by Stephen Howard to pull apart the biggest lies in UCaaS, how mergers quietly wreck customer experience, and why transparency is the one thing vendors keep avoiding. This is a real-world conversation about trust, incentives, and what happens when companies stop treating customers like adults. No buzzwords. No fluff. Just the uncomfortable truth most vendors hope you never question.

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