Your TCO Story Is Costing You Millions
Joseph Abraham
Chief Business Officer @Xerago | Founder @B2Baxis & @ThoughtCred | B2B GTM & Content Strategist | Podcast Host
Hey Alpha Leaders,
It's a warm Chennai evening, and I'm sipping masala chai while writing this to you. After 18+ years of building B2B strategies and watching thought leadership evolve (and sometimes devolve), I figured it's time to share what actually works.
Welcome to AlphaDrop – your weekly dose of B2B wisdom minus the LinkedIn theater. Think of this as your backstage pass to GTM strategy, thought leadership that matters, and AI tools that actually move the needle.
What's Brewing in This Edition:
The Workday story nobody's talking about
A fresh take on TCO that's changing the game
AI tools I'm betting on (and actually using)
Plus a spicy challenge for category creators
No fluff, no jargon, just real insights for leaders who want to stay ahead.
Grab your coffee (or your fav drink!), and let's dive in.
Let's build something special,
Joe
SIGNAL vs. NOISE
Where we separate the wheat from the LinkedIn-inspirational chaff
?? This Week's Power Moves
1. Spotify 's B2B Plot Twist
The Scoop: They're dropping millions on video podcasts while your competition's still perfecting their email signatures
Money Shot: Enterprise buyers are 3x more likely to close after video content. (Yeah, we double-checked that number)
Quick Win: Turn that 20-page whitepaper into a 5-minute video series. Your ROI just got a glow-up
2. OpenAI 's "Operator" Drama
The Scoop: Their AI now handles computers better than your intern
Plot Twist: 73% of buyers ghost your sales team, but they'll chat with AI
Pro Move: Design your content like a Tesla - smooth for humans, optimal for algorithms
3. Anthropic 's Reality Check
The Scoop: AI's getting pricey, but so was ignoring email in 1995
The Kicker: Your competitors are quietly building their AI moat
Smart Play: Start small now, before "enterprise-grade" costs more than your CEO's bonus
4. Writer 's $1.9B Flex
The Scoop: AI writing just hit unicorn status (your content team is sweating)
Real Talk: Only 17% of content hits excellence. AI's fixing that math
Power Move: Test AI tools now, before "AI-enhanced" becomes table stakes
5. Anthropic - Palantir Technologies Power Couple
The Scoop: Two AI giants just partnered to make government smarter (private sector's next)
Translation: Enterprise AI adoption isn't an "if" anymore
Winning Play: Become the AI-fluent partner your clients didn't know they needed
The TL;DR
Video content is eating strategy decks for breakfast
Quality content is non-negotiable (humans optional)
Early movers are already moving (hint received?)
Bottom Line: While your competitors are playing checkers with their content strategy, you've got clearance to introduce 3D chess. Just make sure you're recording it for your Spotify channel.
?? ANCHOR SERIES: The TCO Revolution
The Big Idea
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) used to be simple math: purchase price + maintenance + operations = total cost. Yawn.
But while everyone's freaking out about AI costs (yes, Anthropic, we see you), smart B2B companies are completely reinventing what TCO means. We're talking about every single cost your customer faces – from the obvious (like subscription fees) to the sneaky ones nobody talks about (like AI model training costs, data cleaning headaches, and integration nightmares).
?? The $1B Pattern
Here's the thing: After stalking analyzing the fastest-growing B2B companies, we discovered they're not just selling solutions – they're revolutionizing how customers calculate their true costs in this AI-first world. Think less "we're cheaper" and more "here's why traditional TCO models are costing you millions."
?? The Modern TCO Equation
Old TCO: Purchase + Maintenance + Operations
New TCO:
Direct Costs (the obvious stuff)
Hidden Tech Debt (the scary stuff)
AI Operating Costs (the new stuff)
Opportunity Costs (the expensive stuff you're ignoring)
Future-Proofing Costs (because 2025 is coming)
?? Reality Check: Where Are You?
Level 1: Still comparing feature prices (cute)
Level 2: Talking about implementation savings
Level 3: Showing customers costs they didn't know they had (bingo!)
?? The Quick Test
Score yourself (brutally honest mode):
Does your TCO story make CFOs forget about inflation?
Are prospects sharing your cost breakdowns voluntarily?
Is your model making competitors nervous?
Can you prove savings that make procurement teams smile?
?? Your 30-Day Power Moves
Week 1: The Audit
→ Trash your 2023 TCO calculator
→ Map the costs everyone's missing
→ Find your "wait, what?" factor
Week 2: The Story
→ Build the narrative that makes competitors sweat
→ Create the slides prospects actually screenshot
→ Document the "I never thought about it that way" moments
Week 3: The Test
→ Run it by 5 prospects
→ Watch their faces
→ Iterate based on their "aha" moments
Week 4: The Launch
→ Arm your sales team with the new narrative
→ Document early wins
→ Make competitors need a drink
?? Victory Signs
→ Prospects share your TCO slides unprompted
→ Competitors start "borrowing" your model
→ You're winning against cheaper alternatives → Your sales team voluntarily talks about costs
?? The Bottom Line
Next time someone asks about your pricing, don't defend – attack with your TCO revolution. Because while everyone else is worried about AI costs, you'll be too busy changing the entire conversation.
Share this with anyone who still thinks TCO is just about adding up numbers. They need this wake-up call.
?? BREAKTHROUGH RADAR
The $5B Workday Story: How Two Legacy Executives Rewrote Enterprise Software's Future
?? THE BREAKFAST THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
Picture this: Lake Tahoe, 2005. Two PeopleSoft executives sit in a diner, fresh from watching their company get acquired by Oracle. Instead of retiring, Dave Duffield and Aneel Bhusri asked a question that would create a $5B revolution: "What if enterprise software could feel as natural as using your phone?"
Why Workday's Story Matters Now
→ It proves transformation isn't just for startups
→ Shows how legacy players can become category kings
→ Delivers the perfect playbook for the AI era
?? THE WORKDAY REVOLUTION
2005: The Bold Bet
→ Industry: "Enterprise software must be complex"
→ Workday: "Actually, it should be as simple as Amazon"
→ Result: Made "user-friendly enterprise" not an oxymoron
2008: The Cloud Gamble
→ Industry: "Cloud isn't for serious business"
→ Workday: "Cloud is the future of business"
→ Result: Turned their biggest "weakness" into their edge
2012: The Scale Story
→ Industry: "Cloud can't handle real enterprise"
→ Workday: Lands Walmart with 2.3M employees
→ Result: Game, set, match
2020+: The AI Play
→ Industry: "AI threatens jobs"
→ Workday: "AI amplifies human potential"
→ Result: Making enterprise software feel like the future again\
?? HOW THEY PULLED IT OFF
1. The Narrative Flip
→ Before: "We're ex-PeopleSoft executives"
→ After: "We're reinventing work itself"
→ Win: Made their legacy an asset, not baggage
2. The Enemy Switch
→ Before: Fighting Oracle/SAP
→ After: Fighting complexity itself
→ Win: United the entire market behind their mission
3. The Experience Play
→ Before: "Enterprise-grade software"
→ After: "Consumer-grade experience"
→ Win: Made enterprise software exciting (seriously!)
??? THE WORKDAY PLAYBOOK
1. Made the Complex Simple
→ Turned quarterly updates into continuous innovation
→ Made integrations feel natural, not painful
→ Proved enterprise software could actually be enjoyable
2. Turned Scale into Story
→ Every big customer became a movement milestone
→ Made "enterprise-ready" sound sexy
→ Used customer logos as their best marketing
3. Owned the Future Narrative
→ Never just sold HR software
→ Always sold the future of work
→ Made every product launch feel like a revolution
? LESSONS FOR RIGHT NOW
Why Workday Won:
→ Started with user experience, not features
→ Made their timing look like destiny
→ Turned industry experience into innovation fuel
→ Let customers become their best storytellers
What They Never Did:
→ Attack their past
→ Get lost in feature wars
→ Compromise on their vision
→ Let competitors define them
?? THE $5B BOTTOM LINE
Workday didn’t just build better software – they changed how the world thinks about enterprise technology. In an era where everyone claims to be disruptive, they proved that true breakthroughs come from deep industry knowledge combined with the courage to imagine something better.
?? YOUR BREAKTHROUGH MOMENT
Ask yourself: → What industry "truth" needs challenging? → What customer pain is everyone ignoring? → What future could you uniquely build? → What movement could you actually lead?
Share this with anyone who thinks their industry experience is a limitation. Workday proved it's rocket fuel for reinvention. ??
?? NEURAL NETWORK
?? WHAT I'M ABSORBING
?? Just Finished Reading
"The Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders and the Rise of Social Engineering" - Malcolm Gladwell
In his new book, Malcolm Gladwell revisits tipping points, showing how society now influences trends and ideas with both powerful and unpredictable outcomes. Through real-world cases, he illustrates today’s intensified tipping points and urges readers to handle this influence responsibly for meaningful change.
?? Can't Stop Watching
Cleo Abram 's video podcast with Samir Chaudry & Colin Rosenblum
This ex-Vox journalist just hit 3.5M subs, but here's the real story: watch how she's quietly building a B2B empire through consumer-grade content. Taking notes for our own strategy at ThoughtCred.
?? On My AirPods
Eli Schwartz on Lenny Rachitsky 's Podcast - "SEO as Product"
Best thing I've heard on SEO in years. Stop thinking keywords, start thinking product strategy. Perfect timing with all this AI content noise.
?? WHY THIS MATTERS
These three pieces clicked for me: We're watching expertise, authority, and distribution get completely reinvented. Old playbooks are dying, but the new ones might be better.
If you read one thing this week, make it Cleo's series. Trust me on this one. ??
Got a recommendation for next week's Neural Network? Drop me a note.
?? COOL AI TOOLS RADAR
?? THIS WEEK'S GEMS
No fluff, just tools solving real B2B problems I keep hearing about
?? For Content Creators: Bluecast .ai
The What: LinkedIn posts that don't sound AI-written
The Win: Cuts writing time by 70% while keeping your voice
Reality Check: Still needs human editing, but worth it
?? For Research Nerds: Papers
The What: Actually smart research management
The Win: Tames your chaos of PDFs and browser tabs
Pro Tip: Amazing for synthesizing multiple sources
?? For Thought Leaders: TaleSage
The What: Turns your brain into a book
The Win: Makes writing actually doable
Why I Use It: Structure suggestions that make sense
?? For Quick Intel: Macky .ai
The What: 30-second market insights
The Win: Perfect for pre-sales call research
Best Use: Competitive intel that doesn't take hours
?? For Creator Marketing: Favikon
?? WHY THESE MATTER
All these tools share one thing: They augment human work instead of trying to replace it. That's the sweet spot.
??? MY TOP PICK
Papers is changing my game. Finally tamed my tab addiction and actually using all that research I collect.
Trying these out? Let me know what you think. Next week: AI tools for sales that actually work. ??
?? BRAIN GYM
Time to play category creator
?? THE GAME
You're a B2B founder in 2024. Features wars are boring. AI promises are everywhere.
Your Mission: Create a category that makes competition irrelevant.
Think Gong → "Revenue Intelligence" Think Gainsight → "Customer Success" Think Different → Think Bigger
?? THE PRIZE
Best category creator gets:
AlphaDrop feature spot
Strategy session with me
Early playbook access
?? PLAY TO WIN
DM me: [email protected]
400 words, 3 action steps
Due: Tuesday midnight PST
Keeping you ahead of the curve
?? STAY CONNECTED
Join the ecosystem:
?? LET'S TALK
Share this with your network. Good insights compound. ??
written by Joe
I have a passion for helping businesses and people succeed. Partnering with Small to Midsize Businesses Business Owner | First Degree Black Belt in Jiu Jitsu | Professor | Entrepreneur | Non Profit Board Member
2 周Where's the data on video content ROI Joseph Abraham?
4 Exits + 30 yrs of Experience in Startups, Scale ups, Education, Impact Investment and Leadership Transformation
2 周More emphasis needed on data privacy Joseph Abraham.
Inspirée par Fernand Vincent, je développe une vision collaborative pour l'Afrique
2 周Been waiting for someone to break this down Joseph Abraham.
Combining AI & therapy to Optimize Corporate Leadership, Innovation, and Sales Performance.
2 周Already implemented your TCO framework Joseph Abraham - seeing 40% better engagement in sales conversations. The way you broke down hidden costs and future-proofing expenses gave our sales team exactly what they needed to shift conversations away from price comparisons. We've incorporated your framework into our sales playbook and the results have been remarkable. Even procurement teams are responding positively to this more comprehensive approach to cost analysis.
I Help Small Business Owners and Nonprofit Executives Achieve their Goals with Effective Marketing Strategies Focused on Growth and Development | Marketing Associate at Clark & Co
2 周This changes everything about our approach Joseph Abraham.