How To Get Your Sales Team To Use Battlecards and Win More Sales

As a sales manager, your main goal is to, well, get your team to make sales. A lot goes into developing a successful sales team. They need plenty of training and access to up-to-date insights when pitching to potential customers. 

At times, your sales team might feel like a lot of the intel they could use in closing a competitive deal is out there somewhere, but not quite within reach.

Wish you had a way to help them?

Look no further than sales Battlecards.

What Are Sales Battlecards?

Battlecards are like cheat sheets for your sales team. They provide all the information they need to win over prospects and close deals, particularly when those prospects are evaluating your competitors, too. 

You wouldn’t send your sales team into battle against the Spartans armed with toothpicks, right? And you don't expect them to win a sales pitch without the proper tools. 

Sales Battlecards can be the missing tool your sales team needs to conquer the competition. 

But once you have them, your team actually needs to use them. So how do you get their buy-in? Selling your reps on Battlecards can be a job in and of itself. 

What Are Some Challenges with Using Sales Battlecards?

It might seem like an obvious choice to implement a Battlecard program, but it can be tricky to get a team to use sales Battlecards. Even within the same company, sales leaders can experience spotty adoption.

So what’s stopping sales reps using Battlecards? 

• No defined Battlecard program. When there are Battlecards for some competitors but not others, or if the Battlecards do not meet the needs of the sales team, they're likely to not use them at all.
• Outdated information. Sales Battlecards need to be updated regularly to ensure that they are accurate and relevant. Even though it’s extra work, keep Battlecards updated as product offerings and competitors change. This will help motivate sales reps to use them consistently. Using competitive intelligence automation, this should only take an hour or two each week.
• Lack of understanding of how to use them effectively, or simply because sales reps don't see the value in using them. Be sure that you are training your sales team on how to use them and why. It’s up to you as a manager to ensure that your team sees the value of having consistent, correct information all in one place. Sharing success stories of others on the team can be great motivation.
• Not easily accessible. Sales teams may not be using Battlecards because they don’t know where to find them or can’t access them easily. Make sure all your sales Battlecards are in a single location that’s easy for your reps to access. Bonus points if they can access them in the sales tools they’re already using.

Despite the challenges, we think that implementing Battlecards is well worth your time. In fact, the benefits far outweigh any challenges. 

Understanding the Benefits of Battlecards

Picture this. You’re in the middle of a sales call, during your first sales pitch, and you can feel the sweat starting to form on your forehead. Your prospect is asking tough questions, and you’re struggling to keep up. You feel your lunch turning in your stomach. 

One of two things can happen next:

You make a dramatic gesture, knocking over your coffee, so your prospect, momentarily, forgets that you are not well versed in what your company has to offer or your competitor. ☕

Or

You take a look at your secret weapon: a well-thought out sales Battlecard, and BOOM. Sale nailed. 

A good sales Battlecard is like a superhero’s utility belt—it has everything you need to save the day. In fact, three out of four companies that use Battlecards report that they’ve increased win rates as a result.

Battlecards typically contain competitive intelligence, product features and benefits, pricing, and messaging guidelines. All of these ingredients combined together in one place help you create the perfect recipe for sales success. Once you’ve cooked up the perfect Battlecards, make sure your sales team knows why and how to use them. Here are a few compelling reasons:

• Consistent messaging: Battlecards provide guidance on proven talking points to use with potential customers, which can help maintain a consistent brand voice across all interactions and ensure all reps are using the messaging you know works.
• Competitive edge: Battlecards contain information about competitors’ strengths and weaknesses, allowing reps to position their products more effectively against the competition.
• Faster onboarding and call prep: New sales reps can quickly get up to speed on the key features and benefits of a product and how to sell it. Call prep takes minutes instead of hours.
• Improved sales performance: Battlecards can help sales reps close more deals by providing them with the information they need to address potential objections or questions from customers. They can also help sales reps identify cross-selling and upselling opportunities.

As you’re onboarding new team members—and teaching them how to use Battlecards—be sure these benefits are a part of your training. And if necessary, have a refresher with your current team to discuss the advantages of Battlecards.

Battlecards: Sales Teams Steps to Success

With so many benefits, we think implementing sales Battlecards is worthwhile, and we know it’s possible to do so successfully. To help you get there, we’ve created a step-by-step process for implementation and buy in. 

Step 1: Create a Sales Battlecard 

First, create a sales Battlecard using this template for free and make your first draft faster and easier with ChatGPT. This will ensure that every Battlecard your team uses has the same format, making it easy for them to use and understand. 

Make sure it’s visually appealing and easy to read, too! Use sales-ready language, or E.L.I.S, for short: easy, logical, intuitive, and simple messaging.

Take a look at our example inside Kompyte. 

Step 2: Train Your Team to Use Battlecards

Next, train your sales team to use sales Battlecards. Make sure they understand how they can use them to win more sales. 

Do some role-playing exercises to help them practice using the Battlecards in different scenarios. If this reveals room for improvement, make sure to update them right away.

Step 3: Make Battlecards Accessible

Sales Battlecards are so valuable. But don’t let them become buried treasure. Make sure they are easily accessible to your team. 

Whether it's through a shared drive or a printed binder, make sure they can quickly find and access the Battlecards they need.

Looking for something better? Kompyte’s competitive intelligence automation keeps all your updated Battlecards easy for your team to access and makes them accessible from the sales tools your team uses every day.

 
Kompyte Battlecards are available in the tools your sales team already uses. Here, you can see Battlecards right inside Salesforce.

Step 4: Get Feedback

Get feedback from your sales team on how the Battlecards are working for them. If you notice certain Battlecards aren’t being used or certain reps don’t use them at all, find out why.

Ask these questions of your team: 

1. Are you using the sales Battlecards regularly?
2. Have the Battlecards helped you close more deals?
3. What sections of the Battlecards do you find particularly helpful?
4. What sections of the Battlecards do you think are missing or could be improved?
5. Have you noticed any patterns in customer objections that the Battlecards help you address?

Kompyte can show you who is using Battlecards and which get the most views.

Step 5: Continually Refine

Take what you learn and make any necessary updates immediately so your team always has Battlecards they find valuable.

How often should you update? It depends on how quickly your market is evolving. Sections that are most important and most likely to change include: competitors, pricing, product features, customer pain points, statistics, and data points. If you’re using competitive intelligence automation, set aside an hour or two weekly to review these sections in particular to make necessary changes. Otherwise, you may find you need a full-time person in this role.

How will you make sure people know they have been updated? Communicate updates through newsletters, sales portals, training sessions, and Q&A sessions. Or, use Kompyte - updates will be available on all applicable Battlecards and reports instantly.

Working with PMMs To Increase Battlecard Usage 

You may have another ally in getting Battlecard buy-in from your sales reps. Product marketing managers (PMMs) know exactly how to communicate the value of a product and what sets it apart from the competition. By working with sales teams, they can help ensure that Battlecards, and in turn sales reps, are equipped with the right information to win deals.

Here are some ways sales and PMMs can work together to increase the usage of sales Battlecards:

• Gamification: Incentivize sales reps to use Battlecards.
• Convince them of the value: Show them how Battlecards can help them hit targets and close deals. Highlight actual examples when you visit the sales meeting each week.
• Win/loss analysis: Identify strengths and weaknesses of Battlecards and messaging and then refine and improve them.
• Update: Assign someone to update regularly, and then review and approve updates.

It’s always good practice to highlight success stories because nothing motivates sales reps like success stories. PMMs can work with sales teams to identify success stories where Battlecards played a key role in winning a deal, and use those stories to showcase the value of using them.

Real-Life Success with Battlecards 

Are you wondering yet what all this looks like in real life? We’ve got a great one for you. See how one software company was able to track 60 competitors and deliver over 75 Battlecards with Kompyte. Download the case study.

It's time to give your team the edge they need to succeed. So, what are you waiting for? Create your sales Battlecards template and get your team using them today.

Still looking for more guidance on how to get your team to use sales Battlecards? Sign-up for our on demand webinar.