Win Deals With An Effective Sales Battlecard Or Kill Sheet
As a sales professional, do you want to stay ahead of the game? Then you will have to prepare for customer challenges in advance by pitching better than your competitors.
How Do You Do That?
By keeping a tab on information about your industry, competitors, benefits of your products or services and of course, pricing and USP.
And what’s the best way to have this information under one roof? The sales battlecard!
A competitive sales battlecard is a masterpiece that can make sales teams fall for the content well-researched by marketers. It has a clear, concise and actionable piece of information that a sales team can use to win more deals and grow the business.
Crayon's 2023 State of Competitive Intelligence (CI) report claims that 86% of CI leaders at software companies say they enable their sellers with competitive battlecards.
In this blog, you can expect to read about the sales battlecard, its type, why it is essential for the sales team and what it should include.
What Is A Sales Battlecard?
A sales battlecard, sometimes referred to as competitor battlecard or kill sheet is an internal document that is designed to provide sales representatives with the detailed information they need to compete effectively against a specific competitor. The battlecard typically includes information about the competitor's information, as well as their product offerings, pricing, USP, counter questions and positioning in the market.
The purpose of a sales battlecard is to enable sales representatives to effectively position their company's products or services against the competition and be accountable for answering counter questions raised by potential customers. By providing sales representatives with this information, companies can increase their chances of winning deals and gaining market share.
Types Of Battlecard?
Companies use various types of sales battlecards to help their sales representatives compete effectively against their competitors. A few of them are listed below:
#1. Competitor-Focused Battlecards:
These battlecards focus primarily on one or more competitors and provide detailed information about their products/services, pricing, positioning and sales strategies. The sales representatives can prepare their pitch accordingly using the detailed information given by their sales enablement team.
#2. Product-Focused Battlecards:
These sales battlecards are based on a particular product or service that competitors are selling. The marketing & sales enablement team provides this information to their sales representatives so they can compare it to similar products offered by competitors.
#3. Question-Based Battlecards:
These cards basically consume relevant information for all the possible questions that your potential customer could ask the salesperson. Sales representatives can use these cards to handle counter questions from customers. Answering such questions helps sales reps to establish good communication with customers.
#4. Value Proposition-Based Battlecards:
These battlecards collect information about target audiences, value propositions, counter questions, opportunity registration process and much more. Not only this, but the value proposition-focused battlecard template captures what value customers are gaining from your product and services.
#5. Market-Focused Battlecards:
These sales battlecards provide details about the overall market landscape, including trends, key players and emerging technologies or solutions. It helps you in the company's product offering positioning within the context of the market.
#6. Partnership Battlecards:
These cards capture the details or information about the competitor's partnership with other businesses making it easy for the sales representatives to pitch them accordingly.
#7. Persona-Focused Battlecards:
These battlecards provide information about the different types of buyers or decision-makers that sales representatives may encounter, including their pain points, goals and decision-making criteria. It also helps sales reps to improve the sales process to cater to different personas.
Overall, the type of sales battlecard a company leverages will rely on its specific goals and the competitive geography in which it operates.
Why Does The Sales Team Need A Battlecard?
#1. More Effective Pitch:
A sales battlecard helps sales reps to deliver a compelling pitch. They don't have to scramble for information anywhere while entertaining a customer. All the details they require are available at their fingertips.
#2. One Step Ahead Of Competition:
There would be chances where sales representatives might miss a chance to explain their company's new offerings, features or services on customer calls. In such cases, the sales battlecard helps them stay updated with the new launch and offerings of what's shaping the industry in terms of growth and competition.
For instance, let us assume one of the competitors has launched a new product that your company already has. In such a scenario, you could include language in the battlecard letting your potential customers know how your product is a frontrunner and available for customers to reap immediate benefits.
#3. Ready For Situational Pitches:
If your sales team is aware of the customer challenges, then it would be easy for them to pitch and cater to clients accordingly. But if not, then you can lose a deal.
Sales battlecards can help you with this by having a few things in place including what product your customer wants, its shelf life, newly launched features/products, new discount offerings and promotions. So, sales reps can navigate customers in a better way.
#4. Track Competition:
Marketers proactively track competition in a timely manner. However, a sales battlecard helps keep an eye on your competitor's website, analyse their activities on all platforms to understand what marketing strategies they are leveraging and more.
What Elements Do You Need To Build A Sales Battlecard?
Elements of a sales battlecard rely on the type of domain and competitive landscape your industry is dealing with. In general, a sales battlecard comprises the following elements:
1. Competitor Overview:
Sales & marketing are considered to be the ambassadors of an organisation and are expected to be aware of everything about their company including offerings, products/services, positioning, history, geographical presence and so on. Although most of the details are covered on the website, they are not very handy.
However, creating a sales battlecard with a summary of the competitor's history, products or services, market position, target audience, strengths and weaknesses can help sales reps to win the customer's trust.
2. Persona Insights:
The sales battlecard should have information on the ideal facets of buyer personas that the sales team is likely to encounter, including their pain points, motivations and decision-making criteria.
3.Unique Selling Points:
What are the key features, benefits or capabilities that differentiate the company's products or services from your competitors? Think about a distinctive aspect of your product and list it down on your sales battlecard.
4. Use Cases Applicable To A Client:
A sales battlecard should have a separate section for use cases to show your clients how you have solved similar business' real-life challenges. They love to hear what you are thinking about their firm and how you can bridge the gaps they are facing.
5. Industry Trends:
Sales reps should know the latest trends and information shaping their industry, including the overall market landscape, key players and emerging technologies or solutions. A brief overview of industry trends helps sales reps to perform better in client meetings.
6. Answering Counter Questions:
Sales rep should practice situation-based cases to avoid instances when they have no answers to give a potential customer. Include briefly common objections that may arise during the sales process, including when, what and how to respond to questions claimed by the competitor in the sales battlecard.
7. Sales Strategy:
The sales team always does their best to win the deal but guidance on how to effectively sell against the competitors can help them convince clients about your services. You can include strategies for an effective sales process keeping different scenarios in mind before including them in the sales battlecard.
Who Creates The Sales Battlecard?
Sales battlecards are typically created by marketing or sales enablement teams and are distributed to sales representatives before they can engage with customers. They may be updated periodically to reflect changes in the competitive landscape or the company's offerings.
Conclusion
A sales battlecard depends on the type of business you have. The good news is that more and more B2B businesses and marketing automation companies are leveraging sales battlecards to get every competitor's detail handy and improve their sales process. This will help the sales team close more deals.
How TransFunnel can help
TransFunnel, a HubSpot Elite Solutions Partner, can help you align your sales & marketing efforts and ensure optimisation of your sales process for the rapid growth of your business. We have a team of HubSpot experts that can assist you at every step of your sales journey.
