How To Write A Better Battlecard Follow The Abcs

Sales teams need clear, concise and actionable information to maneuver through competitive landscapes. Like a map through this terrain, a sales battlecard delivers critical insights to your sales force enabling them to champion your product or service. With a battlecard, they no longer need to memorize extensive details about competitors but instead, gain the capacity to counter competitor claims smartly and enhance the value of your offering.

In the following, we’ll be exploring how to write better battlecards so that your front-line sellers can engage with confidence, win more deals, and ultimately drive revenue growth. The best approach is as simple as ABC... literally.

A – Audience Focused

First things first – it’s about the audience. Battlecards are written primarily for sales teams, but never forget for whom they’re ultimately intended: your potential customers. Each battlecard must outline clear and unfair advantages over competitors in a way that highlights the customer’s best interests. In essence, your sales teams need to articulate the value proposition appealing directly to the unique needs of the customer.

Tips on how to hone this aspect of your card:

• Prioritize the problems your solution resolves for customers.
• Highlight the unique attributes of your offering that directly benefit customers.
• Construct your card to be useful within actual sales conversations with customers.

B – Brief and Brisk

In the heat of a sales battle, there’s no time to go through lengthy documents. Your sales team needs concise, clear and direct information that they can access at a moment's notice.

Keep your battlecards succinct. Break information into digestible chunks using bullet points, tables or charts for quick assessment. Avoid complex language or jargon – simplicity guarantees understanding and usability.

Tips on how to ensure brevity and briskness on your card:

• Keep information points short, ideally not more than a couple of sentences.
• Use case-specific cards with focused content rather than one-size-fits-all.
• Use visuals and infographics to share complex messages succinctly.

C – Compelling and Credible

While brevity is crucial, it means nothing if the content isn’t convincing. The best battlecards comfortably blend cold, hard facts with compelling storytelling. They paint a vivid picture that equips sales reps with compelling narratives. Drawing on testimony, anecdotes or case studies, the card should validate your solution's superiority over competitors.

On the other hand, every claim must be well-substantiated, beyond mere assertion and flaunt—credibility is key. Reputable sources and real-world testimonials back up the data points adding weight to your arguments. Plus, it strengthens trust between your sales reps and customers.

Tips to enrich your card with compelling and credible content:

• Blend facts into an engaging narrative and script that defuses competitors' advantages.
• Ensure every claim on your battlecard could stand up in a court of law: factual, recent, and sourced.
• Include customer testimonials or case studies for credibility.

S – Solution-Centric (not competitor-centric)

It’s easy to fall into the trap of focusing primarily on the competitor's weaknesses in battlecards. However, the goal is not to slander your competitors but to elevate your solution – this is a critical distinction. The key focus should always be to show how your product or service brings exceptional value to the customer.

Tips to maintain solution-centricity on your card:

• Frame benefits in terms of customer needs rather than as a comparison to competitors.
• Avoid making unfounded claims about competition, as this erodes trust.
• Even when discussing competitors, steer the conversation towards why your solution is better.

Wrapping up

Creating an effective sales battlecard is no small feat. It requires digging deep into your competitors, connecting with your customers on what they truly value, and balancing brevity with powerful storytelling. But remember – this is a living document. As situations evolve, competitors change tactics, and your company grows, your battlecard must adapt.

If however the thought of creating battlecards fills you with sky-high anxiety, consider integrating a data-driven platform, like Aomni. Aomni is an AI-driven platform that provides real-time account research, competitive insights, and personalized sales content easily. From creating highly effective sales battlecards to updating them regularly, Aomni has you covered and allows your sales team to focus on what they do best - selling.