Why Your Battlecards Arent Working

For many B2B sales teams, battlecards are meant to be silver bullets that provide the concise insights, competitive details, and conversation prompts that reps need to succeed in a demanding sales environment. Yet, even while having battlecards at their disposal, many organizations often discover that these tools aren't delivering the expected results.

Why is that the case? There might be several reasons why your organization's battlecards aren't working as they'd hoped. Here, we will delve into these potential pitfalls and offer solutions for effective battlecard deployment and utility.

Misalignment with Sales Cycle

Battlecards are designed to arm salespeople with informational ammunition that can be positioned at every stage of the sales funnel, meaning different cards will resonate at different times.

If your battlecards seem to be misfiring, it's possible they are not correctly synchronized with your sales stages. A battlecard designed for use in the consideration phase can be ineffective or even detrimental if used in the awareness stage, and so on.

Solution: Review and restructure your battlecards to correspond with the various stages of the sales cycle. Each card should be designed to convincingly move prospects from one stage to the next.

Overloaded with Information

Battlecards that are stuffed with too much information can be overwhelming. They are meant to provide quick and accessible insights to sales reps during their conversations with prospects. If a battlecard is overloaded with data and details, it loses its utility as a quick-fire tool.

Solution: Pare down your battlecards to contain only the most salient details. They should be simple and scannable. Do regular clean-ups of each battlecard, removing outdated information and refining based on sales performance. A great battlecard is short, sharp, and smart.

Lack of Use

The success of battlecards greatly depends on the buy-in of sales reps. If they're not using them, it doesn't matter how well crafted they are. If sales reps aren’t finding the cards helpful or if they're not incorporated into their daily workflow, they will naturally begin to neglect them.

Solution: Train your reps on why battlecards matter and how best to use them. Embed battlecards into your CRM to ensure they are easily accessible during prospect interactions. Following a successful sale, share examples of how the battlecards helped close the deal.

Outdated Information

Markets are dynamic, competitors evolve, and customer needs change. If you're not regularly updating your battlecards, they can quickly become obsolete. Outdated battlecards can mislead sales reps and damage your credibility with prospects.

Solution: Update your battlecards on a regular basis. Leverage sales intelligence platforms like Aomni which aggregate data in real-time, ensuring your battlecards are always up-to-date and relevant.

Not Action-Oriented

A common pitfall with battlecards is that they are overloaded with facts and data but not guided towards action. Remember, the purpose of battlecards is not only to equip your salespeople with knowledge but to translate that knowledge into effective actions.

Solution: Make sure that every piece of information on your battlecard is action-oriented. It should guide your salespeople to do something beneficial—answer a common objection, address a competitor’s strength, appeal to a buyer’s specific need, etc.

In conclusion, while well-crafted battlecards are incredibly valuable sales tools, only diligence and consistent updating can ensure they remain effective and helpful; but it’s also important to regularly reassess the card's content and structure, and how well it's aligning with the sales team's current needs.

And remember! Platforms like Aomni can be leveraged to negate these issues entirely. The Aomni platform ensures that your battlecards are always up-to-date, actionable, and synced with your sales process. This allows your team to spend less time updating battlecards and more time doing what they do best - selling.