The sales battle card for tech

4 reasons why you need to start using a sales battle card, right now

Driving sales wins in the early days of tech startup growth requires clear, concise, and consistent sales messaging. That’s where the trusty sales battle card comes in… Your sales teams best friend. 

The problem is, this highly effective sales tool often is left till last. Left until after the uncertainty that occurs when startups transition from product-centricity through to growth. 

A robust battle card means you are giving your sales reps exactly what they need reinforce the value of your solution in their own mind, before each sales conversation.

This boosts confidence and positively impacts performance, helping to build stronger relationships with prospects from the get-go. 

Beyond this mindset base, battle cards enable a consistent approach rather than having different conversations with every prospect. This gives your team a path to improving how they engage, as they identify what works best versus what is missing the mark.

1. Sales battle cards prepare for the common objections that cause sticking points

Sales objections suck, they are the biggest pain your sales team deals with.

Your reps are focused on selling the solution, on the positive aspects of what your solution will do for your prospects. On moving prospects through the sales cycle – to get the win.

Handling objections is jarring if they are not prepared. This makes objection handling one of the most valuable sections of your sales battle card.

If they have objection handlers front-of-mind before the sales conversation, they are primed to confidently and smoothly transition the prospect forward, building trust in your business in the process.

These predefined responses enable your team to swiftly address concerns, turning potential roadblocks into opportunities. 

2. Competitor Intel in sales battle cards for tech startups

Could your sales reps benefit from a robust approach to positioning your solution against your competitors?

A sales battle card will help them zero in on the most crucial competitive differentiators, avoiding incorrect statements about competitors that can damage trust. It also helps them sidestep overly negative statements that impact the discussion. 

If you want to position your offering in the most persuasive way, you want to clearly articulate what sets your solution apart.

That is, how your solution and your business, can support their success more effectively than your competitors. Whether that is product capability, your approach to managing the implementation project, after-sales support, or any other key attribute you deliver on. 

3. Sales battle cards are an excellent resource to train new team members

A lesser known benefit of sales battle cards is using them to train new team members, including and beyond the sales team.

They can accelerate the learning curve, helping revenue side hires become productive faster. And they enable technical team members to pressure-test their thinking when developing features, ensuring they are aligned with client needs.

This can help new team members gain the confidence needed to engage with interdepartmental teams, knowing they have a shared understanding of what the client expects. A shared understanding of what your solution needs to deliver on.

The battle card is a practical way to get new team members to understand your solution, rather than getting them to read the website and hoping for the best.

4. Without battle cards tech startups suffer

Getting a robust battle card sorted helps you and your team to agree on and refine all the core elements of your offering. 

It pulls together the insights and specific messaging that has worked well across your sales team. 

Without it, your sales reps have to rely on their individual knowledge, which can result in outdated or irrelevant information being shared with prospects.

As Qwilr rightly states – “No one can remember every little detail”.

Without a primer before their sales discussions, they don’t have all the key information reinforced, ready to drive prospects further into the sales cycle.

When you consider the reality of differing day-to-day energy levels, you want to ensure they can call on the pivotal points every time they engage with a prospect.

Your sales teams best friend

So as you will have seen by now, battle cards really are your sales teams best friend.

According to Tim Rhodes, ex Oracle, the trouble with battlecards is that they “often devolve into a catch-all for every bit of intel that could possibly-maybe be relevant. At the risk of leaving something out, “they throw everything at it” and hope something sticks. This leads to dropping win rates and a loss of trust in the tool itself.”

Alternatively, when done right, a robust sales battle card will reduce stress, improve win rates, and ensure your prospects get the best upfront impression of how you can support their business.

This works best when it is developed with input from across your business. 

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1. https://klue.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Klue-Ebook-Bundle-for-Product-Marketers.pdf

2. https://qwilr.com/blog/sales-enablement-battle-cards/