5 Ways to Encourage Sales Battlecard Use

Sales battlecards are one of the most valuable sales enablement tools that a sale teams can use to run a successful sales call. Are your battlecards helping reps win deals? Not if they’re not being used! A challenge that many sales managers face is that sales reps often leave battlecards unused. Here are 5 ways to encourage battlecard usage and take your reps’ performance to the next level.

1. Consult your sales reps

Ask your team members why they are or aren’t using battlecards during calls. What are some frequently mentioned reasons for ignoring battlecards? Are they difficult to recover in stressful moments, or do sales reps find the information included is not that relevant? Engage your team to discover the root causes of low adoption rates and work together to remedy the problem. Do your battlecards include key elements like product highlights, competition breakdown, and market context? Incorporate feedback from your team to improve the information on battlecards and adjust the formatting for greater ease of use. If the battlecards themselves aren’t a stated issue, could it be that your sales reps are unaware of why they are useful in the first place? Be sure to communicate the advantages of using sales battlecards to your team and use data to support your claims.

2. Use voice-activated battlecards

During calls, some sales reps may struggle to access particular battlecards on the spot. Even the most experienced sales reps can let nerves get to their head, and anxiety can make it difficult to think clearly and consider which battlecard would help you respond to a tricky question or point. Make battlecards easier than ever to use by introducing voice-activated sales battlecards. Sales software like Attention allows sales reps to access specific battlecards using voice activated cues. Attention recognises terms mentioned during calls and identifies the relevant battlecard to empower sales reps to provide an effective rebuttal, instantly. For instance, if the prospect objects to a point made about “competitor X”, Attention will recognise the term “competitor X” and bring up the particular battlecard on the sales rep’s screen. There’s no need to worry about adapting to a clunky new system, as Attention integrates with your favorite sales platforms to provide a seamless experience.

3. Be sure to update battlecards

If your battlecards don't reflect the most up-to-date information available, they may do more harm than good. Prospects rely on sales reps to provide quality information, certainty, and assurance, and sales reps depend on sales leaders to do quality control of sales materials. Dated or incorrect information can tarnish your organization’s reputation and jeopardize the delicate relationship between sales reps, sales leaders, and prospects. While updating cards on a regular basis may seem burdensome, accuracy should remain a top priority. To keep your cards up-to-date more easily, allow sales reps to provide trackable feedback directly on battlecards and set reminders for yourself to check battlecards on a regular basis. Another piece of advice is to work with your technology department to find intelligence software that can easily integrate with your sales battlecards to update key data as the numbers change.

4. Follow the data

Do you have a concrete performance measurement strategy in place to track battlecard efficacy? As a sales leader, it’s important to take a look at what the metrics are telling you. Which battlecards were used most often? View counts can provide some insights on which battlecards were most captivating to your sales reps. Furthermore, paying attention to particularly successful calls can provide some useful intel. Which topics prevailed during these conversations? Was there any key information that pivoted the discussion in a more productive direction? If so, think about whether this information should be emphasized in a more pronounced manner on cards or included in related battlecards. Finally, take a look at the big picture. Have battlecards had an impact on competitive win rate? Competitive win rate can be obtained by dividing the number of sales deals won by the number of total opportunities created. If competitive win rate is low, it may indicate battlecards are not helping sales reps stay competitive. How have battlecards impacted revenue over time? When looking at measurements, consider them in light of your sales cycle length. Wait for a sales cycle to complete before evaluating the impact of your cards. Don’t forget to engage with your reps to add context to the numbers. How do your sales reps feel about their performance with and without battlecards? Do their stories and the numbers coincide? If not, think about where the sources of tension are to further improve the experience of accessing and utilising sales battlecards.

5. Provide additional training

Sometimes, despite all of the work that has been put into creating the best tools, sales reps are still reluctant to change their habits and try something new. Don’t let stubbornness get in the way of reaching maximum productivity. If your team is not making the most out of your battlecards, it may be time to remind them of the value of this essential sales tool during training sessions. Additional training may be useful to ensure sales reps know how to use available tools to their advantage and secure a greater number of deals. Becoming top sales reps will require becoming fluent in the use of the entire sales arsenal, not just battlecards. To prepare your hires to make better use of their talents and resources, try Attention. Attention uses AI technology to give sales reps instant feedback and improve their performance in weeks rather than months. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to boost your numbers and try Attention today!