How to Build an Effective Field Enablement Battlecard

AG Consulting Partners is proud to share this industry expertise by Management Consulting Senior Manager, George Rushin.

The ability to efficiently provide sales teams with information is a pillar of any successful sales enablement strategy. Recently, we built a field-focused battlecard for a global technology client and would like to share some of the project outcomes with you.

A battlecard is a concise compilation of information about a product, the product’s competition, customers and the marketplace. Simply, it’s a brief, easily digested resource used to educate teams, evangelize a product and acknowledge the competition. They’re built for a sales organization, enabling sellers to more effectively engage with customers.

I’ve included a list of basic battlecard elements below, that is in no way exhaustive. Here are some key elements to consider for a great battlecard that will help a sales team:

Provide an overview of your product

Introduce the reader to the product. Assume they have not had the opportunity to study the competition and don’t necessarily understand exactly how it stacks up to your offering. Create a shared context by providing a high-level background, including key dates, milestones, successes and major stakeholders. Build the case for the strength of your product offering such that it’s obvious why others would want to compete with it. Talk about use cases that have seen success and about momentum moving forward (e.g. new releases, new features that are in the works, upcoming events that will celebrate the product). Point to the synergy with other products that make your offering special.

Provide an overview of competition’s product

Discuss what the competition has done in a matter-of-fact way. State what is so about their product and arm the reader with basics like announcement date, release date, key stakeholders and partners. The goal here is to help make the reader fluent in the basics of the competition so that if they were to read no further, they would now understand what the competition does at a high level.

Provide an analysis of the competition’s product

Leverage subject matter experts to paint a detailed picture for the reader so that they can understand the competitor’s product. Include technical information about the competitor’s product and dive into the pros and cons. Links to supporting material can also be leveraged here to expand on areas that are too developed or deep for a simple one-page explanation. Clarity about the competition is the main objective of this element.

Speak to product similarities

Prepare sales teams to talk about how your product and the competitor’s product are alike:

• Explain what you and the competition have in common
• Emphasize foundational and technical similarities that are easy for the reader to expand on
• For example, shared markets, customers use cases or pricing models are all things to highlight
• Point out any similar challenges you share and the market opportunity
• Use graphics and numbers to help people visualize the market

Explain the competition’s distinct offering

The ability to understand and articulate the competition is vital to successful customer conversations:

• Plainly state what the competition is doing differently
• Explain what the competition does well and their value proposition
• Talk about how the competition is tying in their new offering to their existing offerings
• If any partners are known, discuss how the competition may be leveraging those relationships

Champion your product

Assemble a list of differentiators that make your product stand out from the competition:

• Favor traits or features that you do well rather than things that the competition doesn’t do well
• Talk about product traits that are easy for people to describe (Think: elevator pitch)
• Call back to the overview regarding ways the new offering compliments existing products

Highlight outstanding questions

Again, leverage subject matter experts to help understand the questions you can’t answer yet:

• For example, the competition’s pricing, market share, technical requirements or launch date might be unknown
• This is an opportunity to ask questions if the competitor’s product sounds too good to be true
• Use your expertise and speak to questions you expect buyers to be asking

Creating an effective sales enablement strategy is a core requirement to grow your sales business. If you would like to learn more about our sales enablement and marketing expertise, contact AG Consulting Partners at contact@agconsultingpartners.com.

We look forward to supporting your next sales and marketing journey!

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