Prepping Salespeople for Battle
In a recent conversation with a marketing executive he recognized in his organization there lacked a strong connection between product marketing and sales, and that there was a lack of leverage/socialization of product marketing knowledge.
Every b-to-b organization should create and adhere to a “product launch model,” where it formally sets out the support that will be provided to the sales team upon the launch of a new product or service. This support commonly includes training materials, sales materials, public relations releases and any investor relations-related documents. It also should include what many organizations are referring to as “battle cards,” or competitive information/comparison sheets. These battle cards should include common competitors the salesperson can expect to run across; features of competing products/services; and key differentiators. Over time, these battle cards should be revamped to include additional competitors not initially identified; common sticking points that salespeople have experienced; typical “audiences” that bring up the objection; responses that have worked to ease the objection; and responses that have failed to ease the objection. This fairly simple deliverable can open up a regular, candid dialogue between sales and product marketing, and help product marketing to augment its initial support plan for new products and services.
