The 8 rules of awesome sales content

Kimberly Mercer

If your sales content isn’t doing its job, you’re not doing yours.

Are you confident that the sales content you spend valuable time and energy on is doing it’s job? Is it getting used? Is it getting found? Is it helping to win deals? Your responsibility does not end when you ship it. There is a process of development and delivery that influences how well your sales content performs. Here are eight simple rules to help you deliver awesome sales content.

1. Every piece of content must be developed for a specific use case. Sales content is unique in that its audience is not necessarily its user. A product demo is meant for a prospect and so must track positioning and key features; however, it’s user is a sales rep. Think of your sales content as a wing man, the Goose to their Maverick.
2. Make it current and make it obvious. Sales content should be updated monthly. Set workflows to enforce a check and updated timestamp. Users will be confident in its currency and you’ll have fewer “Is this the most recent version?” inquiries hitting your inbox. If something changes, track it in comments or notes where you can.
3. Make it easy to access. Store sales content in one place. Preferably web-based and easy to access via mobile. Eliminate issues with version control by offering one demo/deck/sheet/review/sales battlecard in one place. That’s it.
4. Make it easy to use. Searchable is good. On-demand is better. Imagine a Slack command for the sales battlecard you need? Or a voice prompt that collects and sends the demo version you need to our phone instantly when you bump into a potential customer? The sales cycle is always On. Help your team be ready anywhere.
   Does it include everything a sales rep needs to close the deal? Can a customer understand what she needs in order to make a decision?
5. Keep it short. As brief as possible. Make it stick. Make it standout. One page. One minute. One look. That’s how long you have to engage and influence.
6. But don’t leave anything out. If your go-to-market messaging is tight, you’ll have no problem keeping everything aligned. Every piece has a different purpose. Features, competitor intelligence, user experience…stick to one lane. When something is everything to everyone it risks being nothing to no one.
7. Make it inclusive. Everyone has a story to share. Sales reps, CSRs, product managers and customers all have unique insights into the product, the experience and the prospect. Great sales content reflects that input. Win-loss interviews, customer feedback, sales debriefs and market testing should all funnel back into your content creation process.
8. Measure it. Does it get used? Does it generate demand? Does it win deals? If it’s not doing its job, your not doing yours.

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