Sales Enablement Materials: 12 Types of Content That Empower Sellers

Making cold calls. Running demos. Persuading decision-makers.

The life of a seller isn’t an easy one. But that doesn’t mean you—whether you’re a product marketer, sales manager, revenue leader, or whatever—can’t make it easier.

Today, we’re going to explore 12 sales enablement materials that will transform the day-to-day lives of your sellers:

1. Buyer personas
2. Email templates
3. Talk tracks
4. Discovery call checklists
5. Demo recordings
6. Slide decks
7. Battlecards
8. Thought leadership content
9. Case studies
10. One-pagers
11. Business case templates
12. ROI calculators

Let’s get started.

1. Buyer personas

What are these? Self-explanatory.

Why do my sellers need them? Subpar prospects are a waste of time. When buyer personas are easily accessible, your sellers are more focused and efficient.

Pro tip: Create a persona field in your CRM. This is an easy way to send an important reminder: If this prospect doesn’t match any of our personas, they’re not worthwhile. Plus, it’s easier to commit a persona to memory when it’s associated with real people.

2. Email templates

What are these? Self-explanatory.

Why do my sellers need them? Some accounts are worth the effort of drafting customized, well-researched emails; others aren’t. Email templates help your sellers strike a necessary balance between quality and quantity.

Pro tip: Be wary of personalization fields that automatically populate with information like job title, company name, etc. They’re handy, but they introduce the risk of sending stuff like this: “As the Senior Director of Content Marketing and Search Engine Optimization at ACME INCORPORATED, blah blah blah.” Either cut those fields altogether, or allow your sellers to make manual tweaks like this: “As Acme’s content leader, blah blah blah.”

3. Talk tracks

What are these? Flowcharts for sales conversations. If the prospect says X, respond with Y and ask them Z.

Why do my sellers need them? Cold calling is difficult because thinking on your feet is difficult. Talk tracks help your sellers build momentum and rapport in a smooth and relevant fashion.

Pro tip: Don’t give your sellers scripts. When you’re on the receiving end of a script, it’s painfully obvious that you’re being sold to—and nobody wants to be sold to.

4. Discovery call checklist

What is this? A list of questions that cannot, under any circumstances, be left unanswered.

Why do my sellers need this? Thoroughness is the defining feature of a good discovery call, and good discovery calls arm your sellers with critical information that shapes the remainder of the sales process: goals, pain points, budget constraints, etc.

Pro tip: Include this question in your checklist: “Are you evaluating any other solutions at this time?” This isn’t a dirty or uncomfortable question. It underscores what the prospect cares about, and it helps the seller put together a more relevant and personalized demo.

5. Demo recordings

What are these? Self-explanatory.

Why do my sellers need them? Imagine trying to drive a car having never seen someone drive a car.

Pro tip: Segment your demo recordings. This one is a great example of addressing Pain Point X. This one is a great example of selling to Persona Y. This one is a great example of going head-to-head against Competitor Z. When a seller is struggling with something specific, you’ll know exactly what to show them to help close the deal.

6. Slide decks

What are these? Self-explanatory.

Why do my sellers need them? Diving straight into a demo feels like jumping into a freezing cold swimming pool—it’s a bit jarring. Slide decks help your sellers contextualize your product and tell the story of your company.

Pro tip: Wordy slides are a necessary evil. Train your sellers to give prospects time to read before they listen. If you’ve ever tried to read a slide while simultaneously trying to listen to someone speak, you know that it doesn’t lend itself to comprehension or retention.

7. Battlecards

What are these? Documents that help sellers go head-to-head against specific competitors. One battlecard per competitor, and one competitor per battlecard.

Why do my sellers need them? What differentiates your product from Alternative X is not necessarily what differentiates it from Alternative Y. Succeeding in a competitive market means being able to convincingly position your product against each alternative.

Pro tip: Download these templates. They’ll give you a head start.

8. Thought leadership content

What is this? Content that takes a clear, original, and perhaps even controversial stance on a well-trodden topic. See here.

Why do my sellers need this? People buy products from businesses they trust. Thought leadership content establishes credibility and, therefore, helps to build trust. Plus, it’s another way to differentiate from your competitors.

Pro tip: Don’t be contrarian for the sake of being contrarian. You should wholeheartedly believe whatever you’re saying, and you should have data—anecdotal, quantitative, or both—to support your argument.

9. Case studies

What are these? Self-explanatory.

Why do my sellers need them? People don’t just love stories—we need them. Stories stick with us, and they can motivate us to take action. What is a case study if not a story that highlights the efficacy of your product?

Pro tip: The line between case studies and thought leadership content is not definitive. Can the story of one of your customers serve as the foundation for a bold, well-reasoned argument? If so, go ahead and kill two birds with one stone.

10. One-pagers

What are these? One-page educational documents that your sellers can send to prospects following their conversations.

Why do my sellers need them? In any given opportunity, there may be a specific topic or concern that, in the mind of the prospect, is make-or-break. Maybe it’s the integration between your product and some other solution. Maybe it’s your pricing structure. Maybe it’s the difference between you and Competitor X. One-pagers enable your sellers to thoroughly address these topics and concerns, thus reassuring prospects and reinforcing trust.

Pro tip: Keep your eye out for trends and anomalies in the usage of certain one-pagers. Notice a sudden spike in sellers sending the one-pager that breaks down the differences between you and Competitor X? You’d better make sure the corresponding battlecard is up to snuff.

11. Business case template

What is this? An editable document that helps prospects convince their colleagues and/or bosses that your product is worth buying.

Why do my sellers need this? There’s a big difference between winning over a prospective user of your product and winning over a prospective buyer of your product. Just because the Payroll Manager thinks you’re worth $25K, doesn’t mean the CHRO agrees.

Pro tip: Head into your CRM, filter down to recent opportunities that were lost due to no decision, and look at your sellers’ notes. Do you notice any patterns? What roadblocks are introduced when your prospects approach their bosses? These roadblocks should inform the content of your business case template.

12. ROI calculator

What is this? An editable spreadsheet that estimates the return on investment that a prospect will yield should they buy your product.

Why do my sellers need this? Money talks.

Pro tip: Don’t treat this lightly. If you tell a prospect, “We estimate that our product will yield annual savings of $200K - $250K,” that’s a serious statement—one that had better be backed by data. If you launch an ROI calculator before it’s ready, and you make promises that you can’t keep, you will pay for it in the form of bad word-of-mouth and lost revenue.

Customizable battlecard templates that get results

Tired of losing to competitors? Tired of listening to call recordings and hearing sellers fumble your core differentiators? Tired of executive leaders breathing down your neck?

Take advantage of Crayon’s battlecard templates. They’re free to download, easy to customize, and proven to make an impact.

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