“You need your customers to trust you. And if you’re running around saying something that’s egregiously false…you’re going to look pretty silly.”
Whether the claim once was true or never was at all, a false or outdated claim on your website is the quickest way to erode trust in your brand.
Of course, proving something is false won’t always be a black and white affair.
That’s why Mindy recommends developing and sticking to a tight process of documentation on competitor claims.
“If you have to retroactively go back and prove something, it’s really hard to do. And it’s a scramble. As opposed to, I’ve got all my ducks in a row, I’ve documented it. Here’s my little folder that has all my backup, all the logic, all the things that you would want to know to show.”
By keeping a log of the methodology behind making a claim, or why a competitor’s claim is false, you’re simply making your life a lot easier.
When you’re dealing with a particularly litigious competitor, your legal team will be very glad you detailed your process from A to Z.
“I think my record is 15 or 16 pages of documentation for a single sentence in a press release.“
Documenting your logic and methodology is non-negotiable. But should you do what Mindy did and put together 16 pages of documentation for just one sentence in a single press release?
Well, that depends. Because the operative question when it comes to competitor claims is:
Is it worth it? Is it worth pursuing and following through on the claim?
It’s a question that has many dimensions to it. Is it worth it from:
While how you determine the ultimate value of following through on a claim based on the costs will depend, it’s always going to be imperative that you reflect on the worth of a claim at all steps of the claim lifecyle.
You may get all the way to the end and decide that the claim you’re making is better suited for internal sales collateral as opposed to a feature comparison chart.
Sometimes, you may get all the way to the end only to realize you shouldn’t be making the claim at all.
But the more diligent you are about asking yourself ‘is it worth it?’, the happier you’ll be.
“I firmly believe battlecards should live somewhere where only certain people can edit them and everyone else can only view them .”
You’re the competitive expert. You’re the pillar of your compete program. And by extension, you’re responsible for the competitive messaging and collateral.
The worst case scenario is having uncontrolled versions of sales battlecards with out-of-date or unsubstantiated claims floating around.
For Mindy, version control is of the utmost importance.
Your sales reps are cavalier by nature. They wouldn’t be in the role they are if they didn’t think for themselves, move quick on their feet, and adapt to the present situation.
But a sales rep going rogue and inventing their own competitor claims could spell serious trouble for your compete program, you brand and your company in general.
Even if you don’t fall into legal trouble, inconsistencies in messaging can do serious harm to your team’s reputation.
That’s why different permission levels on battlecard content is essential.
Your team producing the content should have complete control to edit, update, and remove content.
All others should just be able to view.
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