How can you effectively communicate new product updates to your sales team?

1 Plan ahead

Prior to announcing any new product updates, it’s important to have a comprehensive plan and strategy for how, when, and why you’re sharing them. Think about the goals and objectives of the product update and how it solves customer problems or adds value to your solution. Consider the target audiences for the product update and how it affects different segments, personas, or industries. Additionally, plan out how you’ll measure the impact and success of the product update by tracking key metrics and indicators. Train and support your sales team to understand and sell the product update by providing them with resources and tools. Having a plan in place will help you align your sales and product teams, as well as ensure that everyone is on the same page about the value proposition, positioning, and messaging of the product update.

2 Communicate early and often

Making the mistake of surprising your sales team with a new product update at the last minute can lead to confusion, frustration, and lost opportunities. To avoid this, it's important to communicate early and often with your sales team and involve them in the product development process. You can do this by inviting them to beta test the product update and collect their feedback, sharing regular updates and sneak peeks of the product update to explain its benefits, hosting a live demo or webinar to answer any questions they may have, and sending out a product update newsletter or email to highlight key features, benefits, and use cases. This will help build excitement for the product update and prepare your sales team to sell it successfully.

3 Provide clear and concise messages

When you communicate new product updates to your sales team, you need to provide clear and concise messages that focus on the value and benefits for your customers and prospects. Instead of using jargon, technical terms, or vague statements, use simple language that your sales reps can understand and repeat. Emphasize the main selling points and differentiators of the product update, and how they address your customers' pain points and goals. Additionally, provide relevant examples, stories, or testimonials that showcase the product update in action. To make it easier for your sales reps to remember the key information and messages of the product update, create a one-pager or cheat sheet. Providing clear and concise messages will help you educate and persuade your sales team to adopt and promote the product update.

4 Reinforce and follow up

Finally, you need to reinforce and follow up with your sales team to ensure that they are confident and comfortable with the product update, and that they are using it effectively in their sales conversations. To do this, create a quiz or assessment to test their knowledge, provide ongoing coaching and feedback, recognize and reward successful reps, and solicit feedback from them. Reinforcing and following up will help your sales team stay engaged and aligned with the product update, so that they can deliver consistent messages to prospects and customers.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?