The Dos and Don’ts of Competitive Enablement

This week on Product Marketing Life, Mark is joined by Dejan Gajsek, CEO and co-founder of Grow + Scale. Dejan shares his career journey, beginning with marketing roles at early-stage startups in Slovenia, before making the leap to found Grow + Scale – a competitive intelligence program provider for B2B and SaaS technology companies.

Dejan takes us through the "dos and don'ts" of setting up competitive enablement programs, advising product marketers to start small and focus on one or two key competitors. He recommends creating a handful of assets like battlecards, and suggests leading with an "atomic battlecard" that covers 80% of scenarios to avoid overwhelming sales with too much information.

Introducing Dejan Gajsek

Dejan has nearly 10 years of experience in the tech industry. He started his career working in marketing roles at early-stage startups in Slovenia, where he had to operate as a one-person marketing department with no budget. During this time, he focused on organic marketing channels like content marketing and SEO.

After working at two startups and helping them gain traction, Dejan decided to start Grow + Scale with his friend and marketing assistant. The company began as a content strategy and production agency but pivoted to focus on competitive intelligence and sales enablement based on client demand. After three years, Grow + Scale now serves enterprise and mid-market B2B SaaS clients with tailored competitive enablement services.

Originally from Slovenia, Dejan made the move to Canada to launch Grow + Scale. He draws on his background starting with limited resources to help clients strategically launch and scale competitive enablement programs.

Key discussion points

For product marketers starting a competitive enablement program, Dejan advises starting small – focusing on 1-2 key competitors, ideal users like younger sales reps, and a few priority assets like battlecards.
He shares tips on battle card creation - start with an "atomic battlecard" covering 80% of scenarios. Don't overwhelm sales reps with too much info.
If sales reps don't use new enablement collateral, diagnose why – talk to them, get leader endorsement, and highlight successes.
Looking ahead, competitive intelligence will remain critical as competition increases. AI is hot but be sure to preserve the human aspect of selling.

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