If you're in B2B marketing, sales enablement, or product management and you’re tired of being blindsided by competitors, you’ve probably looked at dedicated competitive intelligence (CI) tools. Maybe you’ve heard the buzz about Crayon, or you’re just trying to figure out if it’s actually worth the money—or if you’re better off with spreadsheets and Google Alerts. This guide gets past the hype. I’ll break down what Crayon actually does, where it shines (and falls short), and how it stacks up against alternatives in 2024.
What Is Crayon, Really?
Crayon is a SaaS platform built to help B2B teams track competitors, gather intel, and arm sales with insights that (in theory) win deals. It pulls in data from public sources, internal notes, and even your own sales team. The idea is to centralize all that messy, scattered competitive info into one place, and make it actually useful—whether you’re prepping for a pitch or trying to keep your product roadmap relevant.
But let’s be real: just having more data isn’t the same as having better answers. Crayon’s promise is to filter the noise and turn raw info into something you can act on.
Who Actually Needs a Tool Like Crayon?
Crayon isn’t for everyone. Here’s who tends to get real value out of it:
- Mid-to-large B2B companies with multiple competitors and a real need for organized CI.
- Product marketers and enablement pros who create battlecards and competitive content.
- Sales teams who get asked, “How do we stack up against X?” every single day.
- Product managers wanting to keep tabs on market moves (without living in LinkedIn tabs).
If you’re a solo founder or running a tiny sales team, honestly, you might be fine with a few shared docs and some manual tracking.
Key Features: What Works and What’s Fluff
Let’s cut through the marketing copy and look at what actually matters.
1. Automated Competitive Monitoring
- What it does: Scans thousands of sources (websites, news, reviews, pricing pages, etc.) for competitor updates.
- What works: You get a daily or weekly feed of real changes—think new product launches, pricing tweaks, exec moves.
- What to ignore: Not every “signal” is useful. There’s still noise, and you’ll need to tune filters or risk getting swamped.
2. Battlecards and Sales Enablement
- What it does: Lets you build and share battlecards (concise, up-to-date cheat sheets on competitors) directly inside your CRM or sales tools.
- What works: Sales folks actually use these when they’re right where the work happens (e.g., Salesforce, Slack).
- What to watch: If you don’t have someone maintaining these, they get stale—fast. Crayon makes updates easier, but doesn’t do them for you.
3. Internal Collaboration & Intel Capture
- What it does: Lets anyone at your company contribute competitive insights or field intel in-app (or via integrations).
- What works: You can finally break the “I heard something interesting, but forgot to tell anyone” cycle.
- Reality check: Adoption depends on culture. If your team doesn’t share now, software won’t magically make them start.
4. Alerts & Reporting
- What it does: Customizable notifications and digest reports, so you don’t have to camp in another dashboard.
- What works: You can set up “only show me pricing changes” or “alert me if X competitor adds Y feature.”
- What’s meh: If you’re not careful, you’ll end up with notification fatigue—set your alerts thoughtfully.
5. Integrations
- What it does: Connects to Slack, Salesforce, email, and (to a lesser extent) Teams or custom workflows.
- What works: Useful if your team lives in Slack or Salesforce.
- Heads up: Integration depth varies. Some things are just one-way notifications, not full syncs.
What’s Not So Great? (Honest Cons)
Nobody likes a tool that overpromises and underdelivers. Here’s where Crayon can fall short:
- Setup can be a slog. Getting your competitors, keywords, and sources dialed in is not instant. Be ready to invest time up front.
- Not magic—still needs human curation. Crayon’s AI is decent at filtering, but you’ll need to review and validate big updates.
- Pricing is opaque. You’ll have to talk to sales for a quote, and it’s not cheap. Expect a “contact us” conversation, not a pricing page.
- Too much info if you’re not careful. Without ruthless filtering, reports can become overwhelming. More isn’t always better.
- Feature bloat risk. Some “insights” and dashboards look slick but aren’t actionable—focus on what your team will actually use.
Crayon vs. The Competition (2024)
There’s no shortage of CI and enablement tools. Here’s how Crayon stacks up against some big names:
Crayon vs. Klue
- Klue is probably Crayon’s closest competitor.
- Both offer automated monitoring, battlecards, and integrations.
- Crayon is usually seen as having stronger automated research and data breadth.
- Klue tends to be more visually polished and a bit easier on the eyes for battlecard design.
- Pricing: Both are premium. Expect similar “let’s talk” sales cycles.
Real talk: If you care most about pulling in tons of competitive signals, Crayon edges out. If your team’s all about slick presentations, Klue might win.
Crayon vs. CI “Light” Tools (e.g., Google Alerts, Notion, SharePoint)
- Google Alerts/Notion are free (or already paid for).
- They’re flexible but 100% manual. No automated tracking, no integrations.
- Crayon saves hours, but only if you have enough competitive noise to justify it.
If you’re a startup or just dabbling in CI, stick with the basics until it’s truly painful.
Crayon vs. Primary Research/Consultants
- Consultants can dig deep and give context, but cost real money and don’t scale.
- Crayon automates the grunt work but won’t give you “why” behind competitor moves.
Pro Tip: Use both. Crayon for day-to-day, consultants for big bets.
How to Get the Most Out of Crayon (Or Any CI Tool)
Here’s what actually drives value, based on what I’ve seen work:
1. Appoint a Real Owner
- Someone needs to “own” your CI program. Half-hearted ownership = stale data and wasted money.
- Doesn’t need to be a full-time role, but it can’t be “everyone’s job.”
2. Ruthlessly Prioritize Signals
- Set up filters so you only see what matters—ignore the rest.
- Start narrow (“just pricing and product updates”) and expand as needed.
3. Build Battlecards Sales Will Actually Use
- Short, punchy, and mobile-friendly.
- Get sales feedback. If they’re not using them, you’re missing the mark.
4. Train Your Team (Briefly)
- Quick onboarding for sales and marketing so they know where to find what they need.
- Remind folks to submit intel—make it part of your weekly or monthly meetings.
5. Review and Iterate Quarterly
- What’s working? What’s being ignored? Kill unused dashboards or battlecards.
- CI is never “set and forget.” Keep it simple, prune often.
Is Crayon Worth It in 2024?
If your company is scaling and your industry is competitive, Crayon can save you serious time and make you look less clueless on sales calls. But it only works if you’ve got the people and process to use it. It’s not a magic bullet or a replacement for actual thinking.
If you’re just dipping your toes into competitive enablement, start simple. If you’re drowning in competitor updates and need to arm a big sales team, Crayon’s worth a hard look—just go in with clear eyes and a plan to keep things manageable.
Keep it simple. Start small. Iterate. Don’t let the tool run you.