If your team’s running on fumes—juggling launches, enablement, and chasing down updates—you’re not alone. Most go-to-market (GTM) teams spend a shocking amount of time herding cats and updating spreadsheets when they could be… well, shipping. This guide is for anyone who wants to ditch the busywork and actually get the important stuff done.
Solidroad (solidroad.html) promises to streamline go-to-market workflows and automate the stuff you dread. But let’s cut through the hype and get practical: here’s how to set up real, useful automations in Solidroad, what actually saves you time, and what’s just window dressing.
Step 1: Get Clear on What’s Worth Automating
Before you start wiring up automations, stop and take inventory. Not everything needs to be automated, and some tasks are more trouble than they're worth.
The best candidates for automation: - Repetitive status updates (think: “Is this asset ready for review?”) - Notifications for handoffs between teams (e.g., product to marketing) - Reminders for key GTM milestones (launch, sales enablement, customer comms) - Pulling data from other tools you already use
Don’t bother automating: - Messy, one-off requests (these will break your automations) - Tasks that change every cycle (you’ll spend more time fixing than saving) - Anything that requires a lot of subjective input (“Is this good?”)
Pro tip: Ask yourself, If this task fell through the cracks, would anyone care? If not, skip it.
Step 2: Map Out Your GTM Process in Solidroad
Solidroad’s automation is only as good as your setup. If your process is scattered, your automations will be, too.
- List every repeatable step in your GTM process.
- Example: Feature ready for marketing, asset drafted, asset reviewed, sales notified, launch live.
- Assign clear owners to each step.
- Identify the key handoff points.
- These are where automations make the biggest difference.
Don’t overcomplicate this. You can always refine as you go. Start with your most common GTM motion—don’t try to boil the ocean.
Step 3: Set Up Your Automations in Solidroad
Now for the fun part. Here’s how to actually build automations in Solidroad that save you time, not just look impressive in a demo.
3.1 Automating Status Updates
What works: - Automatically move items to the next stage when a checklist is completed. - Auto-notify the next owner when it’s their turn.
How to do it: - In your Solidroad project, look for the automation or workflow builder. - Create a trigger: “When checklist ‘Asset Ready for Review’ is marked complete…” - Set an action: “Move item to ‘Ready for Review’ and notify ‘Marketing Lead’.”
What to ignore: - Automating updates for tiny, low-stakes steps. You’ll just annoy your team with noise.
3.2 Notifications and Reminders
What works: - Slack or email alerts for handoffs. - Automated reminders for critical deadlines a few days before they hit.
How to do it: - Use Solidroad’s notification actions to send a message to the right channel or person. - For recurring reminders, set up scheduled triggers tied to your launch date.
Heads up: Too many notifications? People tune them out. Be ruthless about what actually matters.
3.3 Integrations with Your Other Tools
Solidroad can pull in data or kick off actions in tools like Jira, Google Drive, or Slack.
What works: - Syncing statuses from Jira so PMs don’t have to double-update. - Attaching Google Drive assets automatically as they’re added. - Notifying the sales team in Slack when enablement is ready.
How to do it: - In Solidroad, go to Integrations and connect your tools. - Set up triggers like “When Jira issue moves to ‘Done’, mark GTM step complete.” - For document workflows, “When file added to Drive folder, attach to GTM item.”
What to skip: - Overly complex chains involving too many steps or tools. If it’s hard to explain, it’ll be hard to maintain.
Step 4: Test Your Automations (Before You Announce Them)
Nothing kills credibility faster than broken automations. Test in a sandbox project or with a small team first.
- Walk through your GTM process as a user.
- Watch for missed notifications, wrong owners, or duplicate alerts.
- Fix anything confusing or noisy.
Pro tip: Ask a skeptical teammate to poke holes. If they’re confused, so will everyone else.
Step 5: Roll Out Gradually—and Get Feedback
Don’t flip the switch for the whole org at once. Start with your core team or one product line.
- Announce what’s changing (and what isn’t).
- Show people how automations will reduce their workload.
- Invite feedback: What’s still annoying? What’s helpful? Fix quickly.
Honest take: People resist change, even good change. If you make it clear this is about making their day easier—not just tracking them—they’ll get on board faster.
What Actually Works (and What Doesn’t)
Automations That Save Time
- Handoff alerts: No more “Is it my turn?” emails.
- Status roll-ups: Easier to track what’s blocked, what’s done.
- Deadline nudges: Fewer last-minute scrambles.
Automations That Backfire
- Over-notification: If Solidroad is spamming people, you’ll get ignored.
- Automating unclear tasks: If someone still needs to think or debate, leave it manual.
- One-size-fits-all workflows: Every team has quirks. Don’t force a rigid process.
Troubleshooting: When Automations Break
- Too much noise: Cut notifications to the bare essentials.
- Missed updates: Double-check your triggers and owners.
- Integration fails: Sometimes, APIs break or permissions change. Check connections regularly.
- People bypass the process: That’s a sign it isn’t actually saving time. Ask why—they’ll tell you.
Pro tip: Build in a manual “override” step for exceptions. You’ll thank yourself later.
Keep It Simple—and Iterate
Automating your go-to-market process in Solidroad won’t fix bad habits or unclear roles, but it can buy back hours if you keep it simple. Start with high-friction, repeatable tasks. Test with a small group. Tweak until it actually saves time.
Don’t get distracted by every shiny feature. The best automation is the one you barely notice—because it just works. Ship something, see what breaks, and make it better next time. If you do that, your team will actually thank you. And maybe, just maybe, you’ll get to go home on time.