If your sales team is doing things ten different ways, deals slip through the cracks and results are all over the place. You want consistency, but nobody wants to be buried in process for the sake of process. This guide is for sales leaders, ops folks, and anyone sick of reinventing the wheel—especially if you’re eyeing Prelay as your tool to get everyone on the same page with templates that actually get used.
Let’s get practical about how to use Prelay templates to standardize your sales process, keep reps focused, and avoid the usual process headaches.
Why Standardize with Templates in the First Place?
Before you dive in, be honest: is your sales process documented somewhere, or is it “tribal knowledge”? If it’s the latter, you’re not alone. Here’s why templates matter:
- Consistency: Deals move forward the same way, no matter who’s running them.
- Fewer costly mistakes: Steps don’t get skipped, and key info doesn’t get lost.
- Faster onboarding: New reps don’t have to guess what “the process” is.
- Spot weak points: If deals stall, it’s easier to see where things break down.
But let’s be clear—templates are only useful if people use them. Overcomplicated, rigid templates just slow everyone down. The goal: just enough structure to help, but not so much that it strangles your team.
Step 1: Map Out the Real Sales Process (Not the Fantasy Version)
Don’t start in Prelay yet. First, get your actual sales process out of everyone’s heads and onto paper (or a whiteboard, or a doc).
- Talk to top reps and managers. What steps do they always take? What shortcuts hurt deals?
- List out the must-haves. What’s truly required for a deal to move forward? What’s just “nice to have”?
- Spot the differences. Where are people doing things differently, and is that ever actually helpful?
Pro tip: Don’t just copy a generic sales process. If you’re in SaaS, and your deals always need legal review, add it. If you never do demos, don’t force one into the template “just because.”
Step 2: Break the Process Into Stages and Key Tasks
Prelay works best if you split your process into clear, manageable stages. Think about the big checkpoints, not every tiny action.
Typical stages might look like:
- Qualification
- Discovery
- Demo/Presentation
- Proposal
- Negotiation
- Closed Won/Lost
For each stage, jot down the essential tasks or checklist items. For example, under “Discovery” you might have:
- Identify all stakeholders
- Document key pain points
- Confirm budget and timeline
What to skip: Don’t list tasks so granular (“Send intro email”) that your reps roll their eyes and ignore the template. Focus on what truly matters.
Step 3: Build Your First Prelay Template
Now, open up Prelay and head to the templates section. Here’s how to set up your first template:
- Choose a template type. Prelay lets you create templates for deal plans, mutual action plans, and more. Start with whatever matches your process best.
- Add stages as sections. Plug in the process stages you outlined earlier.
- Add tasks/checklist items. For each stage, add the key tasks that absolutely need to happen. Use clear, plain language.
- Assign owners (if it helps). If certain tasks are always handled by sales engineers, legal, or others, set default owners.
- Set dependencies (sparingly). You can force some steps to be completed before moving forward, but don’t overdo it—sales isn’t always linear.
- Save as a template. Name it clearly, so your team knows when to use it.
Honest take: The first version won’t be perfect. That’s fine. You’re aiming for “pretty good and usable,” not “flawless from day one.”
Step 4: Roll Out the Template—And Actually Get Buy-In
Templates don’t work if they live in a vacuum. Here’s how to get your team to use them:
- Walk through it live. Run a team meeting where you demo the template in Prelay and show how it fits real deals.
- Explain the “why.” Be upfront: “We’re doing this so deals don’t get stuck, not to micromanage you.”
- Ask for feedback. What’s confusing? What’s missing? What’s annoying or redundant?
- Tweak based on real input. If everyone skips a step, ask if it’s truly needed.
What doesn’t work: Just sending out a Slack message—“Here’s a new template, start using it”—and hoping for the best.
Step 5: Use Templates in Real Deals (and Don’t Be Precious)
Now, start applying the template to live deals:
- Clone the template for each new deal. Prelay makes this part easy.
- Encourage updating in real time. Reps should check off tasks as they go—don’t leave it for “later” (which means never).
- Adjust on the fly. If a deal needs an extra step, add it. If something’s irrelevant, skip it. Templates are a starting point, not a straitjacket.
Pro tip: Review completed templates in pipeline reviews. If steps are always skipped, maybe they don’t belong. If deals stall at the same stage, dig in.
Step 6: Iterate, Don’t Set It and Forget It
The best sales process is one that evolves. Here’s how to keep your templates useful:
- Collect feedback regularly. Ask reps what’s working and what isn’t every quarter.
- Update templates as needed. When the market changes or your product shifts, tweak the process.
- Don’t add steps unless you must. More process isn’t better—add only what solves real problems.
Be skeptical: If you find yourself thinking, “Let’s make the template even more detailed,” pause. Ask, “Will this actually help close more deals, or just create more boxes to check?”
What Works Well (and What to Ignore)
What works:
- Simple, clear stages. No one wants to navigate a maze.
- Templates that match how people actually sell, not how you wish they did.
- Making tweaks based on real feedback, not just management’s best guess.
What doesn’t:
- Overbuilt templates. If your reps have to click through a dozen irrelevant steps, they’ll tune it out.
- Mandating templates for every deal, no matter the size or type—sometimes, a quick sale doesn’t need the full process.
- Ignoring feedback. If people keep skipping steps, don’t assume they’re “resistant to change”—maybe the process needs fixing.
Keep It Simple, and Keep Improving
Standardizing your sales process with Prelay templates isn’t about adding friction—it’s about removing guesswork and helping your team focus on what matters. Start simple, watch how it works in the real world, and don’t be afraid to cut what’s not helpful.
The best process is the one your team actually uses. Keep it tight, get feedback, and keep iterating. That’s how you turn process into real results—not more paperwork.