If putting together sales proposals feels like déjà vu every week, you’re not alone. Most B2B sales teams spend way too much time hunting for slides, patching together decks, and stressing over brand consistency. If you’re reading this, you probably want to fix that without burying your team in a new system. Let’s talk about how the Seidat slide library can actually help—without the usual software hype.
Why B2B Proposal Creation Gets Messy
Before you dive into yet another tool, let’s be blunt: proposals get messy because everyone’s making their own decks, saving files on their desktops, and reusing outdated slides. One person’s “final_v2.pptx” is another person’s nightmare.
What you actually want:
- Consistent branding (because rogue fonts aren’t charming)
- Accurate info (no more quoting last year’s pricing by accident)
- Faster turnaround (so sales can, you know, sell)
A slide library should make all three easier. Let’s see how Seidat’s approach stacks up.
Step 1: Set Up the Slide Library — Don’t Overthink It
Goal: Build a single place for your best slides, so your team stops reinventing the wheel.
- Start with what you have. Dig up your best-performing proposals, even if they’re a mess. Don’t try to be perfect—just get the slides that actually close deals.
- Group by topic or use case. Think “Company Overview,” “Product Features,” “Pricing,” “Case Studies,” and “Legal.” Don’t go overboard with categories or you’ll just create new confusion.
- Upload to Seidat. The platform lets you import PowerPoint, Google Slides, or PDFs. No, it won’t always be pixel-perfect, but it gets you 90% there.
Pro tip: Assign someone who actually sells (not just marketing) to help pick the slides. They know which slides land with real prospects.
Step 2: Clean Up and Standardize
Goal: Make sure what’s in the library is actually usable. No ancient logos, typos, or mystery formatting.
- Update branding and messaging. Fix logos, colors, and headlines. Don’t get lost in minutiae—just make it look like your company, today.
- Trim the fat. Toss outdated slides or anything nobody actually uses. If you’re on the fence, ask your top salesperson if they’ve used that slide in the last six months.
- Write simple guidelines. One short page is enough: which slides are “must-haves,” when to use case studies, who to ask if you need a new slide.
What to skip: Don’t waste time making every slide perfect. Focus on the ones that get reused. If nobody ever uses your “Vision Statement” slide, don’t polish it for hours.
Step 3: Build Modular, Mix-and-Match Slides
Goal: Make it dead simple for anyone to assemble a custom proposal, fast.
- Break down big decks. Instead of one 40-slide monster, split content into standalone slides or small groups (“modules”). Each module covers a single topic or feature.
- Tag and describe slides. Seidat lets you add descriptions or tags so people know when to use each one. Don’t rely on memory or tribal knowledge.
- Add variables where possible. Some slides (like pricing or customer names) can use placeholders or simple text fields, so reps can personalize without wrecking the layout.
Reality check: Not every topic needs its own module. Start with the stuff that changes most (pricing, case studies, team bios) and leave the rest as static slides.
Step 4: Set Access and Permissions (Keep It Simple)
Goal: Make sure the right people can edit, and everyone else can use—but not break—your slides.
- Editors vs. users. Let marketing or sales ops keep editing rights. Sales reps should be able to assemble and tweak proposals, but not rewrite your “About Us” slide every week.
- Version control exists, but don’t obsess. Seidat tracks changes, so you won’t lose work. But if you spend more time managing versions than selling, you’re doing it wrong.
- Encourage feedback, but don’t make it a committee. One person should own the slide library. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a Frankenstein’s monster of everyone’s “great ideas.”
Step 5: Train (Briefly), Then Let People Play
Goal: Get your team actually using the library, not just nodding along on a Zoom call.
- Host a live walkthrough. Show how to find, assemble, and personalize proposals in Seidat. Keep it practical—demo a real proposal, not a fake one.
- Record a quick screencast. People forget. A five-minute video is more useful than a 20-page PDF manual.
- Answer real questions. “How do I swap out a case study?” “Can I add my own slide?” If you’re getting lots of “where is X?” questions, your categories are probably too complicated.
What not to do: Don’t force everyone into a three-hour training. If your system is too confusing to explain in 15 minutes, simplify it.
Step 6: Actually Use the Slide Library to Build Proposals
Goal: Cut proposal creation time by using the slide library every single time.
- Start with a template. Build a few basic proposal templates for common sales scenarios (“New Customer,” “Renewal,” “Enterprise Deal”). Templates aren’t fancy—they’re just pre-selected slide groups.
- Drag, drop, and tweak. Use Seidat’s interface to assemble a deck in minutes. Swap in relevant case studies, update customer names, and skip slides that don’t apply.
- Customize as needed. There’s always some tailoring—just don’t let reps go rogue with fonts and colors.
- Share and track. Seidat lets you send proposals as links and see if prospects actually open them. Not magic, but it beats guessing.
Pro tip: Set a rule: all proposals start from the library. If someone creates a deck from scratch, they need a really good reason.
Step 7: Keep It Fresh with Regular Reviews
Goal: Make sure the library doesn’t turn into a digital junk drawer.
- Quarterly reviews are enough. Don’t overdo it. Just check what people actually use, and kill slides that gather dust.
- Get sales feedback. If a slide gets skipped every time, it’s probably useless. Ask, don’t assume.
- Update stats, pricing, and logos. Outdated numbers make you look sloppy. Set a calendar reminder to update these every quarter.
What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Ignore
What works: - Proposals get done faster—sometimes in minutes, not hours. - Consistency goes up; “off-brand” decks go down. - New reps get up to speed without hand-holding.
What doesn’t: - Forcing every possible slide into the library. Too many options = confusion. - Over-customizing. If you’re tweaking every slide for every deal, your base slides aren’t good enough. - Relying on the tool to “fix” bad sales process. Garbage in, garbage out.
Ignore: - Fancy analytics unless you actually use them to improve. - Templates nobody wants. If a template never gets used, delete it.
Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Don’t let the slide library become another bloated “project.” Start small, focus on slides that move the needle, and update as you go. The fastest way to see value is to cut proposal time in half—then tweak the system as your team learns what works in the real world. Stick to what’s useful, and save the polish for slides that actually help you close deals.