Sales playbooks always sound great in theory—until you try to actually use them. If you’re on an enterprise team, you know the drill: playbooks get out of date, reps ignore them, and customizing for your real-world sales process feels like a chore. If you’re wrestling with this in Saleo, this guide’s for you. We’ll walk through the nuts and bolts of managing and customizing playbooks that your team might actually use (and keep using).
Why bother customizing playbooks in Saleo?
First, a reality check: Saleo isn’t magic. It’s a tool—one that gives you a framework to organize sales plays, scripts, and resources all in one place. But if you just dump a bunch of generic stuff in there, reps will ignore it. Customizing playbooks in Saleo means:
- Your team sees content that’s actually useful for your deals
- You can update things fast as your process changes (which it will)
- Sales leaders get visibility into what’s being used and what isn’t
- You’re not paying for another shelfware platform
If you want to go beyond “we have a playbook somewhere,” you’ll need to roll up your sleeves and do some real organizing.
Step 1: Get your playbook house in order
Before you dive into Saleo, take a step back. What does your team actually need from a playbook? Most enterprise teams overcomplicate this. Here’s what usually matters:
- Key sales stages and what needs to happen at each
- Discovery questions that don’t make you sound like a robot
- Objection handling that’s tailored to your real customers (not some Silicon Valley template)
- Competitive talk tracks that are up to date
- Links to resources—case studies, one-pagers, demo decks
Pro tip: Don’t try to document everything. Focus on the moments where deals actually get stuck.
What to skip: Don’t waste time on sections no one reads (“Our Company Mission”). Reps want what helps them close. The rest is fluff.
Step 2: Structure your playbooks in Saleo for actual use
Saleo lets you create, organize, and deploy playbooks, but it’s easy to create a mess if you’re not careful. Here’s how to set things up so reps can actually find and use what they need.
2.1: Map out your sales process (but keep it simple)
- List your main sales stages as they really are—not what’s in some idealized funnel slide.
- Under each stage, jot down the non-negotiables: actions, questions, resources.
- If your team sells multiple products or to different segments, plan to split playbooks accordingly.
2.2: Decide on playbook granularity
- One giant playbook: Easier to maintain, but can get unwieldy fast. Fine for small teams or simple sales.
- Multiple focused playbooks: Better for complex teams (enterprise, SMB, different regions). Each playbook addresses a specific product, buyer, or scenario.
Pro tip: Don’t over-segment. Start broader, then split if reps ask for it.
2.3: Set up your folder and tagging system
Saleo lets you organize playbooks in folders and tag them. Use this for:
- Products: “Platform,” “Add-ons,” etc.
- Buyer types: “IT,” “Finance,” “Operations”
- Stages: “Discovery,” “Negotiation,” etc.
Keep the folder structure shallow—no one likes clicking through five layers to find a battlecard.
Step 3: Build playbooks that don’t suck
This is where most playbooks go off the rails. Here’s how to build content in Saleo that’s actually useful:
3.1: Make every section actionable
- Write in plain English. “Ask about their renewal process” beats “Conduct a comprehensive requirements analysis.”
- Use checklists or bullet points. No blocks of text.
- Link out to supporting docs instead of pasting them in.
3.2: Use templates (but don’t overdo it)
Saleo lets you use templates for common plays (e.g., discovery, demo, objection handling). Start with these, then customize for your real-world scenarios.
- Replace generic language.
- Add context from your own deals.
- Ignore any template section that isn’t relevant.
3.3: Keep resources current
- Link to a living folder (e.g., Google Drive, SharePoint) rather than uploading the same PDF five times.
- Set reminders (monthly or quarterly) to review and prune outdated content.
Watch out for: “Zombie” resources—old case studies, expired pricing sheets, or competitor info that’s way out of date. Nothing kills trust like a rep quoting last year’s pricing.
Step 4: Roll out playbooks to your team
You’ve got your playbooks set up in Saleo—now what? If you just dump the link in Slack and call it a day, usage will tank. Here’s what actually works for enterprise teams:
4.1: Start small, then expand
- Pilot with a few reps or managers who actually care about process.
- Get feedback: what’s missing? What’s too complicated?
- Tweak the playbooks before rolling out to everyone.
4.2: Bake playbooks into your workflow
- Integrate Saleo with your CRM (if possible), so playbooks show up where reps already work.
- Show how to pull up the right playbook mid-call or before meetings.
- Make it a habit: “Before every discovery call, open the Discovery Playbook.”
4.3: Train, but don’t overtrain
- Quick screen shares beat long, boring training sessions.
- Record a 5-minute video walking through the playbooks.
- Encourage managers to refer to playbooks during pipeline reviews.
What to ignore: Forcing reps to read every word. Most will scan—design for that.
Step 5: Maintain and improve your playbooks
Playbooks get stale fast. If you want yours to stay useful, you’ll need a system:
5.1: Assign an owner
Every playbook should have a clear owner (usually a sales manager or enablement lead). If everyone’s responsible, no one is.
5.2: Set a review cadence
- Monthly for fast-moving products or markets
- Quarterly for more stable sales cycles
Schedule it. Put it on the calendar. Otherwise, it won’t happen.
5.3: Track usage (and ignore vanity metrics)
Saleo will show you who’s using what. Don’t obsess over page views. Focus on:
- Which sections get used in real deals?
- What do top reps actually reference?
- Which resources are ignored (and should be cut)?
5.4: Get and act on feedback
- Open a feedback channel (Slack, Teams, whatever your reps use).
- Make it easy for reps to request updates or flag bad content.
- Actually follow up. If reps see their feedback is ignored, they’ll stop caring.
Step 6: Avoid common enterprise playbook pitfalls
Some traps are universal—here’s what to watch out for:
- Too much content: If it’s overwhelming, no one will use it. Ruthlessly trim.
- Outdated info: Stale playbooks are worse than none at all.
- Over-customization: Don’t build a custom playbook for every edge case. Focus on the 80% that covers most scenarios.
- Ignoring adoption: Playbooks don’t matter if reps don’t use them. Keep it simple, visible, and easy to update.
Final thoughts: Keep it simple, keep it relevant
If you want your team to actually use playbooks in Saleo, resist the urge to overcomplicate. Start with the basics. Get feedback. Update often. Skip the fancy formatting and endless sections—just focus on what helps your team move deals forward. You can always iterate and add more later. The best playbook is the one your reps actually open.