Step by step guide to using Spekit to document and share Salesforce processes across departments

If you’ve ever had to explain a Salesforce process to a teammate—twice—you’ve felt the pain of tribal knowledge. Maybe your sales playbook lives in five places, or new hires get lost in a thicket of outdated docs. This is for admins, ops folks, and anyone who’s tired of writing the same instructions over and over. Here’s a step-by-step guide to using Spekit to document and actually share Salesforce processes across departments—without making it another dusty wiki.

Why Spekit for Salesforce Processes?

Quick reality check: Salesforce is powerful, but it’s also a maze. Processes change, teams use it differently, and the official help docs rarely fit your org. Spekit tackles this by letting you create bite-sized, in-context documentation (“Speks”) that show up right where users work in Salesforce.

Does it solve everything? No. But if you’re sick of emailing training decks, Spekit’s inline help and quick updates beat the old SharePoint-and-prayer approach.

Step 1: Get Clear on What Needs Documenting

Before you dive into Spekit, pause. Don’t try to document everything. Focus on:

  • Pain points—where people get stuck or ask repeat questions
  • Cross-team handoffs (Sales to CS, for example)
  • Fields or objects that confuse people
  • Processes that changed in the last 6-12 months

Pro tip: Ask your help desk or support team which Salesforce questions pop up most. That’s your starter list.

Step 2: Set Up Spekit and Connect to Salesforce

If your org already has Spekit, skip ahead. If not, here’s what you actually need to do—no “robust onboarding journeys” required.

  1. Get Admin Access: You’ll need admin rights in both Salesforce and Spekit.
  2. Install the Spekit Chrome Extension: This is what lets users see your docs right inside Salesforce. (Spekit also has a web app, but the extension is key.)
  3. Connect Spekit to Your Salesforce Org:
  4. Go to Spekit’s web app.
  5. Find the integrations section.
  6. Authorize it with Salesforce credentials.
  7. Map your fields and objects for syncing.

That’s it. Don’t let IT overcomplicate this—if you can log in, you can connect it.

Step 3: Create Your First “Speks” (Bite-Sized Docs)

Spekit’s big idea is “Speks”—short, single-topic docs that show up where users need them. Here’s how to make your first ones:

  1. Pick a Process: (e.g., “How to convert a Lead,” “What does Stage X mean?”)
  2. Go to the Spekit Web App: Hit “Create Spek.”
  3. Write Like You Talk: Forget the formal tone. Tell people exactly what to do, step by step.
  4. Add Screenshots or GIFs: Visuals help. Spekit lets you drop them right in.
  5. Tag It: Use categories like “Sales,” “Support,” “Data Entry,” or whatever makes sense for your teams.
  6. Link to Salesforce Fields or Objects: This is where the magic happens. You can attach your Spek to the field or page in Salesforce, so it pops up in context.

What works: Short, direct, and specific Speks. If you’re writing walls of text, you’re doing it wrong.

What to ignore: Don’t bother documenting every single field—focus on what’s actually confusing or critical.

Step 4: Share Speks Where People Actually Need Them

Here’s the payoff: With Spekit’s Chrome extension, your docs aren’t buried in a wiki—they show up in Salesforce, right where users work.

  1. Attach Speks to Fields/Pages in Salesforce:
  2. In Spekit, use the mapping tool to pin your Spek to the right place (e.g., the “Opportunity Stage” field).

  3. Now, when someone hovers over that field in Salesforce, your doc pops up.

  4. Push Announcements for New/Changed Processes:

  5. Use Spekit’s “Announcement” feature to blast updates when a process changes.

  6. No more “Did you see my Slack?” drama.

  7. Enable Search and “Collections”:

  8. Users can search for help in the Spekit sidebar.
  9. Create Collections for onboarding, quarterly updates, etc.—just bundles of related Speks.

Pro tip: Don’t overdo it. If users get pop-ups for everything, they’ll tune it out. Attach docs only where people really need help.

Step 5: Get Feedback and Keep It Fresh

This is where most tools die—nobody updates the docs. Here’s how to keep yours alive:

  • Ask Users What’s Missing: Build a habit of asking “Was this helpful?” A quick feedback form or Slack thread works.
  • Review Analytics: Spekit shows which Speks get views (and which don’t). If nobody’s reading it, either it’s too obvious or nobody knows it exists.
  • Set a Calendar Reminder: Every quarter, spend one hour reviewing top processes. Update anything that’s changed.

What works: Making someone (not a committee) responsible for updates. Rotate if you have to, but don’t let it become “everyone’s job.”

What doesn’t: “Set it and forget it” or assuming people will read docs just because they exist.

Step 6: Roll Out Across Departments (Without Chaos)

Now you’ve got a few core processes documented and popping up in Salesforce. Here’s how to scale it to other teams—without drowning in requests.

  1. Start Small: Pick one department (usually Sales or Support) and nail their top 5 processes.
  2. Train Team Leads, Not Everyone: Show managers how to create and update Speks for their team. Don’t try to be the bottleneck.
  3. Template What Works: If you find a good format for “How to escalate a case,” clone it for other teams.
  4. Keep Permissions Tight: Not everyone needs to edit everything. Spekit lets you control who can create, edit, or just view.

Honest take: You’ll get some pushback at first—change is annoying. But once people see answers in context, most won’t want to go back.

Step 7: Avoid Common Pitfalls

Spekit is pretty good, but it’s not magic. Here’s what to watch out for:

  • Don’t Document Just for Compliance: If nobody uses it, it’s a waste. Focus on real questions and processes.
  • Watch for “Spek Sprawl”: Too many Speks, scattered everywhere, gets overwhelming. Regularly clean up old or duplicate docs.
  • Don’t Rely Solely on Announcements: People ignore pop-ups if there are too many. Use them for real changes, not every minor tweak.
  • Remember: It’s Not a Training Replacement: Spekit is great for reminders and “how do I do X?” moments, but complex onboarding still needs real training or shadowing.

Step 8: Measure What Matters

You don’t need a dashboard for dashboard’s sake. Just answer:

  • Are repeat questions dropping?
  • Are people finding Speks without bugging you?
  • Are updates actually getting read?

If the answer is “yes,” you’re winning. If not, simplify—cut bloat, update what’s used, and keep asking for feedback.

Keep It Simple, Keep It Useful

You don’t need a 40-page playbook. Start with the processes that matter, write like a human, and put docs where people need them. Iterate as you go—nobody gets it perfect on the first try.

The real trick is not making documentation a side project. Use tools like Spekit to meet people where they work, keep things short, and update only what matters. The rest? Ignore it. You’ve got better things to do.