Don’t Get Stuck in the Wrong Decade: Use the Right Tools to Win Today

Here’s a fun fact: In Back to the Future II (if you haven’t seen it…well, you’ve just succeeded in making me feel like dinosaur), Marty McFly and Doc Brown travel back to the future from 1985 to October 21, 2015.

What Marty finds there is a far stretch from the likes of what the near and real October 21st will look like – our cars are yet to fly, our food may come fast – but it’s still not 3D printed, and I can’t seem to find a hoverboard anywhere…On the other hand, we’ve made some undeniable strides since good ol’ 1955 – to our youngsters, that’s the year the first Back to the Future film takes place.

Today we do things faster; we’re more efficient – since let’s face it, in our age of continuous change and blink of an eye advancements, we can’t afford to fall behind. In the sales world, gone are the days of using paper Sales Playbooks…Wait…Are they? I’m receiving a telegram to notify me of some repeat offenders.

Using paper Sales Playbooks is the same as mailing letters as a preferred form of communication – you won’t hear back anytime soon just like you’re unlikely to win that deal fast. But if your Delorean is out of order and you’re stuck in the past, here’s a flashback and a glimpse into what you’re missing by not taking advantage of digital, adaptable sales playbooks.

The year is 1955 and paper is all the rage – but will paper sales playbooks work for your organization today?

• Paper sales playbooks are template-based, so your sales reps are only able to consider a handful of selling scenarios. Since they are not contextual it does not provide your rep with information that’s aligned to the prospect’s needs.


• Paper sales playbooks are generic – or composed of overly broad information that’s often outdated and therefore useless.


• Paper sales playbooks require for your sales reps to think through countless iterations of a sales situation – making it impossible to create a PDF or PPT playbook for a rep to follow.

Flash forward to 2015 – things happen fast. Change is a constant. Staying agile with digital sales playbooks is the answer.

• Digital sales playbooks are alive. Customizable to fluid selling situations, they make data actionable and contextual; responsive to the particulars of virtually any deal. With the most up-to-date and accurate information available, reps aren’t burdened with searching for information. Plus, you’ll eliminate any worry over having the most current pricing information or after any important regulation changes.


• Digital sales playbooks eliminate the need to think through every selling scenario – only considering factors that are likely to impact a deal, such as competitors, products, etc. In a nutshell, the playbook guides you through a workflow of logic.


• Does your company use a CRM system? In this day in age, the chances that it doesn’t are pretty low. Fully integrated with Salesforce.com, digital sales playbooks make the data your reps key in truly workable, leveraging necessary information effectively and allowing you to close more deals.

So there you have it – using paper sales playbooks is undoubtedly a thing of the past.

In order to stay ahead of the game, and thrive in today’s age of ever-changing technological advancement, it’s critical to personalize your selling approach and present your potential customers with real value; otherwise you’re lost in a heavy mess of paper, risking the deal at the turn of each outdated page.

With digital sales playbooks, you’re where you should be, moving along at 88 MPH back to the future of the win.

Don’t Get Stuck in the Wrong Decade: Use the Right Tools to Win Today