MSP sales playbook
Why do sales playbooks not work at MSPs?
Sales playbooks fail at MSPs because they are too long, too corporate and too abstract for sellers who want to move quickly. A working MSP sales playbook keeps to ten plays a seller learns in a short time and applies straight away in client conversations.
MSP Late Night · 3 June 2026
What does a playbook sellers do use look like?
Sellers are willing to change, but it has to be easy. A usable playbook does not contain a hundred plays, but the ten that make the difference in MSP practice. It works like a good pasta recipe: few ingredients, the right proportions, a repeatable result. The value sits in selection, not in completeness.
Why does the word playbook not land?
Playbook sounds corporate and brings to mind thick service organisation documents. MSP sellers drop out on the form before the content lands, even when the need for structure is there.
Ten plays instead of a hundred?
A seller who has to learn a hundred plays learns none. Ten plays that can be learned in a short time give direction in the conversations that produce most for MSPs: a new client, expansion at an existing client, a price rise.
What is the pasta principle?
Good pasta is pasta, olive oil and salt. Not twenty ingredients. The same goes for an MSP playbook: a few simple plays, sharply executed, beat a framework nobody opens.
Sellers are willing to change, but it does have to be easy.
Frequently asked questions
What is a sales playbook in the MSP context?
A sales playbook is a structured set of sales conversations, situations and responses that helps sellers act consistently. In the MSP context it is about repeatable conversations around new services, contract renewal, price rises and cross-sell of security or cloud. The difference from a general sales framework: an MSP playbook takes account of technical vendor dynamics, recurring revenue and the role of the owner in deals.
How many plays does a workable playbook have?
In practice, playbooks with ten to fifteen plays work better than documents with fifty or a hundred scenarios. The reason is operational: a seller can learn and apply a limited set in a few weeks. With larger sets it stays theory. Selecting the right ten plays is therefore more important than completeness of the set.
Why do sales trainings often fail at MSPs?
Sales trainings often fail because they are generic and do not connect to the MSP reality of recurring contracts, technical client contacts and small sales teams in which the owner sells too. On top of that there is little follow-up: after two days of training everyone falls back into old behaviour. What works: short plays, direct application to live deals, and peer review between MSP leaders.
Who should write an MSP playbook?
An MSP playbook works best when it is written by people who stand or stood in MSP practice themselves, not by external consultants with no vendor and client experience. The plays have to be recognisable to sellers who talk to MSP clients daily. Co-authorship between experienced MSP owners and sales specialists usually produces the sharpest plays.
The full conversation, transcribed
Daarom praten wij samen over Playbook. Oh, dat bedoel je? Dat mogen duidelijk zijn. We hebben natuurlijk met elkaar gezien de afgelopen jaren dat er heel veel behoefte is aan playbooks, maar dat woord resoneert eigenlijk niet. Een beetje eh. Een beetje eh. Corporate, de serviceorganisatie. Maar wat we weten, als wij in staat zijn met z'n tweeën om het ultieme playbook te maken voor MS Space, dat is ons doel, dat is onze missie, dan denk ik dat we heel veel verkopers blij maken. Want het is niet zo dat verkopers niet willen veranderen, maar het moet wel makkelijk zijn. En je kunt honderd plays lopen als verkoper, maar wat zou het fijn om te weten, wat zijn de tien plays die ik moet weten en die je in een vrij korte tijd kunt leren? En ik denk dat wij op zoek zijn naar dat recept. Want goede pasta, ja dat is ook pasta, olijfolie, een beetje zout en het smaakt geweldig. En dat is wat wij ook willen met dat playbook, toch?