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# Turning your room into a mutual action plan

A **Mutual Action Plan (MAP)** is a shared roadmap between you and your buyer — an agreed-upon set of steps with owners and dates on both sides. Rooms with well-built MAPs close significantly faster across most B2B sales research, because both parties have visibility and skin in the game.

This article is a **strategy guide** — for the mechanics of how steps, tasks, subtasks, and dates work, see the [Steps widget](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/steps-widget-jd7fe5/) and [Timeline widget](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/timeline-widget-1kesvz0/).

## What makes a good MAP

Three characteristics:

1. **Both sides own actions** — not just you. Assign tasks to your buyer's people too.
2. **Actions are time-bound** — due dates make them real and trackable.
3. **Progress is visible** — both sides see what's done, what's in progress, what's at risk, on hold, or not started yet.

## Recommended structure

Create a dedicated section called **"Next steps"** or **"Action plan"**. Inside it, combine:

- A **Steps widget** as the source-of-truth list — every step, task, subtask of the plan with status, assignees, dates
- (Optional) A **Timeline widget** at the top showing the same plan as a Gantt-style view, with phases and milestones layered on
- **Contact widgets** showing the key stakeholders on both sides

### Example outline

```
Section: Action plan

Timeline (phases + milestones):
- Phase: Discovery (Mar 15 → Mar 30)
- Milestone: Contract signed (Apr 15)
- Phase: Implementation (May 1 → Jul 1)

Steps:
1. Schedule technical deep-dive — assignee: Sarah (us), due Mar 20
2. Forward proposal to CFO — assignee: Buyer champion, due Mar 25
3. Security review — assignee: Buyer IT, due Mar 30
4. MSA legal review — assignee: Buyer legal, due Apr 10
5. Sign order form — assignee: Buyer CFO, due Apr 15
6. Kickoff — assignee: us + buyer, due May 1
```

Use **statuses** (Not started / In progress / At risk / On hold / Completed) to surface where things stand at a glance.

## Why MAPs work

### For the seller
- **Visibility** — you see what's moving vs stuck, per stakeholder
- **Accountability** — the buyer is actively owning their side
- **Conversation anchor** — meetings focus on unblocking, not re-explaining

### For the buyer
- **Clarity** — no guessing what's next
- **Ownership** — their champion has a visible hand on the wheel
- **Progress** — they see the finish line

## Kicking off a MAP

Don't just send a room with a MAP and hope for the best — walk through it live:

1. Schedule a 30-min MAP review call.
2. Open the room with the buyer on a shared screen.
3. Walk through each step — confirm owner, due date, status — together.
4. Commit, then mutually agree to keep it up to date.

A co-built plan is far stronger than one sent over email.

## Use the right room features for the right purpose

- **Step / Task / Subtask** — granular work items. Use the appropriate level: Steps for milestones, Tasks for work to get there, Subtasks for the smallest checklist items. See [Steps widget](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/steps-widget-jd7fe5/).
- **Phases on the Timeline** — group steps by stage (Discovery, Negotiation, Implementation) so the buyer zooms out.
- **Milestones on the Timeline** — call out the big moments (kickoff, signature, go-live).
- **Relative dates** — when re-using a MAP across deals, anchor the kickoff date and link everything else to it. See [Relative dates](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/relative-dates-for-steps-phases-milestones-196bhjc/).
- **Restricted-visibility actions** — keep your internal prep tasks (e.g. "Get exec approval on discount") inside the same plan but invisible to the buyer. See [Controlling visibility](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/controlling-visibility-pages-sections-actions-messages-guidelines-vc7vb1/).

## Updating as you go

MAPs aren't static. When new actions come up, add them. When dates slip, update them. When the buyer marks a task done, the parent step's status rolls up automatically. The MAP is a living doc — the room makes it easy to maintain.

## Best practices

- **3–6 top-level steps** — fewer feels incomplete, more overwhelms
- **Roughly balanced ownership** — a plan with 90% buyer-side tasks signals you're not doing your part; 90% seller-side hides what the buyer needs to do
- **Lean on Status, not just due dates** — the **At risk** and **On hold** statuses surface friction earlier than red dates do
- **Use comments / mentions on actions** — when you need a decision from the buyer's CFO, mention them on the relevant task instead of sending a separate email

## Related articles
- [Steps widget](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/steps-widget-jd7fe5/)
- [Timeline widget](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/timeline-widget-1kesvz0/)
- [Relative dates](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/relative-dates-for-steps-phases-milestones-196bhjc/)
- [Controlling visibility — pages, sections, actions, messages & guidelines](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/controlling-visibility-pages-sections-actions-messages-guidelines-vc7vb1/)
- [Comments, mentions & threads](https://katalyz.crisp.help/en/article/comments-mentions-threads-1431iys/)