When setting up a Play in Salesloft, criteria operators are the behind-the-scenes heroes. These little rules—like Includes, Is null, or Before—control how your Plays behave and who they target.

But let’s be real: some operators sound similar, and the differences can be easy to miss. (👀 Looking at you, Is null vs. Not equal to blank.)

This guide breaks down the most commonly used operators, real-world examples, and how to decide which one’s best for your use case—whether you’re booking meetings, qualifying leads, or chasing renewals.

🔍 First, What’s a Criteria Operator?

A criteria operator tells Salesloft how to compare values in a field. You’ll see them when setting Play conditions based on fields like Title, Industry, Last Contacted, etc.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the most common operators and how to use them:

1. Includes

Best for: SDRs/BDRs targeting personas by job title or keyword
Use when: You want to catch partial matches.

Example:
Title includes “VP”
This will match VP of Sales, Senior VP, and VP, Operations—pretty flexible, right?

✅ Great for top-of-funnel Plays where you want to cast a wide (but still strategic) net.

2. Equal / Not equal

Best for: AEs or BDRs filtering for specific values (like industry, account tier, lead source)
Use when: You want an exact match.

Example:
Industry equals “Healthcare”
Will only match if the value is exactly “Healthcare.”

Pro tip:
Use Not equal if you want to exclude a specific value—e.g., you want everyone except Finance companies. 🧾

3. Is null vs. Not equal to blank

Ah, the classic showdown: null vs. blank.

Let’s clear this one up once and for all:

• Is null = the field is completely empty (no value entered at all)
• Not equal to blank = the field has something in it—even if it’s technically just “blank” text

Example use case for SDRs:
Trigger a Play for new inbound leads where the Person Phone is null—meaning your team still needs to collect that info.

Example for AEs:
Filter for contacts where Meeting Notes is not equal to blank—so you only follow up with people who had meaningful convos.

✅ Tip: Use Is null when checking if something hasn’t been filled in yet.
✅ Use Not equal to blank when you want to make sure the field has some kind of value.

4. Before, After, Before or equal, After or equal

Best for: AEs working deals on a timeline or anyone targeting recent (or stale) activity

Examples:

• Last Contacted before 5/1/2024 = target people who haven’t heard from you in a while
• Created Date after 1/1/2025 = focus on net-new leads added this year

These are super handy for Plays tied to re-engagement, renewals, or new pipeline creation. ⏳

💡 Final Tips

• Preview before publishing. Always check who qualifies for your Play to make sure the logic does what you intended.
• Combine operators for power moves. Example: Title includes “VP” and Industry equals “Tech” = a solid ICP filter.
• Start simple, layer as you go. If a Play isn’t behaving how you expected, double-check the operator logic.

Wrapping It Up

Operators might seem small, but they make a big difference in who your Play reaches—and when. Whether you're filtering by job title, checking for engagement, or excluding certain accounts, choosing the right operator gives your Play the precision it needs to help you act fast.

When in doubt, ask yourself:

• Am I looking for something exact?
• Do I need partial matches?
• Is the field empty or just “blank”?
• Am I working with dates or activity timing?

With the right operator, your Plays become smarter, cleaner, and way more effective. 🙌

Need help with a specific use case? Ping your Salesloft admin or drop into team chat—chances are someone else has tackled the same logic before