You lot take your list of names and telephone numbers. Earlier the terminate of the day, y'all need to make 100 calls. Your sales manager has given your team a large pep talk encouraging you to dial, punch, dial.

Now all you demand is a cold call script. And not only any script … the best cold call script ever.

But before I give yous the keys to the castle, let's learn more than about cold calling and look at a typical cold call. (If yous're in a bustle, skip to the script.)

Free Resource: 10 Sales Call Templates for Outreach

  • What Is Cold Calling?
  • What Is the Purpose of Cold Calling?
  • Sample Cold Phone call Script
  • How to Create a Common cold Call Script
  • The All-time Cold Calling Script Always
  • Cold Calling Script Variation
  • Cold Calling Script Template
  • Cold Calling Tips

Once you have a list of prospects to telephone call, information technology'due south time to reach out. If you've never spoken to these contacts before, your outreach would be considered a cold call.

What is a cold call?

A cold phone call is when you reach out to an private you've never spoken with earlier, with the intent to sell them your production or service.

What is the purpose of common cold calling?

Common cold calling functions as a mode to engage prospects one-on-one in social club to movement them to the next step in the buying process. In the past, cold calling meant a "spray and pray" method, spending time making intrusive calls with no prior qualification, hoping that your message would resonate with someone. With the inbound methodology, prospects are attracted past your website and/or messaging and are interested plenty to "opt in" and get a lead.

While cold calls might be rendered ineffective by this model, the do still has its place in an inbound sales strategy.

In many cases, prospects need to be compelled to act, and digital channels may not be enough to close the sale. Plus, you may not always have an abundance of inbound leads. Even as an outbound tactic, with enough research and qualification, a common cold call can be executed in a way that'south no longer "cold.''

So, what does a typical common cold call look similar in sales?

Sample Cold Phone call Script

**The prospect'due south telephone rings**

Prospect: Hello?

Rep: Aja Frost, my name is Dan from Outbound.

(i.5-second pause)

How are you doing today?

I am calling most our software that helps yous with the strategic implementation of your biggest problems from Outbound Company.

Is this a priority for you today?

Prospect: Actually, this isn't a bully fourth dimension …

Rep: Are you interested in a product demo of how we are in the magic quadrant? We have won all these awards.

Prospect: We're not interested.

Rep: Are you the decision maker? Requite me two hours and we tin can get you going -- unless you lot don't have a upkeep.

**Click**

Don't express joy. In that location are lots of calls like these taking identify each and every day. And you probably won't exist surprised to larn they catechumen at an abominable charge per unit: Less than 1%.

That ways if yous telephone call 100 people using this kind of script, you'll just get a second call with one of them.

Now, if you are calling your prospects and maxim the same thing to all of them, essentially pushing your product -- just stop.

Information technology probably sucks for you, merely it'southward worse for your prospects, your brand, and your productivity.

Instead, create your ain cold call script.

How to Create a Common cold Call Script

If you follow this script (the best common cold call script ever, am I correct?!?), your connect rate will meliorate.

1. Identify two-3 verticals.

First, yous demand to cherry-pick who yous'll telephone call. Your fourth dimension is valuable — don't waste product it on prospects that aren't a good fit for your production. Retrieve nigh who your best customers are (or who yous've had the well-nigh success calling in the past) and wait for common attributes.

For case, maybe your verticals are hospitality and retail. Or maybe they're finance and banking. In one case you've figured out which verticals to target, you're set up for step 2.

2. Identify 20 good-fit prospects.

It should now be much easier to find specific companies or people who could employ your product or service. LinkedIn is a powerful tool that can assistance. Let's say you're looking for hotel companies who might benefit from your on-site caprine animal yoga classes (who doesn't want to exercise Shavasana with a babe goat while they're on vacation.)

Search "People who work at hotel" and/or "General manager" with the "Hospitality" filter.

Prospecting on LinkedIn Using the "People" Feature

Voila -- a list of potential customers.

Bonus points if you lot look for local or regional companies. People love to do business concern with other locals, which I recently observed when I was in Birmingham, Alabama. If yous're in Alabama, you lot want to give your business to other Alabamians. (Roll Tide!)

iii. Inquiry each prospect.

I know, I know, you'd rather just pick upwards the telephone and telephone call. But trust me, spending only a minute up front will make you wildly more successful. So do it!

Since y'all're already on LinkedIn, check out each prospect's profile to personalize your approach. You'll want to know:

  1. What the company does
  2. What the prospect does specifically
  3. If you've helped a like company in the past
  4. One "fun fact" about them

Here'due south one matter I never fail to do: I look up how to pronounce the prospect's proper name. Nothing makes people more bellyaching and less likely to listen than hearing their proper name butchered by some fast-talking rep, so this step is crucial.

Some people add how they pronounce their name on Facebook and LinkedIn. If your prospect hasn't added this feature to their profile, try using PronounceNames.com to get an idea.

And if you're nonetheless out of luck? Simply ask, "I want to be sure I'm saying your proper name correctly. How do you lot pronounce it?"

The Best Cold Calling Script Ever

You may have noticed you lot're non really cold calling anymore … You've winnowed down your list and done some homework all before picking up the phone. I promise you, my friend, this extra work will be worth it.

Now let's become to the script.

1. Introduce yourself.

Showtime, say your name and which visitor yous work for. You demand to sound confident and energetic. I tin can't tell y'all how many common cold calls I listen to that begin with, "This is mlkjdkfj from mnxcmvn."

The prospect goes, "What? Who??" Right from the start, the call is going poorly.

You don't need to yell your greeting, but you do need to articulate.

Later on yous say, "This is [name] from [visitor]," pause.

This is hard for common cold callers. They desire to leap straight into their pitch. But I want yous to take a deep breath and say nada for 8 whole seconds.

While you're pausing, your prospect is searching their encephalon for who you could be. It sounds like yous know them -- are you lot a client? A former coworker? A current one?

two. Institute rapport.

The telephone call is already deviating from the standard cold call. Then you lot enquire them a question to found some rapport. Your goal: Get 'em talking and prove you're familiar with them and their company.

Hither are some sample questions:

  • So, [prospect proper name], I see you lot went to [university]. How did you similar information technology?
  • Wow, you've been at [visitor] for [X years]. How did you get started there?
  • Congrats on your contempo promotion. How is the new part?

A good question is topical and makes someone smile. If they seem receptive to chatting, ask them a follow-up question.

For instance, if they say, "I loved going to Cal Poly; the English department was fantastic," you can respond, "That's great, should I recommend it to my niece who wants to be a writer?"

Eventually, they'll say, "Alright, why are you lot calling?"

I cackle. Seriously.

They'll laugh because you're conspicuously having fun.

Respond, "Sometimes I forget." Express joy again.

Trust me, this e'er lightens the mood. (Unless your prospect is in a major bustle, in which example, you should get the point.)

iii. Use a positioning statement.

A positioning statement shows your prospect that you piece of work with similar companies and empathize their challenges. You're non talking nearly yourself, which is what nigh common cold callers practise.

Here's a hypothetical positioning statement: "I work with sales managers in hospitality with five to eight reps on their team. My customers are typically looking to increase rep productivity. Does that audio like you?"

Since you've pre-qualified them, they'll ever say "yes."

Simply say, "Tell me more about that."

At present, information technology's all nearly them! They'll explain their pain points and objectives which is valuable information to commencement building your pitch.

Cold Calling Script Variation

As a sales leader at HubSpot, I dearest assisting newer reps. I've been in their shoes and want to help them close big deals. It'southward adept for the company, and it'southward good for their careers. To practise that, I apply a slightly contradistinct procedure and script.

We accept a squad civilisation of "merely ask," encouraging junior reps to reach out to sales leaders for aid getting meetings with CEOs or prospects at Fortune 500 companies. Once a rep asks for my help, I enquire for something in return: The website URL, the LinkedIn profile of the person and company I'm speaking with, and their HubSpot CRM record.

This allows me to speedily familiarize myself with the person and visitor I'm about to phone call. Once the telephone rings and the prospect answers, I utilize the greeting from above, "This is [name] from [visitor]," intermission.

If you're calling a C-level executive or even a mid-level employee at a large system, it's likely you had to get past an banana or forepart desk-bound, which is where your senior title helped. Gatekeepers are more likely to pass along "Dan Tyre, director of sales at HubSpot" than "[Proper name], sales rep at HubSpot."

They'll know who you are, but they'll nevertheless be curious why y'all called. Keep them in suspense a bit longer. Every bit in the script above, I'll spend a few minutes asking about them. Here are a few more questions I plough to:

  • "Are you a cat or a dog person?"
  • "What's your favorite breakfast?"
  • "What'southward the hottest restaurant in [Prospect'due south city]?"

When the chat turns to why I called, I say, "I called to help." This line usually stops the prospect in their tracks. And so, I follow upwards with, "My sales rep asked me to start a conversation with you lot." This allows me to easily hand the conversation off to the rep, if the conversation goes well.

From there, I utilize a positioning statement like the one above: "I piece of work with sales managers in hospitality with five to 8 reps on their team. My customers are typically looking to increase rep productivity. Does that audio like y'all?"

The pre-qualified prospect volition answer "Yep," and that's when my active listening turns on and I say, "Tell me more about that." Once they've finished explaining their pain points, I echo what I've heard dorsum to them: "So, what I'chiliad hearing is …" and offering to set up a discovery call.

Usually, the prospect agrees and throws out a time weeks or months in the future. I frequently reply with, "How nigh tomorrow?" Most of the time, prospects respond with, "Certain, what fourth dimension?" I'll check the junior rep's calendar and get something scheduled.

Anybody wants to have a better day. Past making your prospects smile or laugh, giving them a chance to talk about their bug, and showing them you might have a solution, you'll improve their days. That means stronger relationships and ultimately, more sales.

Cold Calling Script Template

Ready to start cold calling? Here'south a cold calling script template you tin can use to get started. Download the template beneath.

Featured Resource: 10 Sales Call Templates for Outreach

Sales Call Template for Outreach

Common cold Calling Tips

  1. Be selective with prospects.
  2. Practice your cold call script.
  3. Focus on them.
  4. Practise your enquiry.
  5. Find the best fourth dimension to phone call.
  6. Pique marvel.
  7. Exist respectful of their time.
  8. Ask open-ended question.
  9. Be an active listener.
  10. Pick out their pains.
  11. Conceptualize objections.
  12. Use social proof.
  13. Focus on your goal.
  14. Accept a 'close' in listen for every conversation.
  15. Make it piece of cake to say yes.
  16. Follow up after the call.
  17. Go out a voicemail.
  18. Conduct call reviews.
  19. Spend more time selling.
  20. Remember your why.

Now that you have your script, here are some tips to keep in mind.

1. Exist selective with prospects.

At the end of the day, cold calling is an outbound tactic to solve customer needs. At HubSpot, we live and breathe inbound marketing and sales and rely on our strong sales teams to close deals.

We know that a 100% inbound method might not work for your business concern — at to the lowest degree not overnight. So be selective with your prospects to mimic the success of inbound sales. That means you'll need to go creative with who you add together to your list. If you can find hand-raisers (people already interested in the product or service your company provides) prioritize calling them first. If they're interested in what you have to offer before you phone call, yous'll exist well on your way to closing them on the solution yous sell.

ii. Practice your cold call script.

While yous don't desire to audio robotic and rehearsed, you do want to repeat your script so you don't forget it. The better you know the goals of the script, you'll be able to think on your feet if the prospect comes back with a comment or question you hadn't planned for.

With each call, you'll get a chance to practise your cold calling script -- and you'll acquire strategies to make future common cold calls more constructive.

iii. Focus on them.

When crafting your cold-calling script, it'due south easy to fall into the me-me-me trap:

  • "We at [Company] offering..."
  • "We're the best at..."
  • "I want to schedule a coming together to..."

Instead, yous should be putting your focus on the prospect using "you" language:

  • "Are you experiencing challenges with..."
  • "What roadblocks kept you..."
  • "Would you benefit from..."

Doing and then centers them in the chat, making it personalized and relevant.

4. Do your research.

Before you lot even think about picking upwards the phone, you should have plenty of information about the prospect you're reaching out to.

You should know what the visitor does, the prospects function at the company, whether yous've worked with a similar visitor in the past, and any additional facts you can use to build rapport with them.

Where did they go to school? Practice yous know a friend or colleague? Did they recently attend an manufacture event? These are some rapport-building topics you can utilize to start the chat.

5. Find the all-time time to call.

There isn't really a universal "best" fourth dimension to brand a common cold call considering every audience will accept different preferences. Some schools of thought push button early forenoon or late afternoon as being the near effective times since individuals haven't nonetheless started their twenty-four hours or are already wrapping it up, thus increasing your chances of getting through.

Still, the more than cold calls y'all make, the more you'll go a feel for days and times that have the about success. One time you do, prioritize your calls and make the most of import ones during those windows.

six. Pique curiosity.

Open up the chat by generating intrigue and interest. If you lot can get them invested in the conversation, y'all'll give them a reason to continue listening.

Harvard Business organization Review studied curiosity in the workplace and found that curiosity correlates with less defensiveness and stress. Prospects who are curious might give you more of their fourth dimension to explore solutions to their problems.

vii. Be respectful of their time.

While it's important to constitute rapport and first the conversation off on a positive note, exist mindful that common cold-calling is somewhat intrusive. You accept interrupted their day, and you should get to the point quickly to respect their time.

Apply your positioning statement early on in the call or make a transition similar this ane: "The reason I'thou calling is to..."

These will signal to the prospect that you lot're about to exist quick and to the point.

8. Ask open-concluded questions.

Avoid asking 'yes or no' questions. Instead, open-ended questions will go on the conversation going, especially when request the prospect about their pain points and goals.

eight. Be an active listener.

It can exist easy to get lost in the chat, merely brand sure you lot're listening advisedly to the prospect'southward responses. When appropriate, repeat back what they said about their company or goals. This helps you clarify what they said and shows the prospect that you truly care about what they're saying.

ix. Choice out their pains.

Often, eliminating pain is more powerful at incentivizing prospects than adding value. Every bit y'all go the prospect to open up upwardly virtually their organization, role, and situation, heed for current struggles, points of contention, or bug they may be experiencing.

This may give you lot an"I can help with that" moment with the prospect.

10. Anticipate objections.

The more calls you lot consummate, the more yous'll get a feel for the types of objections you'll get.

Certainly there volition be some cases where you don't desire to waste the prospect'south time.

Just for the cases where it is a good opportunity to press on, having a scripted response to handle the objection will proceed you from getting caught off guard and assuasive the call to come up to a grinding halt.

xi. Use social proof.

Your prospect identified themselves as your ideal customer.

Why non guide the conversation in a way that allows them to continue seeing themselves in your offerings?

  • Tell stories about customers like them.
  • Utilize instance studies that show what they stand to gain.
  • Show testimonials and success stories.

12. Focus on your goal.

The goal of each cold call is to introduce yourself to the prospect and gear up a discovery telephone call with them. Remind yourself of the desired finish outcome. This will help you stay on track equally you're cold calling prospects.

13. Take a 'shut' in heed for every conversation.

Sales pro Jeff Hoffman recommends always having a modest close in mind for every point of contact you accept with a prospect. For a cold call, that minor close might simply exist getting five more minutes of a prospect's fourth dimension or a follow-up call for afterward in the week.

Earlier each email you send and phone call you lot make, place the close you'll use to encourage more than streamlined and focused communication.

14. Make it easy to say yes.

Regardless of which 'close' you end up choosing, focus on selling just that 'shut.' The more complicated yous make information technology for the prospect, the easier it is for them to say 'no.'

For example, if the large goal is to sell a turn-key software packet in the four figures just yous know that your demo will blow them out of the h2o, just sell the demo. Make it easy for them to commit to the demo, no strings attached, and brand it like shooting fish in a barrel for them to schedule and show up to the demo. Don't fuss with the details almost software packages in this initial step when y'all can deal with those details later (presumably afterward the demo). Doing so will plant objections in their mind before you go your foot in the door.

15. Follow up after the call.

If your prospect isn't available to meet with you again until the next week or and so, follow up with them inside a 24-hour interval after your initial cold call. Become across the traditional "Thanks for your time," and offer some valuable information that could assist them in the stretch of time between your conversation and their determination near your production.

16. Leave a voicemail.

In today's digital world, voicemails can seem like an blowsy method of communicating with your prospect, but they're a smart way to keep yourself height-of-mind with them when they check their messages. When your prospects have overflowing email inboxes on a daily basis, stand out with a voicemail.

You tin even adjust your cold calling script to work with voicemail. Remember to address the prospect by proper noun, introduce yourself, your company, and the demand yous're planning to address with them. Don't sell in the voicemail; provide merely enough data to pique their interest.

17. Conduct call reviews.

You should never let your cold call script or etiquette go stale. As your business organisation and product or service evolves, then should your cold phone call technique.

On a monthly or quarterly ground, conduct a telephone call or "film" review with your sales team. Select a few recorded (with permission) calls or sit in on a few live attempts, and have reps provide constructive feedback on what went well and what could be improved upon side by side fourth dimension.

eighteen. Spend more than time selling.

Sales automation software is a sales rep'southward best friend. Little tasks like scheduling meetings, leaving voicemails, and sending follow-upward emails might only take a few seconds to practice, merely when y'all multiply that by your daily quota, you'll see hours per week spent on authoritative tasks.

Automate these responsibilities with software that tin can practice the piece of work for you. These platforms streamline manual tasks then you tin can spend more fourth dimension doing something engineering can't — researching your prospects, building rapport, and closing deals.

19. Remember your why.

Common cold calling gets pretty robotic pretty fast. Dialing, reciting your script, asking for the next telephone call, and doing information technology all over again can showtime to wear on your enthusiasm, but don't permit information technology. When you're struggling to brand it through those concluding few calls of the week, recall why yous dearest to do what you do.

Whether y'all continue a picture show of family on your desk, an inspiring note from a colleague, or an encouraging quote from a leader, always proceed your why in listen. On those amazing days where you're closing left and right, and those slower days when yous can't quite get into your groove, your why will go along you motivated.

Cold Telephone call Script Templates That Work

This script and these tips will help y'all be a more effective common cold caller. Just remember that information technology's all almost providing value. By piquing their marvel and solving for their needs, y'all'll build rapport and win prospects over, fifty-fifty if the conversation began "cold."

The work doesn't terminate here. Y'all'll demand to tailor your new script to your business concern, prospects, and personal mode. Using templates can requite you a great head kickoff.

Editor'south notation: This post was originally published in October 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

sales call templates

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Originally published May 19, 2021 1:thirty:00 PM, updated January 04 2022