How to create sales scripts that make a real difference

Kevin- “Hi, this is Kevin, have I caught you in the middle of something?

Prospect- No, what can I do for you?

Kevin- I am calling from XYZ recruitment firm, we help companies in finding new talents

Prospect- OK

Kevin- We are in this industry for last 20 years, we offer global recruitment service, customized HR service and…. hmm……………(silence)

Prospect- [Hangs up]

Like Kevin, many sales professionals get nervous during a sales call and forget details. In such scenarios, the prospects get annoyed and disconnect the call.

This mostly happens when you don’t have a sales script in front of you. Your prospects’ time is precious so don’t waste it by being unprepared. Invest time in creating powerful sales scripts for gaining control over your sales communication.

A well-written sales script acts as a safety net during challenging situations. It keeps you on track and helps in improving your overall sales.

This post will cover the following:

1. Sales scripts- a necessity for effective sales communication
2. Why should you have sales scripts?
3. The essentials for impactful sales scripts
4. Things to keep in mind while creating sales scripts
5. Sales script examples that can help
6. Sales call scripts for other forms of communications
7. Use the sales scripts efficiently

“There’s no lotion or potion that will make sales faster and easier for you- unless your potion is hard work” – Jeffery Gitomer

Sales scripts- a necessity for effective sales communication

A sales script is a well-organized content piece that helps sales reps in making a smooth and error-free sales calls. It is a step-by-step guide that directs the sales rep so that they don’t make mistakes or go blank while speaking to a potential sales prospect on the phone.

Besides phone-based sales, it can also be used for other forms of sales communications like for sending voicemails or cold emails to potential prospects. If used in the right manner, it can help in influencing a buying decision.

Most of the sales reps and telemarketers make use of sales scripts, but not all scripts are strong and impactful enough to keep the prospects on the line. The issue is that most of the sales reps and telemarketers don’t even know how to use a sales script.

Haven’t you ever got a sales phone call from a local service provider who was trying to draw your attention towards a specific product?
How far did he/she succeed?

Did you pay attention to each word? (Oh wait, I’ll rephrase it) Was the content compelling enough to capture your interest?

Did it flow naturally, or you felt like a robot is on the other end of the line?

Thus, having a sales script isn’t enough. Focus on the way you frame and present it. A well-written and excellently executed sales script can win you more clients.

Why should you have sales scripts?

Sales scripts make your work easier and help you in improving your overall sales. It is map that navigates you to your destination. You know what you are saying and where are your heading.

Here are the reasons why you need a sales script:

1. Allows you to engage in a conversation

Isn’t it disappointing to abruptly end a sales conversation without delivering the necessary information? It doesn’t only affect the current call but also the next one as you are anxious and upset. Thankfully this can be avoided with a sales script.

• A sales script helps in striking and maintaining a conversation
• You have a plan in place to ask the right questions to your prospects
• Sales scripts bring structure and clarity to your thinking for keeping the conversation going
• By adding your personality to the sales script, you can make the conversation more meaningful

2. Helps you be a better listener

This might seem counter-intuitive, but the truth is good sales script frees up your mind so that you can attentively listen to your prospects.

You don’t need to worry about what to say next, just follow the flow. It gives you ample time to listen to your prospects’ business pain points, concerns, and goals.

3. Reduces stress and helps in building rapport

Have you ever been to the Karaoke club? People are more confident to sing there as the lyrics are displayed on the screen. Similarly, a well-crafted sales script makes you sound more prepared and confident.

It reduces stress and helps you in building rapport with the prospect. You can focus on making the prospect more comfortable to share their issues.

4. Helps improve your future call 

Improvement is imperative in sales. It is a continuous process. You need to put in the effort and try to get better at the professional art of selling. 

So, it is important to work with a sales script. You can analyze your selling scripts to determine which message works and what you need to change. Accordingly, you can work on improvement areas to get better. 

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The essentials for impactful sales scripts

You just have few minutes while selling over the phone. With a well-crafted sales script, you can make the most of that time.

Here are the key essentials for creating a sales script:

1. Keep it short

The longer the script, the more confused you will get. Moreover, you or your prospect don’t have that much time for long tales. You need to be quick in impressing the prospect. So, keep the sales script short and precise.

• Create an outline so that you know what to say and can personalize it as per the flow of the conversation
• Add facts and figures
• Use fewer words but make it impactful

2. Create multiple scripts

Don’t just create one generalized sales script for everyone. 59% of customers find generic sales pitches irritating.

You might be catering to different businesses or sectors from one industry. So, build a library of sales pitch script for different sectors or industries. Then, you can easily select the content that’s relevant to the prospect you’ve called.

3. Focus on the key point

Yes, your company and its product can do a lot for the prospect. But you don’t need to bring it out together. Your prospect can’t consume too much information in a few minutes.

You’ll be creating multiple sales scripts for various stages of the sales cycle. So, ensure you focus on one key point in each script.

4. Words and phrases to use

Be careful while choosing the words and phrases for your sales scripts. The wrong words can have a negative impact on your sales calls. Use words that will make your sales scripts effective and help in earning the customers’ trust.

Words and phrases to use:

• “We can certainly do that for you, Sir/ Madam.”
• “I can assure that we….”
• “That’s good to know.”
• “No worries.”
• “Guarantee “
• “Please”
• “Sure”

Words and phrases to be replaced

• “Sell you” with “help you”
• “Problem” with “challenge”
• “Objection” with “concern”
• “Cost” with “investment or amount

Words and phrases, you should avoid:

• “Show you how” (when this phrase was used 4X or more or any calls throughout the sales cycle close rates dropped by 13%)
• “Contract” (The close rate decreases by 7% when this word is used by the seller)
• “Discount” (when a sales rep uses the word “discount” during the sales call, their likelihood of closing the deal drops by 17%)

5. Rapport building statement

Building a good rapport is essential to convince a prospect for buying your product. So, include rapport building statements in your sales script.

You can do it in different ways like:

• Show them you have done your research I read your post on Facebook/LinkedIn. It was nice to know that your _______(mention some of their achievement or appreciate their work)
• Highlight their market You might be aware of ___going on in your market. How is it affecting you?

(For this you’ll have research about the prospect before calling)

(Note: You can include such generic rapport building statement in your script, but you’ll have to research about the specific prospect before calling to use these statements successfully)

Things to keep in mind while creating sales scripts

Designing a sales script might seem like a time-consuming task, but it is worth the efforts as it will help you in making your sales calls better. Here are things you need to do while creating a sales script.

1. Have a clear objective

The journey becomes easier when you are aware of the destination you want to reach. So, have a clear objective while creating a sales script.

What are you aiming at? What do you want to do?

• Acquaint the prospect with your company or product?
• Learn about the prospect’s business problems?
• Set an appointment?
• Clear your prospect’s doubts and objection?
• Close sales?

2. Focus on your target buyer

As I said above, avoid creating one sales script for all your prospects. Consider the varied kinds of buyers that you are catering to and create points as per the specific buyer persona. Design customized sales scripts for buyers at different levels.

For instance, you’ll need a humble script for the gatekeeper/receptionist to find a way to reach the decision-maker. Convincing a C level executive is a more challenging task so here you’ll need an impactful script.

3. Anticipate questions and concerns

Sit with your teammates and discover the common questions as well as concerns of your prospects. Find the right answer for the common questions.

For instance, you might say our product is flexible and easy to use.

So, the prospect might respond “All the companies initially claim that their product is user-friendly, but later we face many complications when we start using it. How can I believe that your product is user-friendly?

A good answer to such question can be “Yes, we understand that and so our company offers a free trial so that you can test our product before investing in it.”

Build a list of common pain points that you need to address. Each feature of your product will have benefits that work as a solution for every pain point of your customer. So, use them smartly in your sales pitch script.

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Sales script examples that can help

A sales script should have a great sentence opener, an interesting body and an effective closing. Here are a few sales script examples that can help you in creating one for your sales process.

Sales call scripts

92% of all customer interactions happen over the phone. You’ll need sales scripts for different types of calls like for cold calling the prospect, for setting an appointment, and for handling objections. So below are the examples of sales scripts for various stages of the sales cycle.

1. Sales call script examples for cold calls

Cold calls are crucial for connecting with a prospect. You need to explore the right tactics and cold call scripts to make it successful. So, to help you we have broken it down into steps and given a basic structure to create it.

For exploring effective cold calling tactics, you can refer the blog – Hate cold calling? excellent cold calling tips for b2b sales call success.

Sales script basic structure for cold calling

• Introduction (Mention their name here to get them involved):
  Begin by saying “Hi, Roger, Allegra here from JLA pipers.”
• Reason for calling (Get straight to the point)
  “The reason for my call is that I came across your ecommerce store and found it similar to one of our clients ‘Designers space’. We helped them save an additional $13 million in the shipping cost. So, I thought, being in the same business even you would be interested in saving your precious dollars.”
• Explore buyer’s need (Do ask permission to speak further)
  “Do you have a few minutes to speak as I would like to know a few things about your business or would you want me to call you back at your convenient time?”
• Connect your product/service with the need (Hit the pain point)
  “How about an expert handling your shipping quickly and, in a cost-effective way so that you can focus on expanding your profits?”
• Close (Make plans for follow-up)
  “OK, I will email you the details. Is it fine if I call you back on Thursday to discuss further?”

More examples of sales scripts for cold calling

• Sales script example 1
  

  About you:   I am ____calling from ___ About the customer: Do you have a few minutes to brief me about your current process? About your product: The time and money you invest in your current process can be reduced by 20% by using our___service. You can try it for free to see how it can help you. May I call you on Wednesday at 4 PM to give you details about its benefits? Analysis of the sales call script

  • It is a simple script that covers everything necessary for a turning cold call into a warm call.

• Sales script example 2
  

  Hello, I am Joe calling from Golden Solution. Was hoping if you could help me here, I am looking to connect with someone who handles the payroll and taxes in your organization.   (The person on the line connects you with the concerned person) (Get to the point after an initial introduction about you and your company) We are working on a solution that can help you in managing and automating most of your payroll process. Is that something you’d like to hear more about? (if yes) OK, but before I proceed do you mind answering a few questions first? (ask questions about their current payroll process to understand their needs.) Like you, our [XYZ] client was also facing the same problems in managing their payroll. Our solution didn’t only help them in streamlining their payroll process but also automated their tax filing and payment procedures. Would you like to try the solution for free to find out how it works? (if yes) Ok, I will email you the link for the free trial. When can I call back to discuss further about the solution? (prospect gives a date) OK thank you, have a good day.

  Analysis of the sales call script

  • This script can be used to get past the gatekeepers.
  • Here the sales rep discussed the solution with the right person.
  • He even gave an example of his current client to earn the prospect’s trust and confidence.

• Sales scripts example 3

  Sales rep: Hi Lenox, is this the right time to speak?   Sales rep: I am Karl calling from Connecta, I noticed that you are in Charles Wilson’s network on LinkedIn. Sales rep: That’s great, he is one of our clients for last two years. We are a Textile based B2B portal, connecting manufacturers with buyers, suppliers, and agents. Sales rep: I read on your website ‘La-pela’ that you are a manufacturer of clothing labels and patches. So, I thought you might be interested in knowing about our corporate membership plan. By subscribing to it, you can increase the visibility of your label manufacturing business and get in touch with potential buyers. (If the prospect asks you to elaborate in detail) Sales rep: You’ll get access to a list of 200 buyers from your preferred city (you can extend the number by subscribing to the advanced plan). We will create a microsite for your company that will be displayed on our website. Additionally, you’ll get a one-page advertisement space in our monthly magazine. (If the prospects ask to share e-brochure) Sales rep: Sure, can you please share your email Id? Sales rep: Thank you, I’ll share it in the next thirty minutes. By when can I expect a revert? Sales rep: OK, thank you for your time, have a good day.

  Analysis of the sales call script

  • In this script, the sales rep tried to build a rapport with the prospect by speaking about the common connection.
  • He even did his research and found that the prospect is a label and patches manufacturer.
  • He gave time to share the details.
  • He gave a perfect end to the call.

2. Sales call script examples for setting an appointment

Once you manage to break the ice, build rapport and draw the attention of the prospect towards your product through a cold call, it is the time to set an appointment for taking the sales deal forward.

Sales call script examples for setting appointments

• Sales script example 1
  

  Hi Claudine, Jane here from HR solutions, how are you?If you remember I had called you on Monday, to discuss how we could help you in recruiting proficient employees for your organization.   Did you get time to go through the details I had emailed at 4:00 pm on Monday? (If yes) What are your thoughts about it? (If the thoughts are positive) I want to learn a little more about your requirements and expectations. Would you be available tomorrow at 3:00 PM for a meeting? (If yes) I’ll be sending a meeting confirmation email. Please acknowledge it. Thank you have a good day.

  Analysis of the appointment setting script

  • Here in this script, the sales rep gave a summary of the previous call to remind the prospect of what they were talking about.
  • He didn’t end it with just scheduling the meeting. He even spoke about sending a confirmation email to be sure about the prospect’s presence.
• Sales script example 2
  

  Hi Nathan, I am Walter calling from Anitex. How are you doing today? I had called you on Tuesday at 3:00 PM, and we discussed our solution that could help you as well as your team in managing and completing the projects on-time.   I sent you an email with our product details and a free trial link. Did you get time to explore the product? (if yes) By trying the free version of this solution, you might have got a slight idea about this software. Do you mind meeting next week to discussing how this solution would help in increasing your productivity and efficiency? Could you please suggest a time and date which could suit your schedule? OK, I’ll send you a meeting invitation. Please acknowledge it.

  Analysis of the appointment setting script

  • Every prospect is just interested in knowing how a solution can benefit them. Here in this script, the sales rep tried to get an appointment by pointing out how the tool could help the prospect.

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3. Sales call script examples for handling sales objections

Yes, handling objections becomes difficult while selling over the phone. However, you need to take control of the situation and handle the objections wisely, or you might end up losing a lucrative opportunity. Here are few objections handling sales scripts that can help.

Sales call script examples for handling objections

• Sales script example 1
  

  “I haven’t decided yet.”   Yes, Joey, I understand that investing your precious dollars in a solution is a big decision and it takes time to decide. But we both know you need this solution as it can help in overcoming your current business problem. The more time you take, the longer you’ll have to stay with this problem. Let’s wrap this deal and get your problem fixed as soon as possible.

  Analysis of the objection handling sales script

  • The script is simple and direct. Here the sales rep is taking charge of the situation and creating a sense of urgency so that the prospect makes a faster decision.
• Sales script example 2
  

  “It’s too expensive.”   If we set the price aside for a moment, do you feel this product can help you in overcoming the hurdles to your business growth? (If the prospect says yes) Think about the advantages of resolving the current issue. A little investment can help you in earning great profits. Are you ready to do all that it takes to improve the bottom line of your business?

  Analysis of the objection handling sales script

  • This script is a smart answer to the common price objection. Here the sales rep tried to show the prospect a brighter picture. He focused on the improvement offered to the business.
• Sales script example 3
  

  “I need to research to ensure I am getting the best deal.”   OK, I understand that Clifford, but as you are determined towards getting the best for your business, even our company is focused on rendering the best services to our clients. So, we study our customer requirements and pay extra attention to their concerns. If you want to, you can spend time researching our product. But here is a better option, how about speaking to one of our clients who had a similar problem as yours. You can ask them why they chose us over our competitors. Even they might have done their research before taking this decision. So, it might help.

  Analysis of the objection handling sales script

  This script can help you in keeping the prospect on the line for a little longer to convince him for buying the product. Here you can see the confidence of the sales rep. He gave him an option to speak to an existing client instead of going to Google and researching about their product.

  Sales call scripts for other forms of communications

  Besides phone-based sales, sales reps also use the medium of voicemail and emails to reach the prospects. 97% of all business calls now go to voicemail. Here are few of the example of voicemail scripts and email templates for making the most of this medium.

  1. Voicemail scripts

  For making your voicemails effective, you need to ensure it has the following things:

  • Your name
  • The reason for calling them
  • The benefits of calling back
  • Your contact information

    Sales script examples for voicemail

  • Sales script example for voicemail 1
    

    Hello, I am [your name] from [company’s name]. I’m calling because [the reason for the call]. I want to discuss [mention the benefits you can offer to their business]. You can call me back on [insert phone number]. Thank You. Have a great day ahead.

  • Sales script example for voicemail 2
    

    [Intro] I’m calling regarding the email I had sent you last week. Did you get time to go through it? I’m looking forward to speaking with you as I have been doing some more research on how we may be able to save you even more dollars. I wanted to share that information with you. I’ll be in my office today, so do me a favor, please give me a call back at [your number] once you receive this message.

    2. Sales emails templates

    Here are few sales email templates to save your time and strengthen your sales communication.

  • Sales email template example 1
    

    Hi [name],   I’m [your name] from [your company’s name]. We have helped [names of your famous clients] in [one liner about the problem you have solved]. I wanted to discuss how we could help you too in [ the problems you can solve]. Are you available for a quick call at [time option]? Regards, [email signature]

  • Sales email template example 2
    

    Hi [name], [your intro] Can you please tell me who makes the _____ decisions at your company and how can I get in touch with them? Regards [email signature]

For more emails, tips and examples refer to the blog: Effective sales email tips for getting a quick response.

Use the sales scripts efficiently

• Sales scripts are here to guide you while communicating with your prospects. Avoid reading it word-to-word.
• Keep refining your sales script on a regular basis.
• Record your sales calls to find out frequently asked questions or concerns that you can add to your sales scripts.
• Using the right reporting tool, create sales call reports to find out how effective are your sales calls by using the sales scripts. (Accordingly, you should fix your sales scripts).

Wrapping up

Sales script is a strong weapon that can help sales professionals in winning the battle of sales. You just to need to use the sales scripts wisely and update them regularly.

Ensure you conduct in-depth research about the prospect to personalize the script. Avoid generic statements while speaking to your sales prospects. Focus on creating compelling sales scripts that close every deal.

Consider using various sales tools to support your sales scripts. Like for instance, you can use a sales CRM like Salesmate that comes with a built-in virtual phone system. So, you can get virtual numbers of 80+ countries and make and receive calls directly from Salesmate.

With Salesmate built-in calling, you can record your calls, take notes, track activities and created calling reports. These features can help you in evaluating your sales call for refining your sales scripts.

Besides helping in making a successful sales call, Salesmate also helps in streamlining your sales process. Using Salesmate, you can:

• Keep all your contact related data secured in a centralized repository.
• Create multiple pipelines and manage them efficiently to know where are your prospects in the buying process.
• Create insightful reports to get vital sales metrics.
• Track emails to know if the prospects are reading or ignoring your email.
• Integrate with various third-party apps to work faster with more functionalities.

Salesmate is an all-in-one solution that helps you in managing and closing your sales deal. Try Salesmate for free to see how it can help your sales team in fulfilling the sales goals.