7 Easy Tips for Writing a More Effective Cold Call Script

Making cold calls is the most difficult part of lead generation for most sales people. It can be difficult to capture the attention and hold the interest of a prospect who you don’t know, who doesn’t know your business, and who has not previously expressed a definite willingness to buy your product or take a call from you.

Many sales people make the mistake of working from a tired, predictable telemarketing script when they are making their initial lead generation and appointment setting calls. But if your cold calls sound too “scripted,” your prospects are likely to feel defensive and become more reluctant to talk with you or open up to the possibility of meeting to hear what you have to say.

Here are a few tips to create a more effective telemarketing script that your sales team can use for more effective lead generation and appointment setting calls:

• Write in a natural voice: Your telemarketing script needs to sound natural, so try to “write like you talk.” Record the script and play it back later, listening to the way it sounds and not just the way it appears on the page. You don’t want a telemarketing script that sounds like a sales pitch – instead, you want to open up a conversation that will engage the listener and get them to talk with you as well.
• Avoid a “hard sell” tone: Some of the least-effective telemarketing scripts are overly aggressive in making promises and asking for the sale right away. If you come on too strong, the prospect might get intimidated or doubt your credibility. Keep in mind that the early stages of lead generation have a simple goal: to start the conversation with the prospect, identify the prospect’s “points of pain” and keep the conversation moving to the next stage of the sales process.
• Offer additional information: Make it clear to the prospect that this initial lead generation call is just an introduction to your company – and give them plenty of opportunities to learn more and see a preliminary view of your company’s capabilities. For example, offer to send a free White Paper via e-mail, or refer the prospect to resources on the company website.
• Gather business intelligence: Use the initial lead generation call to gain more information about the prospect’s company. Ask about the size of the relevant departments, find out if they have purchased any similar solutions in the past year or six months (and if so, find out how they feel about these purchases – are they happy with the current vendor, or starting to feel dissatisfied with the product or service?), and find out about the competitive landscape in their market. Offer advice or tips of your own, if relevant to the customer’s business. Show that you are trying to help them by sharing knowledge as an industry peer, not just trying to position yourself to make a sale.
• Build credibility by referring to other companies: Have you sold similar solutions to other companies in your prospect’s area or industry? If so, mention them by name in your telemarketing script.
• Get to the point: Keep in mind that the people who will be hearing this telemarketing script are busy. You only have a few seconds to grab the prospect’s attention and begin to gain their trust. Write your script in short, memorable chunks of information.
• Keep it simple: Make sure to choose words that are easy to read and deliver. Avoid overly complex words or long sentences, especially if your telemarketing script is going to be used by less experienced sales staff.

Telemarketing lead generation is never going to be “easy,” because that’s the nature of the appointment setters work – but the reason it’s so valuable is because it’s so difficult. You can improve your odds of getting better sales leads by starting with a better telemarketing script. Just remember to keep your sales script natural, low-pressure, conversational, credible, concise and direct.