Depending on who you ask, the advice you are likely to get on how to conduct an effective sales call will vary. Some people insist on having an airtight script that works more times than not. Others insist on the opposite, that the best salespeople don’t work off of scripts, they cater each conversation to the prospective client.

The truth, as you likely already know, is that for most people the answer falls somewhere between these two extremes. While it may be that sticking to a script forces salespeople to sound overly robotic, having no script at all is not a recipe for success.

So the best sales call script is a loose outline that can be made to fit any conversation with any potential customer. To create this script, you must first know two things:

1. Who are you talking to?
2. When are you talking to them?

Salespeople and sales managers should have a clear understanding of who these potential customers are before talking to them. Why do they need what you’re selling? Do they know who you are or are they hearing about this for the first time? How does your product meet their needs and beat the competition?

You can’t create an effective sales call script without knowing who you will be talking to and where they are in the marketing funnel.

Once you know those things, your call script outline should look something like this:

Pique Interest

Right away, a salesperson should establish the value of the conversation. For the most part, the person on the other end of the line is looking for a way to end the call. It is up to the salesperson to create a reason to keep them involved. Lay out the basic value proposition in a way that keeps them engaged.

Ask Questions

Once you have a person’s interest, it is important to establish a rapport. The best way to do this is by asking questions to learn more about their needs. By listening to them speak, you can learn the proper way to frame the solution so that it makes sense to them. Different benefits or aspects of your offering will carry weight with different customers.

Ask for the Close

Once you feel confident that you have communicated the benefits of your product or service successfully, always make an attempt to close. Transition the conversation to pricing and the steps necessary to complete the transaction.

In closing, it is important to understand the likely hurdles you will encounter. These are the reasons potential customers may give for not wanting to close. An effective sales script will have rebuttals for each of these common hurdles.

Schedule Follow-Up

Not all sales calls end in a successful sale. That’s where the follow up comes into play. Once you’ve effectively asked for the close and still not gotten it, don’t give up. A follow up is a strong secondary goal for each call.

When you schedule a follow up, make it as specific as possible. Pick a time and method to follow up with this person when they will be ready to take the next step. In the meantime, there might be more information you can share with them to help make their decision simpler.