Sales Script Examples: Calls and Follow-Ups

What is a sales script, and how is it different from a talk track?

A sales script is a written guide for one type of sales conversation: a cold call, a gatekeeper, a discovery call, a voicemail or a follow-up email. A full script fixes the exact wording. A talk track only fixes the order and the talking points, and the rep supplies the words. In practice most teams use a mix. They script the opener and the ask word for word, because those are the moments where reps ramble, and they keep the middle as bullet points so the rep can react to what the prospect actually says.

A script works when it has one goal per conversation. On a cold call that goal is a booked meeting, not a closed deal. It fails when the rep reads it aloud. Prospects pick up the flat rhythm of read text within a sentence or two, and a script with no room for questions turns into a monologue. That's also why the strongest part of any script is usually the question, not the pitch. Our article on qualifying questions by sales stage collects those questions stage by stage.

How do you write a sales script?

1. 1 Set the goal. Write down the single next step this conversation should produce, such as a short discovery call or a reply naming the right contact.
2. 2 Define the recipient. Name the role and the problem that role owns. A script for a head of finance and one for an IT lead shouldn't share a middle section.
3. 3 Find the trigger. This is the reason you're contacting this person now: a hiring post, a new location, a tool change, a referral. Without a trigger the opener becomes a generic pitch.
4. 4 List the pains. Write a few problems your offer solves for that role, each in the words a buyer would use, not your product names.
5. 5 Write one open question per pain. Ask how they handle it today, not whether they have the problem.
6. 6 Write the ask. Make it one specific next step with a time, never two options plus a link.
7. 7 Prepare objection replies. Draft one line for each objection you hear repeatedly, and end each reply with a question so the conversation continues.
8. 8 Test and cut. Say the script out loud, then cut every sentence you stumble on.

Sales script examples by situation

Cold call script example

Hi [Name], it's [Your name] from [Company]. This is a cold call, so I'll be brief. I saw [trigger, e.g. you're hiring SDRs in Berlin]. Teams in that spot usually tell us [pain]. How are you handling that today? … That makes sense. Would it be worth a short call on Thursday to see whether our approach fits?

Saying it's a cold call is honest, and it gives the prospect an easy way to say no, which usually gets a more honest answer than a disguised pitch. The question after the trigger does the real work. If the prospect answers it, you're in a conversation. If they don't, the ask comes too early.

Gatekeeper script example

Hi, I'm trying to reach whoever looks after [area, e.g. outbound tooling]. Is that [Name], or someone else on the team?

Ask for routing, not for a transfer. When an assistant is asked who owns a topic, they often give a name. When they're asked to put you through, they often decline.

Discovery call script example

• Agenda: "I'd like to understand how you run [process] today, share what we've seen work, and then agree on whether a next step makes sense. Does that work?"
• Current state: "Walk me through what happens from [start] to [end]."
• Impact: "What does it cost you when that step slips?"
• Decision: "Who else would weigh in on a change like this?"
• Close the call: "Based on what you've said, the next step would be [X]. Can we put that in the calendar now?"

Voicemail script example

Hi [Name], [Your name] from [Company]. I'm calling about [trigger]. I'll send you a short email today with the details, subject line '[topic]'. My number is [number].

A voicemail that refers to an email gives the prospect a way to answer without calling back. Read the number out slowly and say it twice if you can.

Objection handling lines

Objection	Reply line	What the reply is for
"Just send me an email."	"Happy to. So it's relevant, what's the one thing you'd want it to cover?"	Turns a brush-off into a question with a real answer
"We already use a tool for that."	"Makes sense. What would you change about it if you could?"	Looks for a gap without criticising the current vendor
"No budget."	"Understood. When does planning for next year start?"	Separates 'never' from 'not now'
"Not interested."	"Fair enough. Is that because it's not a priority, or because it's handled already?"	Asks one question, then accepts the answer

For more techniques by stage, including closes, see our guide to sales techniques with examples.

What is prospecting in sales?

Prospecting is the part of sales where you find and contact potential buyers who haven't approached you. It involves building a list of companies that fit your target profile, finding the right person at each, researching a trigger, and making first contact by phone, email or LinkedIn. Prospecting ends when a prospect agrees to a qualifying conversation. A sales script is written for that first contact. Prospecting isn't the same as lead generation through marketing: marketing attracts people who raise their hand, while prospecting starts with the seller. Our article on what prospecting is in sales and marketing covers that difference in detail. Its main failure mode is contacting people with no trigger, so every message reads like it could have gone to anyone.

Sales follow-up email templates

A sales follow-up email is a message you send after an earlier contact, such as a call, a meeting or an unanswered email, to get a next step. Each template below has one new fact and one question. If a follow-up only says 'just checking in', it gives the reader nothing new to reply to.

Sales follow-up email after a call

Subject: [Topic] – next step from our call. Hi [Name], thanks for the time today. You mentioned [pain in their words]. As promised, here's [resource or answer]. The next step we discussed is [step] on [date]. Does [time] still work? [Your name]

Sales follow-up email after no reply

Hi [Name], one thing I left out of my last note: [new fact, e.g. how a similar team set up X]. Is [pain] something you're working on this quarter, or should I check back later?

Sales follow-up email examples for the last touch

Hi [Name], I haven't heard back, so I'll assume [topic] isn't a priority right now and won't follow up again. If that changes, just reply to this thread.

There are more variations in our collection of sales follow-up email templates, and post-call wording in follow-up emails after a sales call.

How should a follow up sales email be sent so it stays in the thread?

Send it as a real reply to your earlier message. The internet message format standard defines the In-Reply-To and References header fields. A reply carries the earlier message's Message-ID in them, and mail clients use those headers to group messages into a thread. If you type 'Re:' in front of a new subject without those headers, it's only a fake reply: the prospect sees a 'Re:' with no earlier message above it. Also send follow-ups from the same domain as the first email, and make sure that domain passes SPF, DKIM and DMARC. If the follow-up comes from a different domain, the receiving server sees a different sender, and you can't build the reputation on one domain. Our guide on SPF, DKIM and DMARC for cold email senders lists the records.

What is a sales cadence?

A sales cadence is the schedule of touches you run with one prospect. For each step it sets the channel (call, email, LinkedIn, voicemail), the day, the script used, and an exit rule: stop on a reply, an opt-out or a bounce. The scripts in this article are the content of each step. The cadence sets the timing and order. Two things commonly go wrong. A cadence keeps running after a prospect has said no, or it sends the same script on every channel, so the prospect reads it three times. If you email EU recipients, check the local rules before you build the email steps. In Germany, for example, the Act Against Unfair Competition (UWG) treats advertising email sent without prior express consent as an unreasonable nuisance, and it has only a narrow exception for existing customers. In the US, the FTC's CAN-SPAM guidance requires an opt-out mechanism in commercial email. Our article on sales cadence steps, examples and exit rules sets out a full schedule.

How do you script one sales video for a whole prospect list?

Some teams use a short recorded video as the email step in their cadence. Here's how it works in EmailFlow OS, a EmailFlow OS product. You record one video and upload it, connect your own Brevo account and sending domain, and import your prospect list into EmailFlow OS. EmailFlow OS then personalises that single recording separately for each recipient, not just once per company, and sends each version from your own inbox, through your Brevo account and your domain. It never uses a shared platform sender, so the SPF, DKIM and DMARC records you publish are the ones that cover the email.

That changes how you write the script. One recording is the base for every version, so the spoken script has to hold for everyone on the list. Keep it to the trigger category, the pain and the ask, and put anything specific to one account in the written email around the video. The structure above still applies: opener, reason, question, one ask. More about the mechanism is on the EmailFlow OS personalised video email page, and our video sales letter scripting guide covers longer scripts.

Why do sales scripts fail?

• Read word for word: the rep can't react, so the prospect's answer is ignored and the call becomes a monologue.
• No trigger: the opener could go to anyone, so it sounds like a mass pitch.
• Two asks: offering a call and a link and a demo leaves the prospect to choose, and many choose nothing.
• Pitch before question: the rep explains the product before learning whether the problem exists.
• Same script on every channel: the call, voicemail and email repeat each other word for word.
• Follow-ups as new threads: a new email with a typed 'Re:' has no In-Reply-To header, so the earlier message isn't in the thread to give context.

Questions people ask

? How long should a cold call script be?

Long enough to cover an opener, one reason, one question and one ask, and short enough that the opener and reason fit in a few sentences. If you can't say your reason for calling in one breath, cut it. The rest of the script should be bullet points for the conversation, not paragraphs to read.

? What's the difference between a sales script and a sales email template?

A sales script guides a live conversation and includes replies to objections, because the prospect answers in real time. An email template is a finished message with placeholders. It needs a subject line, has to work without any back-and-forth, and must be sent from an authenticated domain. Both should have one goal and one ask.

? Should a follow-up email repeat the first email?

No. A follow-up should add one fact the first email didn't contain, such as a resource, a relevant detail or a narrower question, and it should sit in the same thread through the In-Reply-To and References headers. If you repeat the first email word for word, the reader has nothing new to reply to.

? How many objection replies should a script include?

Script a reply for each objection your team hears repeatedly, such as 'send me an email', 'we already have a tool', 'no budget' and 'not interested'. Each reply should end with a question. Objections you've never heard don't need a scripted line. Write one once the objection comes up again on real calls.