Your sales script directly influences the success of your team — check out these best practices
A sales script guides your team on what to say when they pitch your products or services to potential customers. It ensures that they use the most effective language and phrasing and that they reflect your brand image as accurately as possible.
Your sales script plays a significant role in the success of your sales team. An effective script can create rapport between salespeople and prospects, reduce stress for your sales team, boost the efficiency of your sales process, and most importantly, drive more sales. But how do you write a script that works? Check out these ideas.
Create objective-focused sales scripts
Generally, you will need a unique sales script for each of your products and services. You will also need different scripts for different sales situations. The tactics that you use on a cold call, for example, are different than the technique you use when knocking on someone’s door or following up on a warm lead.
Be prepared to create multiple sales scripts. In some cases, you can design a template that just requires minor tweaks for different products or situations. But in other cases, you will need several unique scripts. Identify your objective and then draft your pitch around those goals.
Think about your audience
Effective selling doesn’t just focus on your product or your business. Instead, it focuses on your customer. If you want higher sales numbers, you shouldn’t convince people that your product is amazing. You should convince them that they need your product.
You want customers to feel like they’re coming to you, not yielding to a pitch. As you draft your sales script, watch how many times you say ”we” and find ways to replace “we“ with “you.”
Don’t tell prospects, “we’re great because of x.” Instead, tell them, “you will benefit,” “you will profit,” or “you will be well served.” Think about it this way – “We” is for selling, and “you” is for buying.
Shape scripts around target customer personas
To focus your sales scripts on your customers, you need to know who they are. How can they benefit from your product or service? What problem does your product or service solve for them? In addition to answering those questions in your script, also think about what appeals to different customers based on their demographics, career, and buying history.
Just as you need to develop different scripts for different products and sales situations, you may also need to develop different scripts for different customer personas. Imagine you’re selling gym memberships, for example. A stay-at-home mom may want to hear more about your free on-site daycare, while a bodybuilder may want to know more about your equipment and your trainers.
Introduce yourself and build rapport
The first few seconds of your sales script are arguably the most important. Your opening has to be enticing or the prospect will slam the door, hang up the phone, or tune out mentally. Of course, the beginning of your script should introduce your salesperson and your company, but it should also build rapport with the prospect.
The approach you take will vary with the situation. If you’re going in cold, you can use generic lines. But the more you know about the lead, the more you can customize the opening. Often, this part of the sales script needs to be flexible so that your team can adjust their approach as needed.
Ask open-ended questions
You’re excited about your product, so it makes sense that you want to talk about it. But again, you need to focus more on your audience. You want prospects to feel like they’re at the center of the experience.
To make that happen, pepper your sales script with open-ended questions. This will help to create a dialogue. When the prospect is talking, they’re involved in the conversation. If they’re just listening, they’re not engaged, and there’s a much higher chance that they will leave the conversation.
Close with a call to action
Regardless of which stage of the funnel your prospect is in, you need to close your sales script with a call to action. You can’t expect your prospect to take the next steps on their own. Instead, you need to outline the next steps and urge them forward.
The exact closing, of course, will vary based on your objectives. Here’s an example. Imagine that you sell security systems. Initially, you send a rep into the neighborhood to try to book appointments. Then a salesperson follows up to pitch your system.
The closing on the initial rep’s sales script may say, “Now that you know about the security issues in your neighborhood, let’s set up an appointment with someone who can show you how a security system will protect your family. Are you free this weekend?” In contrast, the salesperson’s closing may be something along the lines of, “Do you feel comfortable with the basic system, or do you want more advanced features? Are you available tomorrow for installation?”
Once you’ve developed a sales script, you need to start practicing. Your team shouldn’t read the script. They should memorize it and deliver it as if they’re coming up with ideas on the spot. This helps create authenticity and improves the sales process. For best results, you may also want to test different scripts and alter your approach as needed.
Contact MetaGrowth for help building your sales team
Building a successful sales team takes a lot of work and knowledge. We can help with this process. At MetaGrowth, we leverage our extensive experience in sales to help our clients recruit, hire, train, and develop the best sales team possible. To learn more, contact us today.