The cold call script we give every rep we place.
Seven parts, under thirty seconds of talking, and one question that turns a pitch into a conversation.
Every rep we place gets a script on day one. Not to read word for word, but so nobody is improvising the parts that matter. Here's the structure. It hasn't changed much in years, because it works.
1. Ask permission, and name the unexpectedness
"Hi [first name], this is [rep] from [company]. I know this is totally unexpected. Do you have a minute so I can explain the reason for the call?"
You're calling a stranger in the middle of their day. Say so. Asking for a minute gets a yes far more often than pretending it's not a cold call, and a yes at the top makes the next thirty seconds a conversation instead of an intrusion.
2. One plain sentence on what you do
No adjectives, no "leading provider of." A twelve year old should understand it. "We do fixed-price construction cleaning for commercial job sites." That's the entire reason for the call.
3. The problem you keep hearing
"...and we always hear from [people like you] that [the specific thing they complain about, in their words]."
This is where research pays. The pain has to be the one the prospect actually has, described the way they describe it. "Inefficiency" is not a pain. "Your cleaning crew shows up late and the GC blames you" is a pain.
4. The question that is the whole call
"Out of curiosity, are you guys usually [option A], or [option B]?"
Always either/or. Always starts with "out of curiosity." Both options have to be true of real prospects, and neither can be embarrassing to admit. This one question converts the call from a pitch into a conversation, because the prospect answers a question about themselves instead of deciding whether they like you.
5. A bank of discovery questions, every one either/or
The rep gets ten and picks four or five live. Rules: never a yes/no question. "Do you have a CRM?" becomes "Are you tracking that in a CRM, or in a spreadsheet?" Never a question whose honest answer makes the prospect look bad. Each question maps to a real pain, not a product feature. The last one is always "if you could change one thing," framed as a choice between two or three named things.
6. The close, near verbatim
"Cool. Based on our conversation I think we might be able to help. Would it be crazy to get some time on your calendar to discuss this in more detail? Does Tuesday at 10 work, or is Thursday at 2 better? What's the best email, I'll send you an invite."
"Would it be crazy" gives the prospect an easy no that usually turns into a yes. Never "does that make sense." Never "I'd love to show you a demo." You're selling the meeting, nothing else.
7. Objections: agree first, end on a question
"We already have someone for that." "Totally, most of the people I talk to do. Out of curiosity, are they doing X for you, or just Y?" Never argue. Every answer agrees, then asks something that keeps the call alive.
The secondary win
Most cold calls don't book a meeting, and the script says so at the top. The fallback that still counts: a date to call back, usually a renewal or a contract end, or the name of the right person. Two ways to win on every dial. That's how a rep makes ninety of them.