One of the easiest ways to improve the effectiveness of your sales calls is to have an airtight sales voicemail script. Besides preventing you from crafting messages on the spot and rambling on the phone, voicemail scripts increase your chances of getting a callback.
In this guide, you鈥檒l learn how to create effective voicemail scripts that elicit responses. From key elements you must include to actionable tips that improve your execution, this post will teach you everything you need to know 鈥 including the exact scripts used by top sales experts.
Let鈥檚 get started.
Table of Contents
With , you can鈥檛 afford to not leave a message.
Many sales reps are prepared with what to say when a lead answers, but fumble when the call goes to voicemail instead. Given that many people ignore a call if they don鈥檛 recognize the number, leaving a voicemail is your opportunity to identify yourself and deliver your message.
Make it as impactful as possible by using a voicemail script to ensure that you say everything you need to without saying too much.
Moreover, a voicemail is another touchpoint with a prospect. Since it takes before a lead will agree to meet, you don鈥檛 want to waste the opportunity of leaving a well-thought-out voicemail.
Finally, the more voicemails you leave, the higher chance you have of receiving a callback. And not just leaving any old voicemail, but one that strikes the right chord with the recipient. By being prepared with a solid script, you increase the chances of them .
Although voicemail scripts will (and should) vary based on several factors, certain elements apply across all voicemails.
Voicemail scripts should contain your name and the company you represent.
Even if you鈥檝e spoken with the prospect before, including this information is important to provide context. That said, use your discretion to know whether to share your name and company at the beginning or end of the call.
Calling out your phone number within the body of your message is best practice.
Although your prospects can find this information through caller ID, dictating it will reduce the effort required to respond to your message. Plus, it鈥檚 recommended that you do so twice 鈥 earlier in the message and at the end 鈥 in case your recipient doesn鈥檛 listen to your message all the way through.
State the intention of your message and do so clearly. A great way to do this is by sharing why you鈥檙e reaching out to the prospect.
Did they leave an inquiry on your website or download a lead magnet?
Did a mutual acquaintance suggest you reach out to them?
By creating relevance and context, it becomes much easier to grab the prospect鈥檚 attention.
Your goal when leaving a voicemail is not to sell to your prospect. Instead, your focus should be to grab your prospect鈥檚 attention and incentivize them to return your call.
This means that a good voicemail should be more about the prospect than the salesperson 鈥 especially when cold-calling.
How can you help or add value to this person鈥檚 business? Can you help them save time or make more money? If possible, mention tangible benefits the prospect can gain by working with you.
But remember not to get bogged down in features and tools. Rather, convey concrete benefits such as results from past customers, how much they can expect to earn or save, etc.
After a prospect finishes listening to your voicemail, they should be clear on the next steps. This can include calling you back or looking out for a follow-up email.
To keep the sale moving, you need to be as specific as possible 鈥 even down to your availability.
If you鈥檙e asking the prospect to call you back, let them know if there鈥檚 a good time to reach you. It can be as simple as 鈥淵ou can call me back at XYZ-1234. I am typically available Monday through Friday from 9 AM to 3 PM.鈥
Essentially, you want to avoid ending your voicemails with vague statements or instructions like, 鈥淭he ball is in your court. Please get back to me when you鈥檙e free.鈥
Now that you understand the basics of what needs to be included in your voicemail script, it鈥檚 time to discuss tips to help you improve the effectiveness of your script.
Too many reps are the inside sales equivalent of chatty grandmas 鈥 pitching solutions, discussing features, and sharing lengthy value propositions over voicemail. Often, this leads to long, rambling messages.
Best practice stipulates that you keep your message . This is the sweet spot to prevent potentially getting cut off by the recipient鈥檚 voice mailbox system, or having the listener hang up early because your message was simply too long.
Save your sales pitch for an actual sales call and make your point quickly.
Although you will work with a script, it is still important to personalize your message to the recipient.
This is where you need research. When researching, be sure to note the prospect鈥檚 pain points, competitors, recent internal changes within the prospect鈥檚 organization, and specific business metrics that matter to your prospect.
Another element to research, especially when cold-calling, is to find any connections in the prospect鈥檚 organization. Simply mentioning an internal connection can be a great way to warm up your message and create a sense of familiarity.
Here are some general rules to keep in mind when executing your script.
If you sound too relaxed or overly familiar, you might come across as unprofessional. Likewise, if your tone is all over the place, you might come across as overenthusiastic and sales-y.
On the flip side, if you sound rigid or robotic, your message might appear impersonal.
A good rule is to keep your tone conversational and try to speak to your prospect like you would a business colleague.
Make use of strategic pauses, and change the speed of your delivery to emphasize key parts of your message.
You don鈥檛 want to cough into the receiver or sound hoarse. As a general tip, drink water and clear your throat before sales calls.
You should exude confidence throughout your delivery. This means you want to keep the 鈥渕aybes鈥 and 鈥渦ms鈥 to a minimum.
Many qualified prospects don鈥檛 mind hearing from sales reps as long as they鈥檙e helpful, knowledgeable, and show integrity.
However, if you approach a sales voicemail like a used-car salesperson, your prospects are going to delete your messages faster than you can say 鈥渓owest price guaranteed.鈥
Remember, you aren鈥檛 trying to sell them anything (yet). You鈥檙e simply there to communicate how you can add value. This also means that you want to avoid technical jargon.
Your prospect will only prioritize what鈥檚 important to them. If your voicemail gives off the impression that they can respond whenever they want, you won鈥檛 make their to-do list. That鈥檚 why you need to create enough urgency that鈥檒l make your prospects edgy until they call you.
One way to do this is to state the benefit of what you鈥檙e offering. Will it save the prospect鈥檚 time, money, or make their processes more efficient? Include these in your script.
Now that you鈥檙e equipped with the tips for creating and executing a sales voicemail script, let鈥檚 go over some real-world examples.
While there isn鈥檛 a magic sales voicemail script that guarantees a 100% response rate, there are that can significantly improve your odds of getting that oh-so-elusive callback.
Here are 10 voicemail scripts tailored to the four most prevalent scenarios you鈥檙e likely to come across as a salesperson: reaching out to prospects, following up a lead inquiry, following up with an old lead, and dealing with no-shows.
Marc Wayshak, bestselling author of The High-Velocity Sales Organization, shared his scripts for sales voicemails with . You can see the script below.
Hi, [prospect鈥檚 name], [your name], [your phone number].
I just emailed you a brief report I put together on [the prospect鈥檚 company] that will show you some of your strategic strengths and weaknesses. I think you鈥檒l find it useful given [reason].
If you find the report useful, just shoot me a message back 鈥 and I can give you some more insight.
Again, this is [your name], [your phone number].
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
The key strategy here is to make the voicemail hyper-relevant to the prospect. Sharing that the caller created a tailored report and mentioning a recent change in the structure of the prospect鈥檚 organization shows that the caller knows and cares about the prospect.
It makes the receiver think, 鈥淭his doesn鈥檛 sound like a mass-delivered campaign. Maybe this person could help my company.鈥
Matt Easton, a sales coach at Easton University, shared his most effective voicemail script.
鈥淗ey, [prospect鈥檚 name]. This is [your name] with [company]. You and I [how/why/when you connected].
I wanted to reach out to you personally 鈥檆ause I鈥檝e got an idea that may be a game-changer for you, but I鈥檓 not sure.
Can you give me a call back on my mobile [your phone number]?鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
By establishing a connection, the prospect mentally re-categorizes the caller from 鈥渁 complete stranger who鈥檚 calling鈥 to 鈥渁n acquaintance who鈥檚 reaching out.鈥
According to Matt, this script also works well for several reasons.
When buyers feel FOMO, they are more likely to . John Barrow taps into that instinct with this voicemail script.
鈥淗i, [prospect鈥檚 name], the reason for my call is that one of my clients similar to you used my sales training to [insert result].
I鈥檇 love to share with you how they did it to see if we can produce the same results for you.
Could you call me back at [your phone number]? This is [your name] with [company]. Once again [your phone number].鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
This script works because the caller provides value and still makes the message hyper-relevant to the prospect.
By sharing that a client 鈥渟imilar to the prospect鈥 achieved XYZ results, it makes the possibility of also achieving those results feel more realistic for the prospect.
But what鈥檚 even more powerful is that the caller finishes the voicemail with a fantastic closer 鈥 鈥淚鈥檇 love to share with you how they did it to see if we can produce the same results for you.鈥
No hard selling. No strings attached. Just the promise of immense value.
Will Barron鈥檚 gets prospects warmed up.
鈥淗i, [prospect鈥檚 name]. My name is [your name] calling from [your company]. [Referrer鈥檚 name] suggested I should book a meeting with you.
He gave me your details because we have helped them over at [referrer鈥檚 company] [insert specific benefit relevant to current prospect], and they think we can do the same for you.
I鈥檒l send over an email right now with details on how [referrer鈥檚 name] thinks we can help you.
It鈥檇 be great to speak to you this week.鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
According to Will, this script works because it uses three principles of influence 鈥 social proof, likability, and authority.
Here, the caller uses social proof and likability by leveraging a mutual acquaintance (the referrer). The caller also establishes authority by sharing that they had solved a problem for the referrer.
Matt Macnamara designed script to intrigue the prospect.
鈥淸Prospect鈥檚 name], no need to call me back.
I鈥檓 about to send an email with the subject line [insert subject line]. When you get a minute, I鈥檇 appreciate it if you鈥檇 share some thoughts and feedback on that email.
It鈥檚 [your name] with [your company]. If I don鈥檛 hear back, I鈥檒l call again next week.鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
According to Matt, this script works for two reasons:
Unlike most sales voicemail scripts, this one moves the conversation away from the phone and to a channel that the prospect might be more receptive to: email.
Let鈥檚 say a prospect has already made an inquiry, and you call them. Aged Lead Store that can help you out.
鈥淸Prospect鈥檚 name], this is [your name] from [your company].
I鈥檓 just following up on the [the specific inquiry, including where/how it was made].
I鈥檓 getting ready to send an email that鈥檚 got a lot more detail on [your company] and exactly how our process works, but let me tell you [insert value proposition relevant to the inquiry].
I鈥檇 love to tell you more about that.
We can follow up on a call 鈥 my number is [your phone number]. You can also text me on that number or just reply to my email.
Hope to talk to you soon; have a great day.鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
Following up on a lead that has shown interest in your products or services requires a slightly different approach. Here are two things this script does differently from the previous ones:
This voicemail also gives the lead two options regarding how they can respond to the message. This might increase response rates as it provides a simple, low-effort alternative for people who are interested but might be in places or situations where they cannot take or make calls.
No matter what you sell, this voicemail script from can help you re-engage an old prospect.
鈥淗ey [prospect鈥檚 name]. This is [your name]. I鈥檓 a [your job title] with [your company].
I鈥檓 not sure if you remember or not, but about [insert time frame] you [insert how you got their information] and said [insert what they showed an interest in].
I鈥檓 just trying to touch base with you to see if [insert a question asking whether they are still interested in the product or service].
If you have [insert: 鈥渁lready purchased said product or service鈥漖, I don鈥檛 want to keep bothering you, so could you please get back to me and let me know where you are in the process?
Thank you so much. The best number for me is [your phone number]. I look forward to talking to you.鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
This script is pretty similar to the lead inquiry voicemail script. However, one detail particularly makes it suited to old leads: It gives the lead an easy out.
This might seem counterintuitive. However, saying 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to keep bothering you鈥 encourages the prospect to respond to your voicemail.
If the person is still interested in the offer, they鈥檒l reach out because they think, 鈥淭his person might not call again!鈥
On the other hand, if they鈥檙e no longer interested, they鈥檒l probably reach out because they think, 鈥淚 just have to let them know I鈥檓 not interested. If not, this person will keep calling me!鈥
No one likes being stood up, but in sales, that鈥檚 sometimes the name of the game. When a prospect skips your meeting, you鈥檒l need to call them. Tanya Aliza, a business success coach, shares three voicemails to help you address the situation.
鈥淗ey, [prospect鈥檚 Name]. [Your name] here.
I鈥檓 calling you now at our scheduled appointment time, and I hope all is okay. I was expecting to chat with you.
Hey, listen 鈥 I鈥檓 free for the next [insert time limit]; I鈥檝e blocked this time out for us in my schedule. Please call me back as soon as you get this message.鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
Perhaps your prospect had the date wrong on their calendar. Or maybe they had to attend to an emergency. This quick call is a great reminder so they can get in touch and reschedule as needed.
鈥淗ey [prospect鈥檚 name]. [Your name] calling here again.
I haven鈥檛 heard from you since the last message I left when we were scheduled to meet today, and I鈥檓 just calling because I hope everything is okay.
Can you please call me back as soon as you get this message today?
Talk to you soon.鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
If you haven鈥檛 heard from your contact via a call or email, this voicemail allows you to restart the conversation. The tone of concern will let your prospect know that there are no hard feelings 鈥 you care about them as a person, not just a prospect.
鈥淗i, [prospect鈥檚 name]. It鈥檚 [your name] calling here again.
I left you a couple of voicemails yesterday regarding our scheduled appointment time that we had blocked off, and I haven鈥檛 heard from you yet. I truly hope everything is all right.
Hey, listen, here鈥檚 what I鈥檓 going to have to do for now 鈥 I鈥檓 going to have to cross you off my list for the time being.
I know you said you wanted help [insert pain point they needed help with], but I understand if maybe right now just isn鈥檛 the right time and that鈥檚 completely fine. If things change, just let me know.
But if you could also do me a quick favor and just send me a really quick text or call back so I know that you鈥檙e okay.
If you could do that sometime today, that would be absolutely wonderful.
Have an awesome day.鈥
Here鈥檚 what this script looks like in action.
Why This Strategy Works
A meeting no-show can be a tricky situation. The goal of this script is to help the salesperson manage this situation in a way that perfectly toes the line between empathy and firmness.
The third script also does something similar when it says 鈥淚鈥檓 going to have to cross you off my list for the time being鈥 but ends on a more empathetic note of 鈥渃ould you do me a quick favor and just send a quick text so I know that you鈥檙e okay.鈥
What makes this script interesting is how a more empathetic approach allows the salesperson to provide ample opportunities to get the deal back on the table without sounding 鈥 for lack of a better word 鈥 desperate.
Becoming an expert in leaving effective sales voicemails requires more than creating scripts. These scripts 鈥 and the overall skill 鈥 must undergo refinement through rigorous testing, practice, and measurement.
Schedule practice activities that offer ample opportunities for repetition and feedback. A great idea could be role-playing with colleagues and friends where they give honest feedback on your hypothetical voicemails.
You can also create a system to evaluate your voicemails. Start by creating a score sheet with a rating system. Then, grade each voicemail by the following criteria:
Once completed, starting with the voicemails that score the lowest, begin identifying and working on areas of weakness in your script and delivery. Your goal? Consistently score high on these exercises.
All the above strategies go to show that leaving effective sales voicemails is both an art and a science.
By leveraging these tried-and-tested scripts, you can supercharge your efforts and drastically improve your response rates.
As you continue to refine these scripts (and your overall process), over time you鈥檒l develop scripts and formulas that are unique to you and your niche.