Prospecting is an essential part of the life of a real estate professional. And a classic way of prospecting is by picking up the phone and doing some cold calling.

And when it comes to cold calling, we usually see 2 groups of people. Those that rely on scripts and credit their success to the quality of their scripts, and agents who hate scripts and find them annoying, artificial, and constraining. 

But here’s the thing: scripts can be VERY useful. Even if you ultimately decide not to hold a piece of paper with your script on it, it can still serve as a helpful outline that will help you gather your thoughts and plan more effective prospecting calls.

Elements Of A Good Real Estate Cold Calling Script

1. It Gets Your Listener’s Guard Down Right Away

Whenever you do cold calling, you’re gonna be reaching out to people who weren’t expecting you. You are in fact interrupting whatever they were doing and forcing them to talk to you.

And with so many scammers out there calling people every day, you can see why most people you cold call are going to be defensive. 

So right at the start of your script, you need to add something that helps build rapport, and helps your listener feel more at ease with you.

How can you do so? An easy way is to immediately give them your name and the reason why you’re calling.

It’s not usually a good idea to hide the fact that you’re a real estate agent. If you’re calling a for sale by owner (FSBO) or a recently expired listing, you’re going to deal with someone that gets called by agents all the time.

However, it’s not just what you say that matters. It’s also how you say it. As you greet the person on the other side, don’t do so in the robotic tone, overly rehearsed tone. 

Speak like a real person, and don’t use words and expressions you wouldn’t use yourself in real life. And if you can, use a little bit of humor. Humor is the perfect antidote to defensiveness.

2. It Makes Your Listener The Center Of Attention

We all love talking about ourselves and the things we care about. So an easy way to build rapport with your prospects is to get them talking about themselves.

An easy way to do so is by asking them to tell you about their homes. Ask them to tell you about what they like the most about their home, as well as details about it such as it’s size, number of bedrooms, nearby amenities, etc.

Once you get the conversation going, you can also ask them how quickly they need to sell, whether they already have a place to go, as well as the reason why they need to sell their home.

Not only will this conversation make them feel more at ease with you, but if you pay close attention, your prospect will provide you with plenty of valuable insight about their pain points, motivation, and expectations; details that will help you make the case that you’re the right agent for the job.

3. It Gives Something Of Value Before It Ask For Something In Return

In the book “Influence: Science and Practice”, psychology professor Robert Cialdini discusses 6 principles of influence. One of those principles is reciprocation. 

This principle states that in social situations when someone gives us something of value, we are inclined to return something else of value.

In other words, if a person does you a favor, you’re much more likely to return the favor.

You can use the reciprocity principle to your advantage in your cold calling script. Before you ask your prospect for an in-person meeting, make sure you provide something of value first.

4. It Sympathizes With Their Pain… 

Selling a home is a frustrating, difficult, and highly emotional process for homeowners. They need someone who understands what they’re going through and reassures them. In fact, it’s the main reason why they hire a real estate agent to help them go through the process.

They are frustrated with the whole system and need someone who understands. So if you sympathize in a real and heartfelt way, they will feel understood, and they will be more likely to trust you.

5. …However, It Addresses The Cost Of Not Selling Their Home Right Away 

Pain (or the expectation of pain) is a huge incentive in making us take action. This is why it can be very effective to remind your prospect about what they stand to lose if they don’t sell their home right away. These costs can be having to pay monthly mortgage payments, property taxes, delay of moving, and not being able to purchase their next home.

Of course, don’t just leave them with a reminder of their pain point. Provide them with a solution to that pain point, which in this case is using your services.

6. It Provides A CLEAR Call To Action

The most important part of any real estate script is the call to action since this is the portion that will advance your interests and help you meet your goal. In this case, your goal is to get a listing appointment.

Convince your prospect to agree to an in-person (or virtual meeting over Zoom) appointment. And to avoid analysis paralysis and make it easier for them to agree, provide two choices. For example, you could say “do you want to meet on Tuesday at 4pm or Thursday at 4:00 pm?”

7. It Doesn’t Take A “No” As An End Of The Conversation

Real estate is a numbers game, so you’re going to face a lot of rejection.

But don’t take a “no” as a cue to immediately end your call. Push to get a listing appointment, or at least a chance to meet in person. And if that fails, ask for permission to stay in touch and continue to provide value to your prospect.

Ok, now that we have those guidelines out of the way, let’s take a look at 3 scripts you can start using today.

Circle Prospecting

Hi, I’m (your name here) with (your brokerage name). We just listed a home for sale in your neighborhood on (listing address). 

Our experience has been that in most cases, the buyers of a home come from the home seller’s friend, family members, acquaintances, or neighbors in the same neighborhood.

Since we’re doing whatever we can to get your neighbor’s home, I wanted to ask if you know someone looking to move into your neighborhood?

Do you have any plans on moving?

How long have you lived in this home?

And where did you live before that?

How did you pick this community?

Are you thinking about moving somewhere else?

How soon do you see yourself there?

(if they answer 6 months or less, continue)

I’m sure you already know, but in our current market, it can easily take around 6 months to get a home prepared, marketed, and sold.

So would you prefer to have your home sold around 6 months from today, or would you rather start the selling process in 6 months?

If you want to get the process early and make it easier to coordinate with your move, we can get together and discuss your options. Would Wednesday or Thursday at (time) work for you?

Expired Listing Prospecting

Hi, is this (homeowner name)?

My name is (your name) with (your real estate company).

I’m calling because I’ve been following your home listing on MLS, and while it’s been on the market for several months, I noticed it hasn’t sold yet.

I know how frustrating your situation must be. In your opinion, what’s keeping your home from getting sold? 

Do you already know where you’re going to move to once your home is sold?

How soon do you need to move there?

Was there anything that your real estate agent did that you liked?

Was there anything you feel your agent should have done?

It looks like you still do want to sell your home, doesn’t it?

When do you plan on interviewing the right agent for the job of selling your home?

Let’s say that I could sell your home at top-dollar and sell it quickly enough for you to move to your new place. Would that be something you could get behind?

What would be the best time to get together and discuss how we can make that happen? Would Wednesday at XX:XX PM or Thursday at XX:XX pm be better?

Pre-Foreclosure Prospecting

Hi, is (homeowner name) available?

This is (your name here) with (your real estate company). 

I am calling because according to the county records, your lender has now started the foreclosure process on your property.

I’m really sad to hear it because that’s an incredibly stressful situation to be in. Are you thinking of selling your home to prevent foreclosure, or are you negotiating any forbearance terms with your lender?

Are you working with an agent already? (If yes, “Great. I’ll make a note of it. Thank you and good luck.”)

I’m calling because in my experience, the vast majority of homeowners that are facing foreclosure don’t know about all the options they have available. And because of all the stress that they are facing and all the tough decisions they need to make, it’s hard to find the time to sit down and research those options.

For instance, are you familiar with how a property short-sale works and how it can help you avoid getting a foreclosure in your record?

I’m available on Tuesday at (time) and Thursday at (time). Why don’t we sit down, look at your property, and see what options are available in your specific case?. 

Handling Objections:

I Already Have An Appointment With Another Agent

I understand. My goal is to let you know of all your available options to help you sell your home at top dollar and at a time frame favorable to you. However, I do think that you deserve the opportunity to have an honest comparison of agents.

So if a different agent happens to be a better option for you, who am I to get in the way of that. 

Why don’t I come by before the other agent comes so you can see my marketing plan? That way when you meet with the other agent, you’ll be able to make a more informed decision.

I Need To Talk To My Wife/Husband

Absolutely. That’s exactly what I would do if I were you. 

When do you plan on speaking with your wife/husband? Will it be today after work?

I’m pretty sure you’re super busy and have a lot to think about. So why don’t we do this? Let’s pencil in a time to meet. What’s better for you, Tuesday at (time) or Wednesday at (time)?

Great. Then let’s plan on that. And unless I get a call from you, I’ll assume you had a chance to talk to your spouse, and we’ll talk strategy on (time you agreed to meet).

How does that sound?

We Are Using The Same Agent

Mr./ Ms.Seller, I respect your loyalty. In fact, if I were to ever fail to sell a home, I would hope that my clients would give me the same level of loyalty.

But what about loyalty to your family? What I mean by that is that for most families, the largest portion of their wealth is locked away in their home’s equity. 

Do you know why that worries me?

Because I’m certain that your former agent did the best he could do to sell your home. I’m pretty sure he showed you a marketing plan that involves marketing it to his sphere of influence and brokerage about your home. And that’s a good thing. You want to reach out to everyone right?

But he did that, well… the house is still unsold. 

Don’t you think it’s time to reach out to a different sphere of influence? 

I would love to meet with you, either tonight or tomorrow to discuss how we can get your home sold.

Will You Lower Your Commission?

So you’re asking me about how much it’s going to cost to sell the home and if I’m flexible on that, right?

Aside from the commission, how do you feel about the rest of my marketing plan?

Which part exactly of what I explained to you makes you feel like I don’t offer enough value to you to collect my commission?

You’re The 8th Agent To Call Today

That’s amazing! It’s good to see that there are at least 8 hardworking agents in town. Have you set up an appointment with any of those agents?

Conclusion 

Preparation is key to the success of any cold calling campaign. 

So even if you’re not the biggest fan of scripts, it’s still worth your time studying them, because they allow you to mentally prepare for your interactions with prospects.

And if you want to take at AgentFire’s arsenal of real estate marketing tools, including its single property website construction tools, why not schedule a tour and a demo?

This tour can either be guided by one of our customer success agents (who would be happy to answer all of your questions).