Sdr Call Prep

SDR Call Prep Skill

When to activate

• You have a cold call or discovery call in the next 30-60 minutes
• You want a structured talk track tailored to a specific prospect's context
• You need objection-handling scripts ready before picking up the phone
• Preparing for a high-priority account and need research + angles fast
• Building a repeatable call prep template for your SDR team

When NOT to use

• Post-call — use /sdr-call-analysis for follow-up and coaching
• Generic cold calling scripts without prospect context — they won't work
• Internal calls or customer success check-ins — different frameworks
• When you have less than 5 minutes — use the quick brief format below instead

Instructions

Full call prep prompt

Prepare me for a cold call with [NAME], [TITLE] at [COMPANY].

My product: [what you sell in one line]
My ICP fit signals for this account: [why this company is a fit]
Recent trigger: [funding, exec hire, product launch, hiring spike — or "none identified"]
Call goal: [book a 20-minute discovery / qualify for demo / re-engage cold lead]

Generate:

## 1. Pre-call brief (read this before dialling)
- What [COMPANY] does (1 sentence)
- What [NAME] cares about in their role
- The ONE reason to call them today (trigger or timing)
- The most likely outcome: [will answer / gatekeeper / voicemail]

## 2. Opening (first 15 seconds)
Voicemail version (if no answer):
Live call version (if they pick up):

Rules:
- State name + company in first sentence
- Permission-based opener: "Did I catch you at a bad time?"
- Trigger reference in first 10 seconds
- Do NOT say "How are you?" — wastes time and sounds scripted

## 3. Talk track (if they stay on the line)
Hook: [personalised reason for calling — reference the trigger]
Bridge: [connect their world to your product — 2 sentences]
Discovery questions: [3 open questions to understand their situation]
Pivot to meeting: [how to book the next step]

## 4. Objection handling (top 4 for this prospect)
Based on their role and company:
[Objection 1]: [Response]
[Objection 2]: [Response]
[Objection 3]: [Response]
[Objection 4]: [Response]

## 5. Discovery questions (if they open up)
Goal: understand pain, timeline, stakeholders, budget authority
[5 open-ended questions — not product-led, pain-led]

## 6. Meeting close
How to transition from a positive call to a booked meeting:
[Exact language to use — specific time slots, not "whenever works"]

## 7. Voicemail script (30 seconds max)
[Full voicemail — name, hook, callback ask]

Quick brief format (under 2 minutes, use when time is short)

Quick call prep for [NAME] at [COMPANY].

Give me:
1. What they do (10 words)
2. Why call them today (1 trigger)
3. Opening line (scripted, not generic)
4. Their #1 likely objection + 1-sentence response
5. Close: exact words to book the meeting

Talk track structure (the A-B-C framework)

A — ANCHOR (why you're calling them specifically)
"I'm calling because I noticed [specific trigger] — that's usually when companies like yours are [relevant pain]."

B — BRIDGE (connect their world to your product)
"We help [their type of company] solve [specific pain] — [outcome in numbers if possible]."

C — CONFIRM (get to yes/no fast)
"Is that something you're thinking about? / Worth 20 minutes to see if there's a fit?"

---

ADVANCED: Add the LOOP opener for cold calls
"Hey [NAME], [YOUR NAME] from [COMPANY]. I know I'm calling out of nowhere — 
do you have 27 seconds for me to explain why I'm calling, and if it doesn't make sense 
you can hang up immediately?"
→ This disarming opener has a 60%+ response rate vs. traditional openers

Discovery question bank (by pain category)

PRODUCTIVITY / TIME:
- "Walk me through how your team currently handles [X] — where does it slow down?"
- "If you could eliminate one manual task your team does every week, what would it be?"

GROWTH / REVENUE:
- "What's getting in the way of [goal] right now?"
- "How many [leads / deals / customers] are you leaving on the table because of [process gap]?"

TEAM / SCALE:
- "How is the team structured to handle [function] today?"
- "When was the last time this process broke at scale?"

COMPETITIVE:
- "What are you using today for [X] — what do you like about it and what's missing?"
- "Have you looked at alternatives in the last 6 months?"

TIMELINE / URGENCY:
- "Is [problem] something you need to solve this quarter, or is it more of a 2027 priority?"
- "What would need to be true for you to move forward in the next 60 days?"

STAKEHOLDERS:
- "Who else would be involved in evaluating something like this?"
- "If this made sense to you, how does a decision like this typically get made?"

Objection handling scripts (voice-optimised — shorter than email)

OBJECTION: "I'm not interested"
→ "Totally fair — can I ask, is it that this isn't relevant, or just not the right time?"
   (If not relevant: clarify. If timing: "When would be better?")

OBJECTION: "We already have a solution"
→ "Good to know. Are you happy with it or is there anything you wish it did better?"
   (Opens a wedge. Don't push — let them answer.)

OBJECTION: "Send me an email"
→ "Happy to — so I send the right thing, what specifically would you want it to cover?"
   (Converts a brush-off into engagement. Then: "Can I follow up with a quick call Thursday?")

OBJECTION: "Now's not a good time"
→ "No problem — when would be better? I can call back in 5 minutes or next week — 
   whatever works better."
   (Offer specific alternatives, not "whenever you want")

OBJECTION: "We don't have budget"
→ "Makes sense — is this a timing issue, or does the problem not have budget attached at all?
   Sometimes we can structure pilots in a way that comes from a different bucket."

OBJECTION: "Who are you again?"
→ "Sorry — [NAME] from [COMPANY]. We [what you do in 10 words]. I'm calling because 
   [trigger]. Does that sound like something worth 20 minutes?"

Voicemail formula (max 27 seconds)

"Hey [NAME], [YOUR NAME] from [COMPANY].

I'm calling because [specific trigger — e.g. "I saw your team just hired a new VP of Sales"].

We help [their type of company] [outcome — e.g. "book 40% more meetings without adding headcount"].

I'll try you again [specific day/time — e.g. "Thursday at 2pm"], 
or feel free to grab time here: [short Calendly link].

Have a great [day/week], [NAME]."

---

Rules:
- 27 seconds or less — longer voicemails have <5% callback rate
- Use first name twice — beginning and end
- Give them a specific next step (they won't call back unprompted)
- NEVER say "call me back at your earliest convenience"

Multi-stakeholder call matrix

If you're calling into a company with multiple contacts, prep for each:

| Contact | Role | Their Priority | Best Opener | Key Objection |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Champion] | Uses product | Efficiency / features | Peer reference | "Our team already tried X" |
| [Econ Buyer] | CFO/VP | ROI / risk | Business outcome data | "Not in budget" |
| [Tech Eval] | CTO/IT | Security / integration | Architecture fit | "Our stack is different" |
| [Gatekeeper] | EA/receptionist | Protecting boss's time | Warm, direct | "What's this regarding?" |

Example

User: Call prep for Marcus Chen, VP of Sales at Lattice. I sell a sales coaching platform. They just announced a series D ($175M).

Output:

Pre-call brief: Lattice is an HR and performance management platform for people teams. Marcus Chen runs a growing sales org that just got a major funding injection — they'll be scaling reps fast. His priority: ramp speed and consistent performance across a bigger team.

Opening (live call): "Hey Marcus, [Name] from [Company]. I know I'm calling cold — do you have 30 seconds? I noticed Lattice just closed the Series D — congrats. Scaling a sales team fast usually means coaching consistency becomes a real problem. That's exactly what we solve. Worth 20 minutes?"

Top 3 objections + responses:

1. "We use Gong" → "We actually integrate with Gong — we sit on top of it for structured coaching workflows. Are you happy with how reps are ramping today?"
2. "Not in budget" → "Understood — is this a Q3 priority at all, or not on the radar until next year?"
3. "Send me info" → "Happy to — what would be most useful: ROI data or a quick demo clip? I can send either in the next 5 minutes."

Meeting close: "If any of this resonates, I've got Thursday at 2pm or Friday at 10am — which works better?"