24 Real Estate Cold Calling Scripts and Tips to Conquer Your Fears

Cold calling is one of the most polarizing lead generation strategies in all of real estate. Experienced agents will tell you it’s an essential part of lead generation. Others will tell you that it isn’t worth the anxiety, frustration, and lack of immediate results.The Close is here to say that those last three challenges are real for many real estate agents, but they don’t have to be for you. We’ve put together a list of the most valuable tips you need to try to get over your fear of cold calling once and for all.But, before we get to the tips, let’s start with some great real estate cold calling scripts you can use to up your confidence and squash your cold calling fears.Must-have Real Estate Cold Calling ScriptsThere are certain scripts that every cold caller needs to have in their arsenal: the Expired Listing Script, the FSBO Script, and the Circle Prospecting Script. We’ve got those scripts listed here, plus six more fantastic scripts you can use to power-up your cold calling available for a free download.Download All Nine Scripts1. Expired Listing ScriptCold calling expired listings can be tricky because you know that the homeowner is going to talk to multiple real estate agents, oftentimes all on the same day that you’re planning your call. Stand out from the competition with a great script from REDX called The Neighborhood Expert:Hi, is this the homeowner? I’m _____ with _____.You know, I work in the neighborhood, and I noticed that your home was no longer for sale. Are you planning to put it back on the market?(Listen—they will sometimes say “maybe later” or “not for a while.”)I can understand why you might feel pretty discouraged—it’s a great house. Any idea why it didn’t sell? Any offers?(Listen to what they have to say.)I was just surprised to see it on the market for ___ days. I assumed it would be gone in a few weeks. What made you all decide to sell? Where are you moving to?I know you’ve likely had a few people calling you, but as I said, I’ve worked in the neighborhood for # years, I know this neighborhood, I’ve sold homes in this neighborhood, and I’d love a chance to sell your home or at least take a tour and see what might be holding it back.Would you mind if I came by this Saturday at _____? I’m happy to give you some feedback.If you want to learn more about prospecting expired listings, as well as get some more scripts, make sure to check out our article called Best Expired Listing Scripts & Objection Handlers 2021.Download All Nine Scripts2. FSBO ScriptMany real estate agents consider the FSBO prospect to be a perfect lead for cold calling. These sellers have told the world that they want to sell and they want to sell now—all you have to do is convince them they need help and that you’re the right person to give it.The most frequent response you’ll hear to the question of “Why are you selling FSBO?” is “We’re trying to save some money.” Knowing this, here’s David Hill’s script, set up and ready to deal with this common objection. We’ve even put some mock responses in the script so you can practice hearing “no” and learn how to use those initial rejections to get a listing appointment.“Hello, this is (name) calling from the (brokerage). I noticed you have a house for sale in my coverage area. Is it still available?” “Yes.” “Great, are you cooperating with real estate agents?”“No.”“OK, I know the area well, and I’m wondering how much you’re asking for the house?”“$264,900.”“If I had a buyer who would be a fit, would that be helpful for you?”“Yes.”“Great. What I’d like to do is schedule a time to come by and look at the house to see if it would work for any of our clients. I’d also like to share some of the things we do to help FSBOs like yourself. Do you have time this afternoon, or would tomorrow work better for you?”“You know, I really don’t want to work with an agent. If you have someone who’s serious, you can send them by, but I’m not looking to sit down for a sales pitch with an agent.”“Sure, I can appreciate that. Let me ask you this: Why did you decide to sell your house without hiring a professional agent?”“Well, I wanted to save money. A 5 or 6% commission would be a lot.”“Yeah, I can understand that completely. Interestingly enough, 90% of the FSBOs I speak with tell me the exact same thing. If I could show you a way that I could net you the same or possibly even more money by using our services, would that be something you’d be open to?”“Well, basically what we’re trying to do is break even. We bought the house two years ago, and the value hasn’t really gone up.”“So, what is the main reason for your sale?”“I’ve been transferred. We’re moving to Arkansas.”“Oh, congratulations. And when will you need to be in Arkansas?”“We need to be in Little Rock in 90 days.”“Gotcha. So the clock’s ticking for you. And if the house doesn’t sell in 90 days, what’s your plan B?”“Well, we’re going to have to go — the house will just be empty.”“Oh, yeah, I’d hate to have that happen to you. If I could sell the house, have you break even, and get it done before you get to Arkansas, would that be a win for you?”“Yeah.”“OK, perfect. Why don’t we meet? I’d love to see if I can do that for you. I’ll be 100% honest with you. If I can do it, I’ll let you know. If I can’t, I’ll let you know that as well. How does that sound?”“Yeah, that’s fine. If you want to give it a shot, you can come on over.”“Awesome, I appreciate that. I’ll see you this afternoon at four. Will that work?”“Sure, see you then.”If you want to bone up on your FSBO prospecting knowledge, we’ve got an entire article with more scripts and tips on how to use them. Check out The 5 Best FSBO Scripts of 2021 & Why They Work.Download All Nine Scripts3. Circle Prospecting ScriptCircle prospecting is a great way to increase your exposure and connect with other homeowners in neighborhoods where you’re already active. But you don’t have to limit your circle prospecting only to the areas you’ve listed or sold property. Using this circle prospecting script from the indelible Ricky Carruth’s Zero to Diamond real estate coaching program, you can go after the homes in neighborhoods regardless of whether you’re the nearby listing or selling agent or not.Hello, is this Mr. / Mrs. __________? Hey, Mr. / Mrs. __________, this is (your name) with (your company).{Pause} How are you today?That’s good. Me too. Just enjoying this good weather outside. Isn’t it gorgeous today?{Pause and let them talk. Listen to what they say. Chances are high that you get into a conversation about the weather, back and forth. This will set the comfort level of the call. If it’s raining, talk about how nasty it is today. Adjust your opening to what the current weather is doing. When this part of the conversation is over, transition into the reason for your call.}Well look, I don’t want to take up too much of your time today, but (market information, e.g., “a house/condo was just listed in your neighborhood/complex” or “a house/condo just sold in your neighborhood/complex”), and I didn’t know if there was anything I could do for you regarding buying or selling real estate at this time.{Pause and listen. If they say YES, follow-up and make a deal happen.}{If they say NO, continue below.}I gotcha. Well, is there an agent in the area that you would work with if you did buy or sell in the area?{If the answer is no…}OK, well one day you will want to buy or sell, and I would like the opportunity to work with you when that day comes. Would it be OK if we stayed in touch?{If they say yes…}Great! What is your email address?Awesome. Thanks so much. I look forward to speaking again soon!If you’re curious about learning more about the power of circle prospecting, check out our article about how a Florida real estate team used it to generate 200 leads in a single day. Download All Nine Scripts15 Tips for Getting Over Your Real Estate Cold Calling FearsNow that you’re armed with three awesome scripts that will help you tackle just about any cold calling situation, let’s dive into some practical advice to help you kill your fears of cold calling once and for all.1. Prepare Yourself PhysicallySuccessful cold calling starts with preparation. Make sure you’re comfortable, sitting in a good chair or standing, in a distraction-free environment. Making cold calls requires focus, and doing so when you’re focused on your own physical needs just doesn’t work.Many expert cold callers report feeling better when they can move around a room or pace, so get a good Bluetooth earpiece and get loose. Lay off the coffee first thing in the morning and instead go with a tall glass of cold water, avoiding the speed that caffeine tends to add to most people’s speaking tempo. Before you get on the phone, go through a stretching routine to get your body limber and ready to support your mind’s positive responses.2. Spend Less Time Talking & More Time ListeningIt’s a common cold calling myth that success comes in the form of a pitch, when in actuality, it comes in the form of listening to your prospect and responding to their needs. Tom Ferry is fond of saying that successful cold callers spend upward of 75% of their time on the phone NOT talking.So, instead of asking yes or no questions like “Would you be interested in selling your home for XXX dollars?” ask “If you were to sell your home, where would you go? What is your dream location?”As you’re refining your script, build in these sorts of conversation starters. People are more likely to stay on the phone when they’re talking about themselves because, given the chance, people will tell their story to just about anyone who will listen.When you understand your cold calling as a platform for people to tell their story, your fears subside because the pressure to speak is off you; all you need to do is ask the right questions and be ready to listen and respond.3. Choose the Right Call ListCold calling isn’t just picking up the phone and dialing random numbers. When you’re cold calling, you’re doing so with a purpose: to sell or list real estate. The people on your call list should reflect this goal.If you’re looking for a new area to prospect or farm, start by doing some research on the MLS to determine the places where the local trends support potential listings. If there’s an inventory shortage for homes in a particular price range, use recently sold data to pinpoint which neighborhoods have homes in this range.By doing this sort of research, you’re steering yourself toward a group of people for whom you have good news, and who will be more likely to listen to you.4. Let the Math Motivate YouThe Keller Center of Baylor University conducted a study about real estate cold calling in the United States. In it, 50 real estate agents made 6,264 cold calls to areas that hadn’t been recently prospected. The study showed that on average, for every 209 calls made, one listing appointment was set or referral was made.While this might sound daunting at first, take heart. A real estate professional committed to making 100 calls per day, five days a week will yield two listing appointments or referrals a week. If you can maintain this clip for, say, 50 weeks a year, you’ll be going on 100 listing appointments every year.Would your business benefit from 100 listing appointments every year? Of course it would. Instead of focusing on rejections, wrong numbers, and hang-ups, focus instead on the fact that the math is on your side. If you keep working hard, you will get listings.5. Memorize Your Scripts & RebuttalsIf you want consistent returns from your cold calling, you need to get consistent with your delivery. Using a script allows you to stop worrying about what you’re going to say and just focus on how you’re going to say it.Depending on what kind of cold calling you’re doing (expired listings, FSBOs, geographic farming, and so on), your script is going to change. We’ve got a great collection of expired listing scripts, as well as FSBO scripts for you to check out.6. Use an Auto-dialer Like Storm Dialer From REDXUsing an auto-dialer does two things for you: It keeps you in the zone and gets you through your call list faster. Most agents we’ve talked to who’ve given up cold calling say that actually dialing the phone is their most anxious moment. With an auto-dialer, the moment one call disconnects, another is ringing, keeping you out of that anxious moment and into the converting mindset.Also, making 100 calls a day can be a time-consuming commitment, especially when you’re trying to dial all the numbers by hand. An auto-dialer can cut down your time on the phone by more than half, and a great one like Storm Dialer from REDX can increase your call volume by more than 400%.If you aren’t familiar with REDX, they’re a cold caller’s best friend. This platform gathers all your expired, FSBO, FRBO, and preforeclosure leads into one place, and uses data aggregation techniques to gather contact info from across the web, putting it all in a single dashboard.Then, you can use their built-in auto-dialer (Storm Dialer) to knock down the list quickly and efficiently every morning. Right now, REDX is offering The Close readers $149 off the setup price, automatically deducted when you click over to their site from this article.Check out REDX7. Strategize Your Call TimesOne of the most common questions new agents ask about cold calling is what time of day will get them the best results.While there’s some debate, data from the Keller Center study shows that the most productive time to make cold calls is between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Just over 31% of calls in the study were made during this time frame, and calls from this time frame yielded 53% of all the appointments set.In contrast, the worst time of the day to make calls was the evening, after 5 p.m. During this time frame, 42% of the total calls were made, but these calls only yielded 21% of the total appointments set.That being said, we know all markets are different. Start with the best practices learned from studies like the one above and adjust based on your own experience. Regardless of when you’re calling, pick an hour and stick to it.8. Have a Voicemail PlanVoicemail is an excellent opportunity to break the ice with prospects. When a voicemail kicks on, have a voicemail script ready to go so that you can leave exactly the right message.What does the right message sound like? For starters, it’s between eight and 14 seconds long. Voicemail experts suggest that voicemails 15 seconds or longer have a much lower completion rate, and something less than eight seconds makes it hard to effectively communicate.The optimal voicemail establishes who you are and why you’re calling, but doesn’t give away the true value of your message. In order to get that, your recipient needs to respond to your call to action—a return call.Some cold calling strategists have suggested that a voicemail is a great means to turn a completely cold call into a lukewarm call. If you want to skip the pure cold call altogether, there are companies that help you do that.The absolute leader in the field is Slydial, which allows you to dial straight into a phone number’s voicemail and leave your info, preparing them for a call back the next day or even better, motivating them to reach out on their own.9. Track Your ResultsCold calling is a marathon, not a sprint. Getting discouraged from a single hour’s results or even a couple of days’ worth of calls will slow your progress and keep you from getting appointments. This fatigue factor is real, and the best way to combat it is to track your results and look at your long-term gains.Remember that Keller Center study: On average, cold callers set one listing appointment or referral appointment for every 209 calls they make. If you can dedicate an hour a day, five days a week, 50 weeks a year, you set 100 more listing appointments than you would without cold calling. Remember this formula and use it as your motivation.We suggest a spreadsheet where you can record the days you called, the time of day, the number of calls you’ve made, the number of conversations, the number of rejections, and of course, the number of appointments set.When you’re halfway through a calling session and have had no appointments set, look at that tracking sheet, remind yourself that success is inevitable, and that you’re due for a win any time.10. Listen & Learn From the ProsYouTube is chock-full of videos from real estate agents who are crushing the cold calling game. Whether you’re looking for tips on how to interact with prospects or just need to get hyped up for your next calling session, these videos are a great source of inspiration. Here are a few of our favorites:Bryan Casella is an expert at dealing with objections. He is clearly using a script, and is crushing it every step of the way.Chastin J. Miles shows us how it’s done with an FSBO prospect. We love how Miles takes the tact of LISTENING as much as he can rather than doing all the talking, and you can see how effective it is with his soon-to-be client.How One Agent Tripled His Business in a Year With Cold CallingTrent Sims, Realtor, Key RealtyIt’s one thing to talk about the strategies that will help you up your cold calling game and also see larger-than-life personalities on YouTube knocking it out of the park. It’s another thing altogether to hear directly from an agent who took on the task of cold calling and used it to more than triple his business from one year to the next.Trent Sims is a Realtor living and working in Traverse City, Michigan. He’s a relatively new agent who started out in 2017. We sat down with Trent to ask him a couple of questions about how he got past his cold calling jitters and what he did to turn it into a vital part of his business, supplying us with the last five tips on our list.11. Surround Yourself With Coworkers Who Inspire & TeachCold calling can be scary and stressful, especially if you’re working alone. Find the other agents in your office who are also cold callers. You’ll be surprised how much you can learn just listening to experienced callers.Make it a point to listen closely to the agents who are killing it. What is their tone of voice? Where are they pausing? What little things can you make note of in order to improve your cold calling skills and lower your anxiety? Trent made this jump when he joined a real estate team with an experienced cold caller at the helm.12. Remember the Value You Are Bringing to the CommunityIn the moment you feel most anxious about your new commitment to cold calling, remind yourself that you are bringing value to your community. You have information that the people on the other end of the line can benefit from, and it is your job to communicate that information to them.The more positive responses Trent got in his cold calling, the more he understood that those who were taking him up on his offer were genuinely better for it. This was a feeling he used as fuel to push through the anxiety and keep going.13. Let Your Research Guide Your Farm AreasAs we mentioned in our tip about choosing the right call list, finding the most receptive audience to your message is going to dramatically improve your responses and eliminate a lot of the fear and stress of cold calling.Trent spends a lot of time finding just the right neighborhoods for his cold calling efforts, carefully combing through MLS data, local trends, and, of course, activity right in the neighborhood.If you’re calling a neighborhood where more than half the residents don’t benefit from your advice and opportunities, you are calling the wrong neighborhood.14. Up Your Conversion Rate by Asking for a HandshakeMost real estate agents mistakenly think the goal of every cold call is a listing appointment. This isn’t always the case, and Trent’s strategy for follow-up shows that a prelisting appointment visit makes those more hesitant homeowners a little easier to convert down the road.When someone isn’t ready to set a listing appointment, focus on just shaking their hand. Find any excuse to stop by and introduce yourself in person, even if it’s for a minute or two.15. Eliminate the Fear of the Word “No”Cold calling real estate agents are going to hear a lot of the word “no” and sometimes worse. If you’re afraid of this word, you aren’t going to get far enough into cold calling to reap the rewards that it provides.Remember, in order to get one listing appointment, you need to hear 208 “noes.” Trent learned early on not to let fear from the word “no” stop him; he used it as motivation that he was that much closer to a listing appointment.Bringing It All TogetherCold calling can be challenging and downright intimidating if you don’t have the right mindset, tools, and strategies to conquer it. Have any cold calling questions or tips you’d like to share? Anything we missed? Leave us a comment below!