3 Essential Scripts For Your Sales Team: Core, Follow-Up & Counter Rejection

Many bosses have a few sales staff, but the issue is that each one talks to customers in their own style.

The first staff member throws the price straight away. The second loves to ramble on with long explanations. The third just stays quiet, waiting for the customer to ask before they respond.

The real problem here: when there is no standard script, management struggles to know which approach actually works, where the mistakes are that need fixing, and why one staff member can close at a higher rate than another.

A sales script does not mean staff have to speak stiffly like a robot.

In reality, a sales script is a conversation structure that helps the team understand:

• what should be asked
• what should be explained
• when it is right to show proof
• when it is best to give the price
• and how to lead the customer to the next action

Every sales team should have at least three main scripts:

• Core Script
• Follow-Up Script
• Counter Objection Script

And to make sure all these scripts are truly put into practice, the team also needs to use the Quick Reply function in WhatsApp Business.

1. Core Script

The Core Script is the main script used when a customer first contacts your sales team.

It helps staff hold the conversation flow from first contact right up until the customer is ready to hear a proposal or offer.

The basic framework of the Core Script goes like this:

Intro : Trust : Offer : Urgency. People call this framework ITOU.

Intro

The Intro is the opening phase when a customer contacts you for the first time.

The team does not need to explain everything at length right away. Just start with a brief introduction and one relevant question.

Here is an example:

Salam, I'm Aina from HQ ABC. May I know if this product is for your own use or for family?

The goal is not to interrogate the customer excessively. The real goal is to start the conversation and understand the customer's situation.

The Core Script is really a question sequence. Those who are good at controlling the questions usually find it easier to control the direction of the conversation.

"Whoever controls the questions controls the conversation." Closing Script = Question Sequence.

Trust

After the Intro, the team then needs to build trust.

Trust can be built through:

• convincing answers
• relevant explanations
• photos or videos
• testimonials
• customer results
• proof of experience
• follow-up questions that show the staff understands the customer

The more expensive a product or service, the higher the level of trust a customer needs before they are willing to buy.

And this trust does not come from the salesman alone. In the slide, trust is divided into three:

• Personal Trust
• Product Trust
• Brand Trust

Offer

An Offer does not mean immediately "throwing the price" at them.

The team needs to suggest a solution based on the problem or need the customer has already shared.

For example:

Based on what you shared earlier, I'd rather suggest the Advance package because it includes personal guidance and periodic reviews.

After that, the team then explains the price, what the customer gets and why the package is truly suitable for them.

A good Offer sells value, not just price.

Urgency

Urgency is used to help the customer make a decision now, instead of leaving the conversation hanging without a next action.

Urgency can be divided into two:

• Promotional Urgency
• Emotional Urgency

Promotional urgency relates to an offer, deadline or limited slots.

Emotional urgency is about the benefit the customer will feel if they act now, or the risk if they leave their problem just as it is.

Today's customers are getting smarter. They can detect which urgency is fake and which is real.

2. Follow-Up Script

Not every customer will buy on the first conversation.

In this training framework, around 30% of customers are depicted as buying on the spot, while around 70% more need two to three follow-ups before they buy.

This means, if the team only attends to the customer on the first day and then gives up when the customer goes quiet, a lot of potential sales will simply be lost.

The Follow-Up Script is used when a customer:

• blue-ticks you
• stops replying
• is still thinking
• has not chosen a package
• already knows the price but has not decided
• has chosen a package but has not paid

Following up does not mean sending the same message over and over again.

Messages like this usually do not help much:

Hi, how is it? Are you buying? Still interested?

Every follow-up should have a new topic and end with a trigger question.

For example:

In the video I shared earlier, it shows the treatment process for sensitive skin. Did you get a chance to play that video?

Or:

If you'd like to start with a lower budget, we also have a trial package. Would you prefer to try the trial first or go straight for the full package?

The first goal of the follow-up is to get a reply and revive the conversation. Not to immediately force the customer to buy.

3. Counter Objection Script

The Counter Objection Script is used when a customer tells you the reason why they are not ready to buy.

Among the objections we often encounter:

• too expensive
• don't need it yet
• no time
• don't trust yet
• want to compare
• tried before but it didn't work
• don't understand
• not enough budget
• want to think first
• want to ask their spouse or partner

In the slide, there are 12 main categories of customer rejection, including price, need, time, trust, comparison, past experience, information overload, budget, urgency, commitment, product feature and non-decision maker.

Without a Counter Objection Script, staff usually do one of these two things:

• give up straight away; or
• argue with the customer and try to prove the customer is wrong

For example, when a customer says:

Customer: It's too expensive. An unsuitable response: It's not expensive at all. All the other customers are perfectly fine with it.

A response like this fights the customer's ego.

A better principle: Acknowledge first. Say "Yes" first. Only then bring in the closing element.

For example:

Yes, this package is indeed a bit higher because each class only has five students. So the teacher can give more attention to every student.

The customer feels heard first. Only then does the team explain the value.

Why Is Quick Reply So Important?

Just having scripts in Google Docs is still not enough.

If staff have to open a file, scroll through a document or copy-paste from someone else's chat, they will eventually go back to using their own words anyway.

That is why all scripts need to go into WhatsApp Business Quick Reply.

WhatsApp Business has functions like:

• Label
• Quick Reply
• Catalog
• Business Profile
• integration with Meta Ads

Each script can be arranged using a shortcut. For example:

• /i1 : Intro 1
• /t1 : Trust 1
• /o1 : Offer 1
• /u1 : Urgency 1
• /f1 : Follow-Up 1
• /r1 : Rejection Reply 1

"No Quick Reply = No Closing Script." Copy-pasting from the next chat over is not a real script system.

With Quick Reply:

• staff responses become faster
• the whole team uses standard messages
• management can easily update scripts
• new staff onboard more quickly
• messages that don't work are easier to spot
• training also becomes more practical

Conclusion

A good sales team does not rely on individuals who are just good talkers. They need a system that can be repeated:

• Core Script to control the first conversation.
• Follow-Up Script to revive prospects.
• Counter Objection Script to answer customer doubts.
• Quick Reply to ensure all scripts are easy to use.

When the scripts are standardised, management can review, compare and improve the team's performance more systematically.