How to Build A Cold Call Scorecard
Includes: 1 AI Prompt, 1 Scorecard, 1 Diagnostic Tool.
Read time: 12 minutes
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People love to say cold calling is dead.
“No one picks up the phone.”
“Connect rates are too low.”
“It’s not worth the effort.”
But just because they gave up after 10 bad calls doesn’t mean cold calling is dead.
The best outbound teams in 2025?
They’re still crushing it with the phone:
Rippling SDRs book 650 demos a month through cold calls (50% of their total of outbound meetings) calling to HR leaders, CFOs, and business owners.
Nooks SDRs: 75% of meetings come from the phone calling to sales leaders.
Owner’s BDRs bring in $72K ARR/month/ rep, 95% from calls. 40+ meetings/day calling to restaurant owner.
Talkdesk: it's their top-performing channel calling to CX Leaders and IT leaders.
Hockeystack SDR team booked 90% of their meetings via the phone since they launched outbound in Q3 of 2024 calling to GTM leaders.
So if you or your team is making calls but struggling to convert connects into booked meetings, the problem isn’t cold calling. it’s the execution.
Want to fix that?
Implement a cold call scorecard to measure & improve every part of your calls.
Identify where calls break down (so you stop guessing why deals don’t move forward).
Use structured coaching & feedback to level up every rep.
What's on today's menu:
Why You Need a Cold Call Scorecard
The Ingredients of a Great Scorecard
Building Your Cold Call Scorecard: A Step-by-Step Guide
Evaluating the 4 Parts of a Cold Call
3 tools: Cold call breakdown tool, AI prompt, and a complete scorecard template
Additional Resources
Cold calling isn’t dead. Most teams are just bad at it.
Let’s get cooking!
What’s a cold call scorecard?
Simple.
It’s a playbook for what great cold calls actually looks like.
Instead of guessing if a call was “good” or not, a cold call scorecard breaks your calls into clear sections, so you can measure, improve, repeat what works, and scale.
KD (Kevin Dorsey) put it best:
“They transform subjective impressions ("this sounds good") into objective evaluations ("this IS good")”
Most reps and managers rely on gut feelings to judge a call.
A scorecard removes the guesswork.
A solid scorecard helps you:
Evaluate every call the same way (no more random feedback).
Identify exactly where reps are struggling (so coaching is focused).
Improve faster by fixing real weaknesses instead of making random tweaks.
Scale outbound and cold calling
Part 1: Why You Need a Cold Call Scorecard
Most sales teams don’t have one.
And the ones that do? It’s usually an old doc no one actually looks at.
But a good scorecard changes everything. It shifts coaching from “results-based” (too late to fix) to “behavior-based” (fix what you can control).
Why does that matter?
Pinpoints what’s broken. Instead of vague advice like “handle objections better,” you see exactly where the call went wrong.
Improves reps in real-time. No waiting weeks for results, fix it today.
Scales what works. If only managers know what a great cold call sounds like, the whole org is bottlenecked. A scorecard documents best practices so every rep improves faster.
The Data: Cold Call Success Rates
The numbers prove why improvements matter.
Great conversion rate, from connect with DM to demo booked: 30%
Gong found that call length directly impacts success:
🚫 Calls under 1 minute = 0% conversion.
⚠️ 5-minute calls = 16% success.
✅ 10+ minute calls = 30% success.
But most reps don’t even make it past 30 seconds. That’s where a scorecard helps, it identifies where your calls break down so you can fix it.
What happens when you use a scorecard?
You know if you or a rep is improving before the results show up.
Coaching gets 10x better. No more random “tips.”
Reps improve in real-time instead of weeks later.
Faster onboarding. New hires ramp quicker.
You stop being the bottleneck. Everyone knows what “great” looks like.
You scale cold calling (& outbound)
If you’re the only one in your org who knows what a good cold call sounds like?
You’re the problem.
A scorecard fixes that.
Part 2: The Ingredients of a Great Scorecard
Before breaking down the key sections of a cold call scorecard, let’s talk about what actually makes one effective.
A great scorecard isn’t just a checklist, it’s a tool to actually make you and your reps better.
Here’s what it must include:
1. Break the Call into 4 Key Chunks
Most scorecards overwhelm reps with too much feedback at once. The best ones break the call down into 4 simple sections so reps know exactly what to improve:
This is hands down my favorite framework for cold calls, the one I use with my customers.
It comes from Belal Batrawy, founder of LearnToSell.io. His approach is simple and makes it easy to pinpoint where your calls fall apart:
Opener (First 5 Seconds)
Problem Statement (Next 30 Seconds)
Conversation (Next 1-8 Minutes)
Closing (Final 30-60 Seconds)
Why This Works
Cold calls are way easier to diagnose than discovery calls or full sales cycles.
You can quickly see where you’re losing prospects just by checking when they hang up.
2. Focus on What the Rep Controls
A good scorecard measures behaviors, not outcomes.
If you or your rep is doing everything right but still not booking meetings, the fix isn’t “just make more calls”, it’s improving a specific part of the call.
3. Make It Clear & Measurable
No vague feedback like “you sounded okay” or “be more confident.” Instead, use clear, quantifiable ratings (e.g., Did you pause before responding? Yes or No.)
4. Tone Matters More Than the Script
Most reps focus on what they say, but how they say it matters more. The best scorecards prioritize tone:
Do you sound relaxed, calm, and conversational?
Are you rushing or talking too fast?
Do you pause before responding?
KD warns against overcomplicating things:
"When I first started out, my call scorecards had like 70 things on them and it overwhelmed my reps. Now my scorecard has just the KEY areas that I want my reps to focus on".
Bottom line?
Keep it simple, focus on controllable behaviors, and measure what actually drives results.
Part 3: How to Build Your Cold Calling Scorecard
Step 1: Shadow your top reps
Listen to your top reps’ calls and pick the 10 most important things that consistently make them successful.
If you don’t have a team (or you’re starting from scratch).
Use the scorecard I’m providing and tweak it based on what works for you.
You will find the scorecard at the bottom of this newsletter.
Step 2: Keep It Simple
A scorecard should help, not overwhelm.
Start with a basic Yes/No evaluation system to make scoring quick and clear.
Once that works, you can refine it with:
Numerical scales (1-5) with clear definitions
Tiered ratings (Below Expectations, Meets Expectations, Exceeds Expectations)
Color-coded scorecards for easy pattern recognition
The goal?
A format that’s easy to use but still gives meaningful feedback.
Step 3: Define Clear, Measurable Criteria
Make sure you’re scoring behavior, not just results.
Bad example: “Did you get permission to talk?” (outcome-based)
Good example: “Did you ask a permission-based opener?” (behavior-based)
You want to track what you or your rep actually did, not just whether they got a yes or no.
Step 4: Create a Scoring System
As a rep weekly:
Listen to 3 of your calls
Chunked - you don’t have to score your whole call
Identify 1 positive aspect and 1 areas for improvement
Focus on the 1 area for improvement
As a manager, weekly:
Score 2 calls per week per rep
Identify 1 area for improvement
Score your rep’s calls on this area for improvement
Step 5: Implement, Test, and Adjust
Roll out the scorecard, get feedback, and tweak it as your team grows.
Use Scorecards for Coaching, Not Just Grading
In school, scorecards (grades) were just for ranking students.
In sales, they should be a coaching tool, not just a score. They should help you or your reps learn, improve, and get better call after call.
Now what?
Now with AI, you can now automate scoring, track progress week over week, and see exactly where you or your reps need help.
Part 4: Breaking Down a Cold Call (For your Scorecard)
Here’s how to break a call into 4 sections and evaluate each one using a scorecard.
1: The Opener (First 5 Seconds)
If your calls keep ending right here, it’s because the prospect knows it’s a sales call and mentally checks out before you even get started.
What to Evaluate (Yes/No)
Tonality: Do you sound calm, confident, and curious? (Avoid being too formal or "professional")
Pace: Are you speaking at a natural speed?
Introduction: Did you say your name and company clearly?
Pattern interruption: Does the opener differentiate from typical cold calls?
Permission-Based Opener: Did you ask for permission to continue?
Acknowledge the cold call: Did you call it out?
Research: Did you add context?
Why most reps fail here:
They rush. The second you sound nervous, the prospect wants to hang up.
They sound like every other sales rep. “Hi,… how are you today?”
They don’t establish relevance fast. If the prospect doesn’t know why they should care, they don’t.
They talk too fast. If you sound uncertain, they’ll assume you’re wasting their time.
Tips for Improvement:
Interrupt the pattern. Say something unexpected. Example: “You weren’t expecting my call,”
Slow down. Speak like you already belong in their day. No rush, no desperation.
Keep control. When you sound calm and in control, they’ll stay on the line.
If you win the first 5 seconds, you get a shot at the rest of the call.
2: Problem Statement (Next 30 Seconds)
In this section, reps either sound too vague, too scripted, or just dump features instead of talking about real problems.
What to Evaluate (Yes/No)
🔒 Wait! Want the rest of the guide to build your cold call scorecard?
Here’s a quick taste:
Problem statement (next 30 seconds): what to evaluate, why most reps fail here, and 5 tips to fix it
The Conversation (1-8 Minutes): what to evaluate, why most reps fail here, and 5 tips to fix it
Closing the Call (Last 30-60 Seconds): what to evaluate, why most reps fail here, and 3 tips to fix it
Bonus: Includes 1 AI Prompt, 1 Cold Call Scorecard Template, and 1 Diagnostic Tool.
🔓 Want the full guide?
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