3 Tricks To Take BETTER Sales Notes In 2025

Taking notes during sales calls is one of the most underrated skills in sales. The difference between a salesperson who takes detailed, actionable notes and one who doesn’t can mean the difference between closing a deal and losing it. Good notes help you remember key details, personalize follow-ups, and demonstrate that you truly understand a prospect’s needs.

But too often, salespeople struggle with note-taking. Either they take too few notes, missing important insights, or they take too many and get lost in unnecessary details. If you’ve ever finished a call only to realize you can’t remember half of what was said, you’re not alone.

The good news? You can easily improve your note-taking process. Here are three powerful ways to take better notes during your sales calls, leading to stronger relationships, better follow-ups, and more closed deals.

1. Ask More (and Better) Questions to Get the Right Information

One of the biggest reasons salespeople struggle with note-taking is that they don’t ask enough questions to get the right information in the first place. If your prospect isn’t sharing enough valuable insights, your notes won’t be useful no matter how detailed they are.

Great note-taking starts with great questions. When you ask open-ended, insightful questions, you get richer information that’s worth writing down. Here’s how you can do it:

Use Open-Ended Questions

Instead of asking questions that can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no," focus on open-ended questions that encourage prospects to share more details. For example:

• "Can you walk me through your current process?"
• "What challenges are you facing with your current solution?"
• "What would an ideal outcome look like for you?"

These types of questions force the prospect to think and share meaningful information, giving you valuable insights to capture in your notes.

Use the "Tell Me More" Strategy

Often, the first answer a prospect gives is just the surface-level response. Encourage them to elaborate by asking follow-up questions like:

• "Can you tell me more about that?"
• "What impact has that challenge had on your business?"
• "How does that affect your team’s daily work?"

The more details they provide, the more valuable your notes become.

Listen for Buying Signals and Decision Triggers

Your notes should focus on the key factors that influence the prospect’s buying decision. Listen for insights such as:

• Pain points they want to solve
• Budget constraints
• Decision-making timelines
• Competitors they are considering

By structuring your questions strategically, you’ll collect richer, more actionable information that makes your notes far more useful.

2. Record Notes in Your CRM or a Centralized Location

Even if you take great notes, they won’t help if you lose them or forget where you put them. Too many salespeople jot down notes on random pieces of paper, in notebooks, or in scattered digital documents—only to struggle when they need to find them later.

That’s why the best salespeople store their notes in a single, organized system—ideally, a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) tool. Here’s why it’s so powerful:

Keep All Prospect Information in One Place

Your CRM is designed to be a central hub for all interactions with your prospects. Storing notes directly in the CRM ensures that:

• You have easy access to past conversations
• You can track changes in a prospect’s situation over time
• Your team members can collaborate effectively if multiple people are involved in the sale

Use a Consistent Note-Taking Format

To make your notes more actionable, follow a structured format. A simple but effective approach is the “3 P’s” method:

1. Pain Points – What challenges does the prospect have?
2. Priorities – What are they focusing on solving first?
3. Path Forward – What’s the next step in the sales process?

By following a consistent format, you ensure that your notes are always clear and useful for follow-ups.

Make Notes Actionable

Don’t just write down what the prospect said—capture what it means for your sales process. For example:

• Instead of writing, "Needs better software," write, "Currently using [Competitor] but frustrated with lack of automation. Interested in a demo of our automation features."
• Instead of "Budget TBD," write, "Budget decision expected in Q2 after CFO meeting."

This level of clarity makes follow-ups much more effective.

Use Voice-to-Text Features

Many modern CRMs offer voice-to-text features that allow you to dictate your notes rather than type them. This can be a game-changer for salespeople who want to capture details quickly between meetings.

By consistently storing notes in your CRM, you’ll always have the information you need to move deals forward without scrambling to remember past conversations.

3. Use Otter.ai to Transcribe Your Video Calls for More Accurate Notes

Even with great note-taking skills, it’s easy to miss details during a fast-moving sales conversation. That’s where AI-powered transcription tools like Otter.ai come in.

Check out this short video post example of how Otter.ai earned someone a sale in 2025 by recording crucial information that helped win a sale:

Otter.ai automatically records and transcribes your video calls, giving you a detailed, searchable record of everything that was said. Here’s how it helps:

Capture Every Word Accurately

When you rely solely on handwritten notes, you risk missing key insights because you’re too focused on writing instead of listening. With Otter.ai, you get a full transcript that:

• Ensures you don’t miss important details
• Captures exact phrases prospects use (great for sales copy and proposals)
• Helps you analyze what worked (or didn’t) in the conversation

Easily Search for Key Information

One of the best features of Otter.ai is its search functionality. Instead of scrolling through pages of notes, you can simply search for keywords like "budget," "timeline," or "pain points" to find critical information in seconds.

Review and Improve Your Sales Approach

Having full transcriptions allows you to analyze your calls and refine your pitch. You can:

• Identify patterns in what prospects care about most
• See where conversations tend to stall
• Improve your messaging based on actual prospect language

Share Transcripts with Your Team

If you work in a sales team, Otter.ai makes it easy to share transcriptions with colleagues. This is especially useful for:

• Collaborating with managers or sales coaches for feedback
• Keeping your team aligned on account details
• Ensuring seamless hand-offs between sales and customer success teams

By using Otter.ai, you get a precise, comprehensive record of your sales conversations without having to rely solely on handwritten notes.

Conclusion

Taking better notes during sales calls isn’t just about writing things down—it’s about capturing the right information, organizing it effectively, and using the right tools to make your notes as actionable as possible.

To recap:

1. Ask better questions to get richer, more meaningful insights from prospects.
2. Store your notes in a CRM to keep them organized, accessible, and useful for follow-ups.
3. Use Otter.ai to transcribe calls and ensure you never miss a crucial detail.

By implementing these strategies, you’ll not only improve your sales note-taking but also close more deals by making every conversation count. Ready to level up your sales process? Start applying these tips today!

Did we mention that you can get started with Otter.ai for free?

Their basic account is completely free, you only need to pay when you want more.

• It transcribes all of your Teams, Zoom and Google Meet calls.
• You can use it for in-person conversations as well via the app.
• The AI Pilot provides coaching, summaries and follow up emails.

Why not give it a try for free today and see for yourself just how incredible it is?