Comments

Steve, so spot one !! - Down with Scipting !!

Last year we had this program that was called "whats the 20 most stupidest things, that we ask you to do" -- one of the things which popped up was "why scripts" - we can speak intelligently and we dont like behaving like robots !!

Posted by /pd at September 6, 2006 7:37 PM

And ... it's so obvious to customers when an employee is speaking from a script. The employee feels disconnected, and so does the customer.

Posted by Steve Yastrow at September 6, 2006 7:52 PM

Think of this in sync with John O'leary's post below about employee engagement. How can an employee be engaged when forced to recite a 17 point script?

Posted by Steve Yastrow at September 6, 2006 7:57 PM

Steve, I'm sure I'm not the only one who's desperately trying to get off the phone with a call center rep (while I try not to be rude) as s/he scrolls through the closing message steps like
"We really appreciate your business, Mr O."
"Is there anything else I can help you with today, Mr O?"
"I want to thank you for calling XYZ today, Mr O."
"But before you go, I'd like to tell you about our latest offer..."
"No? Well, we really appreciate your business, Mr O."
"Is there anything else I..."
ARRRRUUUUUUGGGGHHHH
I recognize that not everyone wants their transactions completed at warp speed and some customers will put up with some verbosity in exchange for some "connection," but I might actually switch vendors if I could find some that dispensed with the social niceties to shave 20 seconds off my calls with them.

Posted by John OLeary at September 6, 2006 11:40 PM

I'd prefer that they shave time off my call by knowing who I am (by the "x" digit number I already gave them), knowing what I've bought from them and any past issues I might have had, knowing when I last called, etc. They should take the time to connect. It doesn't need to be long and flowery - just know my stuff and act like you actually care about my business with you. Connection made!

The worst part about scripts is that CSR's often don't know what to do if your issue isn't covered by one of their scripts. I once had a Dell rep read me the same script 3 times. Even though it didn't do the job the first two times she kept going! I couldn't get her to stop.

When someone gets customer service right - it's a beautiful (and time-saving) thing.

Posted by ann michael at September 6, 2006 11:48 PM

CSRs need to own the company - they need to think, talk, and act like CEOs/ CMOs / CTOs, if they are to deliver perfect customer experiences - and CSRs like that are hard to come by!

Jay, from Bangalore

Posted by Jayakumar Hariharan at September 7, 2006 12:32 AM

In my last job, part of my duties included running a small (8 person) Customer Service team and I was tasked by my boss with producing some "standard scripts." I have to confess I wasn't against the idea at the time. However, I spoke about it with the team and, to a person, they were vehemently against it. (Surprise!) What they couldn't understand, and I was unable to explain to myself or them, was what we were really trying to achieve. Why is a "uniform customer experience" such a great goal - are there any uniform customers? And no, no one had complained about the way they were being handled by the team. And didn't the company trust them to do the key things (apart from being polite and helpful) like listening for other sales opportunities? So would a script and layers of checking really improve anything?

In the end, our script was a uniform greeting ("Company X, good morning, I'm Julie, how can I help you?") After that, it was left to them to resolve the call.

Posted by MarkJF at September 7, 2006 1:30 AM

Aaargh ... I got the biggest rollocking of my professional life because for 2 months running the mystery shopper report on my team ticked the "no" box for the "did they use customer name?" question. Still, no recognition for the 48 out of 50 correct boxes ticked, at least 23 of which are totally irrelevant to developing a personal service experience for the customer. I changed jobs 3 months later.

Posted by Dave at September 7, 2006 5:02 AM

Front-line staff need to realize that a personal touch or a personal connection with the customer is the best thing to do at all times (and especially during troubled times!) which ultimately makes the customer feel delighted and privileged thereby creating a very momentous user-experience (from the customers’ view-point) and a sense of personal success / accomplishment (from the frontline staffs’ point-of-view). So, it’s a “WIN-WIN” situation for everyone!

I love this quote by Jeff Bezos – “We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It's our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.”

Posted by K.Sriram at September 7, 2006 5:37 AM

That's an interestig topic you brought here. This reminds me a concept they use in the East: "non-duality - duality - and non-duality again".

For instance, when one comes to study karate, if attacked, at first one reacts spontaneously and intuitively, demonstrating what is often called beginner's luck. But next he is being taught all those extremely complex stuff about how to move and breath (which is a rough equivalent of 13-step processes here). At this stage the student becomes unsure of himself and tries to do complex things consiously - which is impossible - losing his efficiency dramatically. However, at the next stage he incorporates all the lessons as a part of himself, becoming unconsionsly competent and whole, non-dual again.

As they say, one stops "doing" and "becomes it". In your example, one stops conecting to the customer because his job requires it and connects because he simply can not act otherwise. Because he is just a person who LOVES to connect. At this point skill becomes a highly valued art.

The question is: how do you become that kind of a person? Should you follow the 13-step process first or you can skip that part? What are the other options available? Is this a question of choosing the right job? Does this all mean customer service trainig is completely irrelevant?

Posted by Alexei Kapterev at September 7, 2006 5:42 AM

Customer Service reps though can be FUN - I always ask them what else they can offer relating to travel, credit cards, cell phones, Nordstroms, Nike, et al - AND it is surprising the things they'll give away in the name of CS.

AND I ask them where they are located and what IT equipment/systems they use - some fun/useful ideas there - new FREE things to learn.

Posted by sean at September 7, 2006 8:24 AM

The only script that's needed is, "Hi! This is Jane. how may I help you today?" This is assuming, of course, that the CSR has been hired because s/he has a great personality, has been fully trained in the company's products and services, and knows who to contact if s/he doesn't know the answers. Usually, the reason for poor customer service is because the company has skimped on training and the CSR couldn't find the answers even if s/he wanted to.

Posted by Tracy at September 7, 2006 9:13 AM

Back in the day when I worked with/marketeed call center services, we always said, "Hire for attitude first." If the person doesn't have the right attitude and perspective, all the scripts in the world won't help.

That said, there should be a guide (not a script written in granite) to help the rep, not hinder them. Who to call when there's a higher level technical issue, etc. etc.

Posted by Mary Schmidt at September 7, 2006 9:15 AM

1. Hire friendly/helpful people.
2. Indoctrinate them with company culture/goals.
3. Teach them how to use the necessary tools of their job.
4. Let them show you they know how to do the job. If not, coach some more.
5. Get out of their way.
6. Get their input on how to improve service once they've been on the front line awhile.
7. Stay connected with them and repeat steps 2 through 7 from now on.

Posted by Randy Cantrell at September 7, 2006 9:53 AM

If the script is helpful, use it. If it's not, get rid of it. Most of the scripts that I have had to use (and there have been many) are command and control devices. There were two, however, that were carefully crafted to train and encourage competence and mastery.

Your customers will let you know soon enough if what you are saying and doing works or not.

Thanks for the post; it has encouraged me to re-think my positions on both being a customer and how to better treat my customers.

Posted by Kate at September 7, 2006 10:37 AM

Listening is the greatest skill and tool any brand representative possesses--from CEO to CSR to cashier. (Is their an abbreviation for that position?) How can a script, which drives forever onward to the next scripted response/question regardless of what a customer says, be useful or customer-focused?

Posted by Lewis Green at September 7, 2006 10:58 AM

1. Be Authentic
2. Have Fun
3. Provide Extra Value

Posted by sean at September 7, 2006 11:35 AM

viagra free sample pack

It's all about TALENT! (where have we heard that before?).

The modern belief in the perfectability of systems, scripts, policies and procedures seems to have no grounding in fact, and yet it is embraced and acted upon all over the place. There is certainly a place for good processes, but deviation from the script ought to be recognized as a sign of initiative and intelligence... and rewarded, not punished or criticized.

It seems to me that the system is broken, it's always been broken, and always will be broken. No matter how good we make it, there will always be room for improvment and creative initiative by thinking, talented people.

I could be wrong...

Posted by Dan Ward at September 7, 2006 1:14 PM

I agree with Ritz-Carlton:
1. "We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen."
2. Listen to the customer and do whatever it takes to satisfy the customer.
3. When a customer hands you a problem, you own it until the customer is happy.

Posted by Erick Blackwelder at September 7, 2006 10:04 PM

I much prefer "Topics to cover" or bullet pointed reminder checklists to scripts that way you can ensure some process (they have remembered to get all the details) but they can do it in their own words and sort out what is relevant or not

Posted by PaulH at September 8, 2006 5:08 AM

Great topic Steve.

Working with unemployed years back I had a young teenager get a job with a telemarketing company, she dropped in to visit me distressed after a week, not getting any sales.... then showed me the SCRIPT from HELL!

We turned it into bullet points so she could jump to any one of them to handle questions etc... Next day she was back, 7 sales next day 14!

The boss applauded the results and told the others at the weekly meeting "See what happens when you stick to the script!" HA!

Remember the points, trash the linkin' bits...

Posted by Steve Gray at September 9, 2006 5:41 AM

"I'm starting to see companies realize the folly of this rigid employee scripting. Is this a trend that’s really happening?"

Steve,

This is a very interesting question. In our consulting practice we're finding companies are loosening the grip on CSR scripting. In fact, we're beginning to find them concentrating more on the outcome than on their methodology. We think iIt's definitely a trend in companies and its time has come.

It's also a new trend for individuals in business, especially those doing business development. For more than 20 years, as a sales trainer, I harped on scripting - "get your script right'- and closing strategies, and then trained hundreds of people in those techniques. That was then, this is now, and things have changed.

There's a new, more humanistic wave afoot in the selling industry and it's adjusted my thinking, my behavior, and my results.

No longer are we putting potential clients in a sales 'process', and we've thrown away every script and canned language we can find.

This new wave is about being 'real' with customers, respecting them as people, and removing pressure from any transaction, whether it's negotiating new work or even making a cold call.

You may want to check out Ari Galper's Unlock the Game: http://www.unlockthegame.com/ He's removed scripting for good and it was truly a breath of fresh air.

Posted by Jerry Gasché at September 15, 2006 12:06 PM