‘Scriptease’ is one of those things that drives me crazy! You will have experienced it, I am sure. It occurs when the person serving you as a customer ‘follows the script’ instead of listening and engaging with you. It’s the lady from the supermarket who asks ‘Do you want help with your packing?’ when you have only bought a bottle of milk; it’s the waiter who asks ‘Is everything okay with your food?’ when she looks away and starts pacing when you start to give some feedback, it’s the sales rep who is busy raving about your latest product even though he clearly has no interest.

It happens in many businesses, and the reasons are many. Is it easier to follow the ‘script’ in your business? Are you even guilty of doing it yourself? Here are 10 ideas to remove it from your company:

1. Find out what happens!
Have someone call your own business or drop by for a consultation. How good are your people at dealing with questions? Ask them to comment on their experiences. Consider a ‘mystery shopper’ exercise. Set up continuous feedback systems that allow customers to tell you when it’s happening – reward them for spotting it!

2. Throw away the rule book!
In your business there is a book. It is a book of rules, regulations and procedures that people quote verbatim and use on a daily basis. You will never find! It is invisible, but somehow it lives, breathes and influences the behaviors of your business. Some of the rules are good, many are limiting. Your challenge is to discover its negative contents and throw them away. Examples include ‘We can’t…’, ‘We must…’ and ‘I’m not allowed to…’ Ask your people about it; many will quote it word for word.

3. Champion your customer champions!
Who creates the best reaction from your customers in your business? Find out what they do, how they do it, what they say and how they say it! Replicate it! Have others learn from them. Encourage (and reward) them to share their experience. What is the reward for being great with customers in your business? (In too many, it means you have to deal with more of them, which is to say, a lot more work!).

4. Empower your people
It’s a buzzword, but true empowerment is about giving people the confidence, skills, and permission to think, anticipate, and do things. Trust is about support, encouragement, and leadership; skills have to do with training, development and learning; permission is about setting and communicating clear guidelines to everyone. “I’ve just empowered my people to say ‘Yes’ to a customer. If they want to say ‘No’ they have to talk to a manager and clear it up with them first” Jan Carlzon, author of Moments of Truth, at the time CEO of Scandinavian Airline Systems.

5. Hire for attitude!
Recruit front-line people who can demonstrate their listening and conversation skills. Assess your ability to build rapport, think on your feet, identify problems, be spontaneous, and generate ideas. Do your recruiting processes find these skills? If not, change them! “We are not looking for high systems knowledge and 80% of our recruiting does NOT come from the bank. The ability to speak your mind, project your personality and high levels of resilience are much more important” David Mead, when he was Director of Service to the Client in First Direct.

6. Script Ban
Simple. Let’s go.

7.Generate Alternatives
Gather your team together and encourage them to generate ‘conversation generators’, ideas to address specific scenarios, issues and queries. ‘Role play’, solve what works, replace what doesn’t. Train people, encourage them to experiment, challenge them, have fun!

8. Role model
Sometimes we need a ‘spark’ to help us. Sometimes we need some inspiration. Other times, we just need someone to learn from. Who sets the standards that surprise you? Don’t limit yourself to your industry (they may all be poor!). Get your people to call, visit and talk to them. What do they do well that impresses you? What can you learn? No, don’t just copy them… figure out what you can ‘borrow’, ‘amend’ and ‘improve’. Encourage your team to do the same. Why not ask your customers who they think you can learn from?

9. Measure impacts
Monitor and measure customer satisfaction levels, loyalty, repeat business, conversion rates, sales, not just call duration, number of calls, or number of rings. Remember that it is about quality and quantity. What is achieved is measured and managed. Let your people know what’s important. If they understand that it’s all about customer engagement, satisfaction, and service, they can adjust their behaviors accordingly.

10. Show your personality
How do you want people to feel about your business? What lasting impression do you want to make? What is your competitive advantage? Answer these questions and then answer this one… Does the way we interact with our customers fully reinforce this? If not, then do something about it today.

‘Scriptease’ exists in so many businesses, make sure it doesn’t happen in yours!