Customers don't like call center scripts. When they ask a question, they want a sincere, original answer, one that has been well thought out, preferably just for them. They don't want to hear the answer to someone else's question.
The article Taylorism and the Modern Call Center has a theory for why management wants call center agents to repeat the same things by rote, from a script: they want their employees to do as little thinking as possible. A script allows agents not to have to think so much, and it allows management and quality assurance not to have to worry so much about what the reps will say on their own.
On the other hand, as a call center rep, I don't want to have to come up with answers to questions that the company should have already thought of. If my product has a unique selling point, I expect the highly-paid marketing department to have already figured out what it is. If they want my opinion, they can certainly ask me, because customers tell me why they like our products. But I don't want to act like the marketing department or the public relations department.
So I want management to provide "talking points" for me. I want their guidance on what to say, in as many situations as possible. I don't want to be penalized if I depart from the script sometimes. I need to be able to respond to the customers as individuals. They will be more satisfied if I do, and they will buy more too.
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