How to write your company's service script (with template)

Good service looks improvised, but it almost never is. Behind a fluid conversation there is someone who knows what to ask, what to answer and where to lead the customer. This knowledge is usually in the head of whoever has been serving for years. The service script is the way to get it out of there and put it on paper.

This applies to training a new employee, to standardizing WhatsApp and, above all, to configuring an AI attendant, which will follow exactly what is written. This guide shows how to build a script from scratch, with a template at the end.

Before writing: listen to real calls

The script is born from what customers actually ask, not from what the company imagines. Over one or two weeks:

• Ask whoever answers to note the reason for each call, in a few words.
• Read the WhatsApp conversations and separate the questions that repeat.
• Note the answers that work well and the ones that cause confusion.

In the end, you will have a list of topics. Usually half a dozen of them account for most of the volume. That is where the script starts.

Define the goal of each call

Every call should end somewhere. For each topic on your list, decide the desired ending:

• Order noted (with what the customer wants, address, payment).
• Appointment booked in the calendar.
• Case noted and sent on WhatsApp to the right person on the team, with the link to call the customer.
• Information given and customer directed to the website or WhatsApp.
• Message noted for a call-back.

In Combot's AI Phone, these are precisely the functions you choose for the number. Defining the goal first avoids the conversation that goes around and gets nowhere.

The five parts of a script

1. Greeting

Short and with the company name. "Hi, this is Example Bakery, how can I help?" Avoid long greetings: callers want to talk right away.

2. Understand the request

An open question and, if necessary, confirmation questions. Do not interrogate: ask only what you need to reach the goal.

3. Collect what is necessary

List, for each objective, the required data. For a delivery order: product, quantity, address, reference point, payment method, name and phone number. For an appointment: service, preferred day and time, name and phone number.

4. Act

What happens with what was collected: the order goes to the company's WhatsApp, the time slot goes into the calendar, the message reaches the right person on the team's WhatsApp.

5. Close

Confirm what was done and state the next step. "I've noted your order; our team will contact you on WhatsApp to confirm the price." The customer needs to hang up knowing what will happen.

Write the company information

A script is not just a flow; it is also the knowledge base. Gather in one place:

• Address, reference points and parking.
• Opening hours, including holidays and Saturdays.
• Main products or services, with what can be shared about prices.
• Payment methods and delivery terms.
• Service area (neighborhoods, cities).
• The website, WhatsApp and social media.

Be specific. "We deliver in the area" is vague; "we deliver to the Centro, Vila Nova and Jardim Primavera neighborhoods, with a fee to be agreed" is useful.

Also write down what NOT to do

This part is often forgotten and is the most important for an AI:

• Do not share prices that change frequently (or share only a range and say the team confirms).
• Do not promise deadlines the team does not control.
• Do not give diagnoses, legal opinions or technical opinions.
• When to call the team: serious complaint, discount request, upset customer, subject outside the list. The AI notes the case and sends it to the team's WhatsApp, with the link to contact the customer.

Write the way people speak

A phone script is meant to be spoken. Short sentences, common words, no "dear customer" or "we inform you that". Read it aloud: if it sounds like a formal email, rewrite it. And avoid long codes (protocol numbers, barcodes) over voice; send them by message.

Template to adapt

Use this template as a starting point (the data is fictitious):

Company: Oficina Exemplo. Hours: Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Address: Rua Exemplo, 100, Centro. Main objective: schedule an appointment for an evaluation. Ask: car model and year, what is happening, preferred day, name and phone number. Inform: the evaluation is done before any estimate. Do not do: do not give repair prices over the phone. Send to the team on WhatsApp when: it is a customer whose car is already at the shop or a complaint. Outside hours: note the message and send it to the shop's WhatsApp.

Combot offers ready-made scripts for more than 100 industries, which follow this structure. Start with them and adjust to your style.

Test and review

1. Make test calls as if you were a customer: ask in different ways, interrupt, request something outside the script.
2. Read the first real conversations and note what the AI or the team could not answer.
3. Update the script every time something changes: price, hours, new product, holiday.

A script is never truly finished. It improves with use.

Frequently asked questions

Does the script need to be long?

No. A good script fits in one or two pages: the flow of the most common calls, the company information and the list of what not to do. Add detail only where customers usually have questions.

Who should write it?

Whoever handles calls today, with the owner's review. Whoever is on the phone knows the real questions; the owner defines what can be promised.

How often should it be reviewed?

Whenever something changes and, at the beginning, every week, by reading the real conversations.

Summary

Listen to customers, define the objective of each call, write the five parts of the flow, gather the company information and make clear what not to do. With that, you have a script that works both to train people and to configure an AI attendant. If you are still deciding between an options menu and an AI that converses, read IVR vs. AI attendant.