Roleplay script · De-escalating an upset customer · one branch point · learner plays the rep
Setup. Priya ordered a replacement part after her first one arrived cracked. The replacement has now arrived damaged too, the second time this month. She calls support already frustrated, and the learner, playing the rep, picks up the call.
Characters. Priya, a customer of two years who has taken time off work to be home for both deliveries; the rep, who can authorize a replacement or a goodwill credit but needs a supervisor to approve both at once.
The exchange escalates over a few turns before the rep has to decide how to respond.
Priya: This is the second broken one this month. I took the afternoon off to be here for it, again, and it's cracked right down the side.
Rep: Thanks for calling in about it. Can I get the order number so I can pull it up?
Priya: I gave it to the last person. Why do I have to keep repeating myself? Nobody there talks to each other.
Rep: I do have the previous case here, I can see the first replacement went out on the fourth.
Priya: So you can see it's happened twice and I still have nothing that works. I'm done being patient about this.
Decision point — how does the rep respond?
- A. Acknowledge, apologize, and offer an immediate replacement plus a goodwill credit. Likely consequence: Priya's tone drops. She feels heard and sees a concrete fix. If the credit needs supervisor sign-off, the rep says so honestly and sets the expectation, which keeps the recovery credible. This is the target response.
- B. Explain the returns and replacement policy first. Likely consequence: leading with process reads as defensive when Priya is this upset. She hears a rule instead of an apology, digs in, and the call gets harder to recover even if the eventual offer is the same.
- C. Escalate straight to a supervisor. Likely consequence: a warm handoff is sometimes right, but jumping to it here can feel like being passed along. Priya repeats her story a third time, which is the exact thing that set her off. Use this only when the situation genuinely exceeds the rep's authority.
Coaching notes. The turn that decides this call is acknowledgement before solution. Name the problem and own it out loud ("Twice in a month is not okay, and I'm sorry you took the time off for this") before moving to the fix. Watch tone: warm, unhurried, and specific beats fast and scripted. Good looks like option A, a genuine acknowledgement, one concrete next step inside the rep's authority, and an honest expectation for anything that needs approval. If the learner picks B or C, replay this decision point and let them try the acknowledgement first.
