Customer Service Charades

Good for

Helping people read body language and think about their own

Building confidence when dealing with customers face to face

Having some fun ( with purpose ) and energizing the group

Building a team, or developing confidence in an induction or onboarding programme

Length

This exercise can be used for as long as you want it to run.  As a longer exercise or "little and often" through your training course.

Give each person one minute for the group to guess their charade

This exercise can be used in several ways

• as a team game
• to make points throughout your training about body language and customer service
• as an energizer - sharp one minute exercises to get energy back in the room
  

You will need

This is a simple activity that requires little planning or materials. We've made it easier for you, by developing a series of cards which you can download and use.  Just fill in the details at the bottom of the page, and you'll get your own copy of the game.

The download includes 25 name badges such as:-

• Irritated
• Delighted
• Impatient
• Late for an appointment

Instructions

Ask one member in the team to pick a card.

The card will describe someone or a situation which they may encounter.

Their job is to act out the emotion, personality or situation to the group within 60 seconds.

The team need to guess what is being acted out.

As facilitator, capture the team's guesses.

What was it about the body language that made the team think that?

What does that mean when helping customers?

What judgements do we make based on body language?

How does that affect customer experience?

How might our own body language trigger a response from the customer?

What is the appropriate body language for your organization, and your customers?

Variation

This exercise is also useful to get the team thinking about their response and reaction to the customer's body language. What does that trigger in them?

How can they manage that reaction, so that they suspend their own emotional reaction and help the customer.