“Hi, you’ve reached [your name] at [your company]. I’m unavailable right now — probably helping [type of company] get [X results, e.g. ‘double their leads in 60 days,’ ‘hire the best and brightest engineers,’ ‘convert 40% more customers.’] Leave your name and number, and we’ll discuss how your company can see similar results.” “Hello, this is [your name] at [company]. Thanks for calling. Please leave your name, number, and reason you’d like to chat, and I’ll get to back to you ASAP.” “Hi, you’ve reached [name] at [company]. If you need a quick response, please shoot me an email at [insert email address] and I’ll be in touch by EOD tomorrow. If it’s not urgent, leave me a message with your name and number. Have a great day.” “Hey, this is [your name]. If you’re calling for [X reason], please [contact so-and-so] or [go to our website, send me an email]. For all other inquiries, leave your name and a brief message and I’ll call you back within [one, two, three] business day[s].” “Hello, you’ve reached [name] at company. I’m unable to come to the phone right now. Leave your name and number, and I’ll return your call as soon as I’m free. Thank you.”
But texting streamlines the entire process. And the COVID-19 pandemic quickly transformed this luxury service into a basic purchasing method consumers expected businesses to facilitate. And while we had seen restaurants and big box stores dabble with curbside pickup before the pandemic, innovative businesses in other categories quickly developed clever curbside experiences. Healthcare providers, salons, and other companies have essentially used “curbside pickup” to create safer and more comfortable curbside check-ins. Customers pull into the parking lot, check-in via text, and sit comfortably in their car, awaiting a text back telling them when it’s time to come in for their appointment.
