According to Gartner Research, more than two-thirds of companies compete for business today primarily based on customer experience – up from only one-third back in 2010. Knowing this, it should not surprise you that customer-centric companies are 60% more profitable than companies that are not.
A lot of small businesses set up a 13, 1300 or 1800 number to appear more professional, but that’s only the first step. Using a business phone service gives you a range of advantages over your standard landline, including the ability to: Set your business hours and record different voice greetings to align with a particular time of day or year. Set up an automated response, add department extensions to route the calls, and more. Have multiple users on the phone number via call overflow regardless of their location. For ideas on what to include in your voicemail greeting, see our blog on examples of professional voicemail greetings.
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Expand your opening to with 'Thank you for calling [insert company/individual name]' or 'You've reached the voicemail of [insert company/individual name]'. This personal touch goes a long way towards building a rapport even when you're not available to answer the call directly.
If you find that your business voice message is running a bit long, break it down into sections and decide which parts you can cut out to reduce the message’s length.
Yeah, that is the type of voicemail greeting you want to make sure that you no longer have, especially since employers might be getting your voicemail when trying to contact you, and if you are telling them to “do their thang,” chances are they aren’t even going to bother leaving a message.
No one enjoys listening to long, drawn-out voice messages. When considering what to say, identify one main point and discard the rest.
Have you ever stopped to hear the following, ‘’Hi, this is [your name] of [your business]. I’m currently unable to take your call. Please leave your name, phone number, and a brief message, and I will contact you as soon as possible. Thanks.
30. Hello, you’ve reached [your name]. I’m currently out of the office and will return on [X date]. If your call requires urgent attention, please call [Name] at [phone number] and they’ll be happy to assist you. If not, leave a message and I’ll return your call when I get back.
In today’s digital-first world, it can be extremely easy to treat things like your business voicemail as an afterthought. Your voicemail has the potential to communicate so much more effectively than its digital counterpart.
It's easy to get carried away in a voicemail and include more detail than is necessary. We've all been in that situation where the automated or pre-recorded voice on the end of the line goes on and on with more information than you can take in.
If you have a main business phone number that’s shared with the customers or publicly listed, you’ll want to make sure it has a professional voicemail message to greet callers. Here are sample greetings you can use to help you craft your own.
43. Hello, this is [X company]. We’re not able to take your call at the moment, but please leave a brief message so we can get back to you shortly.
Website: https://www.att.com/ecms/dam/att/smb/help/pdf/ATTPhoneforBusinessVoicemailUserGuide3.6.2020.pdf
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The following voicemail greeting examples range from the brief and simple to the more detailed. You should choose the one that best suits your job and responsibilities as well as your personality. Before recording your message, you should also make sure to adhere to the basic elements of good voicemail greetings. basic elements of good
e. Never Assume Anything: Phrases like “You Know What To Do,” “Sing Your Song at the Beep,” and others mentioned above are awful to leave in your greeting. For the sake of universality and comprehensiveness, NEVER assume the caller knows what to do. Lay it out clearly. f. Leave a Message: This phrase, by itself, will not do. It’s imperative for users to identify themselves in their greetings. Callers need to know they’ve reached the right person. g. Disregard Lethargy: If you’re not excited about your greeting, why would anyone else be? Never display a lack of enthusiasm in your greeting as it could turn callers off to both you and your business. h. Speak Clearly and Never Slur: Callers need to understand your every word; therefore, mumbling, slurring, and all other detractions of speech should never be recorded. d. Be Creative Without Sacrificing Quality: Callers know how voicemails work–i.e. leave a number, message, etc. While you want to be clear, it’s important not to be contrive or redundant with your message. Creativity can help users to differentiate themselves, as well as intrigue callers. While users should avoid the tropes of creativity listed above, it’s definitely good to think outside the box. That being said, scripting and practice can help users to experiment more with their greeting–ultimately allowing for more unique and creative approach. e. Speak With Diction: It’s important to present one’s self as an authority without alienating callers. As such, it’s crucial to articulate and speak with clear diction. “ if your voice recording has you stumbling over words and speaking haltingly, it does not convey confidence and competence,” states Ron Sellers of Grey Matter Research & Consulting. Remember, this greeting represents you; therefore, you want to appear collected and professional, as well as welcoming. To do this, one must carry themselves well through their recorded message. f. Account for Timeliness: Your message should be concise. No caller wants to be sitting through a rant/diatribe of redundant statements. Your greeting should flow without dragging. Inversely, one doesn’t want to be terse, either. Engage callers with a simplified approach laden with creativity. h. Account for Quality: Aside from speaking clearly, users want to eliminate any noise in the surrounding environment. The quality of the greeting is just as important as what’s being said in the greeting itself. As such, one doesn’t want to undermine a great message with poor quality. i. Courtesy, Tastefulness, & Tact: This is pretty self-explanatory and straight forward–NEVER be rude. Being light-hearted and humorous is very different from being obnoxious and/or abrasive. Again, these tools can be helpful if utilized properly, but not everyone perceives humor the same way. So play it safe. The last thing your voicemail greeting should do is offend a caller. k. Provide Options: if you’re part of a bigger company, it might be good to offer caller options. For example, allow a menu to defer callers to a colleague or co-worker in your absence. This can help show callers you care about their well being. Another option might be offering different modes of communication–i.e. email, fax, etc. In offering users diversity, contact may be much easier to maintain.
To improve a a business voicemail greeting, keep these eight rules at the forefront of the creative process: Avoid turning customers off with overused and impersonal phrases like “your call is very important to us..." Avoid leaving customers unsure by not immediately telling them the business, department, and/or person they’ve reached. Avoid leaving customers confused with too many details and complications; just keep it simple. Avoid messages longer than 25 seconds. Do apologize for being unavailable at the moment. Do invite the caller to leave a message. Do tell the caller when they can expect a return call and actually follow through within that timeframe. Do tell the caller about any applicable alternative options of contact and information- website, live chat, email, social media, or emergency numbers. Voicemail Greetings 101