The simple truth is that you need to be more aware of what you’re leaving for other people to hear. Sure, this doesn’t always register as a priority for users, but it’s never too late to reassess your greeting. a. Reading/Speaking in the Imperfect Tone: Tone is absolutely everything. Users don’t want to come off as being too nice, as it sounds insincere, or being too terse, as it can be interpreted as being rude. That being said, striking the right balance is absolutely essential. Your greeting exists as its own entity, and therefore, it should NOT rely on callers’ familiarity with you. Instead, it needs to appeal to the masses. As such, your inflection, i.e. the way you state your name and directions, needs to be both welcoming and firm. b. Injecting Humor & Insincerity: While humor/light heartedness can be welcoming, it can also convey a sense of informality, insincerity, and ultimately unprofessionalism. Why, because you’re not there to lend your humor or to contextualize. Instead, you’re assuming the caller has a working knowledge of your personality to ground the message. Though this might not sound like it’s all that terrible—it can be detrimental. As stated above, one should NEVER rely on a caller’s familiarity with you. Instead, aim to appeal to the masses. Humor is ultimately subjective, meaning not everyone has the same tastes; therefore, someone is bound to be turned off by a quirky or off-color remark. While implementing a light-hearted or even tongue and cheek tone can work, it’s just a really bad idea.
The pet care service providers get calls from pet owners at odd hours or when they are busy attending to their chores. So, resorting to voicemail services is necessary for such businesses. Below is an excerpt from a voicemail for a pet service entity:

The phone you use to record your greeting – and your surrounding – can turn your carefully scripted greeting into an unprofessional mess. Background noise is terribly distracting, so choose a quiet room or parked car to make your call. Landlines, or a “wi-fi enabled” cellphone call, can provide much better connection quality than a standard cellphone. If you must use a cell phone, be sure to use a high-quality headset for the best clarity.
With Business Communicator you can see the number of new messages in your mailbox, call voicemail to retrieve messages, and manage voicemail features. You can access your voicemail using your call history or by using the dialpad to manually call the voicemail system. From the menu on the left in the main window, click Call History (the handset with a clock icon). The number of new voicemail messages in your mailbox shows under Voice Mail. To retrieve your messages, double-click the Voice Mail link. Business Communicator calls your voicemail, and an active call window opens next to the main window. When the voicemail system answers and prompts you, type your passcode and the # sign using the dialpad in Business Communicator or your keyboard. To play, delete, and forward your voicemail messages, or manage your voicemail settings, follow the voicemail system prompts. When the voicemail system answers and prompts you, type your passcode followed by the # sign using the dialpad in Business Communicator or your computer keyboard. To play, delete, and forward your voicemail messages or manage your voicemail settings, follow the voicemail system prompts. To learn more about voicemail features and functions, you can access the Voicemail quick reference guide. Installing Business Communicator on your computer Setting your audio and video device preferences Accessing voicemail Exploring Business Communicator Viewing your IM/chat history Turning Call Forwarding on and off Adding a profile picture or avatar Transferring a call Signing in to Business Communicator Making a phone or video call from Business Communicator Topics covered on this page: Business Communicator VoIP