"Even responses have gotten shorter," she adds. "I was noticing that with some emails from four years ago where I had these very long, 'Hello, I hope all is well,' sort of like longer emails to now I'm much more — blunt." voicemail voice mail JPMorgan Chase workplace productivity Read & Listen Home News Arts & Life Music Podcasts Programs Connect Newsletters Facebook Twitter Instagram Press Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity Ethics Finances Public Editor Corrections Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Events NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Home Subscribe CRM Magazine CRM eWeekly (e-Newsletter) News CRM Featured Articles CRM Across the Wire In Depth Features ViewPoints Case Studies Columns Insight Blog Customer Service Marketing Sales More Topics Analytics Big Data CRM Channel Management Cloud-based CRM Enterprise CRM Integration Mobile SMB/Mid-market CRM Social CRM Topics Industries White Papers Best Practices Series Reports & Research Resources CRM Buyer's Guide & Directory Current Issue Previous Issues Market Awards Service Awards Jobs Webinars Events CXConnect CRM Evolution Conference Smart Customer Service Conference SpeechTek Digital Experience Conference About What Is CRM? About Us Contact US How to Advertise Getting Covered Editorial Calendar Reprints November 1, 2014 By Leonard Klie, Editor, CRM magazine and SmartCustomerService.com Business Voicemail Goes Unanswered
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.

Shawn Hakl is head of new products for Verizon's business division. Before the digital era, he says more than 80 percent of business lines had voice mail. Now, he estimates only a third of office phones have it.
A relatively unprofessional one — like mine, for instance — does the opposite: It encourages prospects, recruiters, and potential connections to run in the other direction.