Solution: Have all voicemails automatically emailed to you as sound files. This also ensures you are notified quickly when any new voicemails are left. Spectrum Business Voice offers this as a free service to its customers. Voice messages are attached to the emails as mp3 sound files, and recipients simply click on the email attachment to start listening.
After helping tens of thousands of companies set up voicemail systems, we’ve learned that there is no set of rules defining what makes a great business voicemail, but there are definitely some key points that you should aim to hit. Before you hit the record button for your voicemail message, take some of these tips into account:
.
29. Hi, you’ve reached [your name] at [your company]. Please send me an email at [email address] if this is urgent, and I’ll get in contact with you as soon as possible. If this is not urgent, please leave me a brief message about the reason you are calling with your contact information and I’ll get back to you in the next 24 hours. Have a great day.
First and foremost, it nearly goes without saying that it’s important to get a dedicated number specifically for work-related calls, but let’s just say it. Many of us working from home have had to deal with using our home phone number or getting an additional land-line installed. Those days of dial-up are long gone for most of us and it seems nearly everyone on earth now has a cell phone. There’s really no excuse not to have a dedicated work number these days. If you don’t have one, secure one today. It’s even easier than you think if you also consider options like Google Voice and My1Voice. You’d think this also goes without saying, but don’t leave the standard voicemail provided by your cell phone carrier or answering machine. It’s annoying. Everyone hates them. And don’t think that saying your name at the beep to customize your message helps. It’s just as annoying to hear the robotic voice that pauses as your voice interrupts the message to insert your name. Actually say your name You think I’m joking? I called someone just last week and when I got the voicemail it just repeated the number. I dialed by choosing the contact from my contacts and I’m not good with numbers. I wasn’t sure if the number was the number I mean to call, so I just hung up. It happens. Reveal specific information If it’s a typical work day and you’re just unable to answer your phone, it’s fine to say you’re currently unavailable. But if you’re sunning yourself on the beaches of Tahiti and have no intention of even checking your voicemail until you return to your desk in two weeks, it would be nice to let someone know. If they’re calling you they must need something. Let them know when you’ll be available. Give an emergency option Depending on what you do for a living, or just how accessible you want to appear to a potential employer, leaving an additional option for the caller to reach you often makes a good impression. Doctors offices do that all the time, right. If you can’t reach me this way, you can reach me THIS way. Or, you can reach someone else who can help you right now. KISS Keep It Simple, Stupid. You don’t want to speak like an auctioneer, but you do want to get as much information across as quickly as possible and get on to the beep. Your caller doesn’t need to know your life history, just the current facts and then sufficient space to leave you a message. Write it down Put some thought into exactly what you want to say. Don’t just hit record and play around until you’re satisfied that your message doesn’t suck. Think about it. Write down what you want to say and give it a try. Rearrange things, revise things. And, when you’re ready, hit the record button and give it a whirl. Smile Did you know that it’s believed that some 50 different types of smiles exist, from triumphant ones to bitter ones. Interestingly enough, there was a study a couple years ago where scientists used the phrase “I do in the summertime” to study the effects of smiling on person’s voice. Read all about in Smile – And The World Can Hear You, Even If You Hide. Or listen to the NPR show, Hearing a Smile in Tone of Voice. So close your eyes and think of your happy place. Think of something funny or amusing. Then, right before you hit the record button and begin speaking, SMILE. Callers will hear it. Just make sure you’re not actively laughing like the Joker from Batman throughout your voicemail greeting. Cut the comedy Smiling is a good thing. Acting like a clown, not so much. Cutesy comedic messages really don’t have a place on your work voicemail greeting. Be considerate Above all, consider the caller. A considerate message lets them know they’re important and that you’ll be returning their call. Even if the sun and moon revolve around your every move, your voicemail greeting isn’t the place for egocentric SOMETHING Listen to your messages and return calls
If you’re ready to go the professional direction, congratulations! Here are some websites you can use to hire a service to record your greeting.
Save Time by Building Phone Greeting and Voicemail Scripts. Most advanced cloud call center software offer a variety of phone greetings and voicemail types that can be customized according to the needs of your business.. Effective customized greetings are integral to call center success. The greetings and voicemail messages that callers hear when they connect with your call center set the …
Voicemail is necessary when no one can answer the phone. However, a dedicated receptionist can reduce the need for this feature and help people reach a live person. Consider live chat as well if your customers like to reach out online.
You have stated your calls-to-action. Now you have to make sure they know the process to follow. If you want your customers to leave their voicemail messages, you have to tell them from the start, “Kindly leave your name, purpose of your call, and how to contact you.”
Your message is a period of time that they are forced to wait through in order to do what they called to do in the first place — relay information to you.
Some Cox Voice customers have caller id masking which displays a different phone number for caller ID than the connected phone line. One example might be when a CEO makes a call from his private line, the caller ID number displays as the main office number rather than the number on his desk. If we have caller id masking on our lines, how does it impact our ability to use Cox Voice Mail?
22.Hello, you’ve reached [X company]. Unfortunately, we can’t answer your call right now. But your call is very important to us — so please leave us your name, phone number, and the reason for your call and someone from our team will get back to within [X number] business days .
By signing up, you agree to Snap Recordings Privacy Statement and Terms and Conditions Greetings Message On Hold MoH Subscriptions Voice Prompts Call Center Recordings IVR Prompts About partners Be a voice talent Privacy Statement terms & conditions Contact Us Blog faq script examples Audio converter Quoting Tool
Changing Voicemail Settings or Greetings from Your Phone or Mobile App
Start Skype and choose Tools→Options→Calls→Voicemail from the main menu.Put a checkmark in front of Send unanswered calls to voicemail.Just click the Record button (the green button with the triangle) and speak the Voicemail greeting you want callers to hear.Click the Stop button (the red button with the dot) when you're finished recording.Click the Replay button (the red button with the backward arrow) to listen to the message you just recorded.When you're satisfied that you recorded the perfect message, click Save.See More....
We'll take you through the five most professional voicemail greetings. This will include how to structure different parts of your voicemail, as well as things to avoid.
For additional details on the voice mail menu and associated options, see the Quick Reference Guide and User Guide. Cox Business Voice Mail includes high-value features to make leaving and retrieving messages efficient for you and your employees. Here is a summary of Voice Mail features: Three main voice mail options: Basic, Extension, and Group Voice Mail Speedy access when you dial “*298” from your desk phone Optional services for Unified Messaging and Readable Voice Mail Other Voice Mail Specifications We need to update the greeting in a voice mailbox, but prevent callers from leaving a message. Can we configure this with standard voice mail? Cox Business Voice mail offers multiple greetings options for you. The Extended Absence Greeting allows you to customize a greeting and select whether or not you want to prevent callers from leaving a message after the greeting plays. Press 5 from the Greetings menu to activate this feature.
I've helped thousands of professionals in dozens of industries. If you know you or your team is capable of more, then you’ve come to the right place.