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
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Here are several tips to consider when setting up a professional voicemail greeting:
22. Hello, this is [your name]. I’m currently away from my phone. I return calls on Tuesday and Friday at 10 a.m. Please leave a detailed message including your name and a callback number and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.
The voicemail greeting is an important element of your business’ phone system because it is often the first impression of your business that customers will have. Creating a really good voicemail greeting is a unique opportunity that you can use to impress customers by putting your best face on, while increasing the chances that you’ll retain their business in those times when you can’t
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8. “Thanks for calling [your name] at [your company]. I didn’t mean to send you to voicemail but I am either on the line with another client or on the go. Leave your name, number, the reason for your call today and the best time to call you back. I’ll speak with you shortly! ” Your caller probably wanted to reach you, not your voicemail. Advise your caller that you’re simply on the line with another caller and you’ll be right with them.
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 …
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You can set when you would like to send callers to your voicemail. For example, you may want to send all calls to voicemail when you know you’re going to be out of the office and not taking phone calls. 1
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Voicemail is one of the oldest and most basic features found in phone systems, yet it also seems to be the most overlooked feature, too. Businesses usually leave a generic greeting for callers, and think nothing more of it. But voicemail greetings are one of those seemingly trivial things that help project your brand’s image and say a lot about your company. So in order to help you create a voicemail greeting that makes people feel as welcomed, follow these tips below:
Nobody wants to play phone tag. Skip the back and forth by explicitly telling the caller to leave their name, number, and the best day(s) and time(s) to reach them. Your clients will appreciate you not wanting to waste their time.
For users who want to avoid the scripting process altogether, there are also services that provide prerecorded messages. Again, your voicemail greeting shoulders a lot of responsibility. Some people aren’t comfortable with having to create a message to deal with it. As such, users can choose from libraries of prerecorded messages, which are standardized greetings, for their voicemail. There are a variety of applications, services, and companies that provide this service. For example, VoiceNation, a voicemail, virtual PBX, and answering services provider, offers users a variety of samples.
You can allow callers to press 0 and be transferred to another phone number, of your choosing, when they reach your voicemail greeting.
It makes sense to have an after-hours / weekend voicemail greeting for important teams at your business so that your clients feel confident that they will be taken care of. You may also suggest alternate resources like a help forum, knowledge base, or online chat to support customers while closed, if available.