A word of warning: These greetings will not do you any favors if you’re in the midst of a job hunt or work in a conservative industry. Always remember your target personas. If there’s a chance they won’t appreciate your sense of humor, opt for a straightforward greeting instead. “This is Bond. James Bond. Okay, it’s really [your last name]. [Your first name] [your last name]. I’ll get back to you as soon as I’m done helping M16 save the world — which will probably be tomorrow at the latest. Have a good day.” “Hmm. Gryffindor … No, Ravenclaw. Yes, you definitely belong in Ravenclaw. *Pause.* Okay, you haven’t reached the Sorting Hat — it’s the voicemail of [your name]. Please leave your name and number (and just for fun, the Harry Potter house you think you belong in) and I’ll return your call as soon as possible.” “Hello! You’ve gotten the voicemail of [your name]. Leave your name, contact info, and the answer to the eternal question ‘Which came first, the chicken or the egg?’ Anyone who gets it right will receive a call back.”
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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48. Hello, you’ve reached [name] at [company name]. If you need help with [X reason], please contact [X person/X system] or [visit our website at X and send us an email]. For all other inquiries, please leave your name, phone number, and a message, and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.
If you’re not going to apologize or sound regretful about it, chances are you will lose on potential prospects. Mean it to your prospects how you are really sorry you can’t assist them at the moment.
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.
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.
To set up voice mail, tap the Phone icon, tap the Voicemail icon and then "Greeting.". There are two options available: Default and Custom. If voice mail hasn't been set up previously on your phone, Default is selected, which means people will hear your wireless carrier's generic voice mail greeting when they call you.
Your prospects need to hear something which can make them hold on to what you are trying to tell them and that starts with a good attractive statement.
1. "Hi, you've reached [your name] at [your company]. I'm unavailable right now — probably helping [type of company] get [X results, e.g. ‘ double their leads in 60 days,' ‘hire the best and brightest engineers,' ‘convert 40% more customers.']
A professional voicemail greeting is essential in many aspects of a business. In sales, it enables you to properly respond to inquiries from prospects and customers or discuss a deal in more detail. When they call, and you can’t answer, you may lose the opportunity for immediate communication and potentially lose a client or customer.
You know that your callers are making inferences about your business and brand. If you want your voicemail recording to leave a positive impression, smile when you record it! Research shows that smiling affects how we speak, and listeners are not only able to identify that people are smiling, but also what the intent is of the smile based on voice intonation alone.
As a bonus, here is an example of our own holiday voicemail greeting here at OpenPhone:
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.
As mentioned above, alerting callers that they won’t be getting an immediate call back is of upmost importance for an entity’s reputation and a caller’s satisfaction.
25. "Hello! Thanks for reaching out to [company]. We're closed today for the holiday, and will reopen tomorrow. If you leave your name, number, and a brief message, we'll give you a call when we're back in the office. Thanks again, and have a great day."
3. Create a subaccount. From the Account Overview page, select (+) from the My digital phone section. Select Manage my plan. From the My Phone Service page, scroll to My voicemail and select Create or manage voicemail accounts.