Unexpected crises like COVID-19 can occur at any time. Here are a few example business voicemail scripts you can adapt for those unanticipated events. It’s important to incorporate key information that your clients need to know. You should also add a human touch by expressing your goodwill for them and their families.
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.']
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An integral part of Job Search Central is the effective use of voicemail to take your calls when you are not available. Imagine your future boss being greeted by your voicemail greeting and then answer this question: will it enhance or detract from what they think of you? If it is the latter, change it. Otherwise, your future boss may end up being someone else's future boss.
A professional voicemail greeting is a recorded message that plays when you miss a phone call. The purpose of this recording is to inform your caller that you cannot make it to the phone, and they should leave a message. Whoever is calling you hears this message, making it important to be polite and professional.
You can record a personal greeting, or you can use one of the pre-recorded CenturyLink greetings. Follow the system prompts to select your greeting:
While straightforward is always the safe bet, certain entities can go to the humorous side of voicemail greetings. Before taking this route, consider the type of callers and the persona the recipient is trying to convey. Since (insert name) isn’t available at the moment to take your call, but will promptly return it should you decide to accept your mission and leave your name and number, we have a very important question to occupy you in the meantime. Why did the chicken cross the road? Voicemail Greetings For Vacation
“Thank you for calling [company/person’s name]. We are currently unavailable, but if you leave your name, phone number, and message, we will get back to you as soon as possible.”
A voicemail greeting is a simple message that plays before callers leave a message. It may play either when you don’t answer or if your phone is off. A professional greeting may encourage people to leave messages, which in turn makes it easier for you to get back in touch. Keeping that communication open and efficient may lead to better business relationships. It also helps you put forth a professional image for your business.
18. “Happy holidays! [I’m, the team at X company is] away until [date], however, we’ll make sure to call you back straight away when we return. If your request is urgent, email [emergency contact] at [email address]. Thanks, and have a wonderful [day, week].”
With Business 1300, you can record a professional phone message to ensure a seamless calling experience every time. Choose from one of our male or female professional vocalists and select a tone that suits your industry or brand.
Call your home phone number. Depending on your location, you can press #, * or 2 to interrupt the greeting, and then enter your PIN. Follow the prompts to listen to your messages.
For example, a message like, “Hi, this is Jim. You know what to do.” Well, not everyone is going to know what to do—i.e. they won’t leave you inclusive information. Additionally, they may not leave you a message at all. Aside from this, humor can again be detrimental to your message, this time lending itself to ambiguity and costing you clarity. For example, if a message read, “Hi this is Jim, sorry I can’t answer your call right now. Please leave your name and number and I’ll call you as soon as I can, but you already knew that right? Do I need to tell you what to do?” This is worse than the previous example as this is confusing and can also come across as rude and unprofessional. Complicating a greeting with phrasing like this is sure to cause some harm. e. Ignoring Personality & Identity: Don’t use computer generated greetings. Some users leave default messages (‘you’ve reached the voicemail box of 777-777-777, please leave a message). Believe it or not, even this can cause problems. Callers may be unsure if the voicemail box belongs to you; therefore, they don’t leave a message. Also, some may even be uncomfortable leaving information through a message in a nameless voice message box. As such, impersonalization can cause ambiguity, which again can hurt the effectiveness of your voice message system. This doesn’t mean you have to make an elaborate greeting if you don’t want to, just insert your voice and name so at least callers know they’re calling the right person.
When you’re actively listening to a message, choose your next message option to perform a specific function. Press 1 to play a message. Press 2 to save the message and go to the next one. Press 3 to delete the message and go to the next one. Press 4 to save the message as new. Press 7 to back up three seconds in the message playback. Press 8 to toggle between pausing or continuing message playback. Press 9 to move forward three seconds in the message playback. Press * to return to the main menu. 1.800.888.1300 Live Chat ServicesInternet SolutionsPrivate NetworkingData CenterPhoneTVAdvertisingWholesale AboutLocationsNetwork Operations CenterCareers SupportAccount & BillingInternetFiber Internet SupportFixed WirelessCable TVMidcoTV SupportPhoneHosted VoIPPropertiesAdvertisingNew Customer Support My Account Account and User Details Billing and Payment Manage My Services Notifications Request a Consultation 1.800.888.1300 Support Center 1.800.888.1300 Privacy Policy Legal © 2015 Midcontinent Communications. All Rights Reserved Chat with Midco UH HomeUniversity Information TechnologyUIT ServicesSkype for BusinessAccess Voice MailSkype for Business - Windows Skype for BusinessPhones & AccessoriesSign-inAnswer a CallMake a CallAccess Voice MailSkype for Business - WindowsSkype for Business (SFB) for MacTransfer a CallMake a Conference CallMake a Video Call or Video ConferenceSet-up a DelegateCollaborateMeet NowSchedule a Meeting or Conference CallJoin a Meeting or Conference CallBuild a Conference RoomSkype for Business on a Mobile DeviceView FAQsView DocumentationRequest Skype for Business TrainingDialing 911Anywhere 365 Set-up and Listen to Voice Mail - Skype for Business
Fig: Unified Messaging Call flow (Exchange 2016 & Skype For Business Integration) Though we can use unified messaging role for multiple features related to enterprise voice, most organizations make use of it for voice mail and call routing.
The above section details types of phrasing to avoid; however, it doesn’t detail what users should NOT say on their greeting. Though this is a bit loaded, as there are hundreds of combinations of things one shouldn’t say, there are some key components users should ALWAYS avoid. a. Forget About Slang: You should strive to be as professional and welcoming as possible in your greeting. While this may steer you towards using slang, in an attempt to make callers comfortable, it’ll most likely work against you. As a professional, your demeanor, tone, and speech should be clear cut and well articulated. Using slang undercuts this and works against you. b. Don’t Even Think About Profanity: This is a no-brainer. Never, under any circumstances, curse in your greeting EVER! c. Keep Your Sentences Clean, Don’t Ramble: Introduce yourself and give your caller specific direction. Avoid long diatribes detailing tangent thoughts. Keep it simple and quick. d. Always Return Your Calls: It’s important for callers to feel they are valued. Nothing dissolves this quicker than a greeting that doesn’t stress this. For example, “I’ll call you when I can,” “If I don’t return your call, please call back”—these phrases are terrible and completely destroy any good will you may have with a caller.
Keep it short and sweet so that the caller can quickly leave their message and move on with their day.
Having a dedicated emergency contact will help make sure anything important that comes up is taken care of. Another option is directing callers to a separate answering service.