A landline-based business phone system is fixed to your location and severely hinders your ability to communicate, whereas a VOIP line can allow you to communicate like you are sitting right beside your desk phone, wherever you may be. As long as you have an Internet connection, your business is connected. The increased mobility is one of the top reasons many business owners choose to switch to a VOIP provider.
In this article, we’ll discuss why a voicemail greeting is important for your business and show you how to set one up with just a few simple steps.
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“Hi, you’ve called [name] at [XYZ company]. I’m currently busy [hiking through a rainforest, exploring China, climbing Mount Peru etc.] and so I can’t take your call right now. I won’t be back in the office until [date] and I look forward to hearing from you then.
Thank you for calling [LinkedPhone – The Work From Anywhere Business Phone System]. Our office is closed until [Monday, January 25th for the holiday weekend]. If your call is urgent, please contact [Anya at 212-555-1212 or [email protected]]. Otherwise, please leave a message and we’ll get back to you as soon as we return. We value your call. Thank you from everyone at [LinkedPhone].
The availability of APIs for speech-to-text functions, including Google AI, have allowed phone service providers to easily integrate voicemail transcription at a low cost and without much overhead. Transcriptions can be completed on the fly, so customers can expect access to their transcripts immediately following the receipt of an inbound call.
To do this, you can simply say, “I look forward to speaking with you and resolving any issues or concerns you might have as quickly as possible.” This implies you’re going to read your messages, you’re going to respond to those messages, and you’re going to resolve any issue, regardless of how big or small, the customer has. Acting as a mentor by making yourself more accessible is a great way to improve the overall customer experience. Having your business voicemail greetings reflect this is a great way to show customers where your priorities lie even if you’re unable to get to the phone right now.
As to the basics, your voicemail greeting should always have the following information:
04You have reached the offices of [your company/business]. Our representatives are all currently engaged. If you leave us a message with your name and number, we will get back to you in the earliest possible time. Thank you for calling and have a good day. Lines can often get busy for companies that have several representatives. This reassures clients that someone will get back to them once they are free.
Ooma offers technology to assure every customer call coming in or going out from your business is crystal clear.
I’ve got you covered. I’ve compiled some of the best voicemail greetings you can use for virtually any situation you’ll come across.
To improve a a business voicemail greeting, keep these eight rules at the forefront of the creative process: Avoid turning customers off with overused and impersonal phrases like “your call is very important to us..." Avoid leaving customers unsure by not immediately telling them the business, department, and/or person they’ve reached. Avoid leaving customers confused with too many details and complications; just keep it simple. Avoid messages longer than 25 seconds. Do apologize for being unavailable at the moment. Do invite the caller to leave a message. Do tell the caller when they can expect a return call and actually follow through within that timeframe. Do tell the caller about any applicable alternative options of contact and information- website, live chat, email, social media, or emergency numbers. Voicemail Greetings 101
No one wants to listen to a two-minute voicemail greeting. Keep it short and upbeat and start with a simple “Hello! Thank you for calling
Company Description: Nextiva is a large virtual phone service provider and a well-known brand within the industry. They allow companies to register toll-free 1-800 numbers or local numbers anywhere in the U.S. Their setup for their service is instantaneous — once you pay, you’ll be able to begin using Nextiva right away. Their features include the ability to use their service on a mobile device and manage your calls online from anywhere in the world.
RingCentral pricing starts at $19.99 monthly per user for their “Essentials” plan which allows for up to 20 users. For more than 20 users you can choose from their “Standard” plan at $24.99 monthly per user or their “Premium” or “Ultimate” plans which offer advanced features such as automatic call recording, single sign-on, and CRM integrations. Learn more about RingCentral’s plans and pricing here.
Mobility and 5G. While some VoIP services still offer mobile handsets, these devices seem to be on the downslope. After all, if talking while walking is your goal, why carry around a clunky handset when you should just be talking on your smartphone? Seamless voice switchover based on geofencing is one approach. So if your smartphone detects that it's inside your company's wireless network it can seamlessly engage your VoIP client over Wi-Fi, not your cell service and now you'll be making and receiving calls from both your personal calling plan as well as your business' VoIP service. This generally goes beyond simple calls to also include texts, voicemail-to-email, and collaborative online meetings.
Business voicemail services often let users record their own voice through a simple interface. You could, for instance, dial a short code like *97 to reach your personal voicemail box. Then you just speak into your phone to record a message when prompted.
This document has discussed the reality that voicemail is often tied to a broader phone system.