Editor’s Note: The article is part of the blog series Grow Your Business brought to you by the marketing team at UniTel Voice, the virtual phone system priced and designed for startups and small business owners. 8 Ways To Build Brand Trust & Make Your New eCommerce Business Look Established
In certain situations, it’s a good idea to let a call go to voicemail. If you’re in a loud area, unable to spend 10-15 minutes talking, or are otherwise distracted, don’t answer. Recruiters who cold-call candidates will understand that you’re simply unavailable – but make sure to return calls in a timely manner. If possible, call back during regular business hours.
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Hi, you have reached …. Please leave your name, phone number and a message and if we like it we will return your call.
Finally, for a minimum monthly cost of $99, you can get Talkroute’s Enterprise virtual phone line plan. Created for large teams with complex needs, this option comes with five phone numbers, unlimited text messages, unlimited extensions, 20 voicemail inboxes, everything offered in the first three tiers, plus dedicated account management and custom integration services.
We’ve mentioned the significance of relaying a simple, easy-to-understand message in your business voicemail greetings, but we need to talk about word choice now. Pay close attention to your word choice in your business voicemail greetings. Certain words trigger certain actions before a person realizes what you actually meant. Here’s a specific example of how word choice can lead to confusion between a client and accountant:
You want to be a little more formal when you're recording a business voicemail greeting for your company. State your business name, your hours of operation, the manner in which you'll reach out to the caller, and a place where he or she can obtain more information about your business. Thank you for calling GreenLeaf Logistics. No one is available to answer your call right now. Our business hours are Monday through Friday, 9 am to 7 pm. Please leave your name and phone number so that someone from our Customer Success Team can follow up with you. For more information, please visit www.greenleaflogistics.com. 3. Department Wide Voicemail Greeting
Doing this helps you understand what the prospects are looking for and what they are expecting from you which will in turn help you to cater to them better.
Company-level calls are usually directed to your general business number. There are occasions when everyone in the office is tied up and unable to pick up calls. It’s important to gather information about the reason for the call so that the right person or team can call them back. These greetings ensure that customers do not feel neglected while also providing assurance that their call will be attended to as soon as possible.
A clear, professional voicemail greeting is essential for job seekers and professionals living in English speaking countries. Job recruiters, managers and colleagues will all expect a good, clear, professional voicemail greeting when they call you.
These are just a few ideas to get the gears turning. These are simple examples, but don’t be afraid to show a little personality.
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.
VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. Although often used as a synonym for virtual phone numbers, VoIP numbers actually differ from them. While the former use private data centers to route calls over existing land and cell phone lines, VoIP numbers use public internet for routing calls. Both solutions are less expensive than some traditional phone services and they enable you to take and make calls on the go. VoIP numbers are less reliable as they depend on the strength of your internet connection.
Whether you need phones for opening a new office, supporting employees working from home, or it’s time to update your business phone system, we have done all of the research and tested over 25 small business phone systems to prepare the list of our best Top 5 most recommended business telephone systems. The manufacturer must be reliable, with a proven history and warranty support. Be the most affordable for a small business to purchase and maintain. Be future proof — compatible with standard analog landline telephone service or VoIP cloud phone service. Provides feature to transfer calls to a cell phone, a smartphone app, and supports mobile and home office employees. Must have the essentials: automated attendant call tree menus, voicemail to email, intercom, call forward, transfer, and music on hold.
5. "Hello, [Person's name] is chasing new adventures and is no longer with [Company name]. Please forward all future requests to [New or interim person's name] at [phone number]. Thank you!"
Once you identify your pain points, you’ll find it much easier to identify what instructions need to be present in your voicemail greetings. We hinted towards these before, so let’s just break down another example. If you want your customers to leave a voicemail, but you also want them to visit your website for additional help regarding their issue, give them a clear call to action, like a website address they can easily write down while they listen to your message.
Don’t include the date unless it’s completely necessary. 16 of the messages I heard last month had the wrong date—one of the messages had a date over 2 months old!
20. “Hello! Thanks for reaching out to [company]. We’re closed today for the holiday, and will reopen tomorrow, [date]. 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, week].”