2. Focus on the conversation. Be absolutely present. Stop whatever you might be doing and take a brief moment to prepare. Wear the face that you want to project before picking up the phone. It makes a difference: whether you're smiling, frowning, or bored to tears, your caller will hear that in your tone. Refrain from clicking around on the Internet or distracting yourself during the call. If you aren't engaged, the caller will be able to tell.
When your business is closed for vacation or holidays, it’s imperative that you set appropriate expectations for a callback and to provide an alternative coverage option, if available. The following greeting accomplishes this succinctly.

Instead of stating the obvious, enhance your message with information your callers can use, such as how to reach someone immediately, when you will be returning calls, or where they can obtain after-hours service. Services that offer multiple custom greetings like Tendant allow you to store multiple greetings so you can have a greeting just for a holiday that you can use every year. Specify the information you want callers to leave. Your voicemail greeting presents a great opportunity to gather important details that will help you better serve your customers. This may include account numbers best times to return the call, and of course, a brief summary of the issue or purpose of the call.
A professional voicemail greeting should be no longer than 60 seconds. List the important information we've discussed above, provide alternative methods of communication and close with a thank you.