Voicemail and phone settings while working remotely As you prepare to work from home, consider updating the outgoing message on your desk phone so external callers know you are working remotely. The following templates for voicemail messages are available for departments and individuals to customize and use. We appreciate everyone following a standard format to […]
Social media, email, and your business website makes it easy to get a message through to your customers at scale, but your phone system still remains a key frontline communication tool. As more cities are encouraging people to stay home, customers, suppliers, and partners may call your business to get quick answers, such as changes to your business hours, instructions on how to get help, where to find the most up-to-date information, new procedures your company is implementing to conduct business or anything else that’s outside normal operations. There’s a strong chance you might experience a higher call volume than normal because customers will have questions they’ve never had to ask before.

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.
15. “Hello, you’ve reached the Sales Department at [Company name]. All of our representatives are currently helping clients [insert goal such as, ‘achieve 40% growth through streamlining HR’] and are unable to take your call. Instead of putting you on hold and taking up your valuable time, please leave your name, company, and phone number and we’ll give you a call back ASAP. Thank you!”