77% of people believe that a phone call is the most efficient way to get business done. But have you got the right call handling protocols in place?
Thank you for calling {insert company name}. We’re sorry, but our office is currently closed. We are open Monday to Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM, Mountain Time. To leave us a message, press 1. Someone will be in touch with you as soon as possible. To leave a message with someone specific, listen to our company directory by pressing 2. Feel free to email us at {insert company email} and someone will respond within the next business day. 5. Phone prompt greetings for the holidays
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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.
If your auto-attendant starts with the main menu of options, it needs to be clear and have the option to speak with a human-being if the question isn’t answered by the list of options. Try something like this:
2. Quickly Provide the Relevant Information. When someone reaches your voicemail, it’s important that you help them confirm that they have reached the right person by providing all of the relevant information that they will need.
Keep in mind that to enjoy the full benefits of your professional greeting system, you must routinely check and delete messages. If your voicemail fills up, you won’t be able to receive new messages, meaning your customers will become frustrated.
A friend of mine does, "I very rarely check my messages, so if you can, please send a text or email me at [...]" -- I think that's pretty successful for her, including having got texts from NHS people.
Wondering what to say in your business voicemail greetings? Read on to learn how to record a good voicemail that is professional (or funny) to encourage callers to leave a message.
4. Friendly and professional. Remember, first impressions count so you want to sound both warm and professional. When you record the message, stand up (this will make you sound more confident) and smile (this will soften the voice and make you appear warm).
You don’t want to answer calls 24/7 (unless you’re serving clients globally and there’s an expectation of 24/7 support). If you’re unavailable during specific hours of the day, use the voicemail examples below for after-hours business calls.
Website: https://www.gettingyouhired.com/the-best-professional-voicemail-greetings/
Business voicemail greeting samples. If you have a main business phone number that’s shared with the customers or publicly listed, you’ll want to make sure it has a professional voicemail message to greet callers. Here are sample greetings you can use to help you craft your own.
When following up with leads, it’s important to have well-practiced voicemail scripts in place. You will leave a lot of them so do your best to come across as helpful, friendly, and professional
Back then, we would stagger lunch breaks and vacations to ensure someone was in the office during working hours to answer the telephone.
True emergencies - such as extraordinary weather - should be addressed in your voicemail if it impacts your business. Thank you for calling the Carona Surf Shop. We are currently closed due to the inclement weather. Our normal business hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 am to 9 pm. Please visit www.caronasurfshop.com to order merchandise and to check our schedule during the hurricane.
Good professional voicemail greeting examples. A business named Lorem Ipsum, which sells widgets, wants to leave a brief message that confirms for the listener that they have called the right business. The message would also prompt the caller to provide information needed …
2. Be Unique. Your business is creative and different, so shouldn’t your voicemail be, too? Generic greetings like, “I’m away from my desk right now, but I really value your call.