Calls overflow to the voicemail box if they can’t be answered during business hours. This may be during unusually busy periods or if there is no one to take the call.
Education Details: Personal voicemail greetings can be more casual, laidback, and even funny. These can maintain professionalism or simply be humorous to get a laugh from your caller. Here are some examples below: Hello, I’m unable to get to my phone right now to take your call. But my answering machine is able to, so have a chat with it instead. Wait for the free answering machine greetings
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Hi, you’ve reached the home of [name]. If you are calling to collect a student loan, gambling debt, or other obligation, please press 1 and hang up now. If you are selling any product or service, or requesting charitable donations, please press 2 and hang up now. Otherwise, press 3 and leave your message now. Pressing 3 is optional.
-(Very long pause) Wait! Please don’t hang up! I want to hear what you have to say.
These business answering messages can be edited to fit any type of business. It is important to anticipate what your callers may want to know even if the callers are not able to get anyone on the phone. It's always a good idea to let callers know exactly when their calls may be returned and to list the operating hours.
By presenting a clear, welcoming message containing relevant information about your business, you are showing callers that you value their time. If your recording is vague, confusing, or drags on, customers will lose interest and hang up the phone instead of leaving a voicemail message.
The answering machine was one of such great inventions that provided the public with the capability to record messages without answering them for decades before the invention of smartphones. The design of the answering machine was a team effort of various researchers that changed the telecom industry.
Are you a "Gone With the Wind" fan? Then you'll want to copy this one, which Anne S. Kight has been using on her home machine for years. In the background, you hear the swelling overture from GWTW. After a few seconds, a gently accented southern voice says: "As God is my witness, I simply cannot come to the phone right now. So please leave a message, and I'll call you back -- tomorrow. After all, tomorrow is another day!"
10. “Hey, this is [your name]. Thanks for reaching out. I’m busy at the moment, but if you leave your name, number, and message, I’ll return your call.
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Departments and teams are typically organized by function – customer service, tech support, sales, billing questions, etc. When a team is busy handling other calls, encourage your callers to leave a message and reassure them that you will get back to them within a reasonable time frame. It’s important that you actually follow through to avoid upsetting your callers.
Calls diverted to the voicemail box of a department that doesn’t have active reception staff.
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.
Your voicemail PIN can be any number 4 to 15 digits long. Be sure to make note of it because you'll need it to access your messages in the future. Take a few minutes to gather your thoughts, even jot down a few notes, and practice before you record. Before you start recording, turn off anything in the background that might cause noise. This will ensure your voice is clear and easy to understand. While clever greetings can be fun, it's worth taking a moment to think about the range of potential callers who may be leaving you voicemail. Consider the tone and image you want to project. Don't worry! If you don't like your recording, you can erase it and re-record as many times as you'd like.
When you leave a voicemail do not use your full name because that immediately raises a red flat that you are a salesperson making a cold call. Instead, say your first name only followed by your company name. This will make your customer feel that you are much more familiar with each other than you really are. Saying your last name would defeat the whole purpose of demonstrating familiarity.
You can record a personal greeting, or you can use one of the pre-recorded CenturyLink greetings. Follow the system prompts to select your greeting:
6. Full Waiting Queue Message. What the caller hears when the waiting queue is full. Sample Scripts: “We are currently experiencing high call volume. Please leave a message with your name and phone number and we will return your call as soon as possible.”