What you do not want to do is say your phone number so quickly that the person has to listen to your voicemail multiple times to try and figure out your phone number. We have all gotten those annoying voicemail messages where the person said their phone number so quickly that we had to listen to their message several times to figure out their phone number. Don't be that jerk who leaves their phone number so fast that the other person has to listen to your message over and over to try and figure out what your phone number is.
The general voicemail greeting is used as the default voicemail greeting if you don't set any other greeting type. Occasionally, during events like power outages, even if you've set another greeting, your personalized programming might be wiped out. Or you might simply forget to change the greeting after returning from vacation.

And you’re done! Your CenturyLink voicemail is now set up. Whenever you have an unheard message, you'll hear a stuttered dial tone when you pick up your home phone.
I think one of the most important things to include in a business answering machine message is the hours of operation. I've often called a local business during evening hours, hoping that someone might still be there to answer a question or take a message. If I get an answering machine, I always want to know when it would be best to call back. It could be that the business was still open at night, but no one could get to the phone. By including that information on the outgoing message, I'll know not to make any more after-hours calls. Smiling while speaking can make a business answering machine greeting sound pleasant. Jotting down the greeting will prevent mistakes when recording it.