It is important that the voicemail greeting be brief but also action oriented. Do you want your caller to leave you a message? Or perhaps they should call another extension to reach an assistant or office manager in your absence? Get to know the business phone system that you are using and take advantage of its features. Some phone systems allow the caller to press a digit, such as 0 to transfer to another extension rather than having to end the call and dial another extension. This type of function can be extremely useful, especially if other people in the office can handle the calls that are incoming to your phone while you are away from your desk, or out of the office.
“Hi, you’ve reached [your name] at [your company]. I’m unavailable right now — probably helping [type of company] get [X results, e.g. ‘double their leads in 60 days,’ ‘hire the best and brightest engineers,’ ‘convert 40% more customers.’] Leave your name and number, and we’ll discuss how your company can see similar results.” “Hello, this is [your name] at [company]. Thanks for calling. Please leave your name, number, and reason you’d like to chat, and I’ll get to back to you ASAP.” “Hi, you’ve reached [name] at [company]. If you need a quick response, please shoot me an email at [insert email address] and I’ll be in touch by EOD tomorrow. If it’s not urgent, leave me a message with your name and number. Have a great day.” “Hey, this is [your name]. If you’re calling for [X reason], please [contact so-and-so] or [go to our website, send me an email]. For all other inquiries, leave your name and a brief message and I’ll call you back within [one, two, three] business day[s].” “Hello, you’ve reached [name] at company. I’m unable to come to the phone right now. Leave your name and number, and I’ll return your call as soon as I’m free. Thank you.”
