“some things are MORE important than work” definitely comes off as aggressive to me. “How DARE you email me when I’m doing something MORE IMPORTANT, and for that matter why aren’t YOU spending time with YOUR family?!”
I feel like this is the only reason to do this, otherwise its just a big piss off.
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Just say you’re away from your desk! Or if you’re out for more than a day, just say you’re “away” until XYZ date.
Some of the people I know that have a lot on their plate are able to deal with a large volume of email with intent and integrity. It’s worth taking a look at how they deal with email so you can model some of their habits. I’ve listed three people below who I know handle their email really well.
Every customer interaction is important to showcase your brand personality and auto reply messages are no different. Hence, you need to make the right use of every opportunity and convert it into a good experience. Automated reply messages help you to provide great customer experience and also sets the right expectation.
Oh heavens no. All I ask of an out of office is that it tells me when the person will be back (if known) and who I can contact in the interim.
I say this as someone who used to have a chronic problem keeping up with my personal voicemails. But I got voicemail transcription set up so I can read them now, because just ignoring important phone calls has consequences. I can’t imagine trying to just duck them in a professional job where I had a phone number, and therefore an expectation that people can call me!
The problem with that is people just don’t look at your signature. Whereas they are reasonably likely to notice the OOO message in the email subject header.
1. Order before [DATE] and have it shipped on time for [holiday name] Ideally, your promotional campaign should have been running for at least a week before the holiday festivity begins.
The tone of your out-of-office auto-reply may vary depending on the intended recipient of your email.
Huge pet peeve – several of my coworkers still have COVID-related out of office notifications. I didn’t find them necessary in the first place, since everyone was still working from home and should have been checking emails normally, but it’s especially weird now that we’re officially back in the office a couple of days a week. It feels like they’re making a preemptive excuse for responding slowly. I’m surprised management hasn’t said something, honestly.
Earlier this year, British comedian Steve Coogan underscored a growing trend to rethink the OOO when he used it not to advertise his own absence, but rather the return to our screens of his blazer-clad alter ego, hapless media personality Alan Partridge. Written in the broadcaster’s inimitable voice, it had stern words for anyone who dared email him: “I’m not in the office so both cannot and will not respond to your email,” it began. “If your email is urgent, perhaps you should have tried calling instead. The very fact you were content to type out your query long hand and settle back to wait for a reply suggests you can wait, even if you’ve put a red exclamation next to your email to make it stand out in my inbox. Won’t wash with me, that.”
If your request is urgent, there’s no use sitting idly in my inbox. So, please send your request to [contact name] at [contact email].
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1. Add and highlight: • Your office closing dates to your email signature block so your clients / customers don’t miss it. www.interimbusiness.com.au 5. 2. Add closure dates to your invoice: • As invoices are thoroughly read by clients, it’s a sure way for your message to be read! www.interimbusiness.com.au 6. 3.
To sweeten your wait, I am sending you this great article (hyperlink to your blog) that includes five books you should not miss this summer.
I mean, sometimes I put up an OOO because I’m on vacation and not checking email. Sometimes I put one up because I’m travelling for work and will only have sporadic access to my laptop, but might get to check once or twice a day. In my role, it’s important to make that distinction. Maybe it’s not so important for other people.