> When I get an answer from someone who reads his e-mails on vacation I’m pleasantly surprised.
Providing estimated time to customers for getting responses is the first and foremost best practice to be followed by businesses. Usually, when customers know what the wait duration is, they are not very frustrated. Hence, setting clear expectations is crucial for delivering excellent service.
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I appreciate your message. I am out of the office currently with no office email access. However, return on the following [date-of-return].
I agree! I’m in HR and all I can think of when I see funny OOO’s from people is, “How big of an a$$ are you going to feel when someone emails you about needing time off for a funeral and they get this nonsense back?”
If that’s truly what you intend, great. But if not, you may want to take a deep breath and try this: “I am currently on vacation and not accepting emails. Please contact x for any issues while I’m away.” This approach is refreshingly honest and clear. And as long as you’re comfortable with the competence and availability of your back-up contact, you shouldn’t feel funny or guilty about going this route at all.
For non-urgent inquiries, I will return your message as soon as I get back in the office.
I am currently out of the store on holidays.We will get back to work on (insert date). If there is something urgent, you can inform me by sending me an email me with the “URGENT” reference in its title and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.
A happy holidays email signature is an excellent opportunity for your company to market itself and its products. It can increase your brand consistency, promote your latest content, and can widen your social media reach if used well. It can also increase the ROI of your crucial marketing campaigns. Post written by guest blogger Daniela McVicker.
I’ll also admit to not changing my voicemail for OoO in the past 3 or 4 years. I rarely get calls anymore it’s just not worth it… I figure if they don’t reach me by phone they’ve already emailed me or will email me after the voicemail.
If instead you ask your co-workers to cc or bcc on replies then you will know which have been dealt with. (I think for internal mails it’s more reasonable to ask that if the original person contacts someone else, they cc you so you know who is dealing – and in smaller organisations where people know you personally you could also send a mail round the day before you leave to say you’re going to be out and to ask that any enquiries are directed to [name]in your absence, to try to avoid them coming into your inbox in the first place.
This template comes handy if you don’t prefer checking your inbox during the holiday but want to provide your mobile number for urgent inquiry.
Once I come back on *date*, I will get back to you. Maybe I can even tell you about my adventures.
Kate Sullivan is a work and wellbeing psychologist and doctoral researcher who holds an M.S. in applied psychology from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh and specializes in non-traditional careers and helping people craft their best, most satisfying work lives. She regularly writes about work-life balance and modern careers at constellationcareers.com and for leading business publications.
I will be out of the office starting on (beginning date) and ending on (ending date).
Every time I read it, it just gets funnier. On r/talesfromtechsupport, filter by top posts of all time, it’s on the first page. The punch line is … *chef kiss.
Note: For Outlook 2007, to turn off out-of-office replies, select Tools > Out of Office Assistant and uncheck the Send Out of Office auto-replies checkbox. Find more information on automatic replies at https://support.office.com/en-us/article/send-automatic-out-of-office-replies-from-outlook-9742f476-5348-4f9f-997f-5e208513bd67. Was this answer helpful? Yes No How to fix a compromised (hacked) Microsoft Office 365 account One of the most common security support requests we receive from our Office 365 customers is... Office 365 Pop/IMAP Settings
While it’s common sense, always discuss and confirm the hand-over with your alternate. Ensure they are well-equipped to properly handle the request while you’re away. You want to be able to properly relax with your egg-nog knowing your urgent emails are in good hands.