I haven’t set up an OOO message since I got my first smartphone. My usual method is to glance at an incoming work email and forward it to the appropriate person, or maybe write a one-liner response saying I’m out and will answer next week.
I like that you can sometimes tell the team dynamics by the OOO. In my experience I’ve seen that: – “If you need something, contact a member of my team” = I trust my crew and probably would prefer you email them all the time, TBH. – “If you need something, contact my boss” = I don’t trust my team and think my work is #higherlevel, OR my boss is a micromanager. – “If you need something, text me” = I hate my boss and don’t trust them to handle my work OR I think I’m very important and the company can’t function without me.
.
We are here to help, so you can focus on your time off! The less time you spend on the operational bits and pieces, the more time you will have to do some awesome reading.
A great out of office message can improve your business relationships, boost appointments and keep everything in check while you’re resting. The only trick is knowing how to write it. So what’s an out of office message and why do I need one? How to improve your out of office message Tip #1: Cover the essentials Tip #2: Redirect clients to your colleagues Tip #3: Be personal Tip #4: Promote your content Tip #5: Go for something light-hearted Tip #6: Know your limits Tip #7: Keep it spartan Conclusions
Different companies have different holiday policies. If you're going to be out of office during the holidays, state it in your email. Hello, Thank you for your email! Season's greetings. I can't to your email now as the office is closed for the holidays. I will not be checking my email from December 22 through January 4. If there's an emergency, please contact me at 123-456-7890. Otherwise, I'll respond to your email as soon as possible when I return. Thank you, Jim Parker. 8. Temporary Out-of-Office Email for Attending a Conference If you're going to a business conference, state it out in your out of office email. This type of email is also a great way to show your contacts that you're growing and advancing your job. Hello, Thank you for reaching out! I am out of office attending the National Association of Sale Manager’s conference in Houston, Texas. I'll be checking my emails occasionally, in case of an emergency, please contact my team member, John Doe at [email protected] or 123-456-7890 Regards, Dorian Emmanuel. 9. Out-of-Office with a Promotion
Boss would put up an OOO when attending an event off-site, but would still be answering their emails, which meant that I would get “Boss said you were the correct contact, can you help?” Inevitably, I would respond and, two hours later, Boss would too, cc-ing me on the original email in which they shared the exact same info I had earlier that day. It was MADDENING.
So what makes a good automated response that will give you the reassurance you need to keep your work email under control so that you can truly enjoy your holiday?
Are you fully inspired by the creative out-of-office messages above? It’s time to write your own — your upcoming vacation depends on it. Try HubSpot’s OOO Email Generator if you’re feeling stuck, and remember, an out-of-office email doesn’t need to be boring. On the contrary, it should inform and entertain. You don’t want people hating on you because you took a much-needed break.
Remember to make sure your auto-reply has a limit to how often it sends replies to any one address. If they reply to every single email they recieve, they can cause problems: https://www.reddit.com/r/talesfromtechsupport/comments/420oan/companywide_email_30000_employees_autoresponders/ I actually had that happen while I was on vaca, a travel agency e-mailed me with an update about my vacation from a no-reply mail box and triggered my auto reply, which triggered their “This is not a monitored mailbox” auto reply to the tune of 80,000 messages in my mailbox. It completely filled up my “available” space, so everytime I logged in and thought I had them cleared out, more would pour in. It took DAYS to delete all of them.
3.) Benvenuti alla John Doe AG. I nostri uffici a Berlino sono chiusi per ferie. Potete contattarci nei giorni lavorativi dal Lunedì al Venerdì dalle 9am a mezzogiorno e dall’1pm alle 6pm. Per informazioni di carattere generale potete anche inviarci una e-mail a [email protected]. Grazie. Vi auguriamo una buona giornata – vostro John Doe AG.
To comment on this story or anything else you have seen on BBC Capital, please head over to our Facebook page or message us on Twitter.
Please contact (Contact Person with email and phone) if you need immediate assistance.
Hi, Happy holidays! I am currently out of the office, with no email access. I’ll be returning on [date] and will get back to you as soon as I can. Happy holidays!
Due to a bank holiday, I am out of the office on 18th November. Emails won’t be forwarded and will be answered after my return on 19th November.
For non-urgent inquiries during my absence, you can contact [Name] at [email] or [phone number], and they will be happy to assist.
Don’t beat around the bush! This is an expression that means you should get to the point. That is, you should make your message direct and brief. This will let the recipient quickly know that you’re not available and who they can contact instead. You can start with a simple greeting and then proceed to the message like in the following examples:
Website: https://www.roberthalf.com/blog/salaries-and-skills/vacation-time-how-to-craft-an-effective-out-of-office-message