We have one key administrative assistant who works part time and I always forget — I appreciate that she sets an OOO every day because her department is very deadline driven and it helps me to remember that if I need something from them, I need to connect with her in the morning. We also have some staff who work the school year calendar and others who are year round; the OOO is so helpful in the summers!
Thanks so much for your note! I’ve packed away my makeshift office for the week in order to go nowhere and do nothing. I may be dipping my toes in the tub instead of the ocean and making my favorite Smitten Kitchen recipes for myself rather than indulging at a fancy restaurant, but I’m still trying to disconnect and recharge.
.
What I really hate is when I get back to the office and haven’t taken the 10 minutes to go into our labyrinthian voicemail system, remove the out of office voicemail message, and record a new one (without being interrupted, stuttering, etc.) and some SUPER DUPER HELPFUL person feels the need to InFoRm mE in their voicemail message that I sTiLl HaVe My OuT oF oFfIcE mEsSaGe Up!!!1!
Let them know that while you’re not technically OOO, you aren’t operating at typical capacity.
With all that in mind, read on for a few examples of what you might actually write...
My European colleagues get an extended summer holiday all at the same time, which means we get OOO notes like this:
Yes absolutely! I would be really annoyed if someone did that. I would probably have to set a reminder for myself to resend that email (or emails), which is more work for me. If I’m sending the email to several people, I’d also have to ask myself if I should resend it to everyone to follow up, or maybe just wait to send it. This would stress me out that something might slip through the cracks.
There’s a term that we like to use around here called “snowbirds,” which is used to describe those who once resided in the northern part of the U.S., only to flee to warmer parts of the country during the winter.
You'll also receive messages on behalf of our partners. You can opt-out at any time. Latest SmartCompany Plus Lessons in growth: How print signage business Easy Signs doubled its revenue despite the pandemic Why your growth strategy should include acquisitions, and three steps to get started Canva, Calm and code: 30 business leaders share the tech they can’t do their jobs without How to say no: The three-part framework that sets you up for a more effective ‘yes’ What is SmartCompany Plus? How AECC Global maintained international student engagement during COVID-19 eBook: Seizing advantage: The technology pivot ANZ businesses must make Smarter, faster, better: Five of the best apps for small business Investment expert Murray Dawes on how small business owners can begin their investment journey Apple's Mail Privacy Protection features are kicking in this month as users are forced to update to iOS 15. Here's what these changes will mean for marketers, and how you can better prepare. A new ruling opens legal liability for Facebook comments. Here’s how to moderate your page A high court ruling determined businesses posting content on social media and inviting comments are 'publishers' and exposed to defamation. ‘Async’ explained: Why you should embrace asynchronous work, and six ways to get started If you've been googling work trends in 2021, chances are you've come across the term 'async'. So what is it, and how can it improve productivity? Canva, Calm and code: 30 business leaders share the tech they can’t do their jobs without SmartCompany is the leading online publication in Australia for free news, information and resources catering to Australia's entrepreneurs, small and medium business owners and business managers. Subscribe About Us Contact Us How to contribute to SmartCompany Advertise Terms & Conditions Code-of-Conduct Privacy Policy Copyright © 2021 Private Media Pty Ltd. Publishers of smartcompany.com.au. All Rights Reserved Sign in To connect a sign in method the email must match the one on your SmartCompany Plus account. Forgot your password? Want some assistance? Contact us on: [email protected] or call the hotline: +61 (03) 8623 9900.
In conclusion, an eager customer trying his or her best to reach out to you is the last person you want to disappoint. Make their day special with an unexpected or quirky autoresponder email that your customers wouldn’t have thought they’d see in their inbox in a million years.
7.) Bienvenue dans le bureau de John Doe. Désolé, nous ne sommes actuellement pas en mesure de répondre à votre appel étant donné que vous appelez pendant les vacances annuelles. Sentez-vous libres de nous envoyer un email sur [email protected] – Nous vous contacterons dès que possible à notre retour. En cas d’urgences, contactez notre représentant de bureau. Ils peuvent être contactez sur notre site www.lawoffice-johndoe.de. Merci beaucoup pour votre appel – Au revoir.
This message is really long. I’d probably just hit delete and try to get in touch with someone else.
Yeah, it’s very strange. I understood changing voicemails to explain that the line can’t actually be answered, but someone is checking the messages and will respond (though that was also only an issue for the first few months), but they had no reason to even mention it for email. I started my job 3 months into lockdown, and by that point, procedures were in place to pretty much allow us to operate normally, albeit with a lot more done electronically than before.
I worked in a call center for Big-Evil-Bank for five years, and every new manager would have a different OOO policy/pet peeve that they would require phone-miners to follow. In particular, the memory of the six month period where we were forced to put an OOO up if we left our desk for so much as ONE HOUR smacked me in the face when I saw question. That was by far the worst/strangest/most tedious OOO policy I have ever been forced to follow.
Education Details: Here's an example (and here are 7 more out-of-office templates, too!) Hi there, I am OOO on PTO from Friday, December 1 - Tuesday, December 10 without access to email or voicemail. If this is urgent, please contact [NAME], otherwise I will respond to messages when I return.
Start by recognizing your backup contacts for the time when you are out of the office. Make sure that, when needed, they can be available to help customers instead of you. Meeting with your co-workers and making everything clear should be one of your top priorities. The person who covers you while you are gone should not find that out by receiving an email out of nowhere. Be professional and plan everything properly — you are about to take a break, after all.
My favorite was one the one that said “I am out of the office and don’t plan on ever returning.”