My favorite one that I’ve heard is from TV. “You’ve reached {name}. I can’t answer. Don’t waste my time.”
Hello and thanks for your email. I’m out of the office right now, but will get back to you as soon as I can. Expect a reply Monday latest. (If you need something right now, please email [EMAIL]. In the meantime, check out this new [ARTICLE LINK] that our team just released last week. It’s a labor of love – one that’s short to read, easy to implement, and–most importantly–free of charge. Talk to you soon.
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How's that for an out-of-office message? Probably not ideal. As a working professional, emails are your lifeline. And even when you're not around to respond, you need to let senders know you're not actually ignoring them.
So what do good out-of-office messages look like? Here are a handful of examples that will help you craft the perfect out-of-office message:
It’s like telling your bank before you leave the country; overlooking it can cause communication issues.
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Oh gosh. You’ve just reminded me that I was supposed to change my VM before every vacation or holiday at my old job. Something I completely forgot to do after the first year. Whoops!
Of course, very few people would be so pushy as to send you a private message about a business issue while you’re on holiday. Still, the odds are that you’ll amplify your social media reach and gain some new followers by including links to your social media in an OOO message.
Thanks for your email. Please expect a delay in response due to a medical emergency. In case of urgent queries, please reach out to me on my cell or to my colleague at [email protected].
I do this because my industry’s norm is that people check their email on vacation, at least once or twice, but I don’t do it. I don’t have work email on my phone so it’s technically true.
Website: https://www.citehr.com/355650-mail-format-announcing-holiday-my-employees.html
I will be out of the office from May 1-6. I will be checking email periodically, but for urgent assistance please contact Pat Rivera at [email protected] or 555-432-6100. In case of emergency, you can reach me on my cell at 555-789-6100
Oh hey, It’s Christmas, what are you doing emailing me? I’m extremely busy watching Home Alone, Die Hard, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Christmas Special on repeat until the new year. I might stop for food and toilet breaks, I also might now. Regardless of my general health and hygiene over the silly season, I’ll be back in office on January nd. Catch ya then, don’t forget to buy a pepperoni pizza for Splinter.
4.) Benvenuti alla John Doe Solutions. A causa di un evento interno, il nostro servizio di segreteria non è disponibile oggi. Potete lasciare un messaggio. Saremo nuovamente al vostro servizio lunedì. Ringraziamo per la vostra comprensione.
We used to do this at my old job in addition to OOO messages. I found it useful to know in advance how long people were going to be gone. There’s nothing more annoying than needing something urgently from the one person who can help and then getting an auto-response saying they’re out for the next 2 weeks.
Don't be afraid to use a pop cultural reference that the audience would recognize. Instead of bemoaning your absence, they'll have something fun and familiar to laugh at.
Out of office messages can also make your workload easier when you return to the office. Colleagues and clients who know you are on vacation or at a conference might be less likely to fill your inbox with messages. If someone does need immediate help on a project, they can know who to contact in your absence to make sure it gets handled on time.