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.
What was weirder is that it took a couple weeks after covid hit for her to turn the message off – which meant that when the entire company was wfh, we would still get an fyi message from her that she was also working from home.
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If you’ve been inspired by Rachael’s efforts and want to spread a little festive cheer, there are some fantastic examples to help you do just that...!
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I will be out of the office until *date*. My colleague *Name* will be happy to assist you.
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The more information you include in your outgoing message about the colleagues who can assist in your absence, the less likely you are to interfere with ongoing projects. This will help ensure you enjoy that well-earned vacation.
If their message is urgent or they’d like to contact someone else instead, you can let them know what to do.
Hi there, Thanks for your email. I am out of the office right now and will not return until [MM/DD]. Fortunately for you, our resources never take time off and we’ve got this awesome ebook / whitepaper / infographic on [TITLE] that I think you would enjoy. I’ll get back to you as soon as I get back into the office. Best.
Make sure that when you set your vacation email, you’re giving clients or prospects the information – and the peace of mind – they need. You don’t want them to wonder why they aren’t getting a response, or who they should contact in your absence, and how. And that’s all any vacation email really needs.
i’m just waiting for the inevitable “Believe it or not, ___ isn’t at work. where could i beeee?” a la Seinfeld
Each time McClure makes an appearance in these out-of-office messages, he "speaks" on behalf of my colleague and alludes to the previous auto-responses in which he starred. It's a mild form of self-deprecating humor — as if to say, "I know, I'm out of the office again" — made only funnier by the made-up teaser title included in the last line.
While the sender waits for your response to their email, take the sting out of your absence by involving them in a holiday survey, like the one below.
I get really annoyed at people that don’t have put up OOO messages and I am left wondering if they are out or just ignoring me. I collaborated with a woman who was out frequently but never put an OOO. She also got very prickly if she felt you were going around her. So anytime we didn’t get a response from her, we had to go through this guessing game of “do we wait, do we talk to someone else, how important is our request.” I was glad when she moved on.
If you leave me a message that includes your name, telephone number and reason for calling, I will return your call when I get back. You have reached Jim Smith. I will be out of the office until Feb. 14. If you would like to leave a message after the tone, I will call you back when I return.
I am currently on my annual leave and will return to the office on *date*. If your request is urgent, please contact my colleague *name* at *email* or *phone*.
To set an automatic reply for contacts outside your company, select Outside My Organization > Auto-reply to people outside my organization, type in a message, and select OK.