2. 2 The Fruitcake. Greetings, Did you know that emails during the holidays are a lot like fruitcakes? Nobody really wants them, but a lot of people end up receiving them, anyhow.
Hello, our office will remain closed for during the Christmas period. We assure you that all your emails will be responded to as soon as we return to the office. Merry Christmas! Regards, [Name/Company name]
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“For the Symantec office, I send holiday wishes for the employees’ holiday out of office. I wish all the employees have lots of fun and adventure during the recreational holiday period. Have a happy holiday.”
“When I got there and found out the bungee was 134 feet high I got terrible cold feet, but I felt that since I wrote it, I had to do it. So I did. It was terrifying and indeed a lesson on making bold claims in a public way!”
Here’s a peek at some great vacation samples of auto-reply messages, which are quick and to the point.
6.) Добро пожаловать в «Вася Пупкин и Ко». Наша горячая телефонная линия не работает в течение праздников. Точное время открытия можно найти на нашем сайте по адресу www.john doe.de. Мы благодарим вас за оказанное доверие и желаем вам и вашим близким счастливых праздников и счастливого Нового года.
My department still doesn’t allow us to send OOO auto-replies to external recipients because of one incident years ago (a customer tried to contact a sales rep about an urgent order, got the rep’s auto-reply, and in their ensuing panic, somehow got escalated all the way up to the company president). Any external emails we get are auto-forwarded to a centralized mailbox and (ostensibly) handled by another rep while we are out. It bothers me to know that my external contacts won’t get a reponse from me while I’m out and may think I’m just ignoring them.
A simple greeting like, 'Season's Greetings,' or 'Happy Holidays," is appropriate, followed by, 'I hope the season is treating you well. I wanted to thank you for your business this year and wish you and your team a Happy New Year. ' A sign-off of, 'Regards' or 'Best wishes,' is inclusive and business-friendly. What's a good out of office message?
I once had a coworker who attempted to put up an OOO for all of busy season that basically said “I’m busy with urgent deadlines, so please expect a delay in my response.” I think she was asked to take it down.
This person decided that setting their out-of-office message was a prime time to settle an ongoing office argument about which Die Hard film is the best, complete with an integrated poll to add a little festive cheer to the auto-reply.
Here are some of the common questions and answers about holiday messages to employees.
Just kidding, I'm not in Hawaii. How awesome would that be though, right? Instead, I'm enjoying a peaceful vacation in my living room. That being said, I'm not in the office right now, and will respond to your email after [date].
I am out of the office from [date range]. If you need immediate assistance, please contact [name, title and contact information].
Don't leave your sender guessing. Let them know when you'll be out and the date you'll be back in the office — not when you're returning home.
An out of office message lets you keep people informed and tells them how to proceed in your absence. You can also select options for urgent matters within your out of office message.
Here's an auto-reply I created for my support account having some fun. But also throwing out an extra lifeline on the off chance I'm eaten by a bear. If the boss doesn't notice I'm missing, surely people emailing me will, right?
The bad news is that I’m out of office. The good news is that I’m out of office and enjoying elotes in Cancún.