Some say that voicemail greetings are dying, but some people still want the human connection on the phone, here are a few ideas for making it interesting.
16. Hi, you’ve reached [X Business Name]. Our regular business hours are [State opening hours]. If you need to reach someone immediately, please call [contact’s name] at [cell phone number]. If not, leave your name and contact information and a representative will get back to you when we re-open.
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Congratulations! You've recorded a professional voicemail greeting that your callers love. If you want them to keep loving it, you'll need to update regularly. Adding seasonal information and varying your message keeps your greetings fresh, which is especially important for businesses whose clients and customers call in on a regular basis.
Recent trends in voicemail have leaned towards the desire for many individuals to relate on other forms of digital message than traditional voice mails. More individuals have not set up their voice message nor return calls in a decent amount of time. However, some voice messages even steer individuals to contact by email for a quicker response. If you still enjoy the concept and position that a voicemail box serves, you may feel compelled to add a witty voicemail greeting to your caller. The following selection has been shared by others around the global and intended to inspire you to create your own unique humorous voicemail.
“Congratulations! You’ve reached the right person! It’s [your name]. Unfortunately, you’ve called at the wrong time. Please leave a message with all your contact information, and I’ll call you back within 24 hours.”
The Right Way to Leave a Voicemail 1. Assess your surroundings 2. Prepare a brief outline 3. State your name and telephone number 4. Identify your purpose for calling 5. Speak in a confident, respectful tone 6. Remain brief 7. Briefly restate your point and contact information
Hello! You’ve reached [Luke on the Customer Success Team at LinkedPhone]. Our office is currently closed but rest assured your call is very important to me …
Professional — Lets them know who they’ve reached, why their call has not been answered and when they can expect a return call.Personable — Lets them know their message has been received by a real person who values their call and will reach back out to them. Including humor and a personal touch is extremely important here (even if your industry prefers to be more “robotic” in their communications). What is the most professional voicemail message?
Tip: If you’re not sure how to leave a good voicemail, check out the most effective voicemail script ever and how to end a voicemail that keeps the sales conversation open.
For users who want to avoid the scripting process altogether, there are also services that provide prerecorded messages. Again, your voicemail greeting shoulders a lot of responsibility. Some people aren’t comfortable with having to create a message to deal with it. As such, users can choose from libraries of prerecorded messages, which are standardized greetings, for their voicemail. There are a variety of applications, services, and companies that provide this service. For example, VoiceNation, a voicemail, virtual PBX, and answering services provider, offers users a variety of samples.
Funny Voicemail Greetings. Composing these types of greetings are fun, but they aren’t applicable for some situations. You may make a funny voicemail greeting for your own personal voicemail box. However, it’s not appropriate for professional or business phones. Here are some humorous examples for you: You have reached [mention your name].
3. Business Voicemail Greetings. Hello, you've reached the Sales Department at [X company]. We can't take your call right now, but please leave your name, contact information, and the reason for reaching out, and one of our team members will be in touch within 24 hours.
The script is relatively similar, but the doctor is including a good reason for not being available, so patients don’t feel like they’re being ignored. He’s also left another avenue for patients to get in touch if they need some urgent help.
Even in today's fast-paced world, customers don't like being greeted with an automated message. According to the New York Times, callers of a certain age are put off entirely if they are answered by a voicemail instead of a real person.
It may sound silly, but the tone in which you say something can either play the professional status up, or it can bring it down. You can’t change what your voice naturally sounds like, but you can work on controlling it to make sure you sound calm and collected when recording your message.
You may clean your voicemail box by following the instructions given by your service provider.
e. Never Assume Anything: Phrases like “You Know What To Do,” “Sing Your Song at the Beep,” and others mentioned above are awful to leave in your greeting. For the sake of universality and comprehensiveness, NEVER assume the caller knows what to do. Lay it out clearly. f. Leave a Message: This phrase, by itself, will not do. It’s imperative for users to identify themselves in their greetings. Callers need to know they’ve reached the right person. g. Disregard Lethargy: If you’re not excited about your greeting, why would anyone else be? Never display a lack of enthusiasm in your greeting as it could turn callers off to both you and your business. h. Speak Clearly and Never Slur: Callers need to understand your every word; therefore, mumbling, slurring, and all other detractions of speech should never be recorded. d. Be Creative Without Sacrificing Quality: Callers know how voicemails work–i.e. leave a number, message, etc. While you want to be clear, it’s important not to be contrive or redundant with your message. Creativity can help users to differentiate themselves, as well as intrigue callers. While users should avoid the tropes of creativity listed above, it’s definitely good to think outside the box. That being said, scripting and practice can help users to experiment more with their greeting–ultimately allowing for more unique and creative approach. e. Speak With Diction: It’s important to present one’s self as an authority without alienating callers. As such, it’s crucial to articulate and speak with clear diction. “ if your voice recording has you stumbling over words and speaking haltingly, it does not convey confidence and competence,” states Ron Sellers of Grey Matter Research & Consulting. Remember, this greeting represents you; therefore, you want to appear collected and professional, as well as welcoming. To do this, one must carry themselves well through their recorded message. f. Account for Timeliness: Your message should be concise. No caller wants to be sitting through a rant/diatribe of redundant statements. Your greeting should flow without dragging. Inversely, one doesn’t want to be terse, either. Engage callers with a simplified approach laden with creativity. h. Account for Quality: Aside from speaking clearly, users want to eliminate any noise in the surrounding environment. The quality of the greeting is just as important as what’s being said in the greeting itself. As such, one doesn’t want to undermine a great message with poor quality. i. Courtesy, Tastefulness, & Tact: This is pretty self-explanatory and straight forward–NEVER be rude. Being light-hearted and humorous is very different from being obnoxious and/or abrasive. Again, these tools can be helpful if utilized properly, but not everyone perceives humor the same way. So play it safe. The last thing your voicemail greeting should do is offend a caller. k. Provide Options: if you’re part of a bigger company, it might be good to offer caller options. For example, allow a menu to defer callers to a colleague or co-worker in your absence. This can help show callers you care about their well being. Another option might be offering different modes of communication–i.e. email, fax, etc. In offering users diversity, contact may be much easier to maintain.