6. Prove your attentiveness to voicemail: “Good morning. You’ve reached the voicemail of [your name]. Today is [date]. Please leave me a message with your name and contact information.
14. “Thanks for giving us a call! We promise it’s never a bad time for [company name], but you’ve reached us after-hours. Please leave us your name, number and the best time to reach you and we’ll give you a call when we are open.” Let’s face it, you’re not always open. Yet that doesn’t mean you don’t want to help your caller. Let them know you’ll call them right back when you’re open again.
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5. "Hello, [Person's name] is chasing new adventures and is no longer with [Company name]. Please forward all future requests to [New or interim person's name] at [phone number].
34. Hello, this is [your name]. I’m currently out of the office celebrating [X holiday]. I’ll be back on [X date], so leave a quick message and I’ll be sure to return your call when I get back. Have a happy [holiday]!
Typically, most of these services are uniform—i.e. include the same tools and features (send a script, they record it in a tone you approve, they send it as a file, you supply any feedback, etc.); however, there are some services that go above and beyond. For example, VoiceOverPro, is a single voice professional who records 30 second voicemail messages based on users’ scripts. This is standard; however, users also have options like adding music, recording up to 60 seconds (or 150 words), rush, 2-day turnaround, and even same day delivery.
5. "Hello, [Person's name] is chasing new adventures and is no longer with [Company name]. Please forward all future requests to [New or interim person's name] at [phone number]. Thank you!"
For example, you could say something like “I was going over your company’s numbers for last year and I saw something really interesting in the first quarter… I’d love to talk about it when you call.”
You may clean your voicemail box by following the instructions given by your service provider.
Users often don’t invest enough time into their messages, resulting in incomplete, unprofessional, or otherwise under-whelming greetings. Sure, crafting a greeting doesn’t sound all that complicated; however, there are a number of pitfalls users can fall into—i.e. informality, terseness, sincerity, lack of direction, and more. While none of these sound too catastrophic, they are often interrelated. As such, they tend to worsen any problem. For example, humor can cause informality, worsen ambiguity, and weaken sincerity. That being said, users should strive to avoid ALL these pitfalls.
The average voicemail response rate is only 4.8% according to statistics. So what makes those few voicemails stand out from the crowd to get a response while others go totally bust?
The phrase should imply they will call you back — not that you desperately hope they’ll call you. And whatever phrase you choose to use, make sure it sounds like something you’d naturally say so you can deliver it with a confident tone.
Thank you for calling. You have reached (Your Name) at (Your Business). Please leave your name, number, and a brief message and I’ll return your call as soon as possible.
To help you remember the important elements of your message we’ve put together an infographic with 5 tips to remember when leaving a professional voicemail message.
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10. "Hello, you've reached [X company]. We can't take your call right now, but please leave your name, contact information, and reason for reaching out, and one of our team members will be in touch within 24 hours.
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.
Use your judgment to choose times that will be best for them based on what you know to be true about their industry and work environment.