[Here is some great advice for opening your cold-calls without boxing yourself in as JUST an agent]
2. The Simpsons Share a Funny Answering Greeting. If you’re looking for a short and simple message, we suggest turning to Homer Simpson as he tells callers to… leave a message.
.
8. "Hi, you've reached [your name]. I'm unable to come to the phone right now. But if you leave your name, number, and a short message, I'll be sure to call back."
But that doesn't stop some millennials like 26-year-old Nick Sirianno from feeling that voice mail is clearly a thing of the past.
Join the Most-Read Etiquette, Soft Skills, and Interpersonal Communications Blog in the United States! FREE Five-Day Challenge LEARN THE 25 HABITS OF A REMARKABLY CLASSY PERSON. Count Me In!
“Hi _________, this is _______ ________ again with (your company). For some reason we haven’t been able to connect since I sent you (your demo, proposal, etc.), and believe me, I’ve been sales long enough to know what that probably means. I’m assuming you’ve either found another solution or this has been put on the back burner for now. Either way, that’s fine.
Its imperative that you, your company, or both are doing something on a regular basis that labels you as a value-added industry resource to your targeted audience. This way you have a clear advantage over all the other sales calls he/she is receiving.
11. "Hi, you've reached [company]. Unfortunately, we're currently unavailable. But we want to talk to you — so please leave your name and number, as well as your reason for calling, and someone will call back ASAP."
1. Limit Background Noise. If you’re recording your greeting from the back of a New York City cab with the windows down, it’s gonna be pretty obvious to your callers.
In Provide the caller with these options, select an option. Some options will prompt you for additional information, such as an alternate phone number or text to be read to the caller.
Practice your spiel so you can speak with authority. This lets the caller know how confident, qualified, and prepared you are. The goal is to sound like you’ve been doing this for years, not a few minutes.
What digital lifestyle questions do you have? Call Kim’s national radio show and tap or click here to find it on your local radio station. You can listen to or watch the Kim Komando Show on your phone, tablet, television or computer. Or tap or click here for Kim’s free podcasts.
12. “Hello, you’ve reached the Customer Support department at [company name]. We are unable to take your call at the moment. We know your time is valuable so instead of placing you on hold, let us call you back! Please leave your name, phone number, the reason for your call, and two different times that are convenient for you to receive a call back from us. Thank you!” Get a better idea of your caller’s schedule by asking them for a few different times you can call back. Their time is important, too!
Check with your carrier on specifics, but an option to "send a message" may be in the voicemail menu. This will allow you to send a voice message from your voicemail to another person's inbox without having to make a phone call first.
Having a dedicated emergency contact will help make sure anything important that comes up is taken care of. Another option is directing callers to a separate answering service.
Check for outages and troubleshoot problems with your home phone or internet service.
Here are a few more ways to light a fire under the contact so they call or email you back: