This article is about the second main type of greeting – the voicemail greeting. All businesses should have professional voicemail greetings at the company level (i.e. your general business number), department level (e.g. customer service), and employee level, where applicable. It’s important that each of these voicemail greetings align with the brand and personality of your company to ensure that every caller has a consistent experience. Let’s dive in!
I don’t know about you, but I’m shocked every time I listen to a voicemail message left for me by sales reps, prospects and even clients. They are filled with ‘um’s’ and ‘ah’s’, they ramble on and on, they leave no compelling reason for me to call back, and they almost always leave their number so fast that I have to listen to it two, three, sometimes four times to make it out!
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People hate voicemail. Leaving messages, receiving them… With so many other ways to communicate, most of which don’t require you to actually use your voice, voicemail has become anxiety-producing. It’s even worse when you’re talking about a marketing or sales voicemail, too. The recipient usually thinks, “You’re just trying to get money out of me,” and they often hang up before listening to the entire message.
Find some common ground. If you’re cold calling someone, your voicemail is your 30 second chance to make a connection and leave a good impression. One of the best ways to make a connection in that short amount of time is mentioning a mutual acquaintance. You could also mention a shared affiliation with an organization.
A perfect sales voicemail should be in the neighborhood of 20 to 30 seconds -- not much longer, and not much shorter. I realize this is a very specific window of time, so let me explain the reasoning.
2.) A gracious phone message is 30-45 seconds when talking to those we don’t know well. As George Washington said (yep, that George Washington), and I’m paraphrasing, “With men of business, be brief.” Be pleasant, and get right to the point. You’ll appear more confident and capable of handling the situation which merited the call.
Do me a favor though please. So I’m not bothering you anymore, could you please give me a quick call and just give me an update so I know what direction you’re moving in?
Hello, this is Jenny, I’m sorry, at this moment I can’t take your call but please leave a message and I’ll be sure to call you back as soon as I can. Thank you and have a great day.
It's easy to imagine the caller hanging up, dialing another prospect, and leaving an identical voicemail using the exact same high pitch, and then another … and another. If it sounds like a salesperson is just doing their 50 prospecting calls for the day, it absolves the listener of any responsibility to respond.
Some people found success in fixing their voicemail woes when they temporarily disabled
Wondering why this is? We can thank the serial position effect. This psychological phenomenon says when you show people a list, they'll remember the first and last items the best. That means when you're trying to grab a prospect's attention, you want to be one of the first or last things they hear.
21. “Happy holidays. Thanks for calling OpenPhone. Our hours are a little different during the holiday season. Please listen carefully to the following changes. Customer Support is available December 23, 27, and 30th as well as January 2nd, 3rd from 11 AM – 5 PM EST. On December 24th, 31st, and the holiday weekends from the 21st to the 5th we are open from 12 PM – 3 PM EST. We are closed on December 25th, 26th as well as January 1st. In the case of an emergency, please leave a message and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible. You can also reach out via email to [email protected]. Thanks for using OpenPhone and enjoy your holiday season!” Since our holiday hours are shorter, it’s a little harder to get in contact with us immediately. That means we need to be as detailed as possible for our callers’ convenience. Yet, we still kept it brief and friendly.
Don’t give up when you don’t receive a call from lead you’ve reached out to. You will need to make at least a handful of calls, plus emails and texts, over the next couple of weeks to maximize your chances of speaking to the lead. You may find that leads don’t want to speak directly to you but will communicate through text or email. No matter the avenue of conversation, consider it a win when they start conversing with you through any form of communication. Be persistent. If you don’t hear from them after weeks of effort, nurture them through a drip email campaign. All of the effort you put forth to reach out to the lead may not result in an immediate response but, they may call you in six months and that is a win.
To check your voice mail: Tap the Voice mail icon at the top of the screen. Find the message you want to listen to, then tap the Play icon to hear the message. To exit voice mail, press the Back button. A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z About US
4. Enter your voicemail password. If you have set a password lock for your voicemail account, you will be prompted to key it in. Use the dial pad to do so.
You may not think it, but an auto-attendant is an important part of your business. It is typically the first point of contact with your customers, as they will call your main number with sales inquiries, troubleshooting questions, etc.
So what should you do if you’ve got a voicemail that’s really worth saving? The solution involves some free software and an affordable purchase, but it’s doable. Here’s how: