When you’re looking for a job, a good rule of thumb is to answer your phone as often as you can. You never know when a recruiter might be calling to set up an in-person meeting, or conduct a phone interview.
ProTip: When recording a business voicemail greeting, do a trial run and listen to your message once it’s recorded to make sure it sounds great.
.
Voicemails need to maintain a professional consistency that’s aligned with the entity it’s representing. That said, the structure can vary depending on the situation. There’s no template set in stone. In fact, trite and generic should be off the table. The goal should be a balance of uniqueness and practicality.
(make a little noise in the background). Hi, you’ve reached your friend’s house. He/she isn’t home right now and I took the opportunity to rob it. I was about to steal the machine as well and you called. After the beep, leave your name and number. I will write it on a post-it and leave it on the refrigerator for him/her to see. Oh and one more thing; where did you say you lived?
Sometimes its just the "Hi, it's me please leave a message" that you want recorded. Transcriptions
“Hey there! This is [name] at [XYZ company]. Thank you for calling. I can’t take your call right now but if you leave your name, contact info and reason for calling, I’ll call you back right away. Take care and speak with you soon!”
“Hi, you’ve reached [your name]. I’m away from[date] to [date]. If you need help with [X] before then, please contact [name] at [phone number]. Everyone else, please leave your name and number and I’ll return your call when I return. Thanks and have a great day.” “Hello, you’ve reached [your name]. I’m currently [exploring Asia, hiking through the jungle in Costa Rica, hanging out on the beach in Bermuda] — or more likely, [recovering from extreme jet lag, googling ‘Are red spiders poisonous,’ or looking for SPF 150 sunscreen] and won’t be back in the office until [date]. Leave your contact info and reason for calling and I’ll get in touch then.” “Hey there, this is [your name] from [your company]. I’m out of the office until [date]. In the meantime, please direct your inquiries to [coworker’s name] at [email address]. [He, she] can also be reached at [phone number]. Thank you.”
Voicemail greetings can include any information you’d wish to convey, such as special sales, bargains, alternate phone numbers to use, or your company’s normal working hours.
Customers expect professional treatment from your business at all times, even from a prerecorded business voicemail greeting. Provide a good impression of your business and yourself through the simple act of recording a professional voicemail message. It only takes a few minutes of your time and can impact your business for the better.
-Hello, this is ________. I’m not home right now, but I can take a message. Hang on a second while I get a pencil. (Open a drawer and shuffle stuff around.) OK, what would you like me to tell me?
The voicemail greeting is an important element of your business’ phone system because it is often the first impression of your business that customers will have. Creating a really good voicemail greeting is a unique opportunity that you can use to impress customers by putting your best face on, while increasing the chances that you’ll retain their business in those times when …
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.
Your business’s voicemail greeting could be a potential customer’s first impression. Learn how to record an excellent greeting here! Click To Tweet
To create or change outgoing voicemail messages for individual extensions or for a Ring Group (multiple extensions).
15. “Hello, you’ve reached the Sales Department at [Company name]. All of our representatives are currently helping clients [insert goal such as, ‘achieve 40% growth through streamlining HR’] and are unable to take your call. Instead of putting you on hold and taking up your valuable time, please leave your name, company, and phone number and we’ll give you a call back ASAP. Thank you!”
If your job involves a lot of talking on the phone, take the time to learn the NATO phonetic alphabet. "If you need to spell something out, you'll always have a way to clarify which letter you've said without having to think about it, and it sounds more professional than, 'B as in boy, L as in...uhhh...Larry.'"
Once I listened to my original recording, I knew it was time for an upgrade. I asked around for some tips about writing and recording voicemail greetings. Here's my process: What's wrong with this voicemail message? "Hey, What's Up?" isn't going to make a good impression for business calls. "Umm..." never makes you seem confident or professional, either. "I'll get back to you whenever I can" really means, "I'm probably screening your call and I won't call you back." "BEEP!" My message was cut off, and for six years, I didn't know and no one told me. Ouch. How I fixed it: 2. Then, I wrote down what I wanted to say and read it out loud a few times until I was satisfied with the flow. 3. I rehearsed and recorded my voicemail script a few times to hear how I sounded. (I tend to talk relatively quickly, so I wanted to make sure the message didn't sound rushed.) 4. For the final recording I recorded my message while smiling so I sounded happy and approachable. 5. I checked my final recording by listening to my voicemail message from both a cell phone and a landline, and also asked a friend to listen for a second opinion.