In the video lesson, I shared this example for a common voicemail greeting in English:
Five out of every six phone calls go straight to voice mail. If you‘re in sales, or business of any kind, you know how frustrating this can be.
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Writing a script doesn’t mean you have to write a speech. A simple greeting is fine, like this sample voicemail message:
7. “Hi, this is [your name]. I’m either on a call or away from my desk. Please leave your name, number, and a brief message and I’ll get back to you. Thank you.”
10. Hello, you’ve reached [your company]. We’re sorry to have missed your call. Please leave a brief message including your name, number, and reason for calling and a member of our team will get back to you within one business day.
Once you thank your customers for calling, state your name and the department. Make sure to speak clearly so the caller knows they called the right place and can understand what is being said. Don’t rush through in case the caller wants to write the information down.
After this brief wait, let us know how we can best serve you. No matter your needs, we are dedicated to exceeding your expectations. Thank you for your patience during this brief delay.
Finally get an answering machine. Now how does this thing work? Hmmm. Press record button, I did that, and the light should be on. I wonder why it’s not working right. Hmmmm, I wonder what this button does……
Also referred to as a virtual receptionist, auto-receptionist, virtual PBX or cloud PBX, your virtual auto attendant greets callers and routes them to the proper extensions, phones, or voicemail. It’s managed completely online.
Before we head towards the tips for you to get started on creating efficient voicemail messages, there is one thing you need to realize.
When your small business is closed, ensure that your callers know that! If appropriate, you might want to reiterate your business hours to manage callback expectations.
In the side panel, beside General Settings, click Manage.
Sending an email to each prospect before you call gives them an additional way to get in touch with you when they're ready. As you're leaving your voicemail, mention that you've sent them a quick email as well that has further details on who you are and the purpose of your call. As Florin Tatulea of Loopio explains:
Humor also leaves a lot of room for misinterpretation—which subsequently weakens sincerity and authority. A caller can be very turned off by merely misinterpreting your joke. Why take this risk? Additionally, this could even cause callers to question your character. Say, for example, the president of a company’s mobile phone voicemail greeting was funny. What’s to happen if the caller didn’t like or get the joke? What if they found it offensive? Another scenario is that a caller is reaching out to you for the first time—i.e. they have no idea regarding your personality. What next? The point is, with this type of greeting, humor is bound to be more divisive so just avoid it altogether. c. Poorly Pacing Your Message and Bad Time Management: Don’t speed through your message. Speak clearly so callers know what to include in their message and when to leave the message. At the same time, don’t drag your message out. No one wants to sit through a diatribe. Just get to the point clearly.
When you have new voicemail, the Phone tab in the Skype for Business main window displays the number of your messages. See Contact Card opens the caller's contact card, which lists their phone number, email address, office location, and so on. Open Item in Outlook provides more information about the call.
Record announcements for the business hours and after-hours menu of the Auto Attendant from either a Nextiva or non-Nextiva phone. These announcements greet callers and provide them with a menu of options. NOTE: For information on uploading audio recordings to the announcement repository, click here. From a Nextiva phone: Dial 9999.
Speak clearly. Get unstuck. And sound natural in English. The FREE Fluency School Preview is now available. 👏