A professional voicemail can make a significant difference to your company’s reputation. Imagine you are a potential customer calling. If the business you called does not pick up, what do you expect to hear?
Why is Having a Professional Voicemail Important to Your Business?
In some cases, this will be the first contact a customer has with your company. If your voicemail does not sell your company image or at least provides adequate information, the caller may not call back at all. People understand that nobody can be available all of the time; however, you need to set up a voicemail that is as professional as if you were there in person.
It is crucial to always have a voicemail set up. If the office closes for an extended period – for example, a holiday – you should be prepared to make a new voicemail message to explain the absence.
It is a good rule of thumb to update your business voicemail anytime there is a substantial change within the company or when the hours of operation change. A personal work voicemail needs to stay in keeping with your position and job expectations.
A smaller tip that may be obvious to some, but definitely isn’t to others, is to listen back to your new voicemail greeting. We don’t often have the opportunity to hear ourselves from someone else’s perspective, so it’s useful to listen to the recording to make sure your tone is friendly and appropriate.
What Makes a Good Professional Voicemail Greeting?
There are a few essentials you should always be sure to include in a professional voicemail. Some of these items will be more or less relevant depending on your specific voicemail needs.
- The company name
- Your name
- Your position in the company
- The reason for the voicemail message
- The period of absence and likely return
- Alternative contact methods
- A request for contact information
- Any further relevant details
15 Voicemail Greeting Examples for Your Business
Now that you know why setting up a professional voicemail is so important and what it requires to sound professional, here are some example voicemail messages that can work in a few different situations.
Business Greeting Voicemails
“Hello and welcome to [company name]. Unfortunately, no one is available to take your call at the moment. Please leave your name and number and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can, or try again later. Our operating hours are [time to time].”
“Hi, you’ve reached [company name]. No one can take your call at the moment. Please leave your info and we will get back to you, or try again later. Thanks, and have a great day.”
“Thank you for calling [company name]. All our operators are busy at the moment. If your call is urgent, please contact us through our website at [website URL] or send us an email at [company email]. Someone will get back to you as soon as possible.”
“This is [company name]. No one answered the phone so either we’re busy or out of the office. Your call is important to us, so please leave your name and number and we will get back to you when we can. Until then, have a great day!”
“Hello, you have reached [company name]. No one can take your call at the moment. If you have an urgent inquiry, please press [number]. If you would like to know our hours of operation, please press [number]. If you would like to leave a message, press [number]. To hear this message again, press [number].”
Personal Work Voicemails
“Hi there, you’ve reached [your name] at [company name]. I’m out of the office at the moment, but if you leave your name and number I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. Thanks.”
“Hello, this is [your name], [position at company] of [company name]. As you may have guessed, I cannot answer any calls at the present time. Please call back between [time and time] or send me an email at [work email]. If you are in need of immediate assistance, please call our [colleague’s company position] at [colleague’s number]. Thank you for your patience and have a wonderful day.”
“Good day. [Your name] is not available at the moment. Please call again later or leave a message.”
“Hello, you’ve reached [your name], at [company name]. I am out of the office at the moment, but if you leave your info, I’ll call you back as soon as I can. You can also try to reach me at [extension]. Thanks.”
“This is [your name]. I can’t take your call at the moment as I am most likely stuck in a meeting or teaching someone how to use the printer again. If you want to leave your name and number, that would be rad. If you just want to call back later, that would be rad, too. Remember to wait for the–” beep
Extended Closure/Vacation Business Voicemails
“Hello, you’ve reached [company name]. All of our employees are home for the holidays at the moment, but if you leave your name and number, someone will get back to you later. You can also call again. The office will reopen on [date]. Thank you for your interest and enjoy the holidays.”
“This is [company name]. We are having [reason for closure, eg. renovations, relocating, etc.] done, so the office will be closed from [date to date]. Feel free to leave a message or email us at [company email]. Someone will get back to you when we reopen.”
“Happy holidays! We appreciate that you’ve chosen to call [company name] this holiday season, but unluckily for you we let our employees go home for the holidays so no one is around to take this call. Please call again after [date].”
“You’ve reached [company name]. We are closed for the holiday season. Please call back during regular business hours.”
“Hi, there! You’ve reached [company name] at a super inopportune time. We are currently closed due to [reason] and are unsure when we will be able to open again. If you would like to stay up to date with [company name] join our email newsletter at [company email] for all the latest info. Until then, ciao.”