By Lisa Kanarek
Some people prefer leaving messages on voice mail rather than with a receptionist. In this age of technology, it's becoming more and more rare for a company not to have a voice mail or other type of messaging system.
1. When recording your message, remember to let the caller know within the first few seconds how he or she can bypass your message.
2. Keep your outgoing message short and simple. Always include your name and company and ask for a detailed message.
3. When recording your message, let the caller know if he or she has a limited amount of time to leave a message and ask for the best time to return the call. You'll save hours of phone tag by knowing when someone will be in his or her office to take your return call. When you leave messages, do the same.
4. Find a voice mail system that will handle your growing needs. A small business may need only one level of voice mail service, versus a larger business that may need several tiers. For example, if someone calls, they may have the option of pressing one for customer service, two for sales and three to speak with an operator. A business can be any size to use a tiered system. It's ideal for providing frequently requested information that can be pre-recorded, including your address and fax number.
5. If you're in a home office, use a voice mail system instead of call waiting. When someone calls, they'll be switched to your voice mail and you can return the call after you hang up the phone. When you're finished with a call, a series of short tones instead of the dial tone will let you know that you have a message waiting.
6. Consider combining a voice mail system with a paging system. When someone calls, you can give him or her the option of paging you immediately.
7. Use a phone log (with columns for the date, caller, number and message), your daily planner, contact management program or a simple spiral notebook to take messages. Make sure that whatever method you use to take messages is nearby your phone. Otherwise you may be tempted to take messages on the nearest scrap of paper.
8. Don't save all of your voice messages. Instead, take action. After writing down or entering the message and number, erase the voice mail message.
9. When you return a phone call, make a note on your message system that you left a message. If it's a paper-based system, place an "M" next to the person's name.
10. When you need to complete an important project, let your voice mail take messages. You'll accomplish more in a short, uninterrupted session, than if you answer your phone every five minutes. If you have to know who's calling, get Caller ID.
Home office expert Lisa Kanarek is the founder of HomeOfficeLife.com and the author of Organizing Your Home Office For Success (Blakely Press) and 101 Home Office Success Secrets (Career Press). |
