Attention to Details: Your Voicemail Greeting

Back in the day, I would have said something about answering machine messages, but I guess those aren’t big sellers any more.

I’ve called quite a few photographers and have had the opportunity to listen to a variety of voice mail greetings. Sometimes it’s VERY hard to understand what the greeting says. I called someone recently who had a message that was so fast that I only understood the word “photography.” If it weren’t for that,  I wouldn’t have been sure that I had the right number.

Sometimes your voice mail greeting is the first impression that a potential client has of you. You certainly don’t want that impression to be “I have no idea what they just said.”

Here’s a simple guide to writing a voice mail message:

1. Greet your caller: “Hello!”

2. Identify yourself: “This is Mary from ABC Photography.”

3. Short message: “I’m  not available at the moment.”

4. Tell them what to do: “Please leave your name and number and I will contact you soon.”

5. Buh bye: “Thank you for calling.”

There…  5 easy tidbits to write. You don’t have to be creative to write a simple and effective greeting. Now, practice it a few times and make sure you talk slower than normal conversation. It may sound too slow to you, but trust me, you will be understood better if you slow down.

Record your message and ask a few friends to call your number and listen to your message and let you know if they could understand it.

Well done!