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After the tone
Respect others' time when leaving a message.
You’re busy. The last thing you need is a rambling voicemail message that sounds like the person is trying to form his own opinion on a subject. When that happens, you fantasize about hitting the delete button—or you act on that impulse.
Guess what? Your clients and colleagues are busy, too.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when leaving a voice message:
Decide what response you want before you dial the phone. If you need to discuss a complex issue, mention the subject matter and ask for a return phone call. Don’t spend minutes describing details if you’re just going to have to rehash them when the person calls back.
Be prepared. If you are calling with property details, a summary of a report, or similar information that you know the other person wants as soon as possible, have the materials in front of you so you can quickly hit the highlights. If you’re going to fax the entire document or the information exists on the Web, just let the other person know the bottom line as well as where he can find the rest of the information.
Plan to reconnect. Let the other party know if you expect him to contact you, then let him know the best time to do so and by what means (phone, e-mail, fax).
If you are not well-known to the message recipient, state your name and phone number slowly at the beginning and end of the message. Just because you can rattle off your phone number in less than seven-tenths of a second doesn’t mean someone can write it down that fast.
Make a conscious effort to be brief. Keeping this idea in mind when you dial will prevent you from inadvertently stretching a half-minute message into a three-minute soliloquy.
Photo © Corbis.
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