Best Phones Greetings for Business

What are phone greetings for business?

Phone greetings for business are recordings that inform customers they’ve reached the right place and guide them to solving specific issues.

They are an essential part of any communication strategy, as they ensure the continuity of your business relationships when you can’t pick up the phone.

Phone greetings serve many purposes, but their immediate goal is to create a great first impression in your absence.

You can record them for when you’re away on holidays, for after-hours purposes, for voicemails, or even as auto-attendants to guide callers towards solving their needs.

The best phone greetings are also infused with a tonality that fits your brand’s style, creating rapport and setting the mood for future interactions.

When done right, phone greetings will improve your credibility and authority, plus they will make you more reliable and even more likable.

What makes a phone greeting successful?

A successful phone greeting sets the tone for upcoming conversations and provides meaningful, relevant information that the caller can use later on.

To achieve these goals, a recording must respect a few unwritten rules.

Luckily, we’ve taken the time to write them down, so you can know exactly what your phone greeting needs to become successful and lay the foundation to more sophisticated strategies.

1. Have a high-quality recording

The quintessential requirement for having a successful phone greeting is crystal clear sound quality.

You simply cannot afford to put out a sketchy recording that’s cluttered by background noise, shuffling papers, or rustling sounds.

Any sign of a low quality recording will get your customers thinking that the way in which you do business is careless and unfocused, and you definitely don’t want that.

That’s why you need a professional voice over that’s produced and mastered in a studio, preferable with state-of-the-art recording gear.

You might want to consider reaching out to a voiceover company such as Amazing Voice to optimize your phone greetings for any phone system.

2. Adopt a tone that fits your business.

Phone greetings should be crafted in the style and tone of voice of your business.

Whether that’s formal or casual, dare to be creative, and stay away from overused phrases and stale introductions.

If your business allows it, you can replace the classical tone with a casual, upbeat message that engages your callers in a fun, surprising, and positive manner.

Alternatively, you can also opt for a straightforward delivery, by keeping things professional and to the point.

Whatever approach you choose, make sure it fits your brand’s tone of voice, and that your callers will relate to it.

After all, it’s for them that you’re crafting it.

3. Craft a clear, engaging message.

Your phone greetings should serve the needs of your callers by including clear messages that offer guidance.

That’s why you should take all the time needed to thoroughly think about the reason why you’re recording a phone greeting and the needs you want to answer with it.

Clarity is an essential aspect of phone greetings and you should ensure all your messages make a point.

Having a professional voice over narrating your phone greetings will help you achieve this goal.

How to create the best phone greetings for business (with examples)

Depending on what purpose they serve, phone greetings can be of several types.

Auto-attendant phone greetings

An auto-attendant’s main goal is to direct customers to the right department or help them contact the right employee who can solve their concerns.

Callers might dial your number with sales inquiries, troubleshooting questions, or other issues which, left unsolved, might damage your reputation.

That’s why your auto-attendant script should be clear, easy-to-navigate, and engaging.

Its message should come across as sympathetic, but also helpful, efficient, and straightforward.

Aim for a professional and courteous tone that’s meant to leave your customers feeling understood and satisfied.

After all, a great auto-attendant phone greeting can make the difference between a happy customer and one that will spread negative reviews about your business.

So here’s how to create the perfect script that will nurture the best customer relationships:

1. State your company’s name

Let callers know that they’ve contacted the correct number.

Consider a straightforward line such as “Thank you for calling (Company Name)” or a friendlier alternative like “Hello and welcome, you have reached (Company Name)”.

Remember that the end goal is to offer relevant, valuable information, so always choose clarity instead of convoluted intros.

2. Create an easy-to-navigate menu flow

Clearly explain how callers can reach specific departments/employees or perform certain actions.

To make sure your customers know exactly what to do next, construct simple sentences with instructions for each option.

For example, here’s how we would approach the menu for an auto-attendant script for a B2B company.

“If you are Wholesaler, Distributor or Reseller of our products, press 1

If you have purchased one of our products and require assistance, press 2

For customer service, parts or technical assistance, press 3

For accounts payable, press 4

For accounts receivable, press 5

For technical support or customer service on our showerheads, press 6”

3. Use a professional voice-over

Use a pro voice talent to record your message and set a steady talking pace that helps your callers understand all the options.

The pace of your greeting should be slow enough for anyone to grasp.

Don’t provide the instructions with rapid-fire pacing, because you can end up creating frustration among your callers.

4. End on a positive note

Wrap up by thanking your callers, but not before introducing an option that helps them to listen again to the navigation instructions.

And if you feel all dry on inspiration, you can check our 75 auto-attendant script examples.

After-hours phone greetings

After-hour phone greetings help businesses stay in touch with clients even when they’re closed.

It might seem like a minor detail, but the impact of having such an announcement can be tremendous.

Especially since the effort needed to record an after-hours greeting is small in comparison to the satisfaction it can bring to your callers.

A well-thought message can help you win new customers and improve your relationship with existing ones by presenting clear, relevant information.

Ultimately, it’s about showing your callers that you value their time and that you’re willing to go that extra mile and a half for them.

And we want to walk that path with you, so we’ve created a checklist to guide you in creating the best after-hours announcements:

1. State the name of your business.

We can’t stress this enough: all phone greetings for business should start by clearly stating the name of the company.

2. Let callers know your operating hours.

Most callers will expect an operator to answer their calls, so make sure to let them know why this isn’t happening.

Mention your usual operating hours and layout the current situation.

3. Explain what they can do next.

Since your callers will probably have an issue that needs solving, try to help them as much as you can even if your business is closed.

Offer them a few options of what they can do next, or encourage them to reach out to you as soon as you’ll open.

Here’s an example:

“Thank you for contacting (Company Name). Our office is currently closed.

If you would like to leave a message with a sales agent at Vista Park, press 1

If you would like to leave a message for a sale agent at Serene Hills, press 2.

For warranty press 3 or visit our website at www.CompanyName.com.

To leave a message with another member of our team please press 9 for a dial by name directory.

Thanks, and have a nice day.”

4. Offer callers alternative contact options.

Giving your callers options will help them find alternative solutions for solving their needs — they’ll appreciate you for that.

For urgent matters, consider redirecting them to a call representative, or encourage them to leave a message.

Here’s how:

“Welcome to (Company Name).

Our regular hours are Monday through Friday, 8AM to 4:30PM EST.

If you know the extension of the person you are calling, you may dial it at any time.

For urgent matters, please press 1 to be connected to an on call representative.

For a list of extensions, press 2.

To leave a message with our message center, press 3.

To repeat this menu, press the # key.”

5. Be clear, brief, and congenial.

Don’t take too much time to get to the point.

Sure, you can be creative and approach your after-hours announcement from a different perspective, but don’t ramble on without meaning.

Think about what your customers might want and give them that.

6. Update your after-hours greetings as often as needed.

Since your operating hours might differ from season to season, make sure you’re always updating your recording to account for any changes.

Having a professional voice over on board or working with a studio will ensure all changes are handled swiftly.

Voicemail phone greetings

It’s important that your customers feel that they can always reach you even when... they can’t.

Whether you’re attending an important meeting, or you’re simply too deep into doing something else and can’t pick up the phone, you can’t leave your clients hanging.

Luckily, here’s where voicemail phone greetings come in to save the day.

A voicemail message can help your business be there for customers at times when nobody is available to answer their call.

Plus, if you work with a professional voice over to record the announcement, you’ll have the chance of making your clients feel even more appreciated.

If you decide to craft the voicemail message yourself, here’s what you need to have in mind:

1. Stay away from stale intros.

Recording a voicemail that starts with “your call is important to us” won’t impress anybody.

Instead of turning to overused formulas that bear little to no meaning, turn stereotypes on their head.

Keep things simple and craft an intro that rolls off the tongue.

2. Apologize for not being able to take the call.

Let your callers know that you’re caught up and, if you like, give them a more in-depth explanation of why you’re unable to attend.

However, don’t dwell too much into intricate apologies or never ending explanations.

A short, to the point mention will suffice.

3. Let them know when you’ll call them back.

This is probably the most important part of your voicemail greeting.

The callers will most definitely have an issue that they want to solve and they’ll want to know when you’ll be able to return the call.

While the mention will probably be generic, it’s helpful to stress out whether you’ll answer in the next couple of hours, or in the next couple of days.

4. Offer some alternatives for contacting your office.

Everybody loves alternatives, so give a few other options to your callers.

Maybe there’s somebody else from your business who they could contact, or maybe they could write an email instead.

Whatever option you think might work, let them know.

Here’s a script example for this:

“Thank you for calling (Company Name),

Unfortunately, all of our Engineers are busy assisting other customers.

Please leave a message and we will return your call shortly.

You can also submit a ticket by visiting our website at www.CompanyURL.com or by sending an email to helpdesk@CompanyURL.com.

Thank you for calling and have a great day.”

5. End on a high note.

Don’t end your voicemail message abruptly.

Wrap up by thanking them in a way that feels authentic, and don’t forget to infuse some of your brand’s personality.

Want to record some amazing phone greetings for your business?

At Amazing Voice, we specialize in crafting professional greetings that get businesses closer to their clients.

If you want a high-quality recording created with a professional voice over and a great script, reach out to us and we’ll make it happen.

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