Leave Your Message After the Beep

How many times a day do you try to reach an important business contact and hear a voicemail greeting like this?

“Hi. You’ve reached the voice mailbox for Gordon Matthews. I am not available to take your call, but it is important to me. At the tone, please leave me your name, number, and a brief message. I’ll return your call as soon as possible. (BEEP)”

What do many of us do? Too often, we do the absolute wrong thing, a thing that nearly guarantees we won’t get a return call: we leave a rambling, ill-prepared, uninspiring message. Is it any surprise that our batting average for getting timely replies is dismally close to that of a third-string pitcher forced to hit in the playoffs?

How about raising your response rate to warrant induction into the Voice Mail Hall of Fame? There are a few simple ways to improve your effectiveness in using Gordon Matthews’s 1979 invention. (Fun fact: Matthews happens to still hold the U.S. patent for voicemail.) So, let’s try a few on for size.

Get the message

Voicemail is the next most effective means of communicating with another person, if a face-to-face meeting or real-time phone conversation is not possible or practical. A voicemail message is superior to an email, text message, snail-mail letter, and even a message you may ask an administrative assistant to write down and pass along. Why? It’s because such a message includes your actual voice and its tonal inflections, rather than mere words.

Neuro-linguistic studies have concluded that the tone of a message is more than five times as important as the actual words used. Unfortunately, when leaving a voicemail message in haste, the tone of one’s voice can inadvertently convey various undesirable, underlying meanings, such as nervousness, uncertainty, fear, negativity, or impatience.

Efficient use of telephone technology is a required business skill these days. Taking a minute to plan that important call will undoubtedly result in a more coherent, effective voicemail message if you are unable to speak to your party directly. In fact, “choreographing” such a call could be as important as its content.

What constitutes good planning? It could be as simple as answering a few self-directed questions. Grab a pad of paper and jot down your thoughts to these questions:

• Within the first 15 seconds, how could I professionally and courteously encourage this person to shift their attention from daily tasks to the reason for my call?
• What is my purpose for the call? What do I want the receiver to do and know, and how do I expect him to feel as a result of my call?
• How can I concisely present the benefits or rewards of returning my call? Or, if more appropriate, how could I thoughtfully explain the risks involved in not taking action on my message?

If designing a template to fashion a consistent structure for your voice mail messages will help you develop long-lasting habits, then create one. Some of the most common components of a well-built message include identifying yourself, stating the reason for the call, a brief preview of your key points, the presentation of your key points, a quick summary of what should happen next, and a heartfelt thank you.

More is less, less is more

Your professionalism and conversational delivery within the first few sentences of your message will determine whether the person you called is moved toward action or toward sending you to the deleted messages graveyard. Studies indicate many voicemailbox owners will abandon a significant portion of incoming messages in the first 15 to 20 seconds-or, put another way, not even halfway through most of them.

A short, helpful greeting in a friendly tone is always business-appropriate. When you consistently offer a well-paced, upbeat start to a voicemail, you politely grab the attention of the person and can hold it for the duration of your message. Consider something like this:

“Good morning, Beth. (pause) This is Vince DiCecco from Your Personal Business Trainer in Atlanta. (pause) I can best be reached at (pause) area code 7-7-0 (pause) 3-2-9 (pause) 5-1-0-7 (spoken clearly and deliberately). I am calling you today to …” You may include the day, date, and time of your call if the other party’s greeting requests it and if you think it would aid the receiver, if he or she is in a different time zone, or if there’s a time-sensitive aspect to your business together.

The bottom line to voicemail effectiveness is to get your point across in 30 seconds or so and inspire the listener to call back. Anything more than that can dilute the impact of your message. The reason for your call should be stated early and concisely. If you want the receiver to know something, offer it up immediately. If you want the person to do something, give guidance in a clear and direct manner. When should they call back? What are their options for future meeting dates, times, and locations? Consider grouping all of the “do” items together.

The feeling part of your message is defined by your tone and the courtesies you extend to the receiver. If the tone of the message doesn’t match your intentions, it can undermine its purpose. Be unfailingly and genuinely polite. Do not allow your frustration of not being able to speak to the person directly spill over into your message.

Compare and contrast the “body” of these voicemail messages:

Poor: “My company is a respected sign and digital graphics shop. We specialize in wayfinding signage, storefront LED signs and P.O.P. displays. I’m calling to find out if you might be interested in learning more about us.”

Average: “When we met at a trade show a while back, you mentioned that business was poor and it wasn’t a good time to talk. I’m calling now to find out if you’d be interested in taking advantage of a sign and graphics special my company is having.”

Better: “When we spoke last month at THE NBM SHOW, you suggested I call you around now to schedule a time when we could discuss your particular situation (note: try to be specific here) and evaluate several possible solutions to the challenges you were having. (pause) Would next Tuesday at 11 work for you? (pause)”

The most common misuse of voicemail involves trying to do too much with one message. Most business owners would agree that voicemail messages like the first two above are not the best ways to promote a product line, highlight its exclusive features, and give customers the impression that you’re are a good listener or that you have their best interests in mind.

Good voicemail is like Asian cooking. Many years ago, I was advised to take a lesson from the practices of Asian chefs when trying to improve my electronic communications, in both voicemail and email. I was as puzzled hearing that advice as you may be reading it, but there is a logical reason why Asian cuisine is prepared in the manner it is.

Asian food is cut and prepared into bite-sized pieces, so that much of the work eating it has already been taken care of. It is quickly cooked as in stir-fried, for example, or not cooked at all, as in the case of sushi, so as to preserve the food’s nutrition and taste. When hot and spicy flavorings are added, the diner is forewarned and prepared for what’s to come.

So how is that like effective voicemail? With voicemail, you should avoid run-on sentences with highbrow words when shorter, simpler, everyday language will work as well. When you don’t “overcook” the message, you preserve its value and generate an increased interest in learning more. If you have to deliver “spicy” news or get someone “hot” about doing something, serve it up with care and some warning.

While it’s true that a relatively short time after consuming an Asian meal one could experience renewed hunger pangs, that phenomenon is a good thing if your customers are hungry for more of what you’re serving up.

Quick tips for voicemail excellence

Here are some final thoughts that should further raise your voicemail response rate:

• Consider the right medium for your message. If you have more information than can fit in a 30-second message, hit the highlights in a voicemail and refer the other party to a forthcoming email that will contain the details. By leaving the voicemail to instruct the receiver to check their email, you are still taking advantage of adding the proper tone to your message.
• Rehearse your voicemail message by sending it to yourself first. Most people rush their speech while leaving a voicemail. Talking uncharacteristically fast tends to cause the listener to mistrust or doubt the validity of the message. When you send yourself a practice voicemail, you give your mind and vocal chords a chance to warm up.
• Be persistent, but don’t become a pest. The National Sales Executive Association conducted a study on how many attempts at contact it took to earn a sale. Only 20 percent of all sales were made within the first four contact attempts. Eighty percent were made on the fifth through the 12th tries. Vary the time of day and the day of the week when trying to hook up with a targeted prospect.

For longer messages, conclude your message (even if you’ve led with it) with your name, phone number and appreciation, in advance, for a return call. On the outside chance that the receiver did not have a pen and paper handy at the beginning of the voicemail or if he fast-forwarded to the end of the message, at least your final words will sum up your contact information. Try something like this: “I look forward to your return call. Please call me at (pause) area code 7-7-0 (pause) 3-2-9-5-1-0-7 at your earliest convenience. Thank you, Gordon.”