OK, now we're ready to move on to voice mail. And they're actually two different components of voice mail I want to talk about. One is obviously leaving messages, but the other is making your personal greeting. And this is really, really important, and there's some great tips about making the personal greeting. The first thing that you need to do is you need to think about what it is you want to say in the personal greeting. Don't just jump on and leave your greeting. Think about it. Plan it out. What is it, what is the information that you want your callers to receive when they call in? Now, two things are a must. One, you want to keep it concise. You don't want your message to go on, and on, and on. Hey this is Bob, I'm going to be out of the office on Thursday, but I'll probably be back Friday. If I'm not back Friday, I'm going to be back Monday. Now, of course, you know, there's always the chance that my flight could be delayed, and I won't get back until Wednesday. But if that's the case, you know, don't go on, and on, and on like that, OK. Another thing that you want to do is include helpful information. I'm away from my desk until Tuesday, but you can call Sally Jones in the HR department at six-four-nine-three-two-seven-one-five-four-seven, and she'll be able to help you out. Now sometimes you might be as brief as this is Tim Jones, I'm going to be away from my desk all day today, press pound if you need further assistance, and you will be connected to the operator who can direct your call. Alright, it depends on the circumstances the information that you need to leave. But what is important is that you keep your callers in mind, and you leave the information that will get them where they need to be. Another thing that you must always do, even if everybody that's calling you knows who you are, you always want to include your name at the beginning of the greeting. Hi, this is Tracy Goodwin, or Hi, this is Tracy. I'll be away from my desk today, March eighteenth. But, if you need assistance, you can page me at, or whatever information that you want to leave. So that is creating your greeting.
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