MobilePhoneSmall.jpgVoicemail has been around (in the form of answering machines) for much longer than texting, email or mobile phones, but is it still the most poorly used communication method? 

Do these things happen only to me:

  • A missed call from an unknown number and no message left?
  • A message where the person doesn’t say what they were calling about, just asks for a call back?
  • A message with no name and you can’t quite tell who it is from the voice?
  • A message with no return phone number, or a number that you can’t quite hear?

If any of these have ever happened to you, make sure you’re not doing it to someone else.  Here’s five ways to improve your voicemail message etiquette:          

1. Always Leave a Message

When someone rings and leaves no message at all, I have no idea who called, why they called, or if it was important.  Have they assumed I’ll see the missed call and call back anyway, or was it really not that important?

When you’re the one doing the calling, leave a message.  You’ve made the effort to get in touch, finish it off by letting the person know who it was and why you were trying to reach them.  No one likes a guessing game, and no one likes returning a call to a missed number only to get the reception desk or a common switchboard number.       

2. Give Some Detail on why you called

Leaving just your name and “please call me” is not a complete message.  You haven’t told the person what you were calling about and more importantly whether it is urgent or not. 

Tell the person briefly what you were calling about, what you’d like them to do about it, and when or how urgently you need them to call you back.      

3. Leave Your Name

Maybe I’m the only one who’s not a master of recognising voices, and I think some people think they’re the only one that says “Hi, it’s me”. 

Ok “me”, nice to hear from you, but please don’t assume that I know your number or that I can recognise your voice.  It really isn’t that hard to say who you are, and it doesn’t take long.  And if I do recognise your voice or see your number, I’m hardly going to think you’re weird for saying who it is that’s calling. 

4. Leave Your Number Twice

So you’ve left a great message, you’ve told me what you’re calling about, and you’ve told me who you are.  Thanks for all that, I’ve jotted it all down ready to return your call… and then right at the end of the message you tell me your phone number, but all I get a chance to write down is the first five digits.  Only problem is I now need to listen to the whole message again to get back to the phone number.

Try this simple trick that people with slow ears like me will appreciate – right at the start of the message give me your phone number, then say it again at the end.  Sure I might not catch it the first time, but when I miss it the second time at least I only need to listen to the start of the message a second time.      

5. Don’t Leave Negative Messages

On a more serious note, voicemail message are not the place for bad news or negative feedback.  If you’ve rung to give the person negative information (i.e. they’ve been unsuccessful for a job, or you need to talk to them about something they did wrong), don’t leave that information in the message.  Still leave a message, but just let them know you need to talk to them and to please call you or you will contact them again later.

Just like we discussed in our post about mistakes we make with email, voicemail is a one way communication method.  This makes it not very suitable to negative news as it’s not possible to get the other person’s reactions in real time.
    

Certainly voicemail frustrations are nowhere near the biggest issue we need to tackle in our work or personal lives, but a few little changes can make life that much easier and more efficient for ourselves and others.

Looking forward to getting your messages, and returning your calls!

- Jamie Ross
Mining Man

Leadership, Safety and Productivity Ideas for the Mining Industry