Tired of leaving voicemails only to have customers not call you back? The message you’re leaving may be the problem. Waiting for people to return your calls can be frustrating, especially when you can’t move on with a task until you get a reply. But before you get angry at those people who haven’t called you back, consider whether your voice-mail messages are missing important elements.

Robert Spiegel, author and lecturer, suggests that because most of us receive numerous calls each day, we don’t feel obliged to return them if the caller doesn’t state his intention clearly. “Not long ago it was considered impolite to neglect returning calls,” he says. “But telephone salespeople have destroyed this courtesy. Now people don’t hesitate to ignore calls that aren’t completely forthcoming about their intentions.”

If you’re not receiving callbacks, assess the messages you leave. Spiegel offers these tips to help you leave better messages:

• If you don’t know the person whom you’re calling, briefly introduce yourself, stating your business affiliation.
• Briefly explain the reason for your call, providing pertinent details.
• Give an option of forwarding your message to another person who can assist.
• Repeat your phone number twice–at the beginning and end of your message.
• Provide your email address as an option for returning your message.

Filed under: Customer Service Corner