Spread holiday cheer loud and clear: holiday phone messages for business

“The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear,” Buddy the Elf.

So, how does that translate to your business? Your happy holiday messages to clients!

There are six holidays that 96 percent of U.S. businesses honor by giving their employees the holiday off. Three of them fall in quick succession: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. If you plan to be closed these days or any other in the coming weeks, listen up: The best voicemail greetings are a fun way to wish your customers happy holidays and communicate your holiday hours.

Why dress up your holiday phone messages for business?

There are many benefits to creating a memorable and fun “away for the holidays” message to your callers, including:

• Grows your brand image. Stand out from the rest with memorable Christmas voicemail greetings. This solidifies your brand presence and piques your customer’s interest and motivation to become a loyal customer.
• Engages your customers. A holly jolly voicemail script humanizes your business and shows your employees’ personalities, allowing your customers to feel more comfortable connecting with you and your employees.
• Provides service even when closed. Even if you aren’t in the office, you can set up a virtual receptionist to start with a cheerful seasonal message that routes callers to information they need, such as your holiday hours, location and specific voicemail options.
• Communicates your modified hours. Your business holiday phone messages should list your modified hours to prevent customers from guessing and calling back repeatedly.
• Manages expectations during the holidays. You can use your happy holiday messages to clients for more than just informing them of your business hours. Indicate the times of day that your call volumes are higher and times that you take lunch breaks to give them the option to call during less busy times or ask for their patience during peak times.

The best voicemail greetings tips

Elements of your professional voicemail greeting script can be used in your regular and holiday voicemail messages. Common things to include are:

• Greeting: A warm greeting is always called for – spice it up with holiday music or keep it simple with a friendly introduction to your business and thank your customer for calling.
• Explanation: Explain why they are reaching your voicemail. For the holidays, this can be where you can add in your modified holiday schedule.
• Timeline: Give callers a timeframe of the best times to call, or when they can expect to get a return call. You can also note other irregular hours of operation due to the holidays.
• Alternative contact: Maybe you aren’t in the office, but your colleague is. You can always use your business phone greetings to redirect callers to someone who is available during your time off. If it’s a companywide closure, add when you plan to check your voicemail and return calls. If you have an after-hours support extension, give callers the option to transfer to that number.
• Call to action: Prompt callers to leave you a detailed message, call back when you are expected to return to the office or follow your call menu for more options.

Holiday office closed message inspiration

Bringing it all together, there are many ways to leave a lasting impression on your callers with your business phone greetings. The holidays are a perfect time to have fun with this and show your personality. Try making your holiday greetings messages for clients:

Here are two you can sing to the tune of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas”:

We wish you a merry Christmas.
We wish you a Happy New Year.
We wish you lots of good cheer and will call you next year.

Good vibes we are sending to you and your team.
We wish you happy holidays and will call you back soon.

Or try this one to the tune of “Frosty the Snowman”:

Ooma the business
Is away on holiday.
We are having fun
But will be back soon.
Leave a voicemail here today.

Or borrow the “Jingle Bells” tune for this one:

Bells on telephones ring,
Even while we’re away.
Oh what joy it is to have
Voicemail to save the day.

Funny. Try for frank and funny. Hey—it’s relatable! For example:

Hi, It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and I’m busy thoroughly enjoying it with Christmas movies, red wine, holiday parties and presents galore.

Just kidding, I’m probably standing in line with everyone else trying to snag a last-minute present, wondering if I’ll be late for my kid’s holiday concert, where I get to see a bunch of people whose names I can‘t remember.

But seriously, I hope you’re doing the first option and just calling to wish me a happy holiday! Anything else I will handle when I get back in the office ready to take on the new year.

Cheers!

Festive. If the first two are a bit over the top for you or just not your style, you can never go wrong with warm and festive. Try:

Happy holidays from all of us at Elfin Tree Farm!

We can’t take your call right now. But you can leave us a message, and we will return your call when we are back in the office on January 3. You can also email us at email@elfin.com or follow our menu prompts for immediate service.

Thank you for a wonderful year of supporting our business. We are excited to see what the new year brings in new and renewed partnerships.

Merry everything!

Wrapping it all up

A VoIP phone service makes updating voicemails easy. For example, Ooma Office has three business plans that all start with more than 50 essential, affordable features, including the Virtual Receptionist to not only greet callers, but route them to helpful information like your business hours. Even better, you don’t have to be a computer tech to set it up or make updates. Ooma is budget-friendly and provides so many ways to communicate with your customers year-round, not just during the holidays.