• Change your greeting daily or at least weekly. This lets callers know that your mailbox is active and that you care about their messages.

• When changing your greeting give the caller an estimate of when you will be able to respond to their message. This will keep people from calling back every hour to see if you are back at your desk and reduces the number of messages you will have to listen to when you check your voice mail box. If you state a time that you will be available or will return calls stand by your word if at all possible.

• Give the caller an alternate number so the caller can talk to a real person if their call is urgent. This could include a co-worker, administrative assistant or the company operator. Make sure that there is always a way to reach a live person during business hours. If you have a customer service line you may wish to include that number for after hours calls by customers.

• Check your voice mail box at least every two hours or as frequently as possible. If you have been away from your desk urgent situations may require your immediate attention. By responding to these critical messages in a timely manner, you will help keep customers and your boss happy.

"Hello you have reached Mike Jones at Willamette University with WITS' Technical group. For today, September 15, 1 will be in meetings all morning but should be available to return your call after lunch. Please leave a detailed message after the tone. If you require immediate assistance please press zero to reach our assistant and Kathy will be happy to help you. Thank you for calling and have a great day."

• Use voice mail to respond and send messages to others in your organization. Meridian Mail lets you compose a new message, send a reply, forward a message with an additional message from yourself, or even call the sender without hanging up the phone.
• Distribute information to a group. With Meridian Mail you can send a message to more than one person using a distribution list. This means you only have to leave the message once and send it to a list of people instead of leaving multiple messages to different people.

• When leaving a message for someone it is important to leave basic information.
  Identify Yourself -- Even though Meridian Mail is known for its voice quality, the person you are calling still may not be able to connect your voice to your name.

  Let the Person Know Why You Are Calling -- To just say "call me back" gives the recipient of your message no reason to get back to you in a timely manner. Recipients won't know what you need and may have to call you back again!

  Verbalize Your Expectation Of A Response -- Something that is important to you may not be as important to the person you are calling. By letting the recipient know when you need a response, messages can be prioritized accordingly.

  Include A Number Where You Can Be Reached -- If you need to be called back, always remember to include a number for the recipient to call. When people are out of the office even if they "have your number" it may be in a rolodex or at home.

• Keep your messages short and to the point. Although you may need to leave a lot of information in a mailbox, keep your message as short as possible. Rambling messages only frustrate the recipient.