To present a professional image, smart businesspeople carefully prepare their outgoing voice mail greetings and announcements. After all, they represent their companies and want to be perceived as polished and efficient. Before recording a greeting, most workers plan and perhaps even jot down what they will say. To be concise, the greeting should not run longer than 25 seconds.

Your Task. Use the guidelines in this chapter to plan your greeting. Invent a job title and the name of your company. Indicate when and how callers can reach you. Individually or as a team, record a professional voice mail greeting using a smartphone or another digital recording device. If the instructor directs, share your recording by sending it via e-mail to a designated address for evaluation. Alternatively, team members may be asked to exchange their recorded greetings for a peer critique. If you own an iPhone, a newer iPod Touch, or an iPad, download a free app such as Voice Memos that allows voice recordings. Android smartphone owners can likewise download a free voice recorder app. These mobile applications are easy to use, and when the recording is completed, you have the option of sharing it by e-mail, by Bluetooth, on Facebook, and so forth.