Who answers your business phone when youre not in the office? Most home-based business owners use an answering machine or voice messaging system. But its not enough to just make sure the phone gets picked up when youre not there; the greeting your callers hear says more about you than just leave a message.

That announcement may be the first contact someone has with you, and if you dont sound professional, the caller may not leave a message or may not call back.

Its not necessary to sound like youre a major corporation, but it is important to sound like youre a serious, legitimate operation. Use these tips to create an effective voice mail greeting:

- Write a script. Dont try to record off the top of your head. Write a script that covers all the points you want to make in a concise format. Practice it so you can record without any awkward pauses or stumbles.

- Be friendly, but avoid being cute. Speak in a warm, friendly voice that lets your personality show through, but dont try to be cute or funnyits not professional, and it could easily backfire.

- Avoid the obvious. Its not necessary to say things like Im away from my desk or Im out of the officecallers know that because you didnt answer the phone. Ditto with statements like Your call is important to mecallers know theyre hearing a recording that youve made for everyone, so dont waste their time with generic fluff.

- Change your message frequently. People with flexible schedules may even change their announcement daily so the information is always current and accurate.

- Let callers know when youll be available. If you wont be able to return calls for several hours, or until the next day, say so in your announcement so people arent left wondering when theyll hear from you.

- Tell callers how to skip the message. If your system has the feature that allows callers to bypass the greeting by pressing * or #, include that in your announcement.

- Include your fax number and website or e-mail address. Some callers may just want to send you a fax or an e-mail; if your greeting tells them how to do it, you wont need to call them back.

- Provide alternate contact information. If you carry a pager or a cell phone and dont mind taking calls while youre out of the office, include that number in your greeting. An alternative is a system that automatically pages you when someone leaves a message, so you can quickly decide how soon to return the call.

- Include seasonal messages. Between Thanksgiving and the end of the year, start your greeting with Happy holidays. For greetings that indicate youre closed for long weekends such as Memorial Day or Labor Day, end with a wish for a safe and happy holiday.

Heres a sample script:This is Joe Smith. To bypass this announcement and leave a message, press # and begin speaking at the tone. Please leave your name, telephone number, the best time to reach you, and a brief message, and I will return your call within three hours. If you need to send a fax, that number is 888-123-4567. Or please visit my website at www-dot-websitename-dot-com for more information or to send me an e-mail. Have a great day!