Write and Practice Your Voice Mail Message
Leaving a meaningful voicemail takes practice. Follow these examples to craft compelling messages that get callbacks.
When I’m training new recruiters, it amazing to me how difficult it is for the newbie to leave a meaningful voice message in a person’s in box. Even though we have the newbie write down the message, they often times try to “wing it” as opposed to reading the script. NOTE TO SELF….READ THE SCRIPT!
First thing we want you to do is compose a script that can be read in under 30 seconds. The listener needs to know who you are, what you are and what you want to share. What you want to share needs to be compelling enough to have the listener want to call you back for more information. Once the script is written, it needs to be practiced over and over again so it becomes natural. If you make 70 calls a day and are lucky enough to speak to 10 people live, that means you are leaving 60 voice messages every day. The success of your voice message will be known by the number of actual call backs you receive.
The introduction of your voice mail won’t change when you leave a message to a hiring official or a potential candidate. The difference between the 2 messages is the compelling reason for the person called to call back.
One of the mistakes the newbie makes is leaving a message that takes too long to listen to. It needs to be short and to the point. You need the 3 components listed above. That’s it. You give one single compelling reason for the listener to call you back. Most likely, you’ll be calling the same person again, so the second and possibly third messages will include different information.
The Pew Research Center determined voicemails are still useful. Even though many people don’t answer calls from numbers they don’t recognize, over 2/3 of them will actually check the messages that are left.
Here are 3 examples of Marketing VMX 1, 2 & 3
#1
Hi Mr/Ms _____________, my name is __________. I’m a recruiter that specializes in placing ________ professionals on a national basis. While conducting a search for one of your competitors recently, I identified a __________ whose skill set really stood out amongst their peers. I’d like to share some additional information with you to see if you may have an interest. If you’d be so kind as to return my call I can be reached at _______________. Again this is ___________ and my number is __________.
#2
Hi Mr/Ms ___________, this is _____________ calling again. I wanted to share a little more information with you about the professional I’m working with. This person did _____________ ( made/saved money, brought a project to completion before deadline….whatever those most impressive achievement might be.) I know these types of professionals are difficult to identify in our industry and I’d like to share additional pertinent information with you about this person. You can reach me at_____________.
#3
Hi Mr/Ms _______________, this is ___________. I promise I’m not stalking you, but my candidate has a particular interest in your company and I’d hate to see you lose out on a hard to find candidate that does _____________. If I don’t hear back from you, I’ll assume you have no current need or interest at this time and I will call you again later in the quarter. Thanks. You can reach me at ______________.
I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, they already have my number, why do I have to state it and then repeat it? Call me old school, but it’s just a habit and I think it’s a good one.
Here are 3 examples of Recruiting VMX 1, 2 & 3
Hi Mr/Ms _____________, my name is __________. I’m a recruiter that specializes in placing ________ professionals on a national basis. I wanted to call and introduce myself to you personally and confidentially. I’m currently working on an opportunity that _____________ (the most appealing thing about your opportunity has without naming the company). I’d like to share some additional information about this opportunity with you to see if you might have interest in learning more. If you’d be so kind as to return my call, I can be reached at _______________. Again, this is ___________ and my number is __________.
#2
Hi Mr/Ms ______________, this is _____________ calling once again. I’m sure you’re busy and I don’t want to take a lot of your time, but if you could share a couple minutes, I’d like to share another reason why I believe this opportunity is worth hearing about. This opportunity ____________ (second most compelling reason the potential candidate might be interested in). I look forward to your return call. You can reach me at ___________. Thank you.
#3
Hi Mr/Ms ____________, this is ______________ calling again. By now you probably think I’m a stalker. I assure I’m not. I’m sure you’re contacted by numerous recruiters. Top professionals always do. I wanted to make one last out-reach to you about this opportunity (last compelling reason). Even if you’re not interested at this time, I would like to speak with you to learn about what the ideal role for you might be at this stage of your career. Since I speak to 50+ professionals every week I run across opportunities all the time and I’d hate for you to miss out on your dream job if I ran across it and didn’t tell you about it. So, when you have a minute, please return my call. I can be reached at ______________. Thank you.
The voicemail is the largest telephonic outreach you will make. Get good at it, practice it. It might be the only impression you make on the person you’re attempting to reach.
I’d like to know if you try any of the training items in this newsletter and what your results have or have not been. Please send me a note about that.
If you have any questions about information in any of the newsletters or specific topics you’d like me to write about, please send me a note on those as well. I will compile a list of questions and post my responses in future newsletters.
I would encourage you to subscribe to these missals. Thanks for reading my newsletter.