Today’s topic will help you prepare for the upcoming holiday season, by improving the communication process between you and your co-workers & clients. We are talking about the use of an out-of-office message. This is placed in your email account to notify incoming email message senders that you are out of the office.
- I am out of the office on vacation. Thanks, (name)
- I am out until the 20th.
- I am out of the office until November 28th and will not be checking messages.
Why do you feel that some of these may be inappropriate? They lack the proper information. Item #1 does not identify the date of return and does not give any information as to whom else the sender can reach if the issue is urgent. Item # 2 does not identify when the 20th is. Item # 3 is acceptable, unless today is December 5th.
One of the best messages that I have received is as follows:
“I am out of the office on vacation beginning Friday, November 17, 2017 and returning to the office on Monday, November 27, 2017. I will not be checking email messages, but if you need immediate assistance, please contact (name) at (email address), (phone number). I will reply to your message on November 27th. Thank you and have a happy Thanksgiving holiday! “
This answers all the concerns of the email sender and provides someone else to communicate with in your absence. Remember, we as email users, need to properly communicate our message.
The modern out of office reply should serve just two purposes: 1) a polite and professional reminder you are not available for replies during a particular time period, and 2) a helpful redirect to someone else in your company who can answer a question or solve a problem.
Elite Networking & Consulting offers their clients support with their email accounts and can provide assistance on setting up the proper out-of-office message. We also provide support for Microsoft Office products, including Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.
If you would like additional information on the topic discussed in this newsletter, please either call us at 855-767-9685, ext. 700 or send an email to service1@elite-nac.com.
Source: Elite Networking & Consulting
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