By Mary Gormandy White
A great deal of job interview and career advice focuses on preparing a well-written resume, dressing for success, and the do’s and don’ts of job interview questions. However, it is also very important to pay attention to other factors that might impact whether or not prospective employers are likely to view you as a good job candidate.
One of the most important, and most often overlooked, aspects of preparing for a job search is actually related to your telephone. Most home and cell phones have voicemail these days. The pre-recorded greeting on your voicemail sends a message to prospective employers who might call you to set up an interview. When you are in the process of searching for a job, it is critical that you make certain that your voice mail message is professional.
However, people sometimes forget to pay attention to the little detail of how their voicemail message sounds when they start filling out job applications. Employers will definitely pay attention, though. If your voicemail message sounds unprofessional, they will just hang up without leaving a message, and you’ll never get a chance to interview with them
Voicemail Don’ts:
* Messages recorded by small children
* Musical greetings
* Religious messages
* Whassup?
* Sarcastic comments
* Mumbled greetings
* Any form of profanity
Voicemail Do’s
A professional voice mail message is a simple greeting, such as “This is Stephen, I’m not available to take your call right now. Please leave your name, number, and a detailed message and I will return your call as soon as possible.”
There should be no music in the background or other noise. Your voice should come across as pleasant and polite. When a job interviewer gets this type of message, he or she is very likely to leave a request for a return call to schedule an interview with you.
What Message are You Sending?
Before you start filling out job applications are sending out resumes, verify that you don’t have a message on your voicemail that might harm your prospects of getting hired, or even interviewed. Taking care of this little detail can go a long way toward helping your job search efforts.
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Mary G. White, M.A., SPHR is the Training Coordinator for Mobile Technical Institute & MTI Business Solutions (http://www.mobiletechwebsite.com), where she specializes in human resources, management, customer service, public relations, and marketing training. She teaches open enrollment classes for MTI, provides on-site corporate training, and frequently speaks at conferences and association meetings. She is also the author of 101 Successful PR Campaign Tips in the LifeTips book series. In addition to training, MTI provides a variety of consulting services, including custom database development and website solutions. |
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