I recently heard Mary Cantando of WomanBusinessOwner.com speak at the Diva Toolbox conference. Mary is very inspirational. She has closed sales of up to $50M, is a respected sales and marketing expert and helps countless women across the globe develop new, successful revenue streams for their businesses.

Mary talked about her best-selling calendar that offers inspirational quotes and tips from business owners just like you and me. In her calendar, one of the tips that she called out as one of the most important was about having a great outgoing voice mail message. You would think that there are other things that she could have focused on, but Mary pointed out that having a boring outgoing message is a problem that is easily fixed, and she encouraged us to make changes immediately.

I thought that was interesting because I totally agree. Your outgoing voice mail messages are yet another one of those “silly little things” that help to set you apart from the rest. It’s one small baby step on the ongoing journey of making yourself stand out.

If you’ve ever called me and gotten my voice mail, you know that I started to pay attention to my outgoing voice mail message years ago. I get compliments on my outgoing voice mail message every week. There are many ways to do this; here are just a few tips to inspire you to make your voice mail memorable.

1. Don’t be boring.

If your voice mail sounds like this, I’m talking to you:

“Hi. You’ve reached NAME. I’m not here right now so please leave your name and number at the beep.”

Boring. You can do better than that.

2. Brand Yourself

Tell people who you are and what you do, but be brief. Up to around 15 words about what you do is enough.

3. Say Something Interesting/Memorable

Mary Cantando said that she says something like this on her voicemail, “I’m having a great day and I hope you’re having a great day, too!” In response to her voice mail, many callers start by saying things like, “Thanks Mary. I’m glad you’re having a great day! I’m having a great day, too, thanks!” How great would that be to hear in your voice mail when you return to the office after a long day?

Here’s an example from a friend of mine. He owns a large landscaping company and a much more complex phone system that I do. Every December, the company’s on-hold “music” turns into an audio of him reading The Grinch, his favorite Christmas story. Fabulous and unforgettable.

4. Provide Relevant Information

For example, tell people when they can expect to hear back from you. If you return calls within 24 hours, say so. If you’d prefer them to call your assistant, tell them how to do that. You may want to tell people to visit your web site (provide the URL!), especially if you have a “frequently asked questions” tab on your site. If your voice mail has the option for callers to bypass your message the next time they call, let them know how to do that.

5. Keep it Short

Keep your message to around 20 seconds. There is not generally a need to be longer than that.

6. Check Your Voice Quality and Energy

Be enthusiastic, but don’t overdo it. Your voice tends to get dulled out on voice mail, so stand up when you create your outgoing message, as that helps you to sound better. You don’t want to sound monotone, but you also don’t want people to think they’ve reached the circus. Unless, of course, you’re the circus.

7. Cell Phone Number- to give or not to give, that is the question

If you are willing to be contacted by anyone at anytime for any reason, you can provide your cell phone on your voice mail. While I use my cell phone every day for business, I prefer to give my cell phone number only to clients, the media, my kids’ school or other VIP callers. Other calls can be returned when I get back to the office.

8. Call to Action

All of marketing – and yes, your voice mail is marketing – is about telling people over and over what it is that you do and following that up by collecting contact information from interested parties. Consider the merits of providing a call to action in your voice mail. If you have a free report on your web site, you could tell people the name of the report and where to go to get it.

I hope these tips help you to re-think your voice mail on your office line and on your cell phone. Here is the copy of my voice mail message template that I have used for years. Feel free to modify this for your own use:

“Hi. You’ve reached Meredith Liepelt and the office of Rich Life Marketing, where I mentor business owners to increase their visibility, reach and impact through authentic self promotion.

Office hours are DAYS, TIMES, TIME ZONE

Non urgent calls are generally returned within 48 business hours.

If your call is urgent or you a member of the media, please call my assistant NAME at PHONE NUMBER or visit me online at URL.

Thank you. Bye!”

What tips do you have for creating a memorable voice mail? Please share your wisdom by leaving a comment below.

© 2010 Meredith Liepelt, Rich Life Marketing

Meredith Liepelt, President of Rich Life Marketing, offers a free report called “101 Ways to Attract Ideal Clients, Build Your List and Raise Your Profile,” which can be downloaded immediately at www.RisingStarPublicity.com.

This article may be reprinted when the copyright and author bio are included.