The short answer
A good phone greeting says your company name in the first few words, keeps the welcome under 15 seconds, and tells the caller what to do next. A good on-hold message thanks people for waiting and gives them something useful while they wait. Below are scripts you can copy for every part of your phone line. Swap in your details, read them out loud once, then have them recorded so the whole line sounds like one company.
I record phone scripts for businesses of every size, and the ones that work best are almost always the shortest. Callers aren’t there to listen. They want the right person, fast. Every extra sentence in a greeting is a sentence they wait through before they can press a button.
Everything in square brackets is a blank to fill in. Change the wording to sound like you. Keep the order.
1. Main greeting
This is the first thing every caller hears, so it gets heard more than anything else you record. Lead with the name so callers know they dialed the right number. Leave out your history and your slogan. Those belong on your website.
Office or professional services
“Thank you for calling [Company]. If you know your party’s extension, you may dial it at any time. Otherwise, please listen to the following options.”
Medical or dental practice
“Thank you for calling [Practice name]. If this is a medical emergency, please hang up and dial 911. To schedule or change an appointment, press 1. For prescription refills, press 2. For billing, press 3. To speak with our front desk, press 0.”
Trades and home services
“Thanks for calling [Company], [your town]’s [heating and air / plumbing / roofing] team. To book a service call, press 1. If you have no heat, no cooling or a leak right now, press 2 and we’ll get you to someone fast. For anything else, press 3.”
If your team answers most calls live, you may not need a menu at all. A short greeting before the call rings through, or a good voicemail, can be enough.
2. Phone menu (IVR)
A menu is where most phone lines lose people. These four habits fix most of it:
- Put the most common reason first. If most of your calls are about appointments, that’s option 1.
- Say the reason, then the number. “For billing, press 2” works better than “Press 2 for billing”, because the caller hears what they need before they hear what to press.
- Keep it to about five options. More than that and people forget the first one before you finish. If you need more, split them into a second menu.
- Give a way out. Pressing 0 for a person, and a way to hear the options again.
Menu example
“For sales, press 1. For customer service or an existing order, press 2. For billing, press 3. For our hours and directions, press 4. To reach the operator, press 0. To hear these options again, press star.”
Here’s one tip that saves money later. Record each option as its own file if your phone system allows it. When you add or remove a department, you only change one line, not the whole menu.
3. After hours and holidays
Callers who reach you after hours need to know when you open again. They also need to know what to do if it can’t wait.
After hours
“Thank you for calling [Company]. Our office is now closed. Our hours are Monday through Friday, [8 a.m.] to [5 p.m.]. Please leave a message after the tone and we’ll call you back the next business day. If this is an emergency, please call [emergency number].”
Holiday closure
“Thank you for calling [Company]. Our office is closed today for the holiday. We’ll reopen on [day and date] at [time]. Please leave a message, or visit [website] to [order / book / pay your bill] online. Happy holidays from all of us at [Company].”
Record the holiday message as its own file, apart from your everyday greeting. Then you can switch it on and off without touching anything else.
4. Voicemail greetings
Main line voicemail
“You’ve reached [Company]. We’re sorry we missed your call. Please leave your name, your number and a short message, and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.”
Department or person
“You’ve reached [Name] in [department] at [Company]. I’m away from my desk right now. Please leave your name, number and the reason for your call, and I’ll call you back today. If you need help right away, press 0.”
Ask for the reason for the call. It lets your team call back with the answer ready instead of playing phone tag.
5. On-hold messages
On-hold messages usually play in a loop with music in between. Keep each one short, around 15 to 30 seconds, and write several so a caller who waits a while doesn’t hear the same line over and over.
Thanks for waiting
“Thank you for holding. Your call is important to us, and the next available member of our team will be with you shortly.”
Point them to a faster option
“Did you know you can [check your order / pay your bill / book an appointment] online, any time? Just visit [website]. Otherwise, please stay on the line, and we’ll be with you as soon as we can.”
Tell them something useful
“While you wait, here’s a tip from our team: [one short, useful tip about your service]. Thanks for your patience. Someone will be with you shortly.”
A current offer
“Ask our team about [your current offer], available through [end date]. Thank you for holding. We’ll be right with you.”
Put dates and offers in their own message, so when the offer ends you only replace that one file.
Hear how a whole phone line sounds in one voice. Hear the single prompts on my phone page.
6. How long each one should be
Most people speak at roughly 150 words a minute, a little slower on the phone. Use this as a guide when you write.
| Recording | Aim for | About this many words |
|---|---|---|
| Main greeting | Under 15 seconds | Up to 35 |
| Menu | 15 to 30 seconds | 35 to 70 |
| After hours or holiday | 15 to 25 seconds | 35 to 60 |
| Voicemail | 10 to 20 seconds | 25 to 50 |
| Each on-hold message | 15 to 30 seconds | 35 to 70 |
7. Before you send it to be recorded
- Read every line out loud. If you stumble, a caller will too. Short sentences are easier to say and easier to hear.
- Write numbers the way they should sound. Is it “eight hundred” or “one eight hundred”? Is your website said with “dot com” at the end, or just the name?
- Spell out tricky names. Your company name and any names a caller will hear. A quick note like “Nguyen, said like win” saves a revision.
- Number every prompt. “01 Main greeting”, “02 Main menu”, and so on. Your files come back with the same names, so you know exactly which one to upload where.
- Tell me your phone system. Each system wants its own kind of file. My guide on what file format your phone system needs explains why.
What you get from me
Send me your script, even a rough one. I’ll check it for anything a caller might trip over before I record. Every prompt arrives as its own file, named to your list, in the format your phone system asks for, plus a full-quality master of each one. I can deliver the voice on its own or mixed with music. Most phone scripts are delivered in under 24 hours, and you get one free revision of up to 50 words, plus pickups.
When your hours change or a holiday comes up, send me the new lines. They’ll match the rest of your line, because it’s the same voice in the same booth.
Quick questions
How long should a business phone greeting be?
Under 15 seconds for the welcome itself. Say the company name first, then go straight to the options or the transfer.
What should an on-hold message say?
Thank the caller for waiting, then give them something useful, like a faster way to get help online. Keep each message short and write several.
Should I say “your call is important to us”?
It’s fine once. Callers have heard it many times, so follow it with something real, like how to get help faster.
Can you fix my script before you record it?
Yes. Send it rough. I’ll point out anything that will be hard to say or hard to follow on the phone.
Can I change one message later without redoing them all?
Yes. Because every prompt is its own file, you only replace the one that changed, in the same voice.
Filled in your script?
Send it over with the name of your phone system. You’ll get a free quote and files that are ready to upload.
More on how I work: Phone, IVR & on-hold voice over · Phone file formats · More guides for buyers