What should your voice mail message contain? 

You or your dental receptionist should introduce yourself and then clearly state:

a. Your dental practice's hours.

b. Instructions for your dental patients in case of an emergency  i.e. call your cell, 911 or a covering dentist.

c. Let the patient know when they can expect a return call. 

d. What information the patient should leave i.e. the reason for the call, their name and a good time to call back.

The message should be clear, quite friendly and professional.

Example:

Hello. You’ve reached the dental practice of Dr. Smith. Our regular hours are 9:00am to 5:00pm Monday through Thursday. We are closed on Fridays. If this is a patient of record and a true emergency you may call Dr. Smith on his cell phone at 212-555-1212. For medical emergencies please call 911. For all other calls please leave a message with your name and phone number,  the best time to reach you as well the reason for your call. We will get back to you the next business day. Thank you!

Make sure you have caller ID in case the caller does not leave a message or forgets to leave their contact info.

Kevin Tighe, Cambridge Dental Consultants, Senior Consultant ans Dental SEO Expert got bitten hard by the business and marketing bug during long summer days working at his dad's Madison Avenue ad agency. After joining Cambridge as a speaker in the mid-1990s, Kevin went on to become Cambridge’s senior consultant and eventually CEO. Cambridge Dental Consultants is a full-service dental practice management company offering customized dental office manuals.