Creating a personal business voicemail greeting offers several benefits, enhancing your professional image and ensuring effective communication. Check out our blog: 10 Professional Voicemail Greetings for Your Business Needs, for ten script templates!  

You can create a voicemail greeting in three ways: 

• upload an existing .wav or .mp3 file,
• record a new greeting, and,  
• use text-to-speech to generate a voicemail greeting. 

How To Upload A New Voicemail Greeting

Uploads must be in .mp3 or .wav format. Office Managers and Account Center Supervisors must be in My Account to access the Messages tab. 

1. Click the Messages tab in your Sonar portal.
2. Click the Settings sub-tab on the left side.
3. Scroll down to the Greetings section and click the speaker icon (manage) next to Voicemail Greeting.
   
4. Click Add Greeting.
5. Click the radio button for Upload.
6. Name your greeting.
7. Click Browse.
8. Select the file you want to upload.
9. Click the Upload button.
   You will now see the new greeting’s index, greeting name, and duration in your greetings list.
10. Click Done to save.

How To Record A New Voicemail Greeting

Keep in mind that recording a message using a third-party device (such as a mobile phone) may degrade the quality.  Office Managers and Account Center Supervisors must be in My Account to access the Messages tab. 

1. Click the Messages tab in your Sonar portal.
2. Click Settings on the left side.
3. Scroll down to the “Greetings” section and click the speaker icon (manage) next to Voicemail Greeting.
4. Click Add Greeting.
5. Select the Record radio button.
6. Enter the number or extension of the phone you wish to record the greeting on. 
   Note: If you have multiple devices, you must specify which device to call; the letters following your extension indicate the device, i.e., 101wb for the webphone/Sonar phone or 101m for the mobile app. 
7. Name the greeting.
8. Click Call and follow the instructions given to you on the phone.
   • Record your message after the beep.
   • Hit # to accept your new greeting.
     You will now see the new greeting’s index, greeting name, and duration in your greetings list.
     
9.  When you are finished, click Done to save.
    

How to use Text-To-Speech for Voicemail Greetings

Sonar offers several generated voice options. Office Managers and Account Center Supervisors must be in My Account to access the Messages tab.  Please refer to the images above for steps 1-4. 

1. Click the Messages tab in your Sonar portal.
2. Click Settings on the left side.
3. Scroll down to the “Greetings” section and click the speaker icon (manage) next to Voicemail Greeting.
4. Click Add Greeting.
5. Click the radio button for Text-to-Speech.
6. Enter your message, choose English or French, and your preferred voice. 
7. Click the play button beside the Voice drop-down menu to hear the message. 
8. Click Save after reviewing your text. 
   
9.  When you are finished, click Done to save.
   

You can receive SMS messages individually, or they can be routed through a call queue to be managed by different staff members.

Navigate to Messages in the Sonar Portal

Office managers and call center supervisors must be in My Account to access the Messages tab. 

1. Log into Sonar with your net2phone Canada credentials.
2. Click the Messages tab.  
3.  Click the Chat subtab. 

Sending and Receiving SMS Messages 

From the Messages tab, and Chat subtab, you can start new conversations and view past conversations. Your previous conversations will be saved by default. If you click a conversation to open it, you can delete the thread, reply, call the person, and choose to turn on or off incoming notifications. 

Pro Tip: Call from Messages!  

You can call a contact through your SMS chat history within the SMS chat subtab. Open an SMS chat and click the phone icon on the right side, then choose the phone in which you want to make the call. 

 

Send Files with Sonar MMS 

You can send MMS messages through the net2phone Canada mobile app and SONAR, which allows you to send multimedia files, longer messages (up to 1600 characters from 160), and have group conversations. To use MMS, ensure the application can access your camera and photos for MMS messages. To send a picture, press the attachment icon on the left side and either: take a new photo or choose a saved picture.

SMS and MMS Call Queue Notes 

Only office managers and call center supervisors can configure SMS for call queues. Learn how to configure SMS for call queues here. 

MMS messages do not work when messaging both internal and external contacts in a group conversation. You must send individual MMS messages to all intended recipients.

A group MMS message can include up to 10 recipients, plus the sender, for a total of 11 participants.

Each MMS message has a size limit of 1 MB.

Sonar must be open for agents to receive messages. 

If agents are using a Chrome browser (which is recommended) they can turn on Chrome notifications for a pop-up. 

SMS queues are always round-robin. 

 

Send MMS Messages from Sonar Desktop 

1. Log into SONAR with your net2phone Canada credentials. Office managers and call center supervisors must be in My Account view to access the Messages tab. 
2. Click the Messages tab.  
3. Click the Chat and SMS subtab. 
4. Open a conversation, and click the paper clip icon to attach a file.
5. Browse for the photo you want to send, and click open/ok. 
   

Send MMS Messages from Sonar Mobile 

MMS messages do not work when messaging both internal and external contacts in a group conversation. You must send individual MMS messages to all intended recipients.

SMS Call Queues 

SMS for call queues works similarly to normal call queues; if you are an agent in a call queue with SMS enabled, you will receive a queue-SMS request through your Sonar portal.

Once you have accepted the request, you see the enter-queue keyword at the beginning of the conversation. 

The same functionality as depicted above applies; however; at any point, you or the sender can end the chat. The sender can end the chat by using the queue keyword designated by your office manager or call center supervisor. You can end the chat by clicking the End button in the top right corner of the chat. If you (or the sender) have ended the chat and you want to send another message or view the history, you must go through the Messages tab. 

If your company has an auto attendant directory, you need to record your name. Auto attendant directories give callers an option to search for employees by their last name. Auto attendants are smart for your business as they save money, appear professional, help you avoid missed or misdirected calls, and provide a consistent experience for your clients.

How To Record Your Name for your Company Directory 

Office managers and call center supervisors must be in My Account to access the Messages tab.

1. Click on the Messages tab in your Sonar portal.
2. Click on the Settings subtab.
3. Under the Greetings section, click the speaker icon next to Recorded Name. 
   
4. Select Record. 
5. Enter the number or extension you want to record your name on. If you are entering a number, it must be 10 digits with no spaces, dashes, or bracket 
6. Click the Call button and follow the voice prompts.
   • Record your message after the beep.
   • Hit # to accept your new greeting.
7. Click the Done button to save.
   

How to Use Text-To-Speech for your Company Directory 

1. Click on the Messages tab in your Sonar portal.
2. Click on the Settings tab.
3. Under the Greetings section, click the speaker icon next to "Recorded Name."
    
4. Click the radio button for Text-to-Speech.
5. Enter your message, choose English or French, and your preferred voice. You can click the play button beside the Voice drop-down menu to hear the message.
   
6. Click Save.

Working from home today? Learn how to forward your business calls to your mobile or landline phone. If you have multiple external numbers you may need to be reached at, take advantage of the When Unanswered forwarding option to add another device and never miss a call.

How to Send Calls to an External Number 

Office Managers and Call Center Supervisors must be in My Account to access their answering rules.

1. Click on the Answering Rules tab in your Sonar portal.
2. Click the Add Rule button to create a new rule, or the pencil icon to edit your active rule.

1. Under the Call Forwarding section, click the checkbox next to Always.
2. In the entry box next to one of the options, (1) Always, (2) When Busy, or (3) When unanswered, enter a phone number without spaces or dashes. Phone numbers must be 10 or 11 digits without spaces, dashes, or brackets (e.g., 6131234567 or 16131234567).
   
3. Click Save.
4. Ensure your new rule is at the top of the Answering Rules list for the highest priority. Drag-and-drop your Answering Rule to the top if needed. 

If you're taking some time off work it's a good idea to let your clients know you'll be gone or have your calls forwarded to a different extension. Whether you're going to be out of the office (OOO) for 1 day or an extended period of time, it's good practice to keep as many people in the loop as you can. 

Create an Out-of-Office Time Frame 

Office managers and call center supervisors must be in My Account to access their Time Frames, Answering Rule, and Messages tabs. 

1. Navigate to the Time Frame tab of your Sonar portal. 
2. Click the name of the time frame you want to edit or click Add Time Frame on the right side.
3. Select one of the three types of time frames:

• Always
• Days of the week and Times
• Specific dates or ranges

We recommend using specific dates and ranges for an OOO time frame; that way, you only have to set it once, and it will automatically time out, whereas always, the days of the week and times must be changed manually. 

For Specific Dates and Ranges

Select Specific days or ranges whenever you need a special behavior for full days such as holidays or sick leave.

1. Click the calendar icon and select your time frame's start and end dates.
2.  If you wish to add multiple start and end dates, click the green plus icon on the right side.
3.  Click the Save button.

Create an Out-of-Office Answering Rule 

Once your time frame is ready to go you're ready to set your answering rule. 

1. Navigate to the Answering Rules tab of your Sonar portal.  
2. Click the name of the answering rule you want to edit, or click Add Rule on the right side. 
3. Choose the answering rules you want for your time away. The example below displays Do not Disturb enabled, so calls will be sent to voicemail. Notice how if you have Do not Disturb enabled, you cannot also click any of the other options. 

Update your Voicemail 

It's always a good idea to have an out-of-office voicemail at hand in case you need it. If you know in advance you're going away for a holiday or vacation, you can let people know when you'll be back. Since you are not limited to the number of voicemail greetings you can keep on file, we also recommend a generic OOO greeting for those last-minute sick days. 

1. Navigate to the Messages tab of your Sonar portal. 
2. Click the Settings at the top. 
3. Under "Greetings" click the speaker icon to "Manage" your greetings.  
4. In the pop-up window that appears, click Add Greeting at the bottom.
5. You can create a voicemail greeting in three ways:
   1. upload an existing .wav or .mp3 file,
   2. record a new greeting, and,  
   3. use text-to-speech to generate a voicemail greeting. 

Uploads must be in .wav or .mp3 file formats. If you want to record your message on a non-Net2phone Canada device, you must enter a 10-digit number without dashes, spaces, or brackets. 

Once your upload or recording is properly saved, you will be brought back to the previous pop-up window, and you will see your new greeting in the list. 

6. Click Done to save. 

 Activate your voicemail greeting! 

If you want to activate your new greeting, in the Messages, Settings section, under Greetings, click the drop-down menu and select your new greeting. 

Always remember to Save at the bottom of the Messages tab before exiting the page!