How do I change my business phone greeting for bank holidays?

The short answer: on most cloud phone systems you don't change the greeting each time. You set up a holiday schedule once, with the bank holiday dates in it, and the system plays your holiday message and routes calls differently on those days automatically. If your system is managed for you, your provider can usually set it up in a few minutes.

How time-based routing works

Most cloud (VoIP) phone systems let you decide what happens to calls depending on the date and time. There are usually three schedules:

• Business hours. Calls ring your phones, hunt groups or call menu as normal.
• Out of hours. Evenings and weekends: a "we're closed" message, then voicemail or an on-call number.
• Holidays. Specific dates, like bank holidays or the Christmas shutdown, that override everything else.

The holiday schedule is the one people forget to set up, which is why so many businesses have phones ringing out in an empty office on a bank holiday Monday.

Every phone system's menus are different, so the names won't match exactly. Look for words like schedules, time conditions, opening hours, holiday calendar or call routing in your phone system's web portal or app.

Set up a holiday calendar once

1. Find the holiday or schedule settings in your phone system's admin portal.
2. Add the bank holiday dates for the year ahead. Some systems have UK holidays built in; others need you to type them in.
3. Use the right dates for where you are. Bank holidays differ between England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. For example, Scotland has St Andrew's Day and a different August bank holiday, and Northern Ireland has St Patrick's Day and 12 July. GOV.UK lists the official dates for each.
4. Add your own closures too, such as the days between Christmas and New Year or a staff training day.
5. Choose what happens to calls on those days (see below), and pick the greeting to play.
6. Put a reminder in your calendar to add next year's dates, unless your system does it for you.

Recording the greeting

You'll usually have two options:

• Record it yourself. Many systems let you dial a code from a desk phone and record, or upload an audio file. Record somewhere quiet, speak a little slower than feels natural and keep it short.
• Text-to-speech. Type the message and the system reads it out in a computer voice. It's quick, easy to update and good enough for most businesses.

A generic holiday message that doesn't mention a specific date can be reused all year, which saves you re-recording it each time.

What to say in a good holiday message

Keep it under about 20 seconds. Callers want three things: confirmation you're closed, when you're back, and what to do if it can't wait.

A simple example:

"Thanks for calling. Our office is closed today for the bank holiday. We'll be back on our normal hours on the next working day. Please leave a message after the tone and we'll call you back, or email us and we'll reply as soon as we're in. If it's an emergency, please press 1."

Things worth including:

• That you're closed, and ideally why.
• When you're back, if you're happy to update it, or "the next working day" if not.
• An alternative, such as your email address or website, for anything that isn't urgent.
• An emergency option if your customers might genuinely need one.

Where to send the calls

Pick whatever suits your business:

• Voicemail, ideally set to email the message to you so nothing gets missed. See What is VoIP? for voicemail to email.
• An on-call mobile, for urgent calls. With a call menu, you can send only callers who press the emergency option there.
• Just the message, then end the call, if you'd rather not take messages at all.

Test it by calling in

Once it's set up, call your main number from a mobile. If your system lets you, set a test holiday for today and call in to hear it for real, then remove the test date. Check the greeting plays, the options work and the voicemail arrives in your inbox. It takes two minutes and saves you from finding out on the day.

Common questions

Can my phone provider do this for me?

Usually, yes. If your phone system is managed for you, ask your provider to set up a holiday schedule with the right bank holidays for your part of the UK, and send them the wording you want.

Do I have to change it before every bank holiday?

Not if you use a holiday schedule with a reusable message. Set it up once with the year's dates and it switches on and off by itself.

My system doesn't have a holiday setting. What can I do?

Older systems may only let you switch to a "night service" manually. Some cloud systems put holidays under a general schedule instead. If you can't find it, your provider can tell you whether your system supports it. If it doesn't, that's a sign it may be time to look at a newer one. Switching won't cost you your number: see Can I keep my business phone number?