Phone Greeting and IVR Scripts: 21 Ready-to-Use Templates

Phone and IVR announcements are the first thing a caller hears: who they have reached, whether the call is recorded, who they can talk to now and what to do if nobody is available. This pack contains 21 ready-to-use announcements: greetings in three tones and for six industries, after-hours messages, a lunch-break message, hold messages, a voicemail prompt, KVKK call recording notices, an AI assistant introduction, a callback promise and an emergency redirect. Holiday announcements are in a separate pack: holiday announcements.

Fields in square brackets are filled in by you. If the text is read by a speech engine, write times, keypad numbers and web addresses the way they should be spoken, for example "nine" and "six", or "example dot com". In Speakline you can use these texts as the opening and closing lines of a voice agent, take voicemail outside business hours and pass callers to an operator with a warm transfer when needed. The Turkish version of this pack is written for Turkish speech engines, with numbers spelled out.

If you record calls in Turkey, play the KVKK notice straight after the greeting and have your legal adviser review the wording; see KVKK and call recording and our KVKK guide for AI phone assistants. In after-hours messages, only promise a callback time you can keep; we cover what unanswered calls cost in our article on missed calls and automatic callbacks.

General greeting: formal

Thank you for calling [Business name]. For [Option one], press one. For [Option two], press two. For [Option three], press three. To speak to a member of our team, press zero.

Written for a keypad menu; keeping it to three options makes the choices easier to remember. If you use an AI assistant, drop the keypad lines and end with "How can we help you today?"

General greeting: friendly

Hi, you've reached [Business name]! Thanks so much for calling. How can I help?

For businesses with a close relationship with their customers, such as cafés, boutiques and salons. Pick a warm, upbeat voice; a friendly script read in a formal voice sounds artificial.

General greeting: short

[Business name], hello. How can I help?

The quickest option for busy lines and regular callers. If you record calls, add the KVKK notice straight after it.

Clinic greeting

Hello, and welcome to the [Clinic name] patient line. I can help you book or change an appointment, or tell you our opening hours. For medical questions, I'll put you through to our clinical team.

Stating the assistant's scope up front manages expectations about medical questions. Play the emergency announcement below straight after it; for clinic flows, see our healthcare page.

Restaurant greeting

Hello, and welcome to the [Restaurant name] booking line. I can help you make or change a booking, or tell you our opening hours. How many people and which day would you like to book for?

The closing question takes callers straight to the most common request. If you offer takeaway or events, add them to the second sentence; more flows are on our restaurants page.

Hotel greeting

Hello, and welcome to [Hotel name] reservations and guest services. I can help with a new booking, an existing booking or any questions about your stay. Türkçe için lütfen dokuza basın.

The last sentence offers Turkish-speaking callers their own line ("For Turkish, please press nine"); record it separately with a Turkish voice. For hotel flows, see our hotels page.

Real estate agency greeting

Hello, and welcome to [Agency name]. If you're calling about a listing, just tell me the listing number or the district, and I'll connect you with the right agent. If you'd like to sell or let your property, I can take your details and have one of our agents call you.

A listing number or district is the quickest way to route the call to the right agent. For lead handling flows, see our real estate page.

Car service centre greeting

Hello, and welcome to the [Service centre name] service line. I can help you book a service or repair, or check on your vehicle. Could you tell me your registration number?

Asking for the registration first speeds up finding the customer record and the vehicle's status. For service centre flows, see our automotive page.

Beauty salon greeting

Hello, and welcome to the [Salon name] booking line. I can help you book or change an appointment, or tell you about our treatments. Which treatment are you calling about?

Asking for the treatment makes it easier to find the right specialist and time slot. For salon flows, see our beauty and wellness page.

After hours: leave a voicemail

Thank you for calling [Business name]. We're closed at the moment. Our opening hours are [Opening time] to [Closing time], Monday to Friday. Please leave your name, phone number and a short message after the tone, and we'll call you back on the next working day.

If you also open on Saturdays, add those hours in a separate sentence.

After hours: continue with the AI assistant

Hello, you've reached [Business name]. Our team is out of the office right now, but I'm the AI assistant and I can help. I can take your appointment request or pass a message to the team. How can I help?

Invites after-hours callers to get something done, not just leave a message. Spell out in the assistant's instructions exactly what it may do outside business hours.

After hours: point to written channels

Thank you for calling [Business name]. We're closed at the moment. Our opening hours are [Opening days], [Opening time] to [Closing time]. You can write to us any time at [Web address] or on [Messaging channel], and we'll reply on the next working day. Thank you for calling.

Give a short, easy-to-say web address and only list channels you actually monitor.

Lunch break

The [Business name] team is on a lunch break. We'll be back at [Return time]. If you like, leave a message after the tone and we'll call you back as soon as we return.

Switch this message on automatically for the break and keep the return time accurate.

Busy: please hold

Thank you for calling. All our team members are on other calls at the moment. Please stay on the line, and the next available person will be with you shortly.

Repeat it at intervals while callers wait, but not too often; hearing the same sentence back to back makes the wait feel longer. If you give an estimated wait time, base it on real queue data.

Busy: things you can do without waiting

Thank you for waiting. Some things can be done without holding: for [Task name], visit [Web address]. If you stay on the line, you won't lose your place.

Gives callers an option during long waits. Make sure the task really can be completed on your website.

Voicemail prompt

We can't take your call right now. Please leave your name, a number we can reach you on and a short message after the tone. Your message will be passed to our team, and we'll get back to you within [Response time]. When you've finished, you can hang up.

Use a response time you can keep, such as "one working day". For clinics, consider adding "Please don't include details about your health in your message."

KVKK call recording notice: short

This call is recorded to follow up on your request and for quality purposes. You can read our privacy notice at [Web address].

Play it straight after the greeting. Describe your real recording purposes, and check with your legal adviser that the wording is enough for you.

KVKK call recording notice: full

This call is recorded by [Company legal name], as data controller, to handle your request, measure service quality and provide evidence in case of a dispute. Recordings are processed only by authorised staff and our infrastructure providers, for these purposes only, and are kept for [Retention period]. You can read our privacy notice and your rights under the law at [Web address], or ask during the call for the notice to be sent to you.

Adjust the purposes, the parties data is shared with and the retention period to match what you actually do, and do not publish the text before your legal adviser has approved it. If the AI assistant also keeps a written transcript of the call, say so.

AI assistant introduction

Hello, you've reached [Business name]. You're speaking with our AI assistant. I can help you with [Topics]. Just say "agent" at any time, and I'll transfer you to a colleague.

Telling callers up front that they are talking to an AI and how to reach a person builds trust. Test that the assistant really transfers the call when it hears "agent".

Callback promise

Thank you, we've received your request. Our team will call you back within [Callback time] on the number you're calling from. If you'd prefer us to call a different number, please tell me now.

Only promise a time you can keep, and add callbacks to a list your team can see. A callback should not turn into a pitch for another product or campaign.

Emergency redirect

If you have a medical emergency, please hang up and call 112 straight away. This line handles appointments and information and cannot respond to emergencies.

112 is the emergency number in Turkey. Play this straight after the clinic greeting and the after-hours message, and instruct the AI assistant to say it whenever a caller describes an emergency, transferring the call to the team if needed.