Sadly, the answering machine message must go. Well, maybe not sadly - I too have no clue who or what Shirley Q Liquor is.
What about short messages that are mildly clever? Does everyone in here jarbabyj, lieu, Kalhoun et. al. hate those as well? For example, mine is:
“Hi, you’ve reached Al, Bob, Charlie, and Dave. Leave us a message and we’ll get back to you. Or maybe not. There’s only one way to find out. <beep>”
Eh? Eh? Am I going to burn in hell for this one?
The message has been changed.
The message wasn’t obnoxious.
It was funny in the fact that it wasn’t me doing the voice, but someone else doing it. It’s the way the message was said.
It wasn’t twenty minutes long.
It wasn’t your normal message, which was why I was wondering.
There was no burping, farting, long pauses or anything like that. Just a voice doing the message, in a funny way. No jokes, no punch lines.
And for those who don’t know who Shirley Q. Liquor is:
http://www.shirleyqliquor.com/
Btw, I’m a very responsible person. What I have on my answering machine doesn’t make me immature. Now if my machine said something like:
Hey, don’t call me, you are all a bunch of assholes and if it’s that important, leave a message and I’ll call you back…
Now that would be different.
Ahhh, Shirley Q. Liquor is a local celebrity/comic. This does make a difference if it is a voice or name that would be recognized by whoever may call from your prospective employer.
It’s still a risk you don’t need to take, but it does make a difference. If the manager calls and happens to like Shirley’s work, then it may give you an in. However, if they don’t know who it is or if they think it crude humor and something they don’t want to be associated with then it may be a loss. Like I said, it’s a risk you don’t need to take.
I, like many other dopers, had no idea what Shirley Q. Liquor was. I just figured it was some type of inside joke.
If you could get your message to say “This is Shirley Q. Liquor pickun up da phone for Womanofscorn cause she’s busy” or something along those lines. But it’s still a risk depending on how someone else feels about or recognizes the humor.
>>I need an opinion…
Lemurs are sexy. Ooh baby.
lemurs
This is what I find when I do a username search… 
Cheeky monkey!
It’s not offensive, but you’ll get nothing more than a dismayed sigh from me.
right, it’s not offensive or angering, it’s just…not funny. (IMHO)
Any message other than the generic “We’re not available, leave a message” would get a HUGE eyeroll from me. Not everyone thinks “cute” messages are cute. Ya know? For example, my MIL’s answering machine message makes me want to go over there with a sledgehammer. And the ones with the kids on them? Yech.
Mine is simple, straightforward and short. “Hi, you’ve reached the Lastname residence. Please leave a message and we’ll get back to you.”
I’m not a big fan of pets leaving the machine’s greeting message, or being included in them, either.
Our good friends had a baby and now, still, two years later the message is “You’ve reached {the baby’s name}'s house!”
Yeah, because I"m really calling for a six month old. :rolleyes:
The gist of what everyone else is saying is correct. It’s good you changed the message in this case, since the people giving you the job are going to be shooting for efficiency. There’s too much risk of putting someone off with too little benefit; there are much better ways of showing your real personality.
BUT: I like funny answering machine messages a lot. And no, I’m not just being defensive; mine is just a plain-vanilla “I’m not here, please leave a message.” I’m talking about a friend of mine, who changes hers weekly with some different quote from a movie or TV show. A lot of times I call her not to say anything in particular, just to see what the message is this week.
When I did try to have a funny outgoing message, it was the quote from Raising Arizona: “Why do you say you feel ‘trapped’ in a man’s body?” “Well, sometimes I get the menstrual cramps real hard.” I kept getting messages from my lawyer at the time that were about 10 seconds of his laughing and then trying to get out the message. So that’s proof that not everyone is offended by them or thinks they’re not amusing.
Thanks!! The most positive response I’ve gotten.
Ah, Shirley Q Liquor. I thought I was among only a few thousand people that had heard of her. If you haven’t heard any, I recommend “The twelve days of Kwanzaa” and “Preflight checklist”. I gave the latter to my pilot buddy, he passed it around the airport flyboys, and now he’s a semi-hero to them.
Did this remind anybody else of the Kids In The Hall sketch? “This is Jaaack Niiickelson”
That preflight one was great…but I love the poverty one. Talkin bout making a tuna sandwich and not a bit to fun was in it. Just grits and mayonaise. I didn’t realize most people don’t know who “she” is.
I swiped
“You have reached a number that is currently under surveillance, Under FCC regulations and state and federal wiretapping and recording guidelines, I am required to inform you that all calls to this number are being recorded, and will be admissible as evidence in police procedures and in a court of law. Leaving a message implies informed consent. If you still wish to leave a message, do so after the beep.”
from "sympathy for the Devil by Holly Listle [available in toto and free at www.webscriptions.net, Baen Books free library.]
I have had an exfiancee stalk me off and on for a long time, and the calls just got really annoying. It also seems to keep random telemarketers away as a side benefit=) [but then again I have mentioned in my contact information in cover letters that I do not answer the phone directly at any time at home though I do always monitor my answering machine, and if hired I have both a pager and a cell phone that they will have access to that gets answered 7/24 and have never had a problem with it.]
My office voice mail message is as follows:
“This is Brother Cadfael at the Abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul. As far as I know, I am in the office today, but I am unable to take your call right now. Please leave a message, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.”
More than one person tells me that the “As far as I know” is funny. I wasn’t trying to be. To me, this seems like an accurate and businesslike message, as I am in fact frequenly out of the office.
WomanofScorn, as someone who does call people to arrange job interviews or make job offers, I haven’t ever been bothered by “funny” answering machine messages. If I am calling, it is because you have what appears the qualifications I am looking for so I want to interview you or because after interviewing all candidates, you were the best match.
However, if you felt that changing your answering machine to something more conservative/normal might help you get this job you so badly want, then you did the right thing. Sometimes caution is a good thing.
That being said, I find “funny” messages to be annoying but not near as annoying as those bright, chirpy, cutesy, “doesn’t my voice sound like I’m on crack and helium?” messages. Those just hurt to listen to! :eek:
So essentially, what you really wanted was for us to parrot back YOUR opinion, not give you ours.
Did you get the job?
I recommend changing it. It might not matter either way, but why take the risk? That is, if you want this job.