This post at The Juggle brought to the surface an issue to which I hadn’t previously given much thought, but should have.

What are you trying to communicate in your out-of-office message? First, the basics: (1) For how long will you be out? (2) Will you have e-mail/voice mail access? (3) Who does someone call if they have an urgent matter? All of those items should be in your message. I suspect there won’t be much disagreement there.

But what about the less concrete information — where are you and what are you doing? Is that your caller’s business? Do you care to share that? I understand those folks who don’t like to include this information, but I also see some usefulness in communicating this.

It sets the recipient’s expectations and gives her some context for when you might realistically return the call or e-mail. Plus, if people hear you are on vacation they are less likely to bother you than if your message says you are at a conference.

And here’s one for which I know there are differing opinions: Do you give them your cell phone number to call if it’s urgent? We all know that regardless of whether it’s really an urgent matter, your client will think it is and she will call you on your cell. But in this day and age, perhaps that’s just what’s expected almost regardless of where you are and what you are doing.

And what happens if you are out because of an emergency or a death in the family? It’s probably important for the caller to understand that you really are unreachable. But most people don’t like to include that type of information in their messages. I’ve been on the receiving end of those and unless it’s someone with whom I have a close relationship, it inevitably leads to an uneasiness about how to respond.

So, perhaps in that situation, you simply state that you are out of the office and entirely unreachable, without any explanation? I’m not sure there’s an easy answer for this one.

Such a seemingly small decision with so many potential implications. Just a reminder to think about all of them before you draft your “out of office” message.

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