Christmas this year is on a Sunday and so many will take maybe Thursday or Friday off, right through to the following Monday off – some much more. New Years also falls on a Sunday and I know some places will be shut all of the Christmas week and probably all the way past New Years on Monday January 3rd or 4th. If you’re one of the lucky ones and your office will be closed for an extended period of time this season, how do you let your customers and friends know?
Let People Know You’re Away
Chances are, you’ll be taking some time off during this Christmas and New Year season. An Outlook out of office message is the easy way to automatically send anyone who emails you a response telling them you’re away, when you’re back, and who to contact in the meantime. 
Start by creating your personal message using the tips below. Then go to our step-by-step instructions for Outlook Out of Office Assistant.
Planning Your Outlook Out Of Office Message
- – If your customer or friend base is international avoid using numbers for dates. Eg: “I will be back 12/1/2012” is the month first or the date? Type the full date instead.
- – Don’t use abbreviations. Not everyone knows that OOO or OOF means “out of office”. Take the time to write out everything in full
- – Don’t refer to internal projects or information that is not pubic to all. There is no way to tell Outlook to leave a specific message to a specific email sender.
- – If there is someone they can contact in your place while you are gone, let them know. Eg. “If you have an urgent request please contact XXXXXX at 123-456-7890”.
- – Want some fun Out-of-office replies? Try these, or these!
Creating Your Outlook Out Of Office Message
Once you’re ready, head over to our step-by-step guide to set up your Outlook Out of Office Assistant.
Take time this holiday season and relax, drive safe, and refresh yourself for the coming year!