Poll: Do you use an automatic "out of office" reply when you go on holidays or are otherwise unavailable? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Do you use an automatic "out of office" reply when you go on holidays or are otherwise unavailable?".
This poll was originally submitted by Sandrine Zérouali. View the poll results »
| | | | Angus Stewart 
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:44
Member (2011)
French to English
+ ...
I let my main clients know when I am going on vacation or going to unavailable for an extended period, but also use at "out of office" reply so that more irregular clients or new prospects know not to expect a response from me. My "out of office" reply is in my three working languages plus Dutch.
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If I am going away for a few days, I usually contact my regular customers beforehand to let them know. I always check my email at least twice while I am away, but only reply if it is urgent. When I am away during the day it never takes more than 1 hour or so and it can usually wait until I get back. Anyway, my regular clients always know how to reach me.
| | | | Eden Cope
United States
Local time: 04:44
Swedish to English
+ ...
I feel that when we are working across so many time zones, such a reply can be necessary. I think sometimes it's simply too difficult for some people to remember that it is the middle of the night where you are and you won't answer for a few hours.
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DZiW (X)
Ukraine
English to Russian
+ ...
My people always know.
Yet I never understand the peculiarity of posting, say, "In a WC" status...
How about selfies?)
[Edited at 2018-03-19 14:11 GMT]
| | | | Jasa Pipan
Slovenia
Local time: 12:44
French to Slovenian
+ ...
I contact my clients and tell them when I won't be available. If there's a new inquiry coming in, I break the vacation cycle for a minute (yes, I know ...) and respond, telling them that I'm not available and to not expect another response from me. I
| | | | EvaVer (X)
Local time: 12:44
Czech to French
+ ...
| I once tried | Mar 19, 2018 |
and it was a mess - the system was answering all spam and was getting "undeliverable" answers, which filled my mailbox the first day. Never more.
| | | | Tina Vonhof (X)
Canada
Local time: 04:44
Dutch to English
+ ...
Most of my clients are agencies that contact me once in a while when an NL-EN project comes across their desk, so I do post an 'out of office' reply. I make it a personal message that includes the dates that I will be away and the proZ profiles of a few colleagues (legal, medical, technical) to contact. My server sends that message only once to the same person and it's pretty good at filtering out spam and junk mail. When I come home, I still see these all emails that arrived and make sure that ... See more Most of my clients are agencies that contact me once in a while when an NL-EN project comes across their desk, so I do post an 'out of office' reply. I make it a personal message that includes the dates that I will be away and the proZ profiles of a few colleagues (legal, medical, technical) to contact. My server sends that message only once to the same person and it's pretty good at filtering out spam and junk mail. When I come home, I still see these all emails that arrived and make sure that the automatic reply was received.
[Edited at 2018-03-19 15:39 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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I'm a professional, and this is what I'd do if I worked in a corporation and went away for a week or two.
It does create problems with all e-mails being answered in the same way, including marketing and social network messages, but this is much to be preferred to not letting people know you're unavailable.
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I think it is a good tool, but I only use it when I am absent more than a couple of days (not counting the weekend).
I also let my main clients know ahead of time.
| | | | Kay Denney
France
Local time: 12:44
French to English
I tell the agencies that I'm away, but I'll still keep working for my direct clients (of which I don't have nearly enough for it to be a real problem.
I always wake up hours before anyone I go on holiday with so I usually have time to get the job done without them even realising it.
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I get up late, phone turned off, and my steady clients mostly wait for me to respond, but otherwise, I carry my lightweight laptop with me, Mi-Fi with 100 GB when there is no Wi-Fi, to spas, to weekend house. I am trying to adapt my workload to my way of living. Well-organized TAs usually don’t have very urgent projects, I mean a project at noon due EOB, it usually may be done by tomorrow SOB; and even if missed, something else will pop-up. Though I have 2 TAs, their PMs seem not to sleep at a... See more I get up late, phone turned off, and my steady clients mostly wait for me to respond, but otherwise, I carry my lightweight laptop with me, Mi-Fi with 100 GB when there is no Wi-Fi, to spas, to weekend house. I am trying to adapt my workload to my way of living. Well-organized TAs usually don’t have very urgent projects, I mean a project at noon due EOB, it usually may be done by tomorrow SOB; and even if missed, something else will pop-up. Though I have 2 TAs, their PMs seem not to sleep at all, or maybe they are organized to work in shifts (from different countries 24/7).
[Edited at 2018-03-19 18:38 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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I've done it when I went on a long vacation to a foreign country. I have a long list of clients, some steady and some occasional, so it's easier.
Other than those long vacations, I'm usually close to my desk.
| | | | Mario Freitas
Brazil
Local time: 07:44
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
I only use it when I know I will be away for several days and with little access to my e-mail. In the past six years, I used it twice. Once for three days, and once for 9 days, in both cases I knew I would be in a place away from "civilization", and in both cases, I left my son's e-mail and mobile for contact.
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