Most voicemails on funding leads are never returned because they are indistinguishable from every other one. The fixable part is being specific about something only the merchant and you know about — which, on an inbound lead, you have.
The shape
- Your name and the company, once, clearly.
- "You put in a funding application this morning" — the specific act and roughly when.
- One reason to call back that is not "to discuss your options". A question about the amount or the timing works.
- Your number, said slowly.
- Your number again, because they were reaching for a pen the first time.
What kills a callback
| In the voicemail | Why it fails |
|---|---|
| A pitch | They can decline it without calling you |
| "Give me a call back when you can" | No reason and no urgency |
| A rate or a number | Now they are shopping, not calling |
| Your number said once, quickly | Unusable, so the message is moot |
| One on every single attempt | Trains them to recognise and ignore |
The last one is the most common. A merchant with six voicemails from the same company has learned the number, and the follow-up cadence is now working against itself.
Pair it with a text
A short text immediately after the voicemail — naming the same application, from the same company — gives them something to reply to without calling, and it makes the next call from that number recognisable rather than anonymous. Keep it about the application rather than about rates, for the carrier reasons as much as the sales ones.
Questions brokers ask
How long should a sales voicemail be?
Under fifteen seconds. Past that the merchant deletes it before your number arrives, which makes the whole message pointless.
What should a voicemail on a funding lead say?
Your name and company, the specific application they submitted and roughly when, one concrete reason to call back, and your number said slowly and then repeated.
How often should you leave a voicemail?
On the first attempt and around the fourth. One on every attempt teaches the merchant to recognise the number and ignore it, which works against the rest of the cadence.
Should you mention rates in a voicemail?
No. A number in a voicemail turns the merchant into a shopper who no longer needs to call you back, and you do not have a real number to give before seeing statements anyway.
Does texting after a voicemail help?
Yes. It gives the merchant a way to reply without calling and makes your next call recognisable rather than anonymous. Keep the message about their application rather than about pricing.
Alex Makowski
Founder, Infinite Bookings
Runs the lead generation operation behind Infinite Bookings — paid traffic, the funding application, and the delivery pipeline that puts records into brokers’ CRMs.
Reachable directly at alex@infinitebookings.com or 732-609-7182.