Some classic phone features, such as voicemails, are slowly becoming obsolete, thanks to advanced tech such as voice notes. So, just how many of us still leave/listen to voicemails?

Who leaves voicemail?

We recently surveyed a selection of people’s attitudes towards voice calls and found that just a fifth (20%) of people will leave a voicemail if someone is unable to take their call.

Age provided some pretty interesting insight, with 45-54 (55%) and 55-64-year-olds (53%) expressing they always leave a voicemail if they desperately need someone to call them back. However, one in three 18-24 (30%) and one in five 25-34-year olds (18%) admit they never leave a voicemail.

Who listens to voicemail?

When it comes to receiving voicemails, almost a third of people (29%) say they immediately listen to them, whilst nearly one in ten (9%) don’t.

Those aged 65+ revealed they instantly listen to voicemails (34%), compared to two-fifths (40%) of 18-24-year olds who say it takes them a long time to get around to listening to a voicemail.

Why do we hate voicemail?

Considering the findings, we can reveal the top five things that put people off leaving a voicemail. These are:

1. They don’t like receiving them themselves therefore they won’t leave one for other people (22%)
2. They’re scared they’ll make a mistake or forget what to say when speaking that can’t be deleted (21%)
3. They don’t think the person will listen to it (17%)
4. They don’t like the sound of their own voice (17%)
5. They find speaking when no one is listening at the other end embarrassing (15%)

We can also reveal the top five things that annoy people most about receiving a voicemail. These are:

1. They don’t understand why the person can’t just drop them a text (29%)
2. They worry that the message will be bad news (22%)
3. It’s too much effort to get the details from the message and then have to call them back (17%)
4. They find it long-winded having to log-in and listen to all the automated prompts (15%)
5. They find it hard to remember what the person has said once they put down the phone (14%)

Further opinions

Our research unveiled that there is a real ‘for’ and ‘against’ split on this topic, therefore we decided to investigate further.

Lucy, a 41-year-old from Leeds, says: “I love a voicemail! Always surprised how many people don't even provide the option for people to leave one” whilst Yvette, a 63-year-old from London, says: “I love leaving voicemails!”

But, not everyone agrees with Lucy and Yvette.

Alex, a 19-year-old from Limehouse claims he “literally loathes voicemails” and Beccy, a 24-year-old from Manchester, says: “I absolutely hate them, only leave them for work if I absolutely have to, and never listen to those left for me either, it’s easier to just call someone back.”

So, what does the future have instore for voicemails? Only time will tell…

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