Working with US clients from abroad means calls across time zones, accents and habits. None of it is hard, and most of it is common sense, but a few US conventions are worth knowing: how calls are answered, what a good voicemail sounds like, how fast people expect a call back, and how calls end. Here is a practical guide, with phrases to use.
How should you answer a business call?
With a greeting, your name and your business. It tells the caller they reached the right person, and it sounds ready for work. Some ways to answer (the names are made up):
- “Good morning, this is Sam at Northwind Studio.”
- “Northwind Studio, Sam speaking.”
- “Hi, this is Sam.” (fine on a line only clients call)
If you cannot talk, say so and offer a time: “I’m just finishing another call. Can I call you back at 2 p.m. Eastern?” Then call at 2 p.m. Eastern. Letting a call ring out is fine too, as long as your voicemail greeting says when you call back.
How long should small talk last?
A minute or two, and follow the caller’s lead. A US client may open with “How’s your week going?” or “How’s the weather over there?” A short, friendly answer and the same question back is enough: “Busy, but good. How about you?”
Easy topics are the week, the weekend, the weather, travel and, if the client brings it up, sports. Leave out politics, religion and money. If the client gets straight to business, so can you.
On names: in many US workplaces, first names are normal from the first call. Use the name a person signs their emails with, or ask: “Do you prefer Jennifer or Jen?”
How do you leave a voicemail a US caller will return?
Short and complete, so the person can act without calling just to find out who you are. Six parts:
- Your name and business.
- Your number, said slowly.
- Why you are calling, in one sentence.
- What you need from them.
- When you are free, in their time zone.
- Your number again.
A made-up example, with a number from the 555-01xx range set aside for fiction:
“Hi Jordan, it’s Sam from Northwind Studio, at 212 555 0123. I’m calling about the homepage timeline. I need your go-ahead on the new layout by Thursday. I’m free today until noon Eastern, or tomorrow from 9. Again, 212 555 0123. Thanks.”
That is under 30 seconds. For your own greeting, our voicemail greeting scripts have ten ready to record.
When should you call back?
Within one business day, and the same day if you can. US offices generally work around 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time, Monday to Friday, so:
- Call inside the client’s business hours, not yours. Before 9 a.m. or after 6 p.m. their time, wait unless they asked you to call then.
- Mornings are usually best for decisions. Late Friday afternoon is often quiet.
- Check the US holiday calendar. Our list of US federal holidays for 2027 shows the days your clients are likely away.
If you work from a time zone where US hours fall in your night, say when you call back in your voicemail greeting, and keep to it. A client who knows you call back at 9 a.m. Eastern the next morning is rarely bothered by the wait.
How do you schedule across ET and PT?
Always in the client’s time zone, and always with the zone written out. “Let’s talk at 10” means three different times to a New York client, a Los Angeles client and you.
| When it is 9 a.m. in New York (ET) | It is |
|---|---|
| Chicago, Dallas (CT) | 8 a.m. |
| Denver (MT) | 7 a.m. |
| Los Angeles, Seattle (PT) | 6 a.m. |
Pacific time is three hours behind Eastern, so a call at 9 a.m. PT is noon ET. Arizona and Hawaii do not change their clocks, according to NIST, so check their time separately.
Habits that prevent missed calls:
- Offer two or three times in their zone, with your zone in brackets: “Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET (3 p.m. London) or Wednesday at 11 a.m. ET?”
- Write ET and PT, or Eastern and Pacific, not EST and PST. EST is winter time only; from March to November New York is on EDT.
- Send a calendar invite once a time is agreed, so both calendars convert it.
- Watch the clock-change weeks. The US and Europe change clocks on different dates, so for a few weeks a year the gap is one hour smaller. See the weeks the US and Europe change clocks.
The US time-zone clock shows the current time in each zone, and the best time to call US clients has call windows from your country.
How should the call itself go?
- Say the purpose early. “I wanted to go over the timeline and the two open questions.” It shows you respect the client’s time.
- Check you agree as you go. “So we’re keeping the blue version, right?” catches misunderstandings while they are cheap to fix.
- Say when you don’t know. “Good question. Let me check and email you by tomorrow” is better than a guess.
- Name a bad line straight away. “Sorry, you cut out. Could you say that again?” If it keeps happening, offer to call back.
- Ask before you record. Recording rules differ by state, so the simple habit is to ask everyone on the call.
How do you end a call?
With a summary, a next step and a thank-you. Calls that trail off with “OK, so, yeah” leave both sides unsure what was decided.
“Great. So I’ll send the revised quote by tomorrow, you’ll check the layout with your team, and we talk Thursday at 10 Eastern. Thanks, Jordan.”
If the call is running long, it is fine to say so: “I want to respect your time. Shall we pick this up on Thursday?”
What should the follow-up email say?
Send it the same day, and keep it short: what you agreed, who does what, and the next date. A made-up example:
Subject: Recap: homepage call, Tuesday
Hi Jordan, thanks for the call today. Summary:
- We keep the blue layout.
- I send the revised quote by Wednesday.
- You confirm the launch date with your team.
Next call: Thursday, 10 a.m. ET (3 p.m. London). Invite attached.
The email gives both sides a written record, and it is a natural place for anything you did not get to on the call.
Say this, not this
| Situation | Say this | Not this |
|---|---|---|
| Answering | “Good morning, this is Sam at Northwind Studio.” | “Hello?” or “Yes?” |
| You can’t talk | “Can I call you back at 2 p.m. Eastern?” | “I’m busy.” |
| Proposing a time | “Does Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET work?” | “Let’s talk at 10.” |
| Opening the topic | “I’m calling about the homepage timeline.” | A long build-up before the point |
| Disagreeing | “I see it a little differently. Could we look at…” | “No, that’s wrong.” |
| You didn’t hear | “Sorry, you cut out. Could you say that again?” | “What?” |
| You don’t know | “Let me check and email you by tomorrow.” | A guess |
| A delay | “That will take until Friday. Does that still work?” | “Maybe, we’ll see.” |
| Running late | A short email: “Running five minutes late, sorry.” | Joining late with no word |
| Ending | “So I’ll send the quote tomorrow, and we talk Thursday. Thanks.” | “OK, bye.” |
How does a US number fit in?
A US number lets clients call you as an ordinary call to a US number, and lets you call back from one. On the TripoSIM US Virtual Number, calls to you are included with a fair use of 300 minutes a month, and 300 outgoing minutes a month to US and Canadian numbers are included for call-backs. Each outgoing call is rounded up to the next full minute; unanswered calls are free. TripoSIM says calls ring even when the app is closed once notifications and the microphone are allowed; a phone that is off, offline or has notifications blocked does not ring, and callers reach voicemail. Voicemail messages can be up to 2 minutes, up to 30 a month, kept 30 days.
A few limits to keep in mind when you set expectations:
- No sending texts. It receives texts only, so ask clients to call or email.
- No 911. It cannot call 911 or any emergency service, so keep your local number for emergencies.
- No internet, no ring. If your connection drops, callers reach voicemail, so give email as the backup.
To dial US numbers from your own phone instead, see how to call the US from abroad, and for setup details read the voicemail guide.
The bottom line
Answer with your name and business, keep small talk short, and say why you are calling early. Leave voicemails with your number twice and your free times in the client’s zone. Schedule in ET or PT with the zone written out, call back within one business day, end every call with a next step, and confirm it by email the same day. Compare the plans, $100 a year or $12.99 a month, on the plans page.