How to tune up your cell phone's voicemail

Have you ever called someone and received the dreaded "this voicemail box is full" message?  Here are some tips to make sure that your own phone's voicemail service works as smoothly as possible.

1. How to check your voicemail: While many smartphone offer a "visual voicemail" app for easy access, you can also check your voicemail by calling your own phone number from your phone. You can even access your voicemail from someone else's phone by calling your phone number and then pressing either star (*) or hash (#) when you hear your voicemail greeting. Enter your voicemail password when prompted, and you're in (If you don't know your voicemail password, contact your cellular carrier to reset it).

2. Delete voicemail messages regularly. Voicemail boxes only hold a few messages before they get full and stop allowing callers to leave a message.

3. If your voicemail isn't working properly, first call into your voicemail box and make sure there aren't any messages that need to be deleted. As a last resort, you can contact your cellular carrier and ask them to reset your voicemail box.

While there are alternatives to voicemail such as sending text messages, the truth is that not everyone uses texting, and leaving a voicemail continues to be a communication method that many people rely on.

Have questions about using your smartphone to communicate? We love teaching people how to use their phones more effectively.