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Never Miss a Customer

What a Missed Call Actually Costs a Service Business

By Colin Pemberton. Updated . 3 minute read.

What a missed call costs depends on two things you already know: how much a typical job is worth to you, and how many calls you miss that turn into business for someone else. Multiply those together for a normal week and you have a rough cost you can trust, because it's built from your own numbers. For many service businesses, that number is larger than expected, and it's also one of the easiest to shrink.

How do you work out the cost with your own numbers?

You don't need industry averages for this. You need three numbers from your own business:

  1. Missed calls per week (M). Count the calls you didn't answer and didn't return during a normal week.
  2. Share that would have booked (B). Of those callers, how many would likely have become a job? If half of your answered calls turn into work, use one half.
  3. Average job value (V). What a typical job is worth to you.

Weekly cost ≈ M × B × V

For example, with made-up numbers for illustration only: if you miss 6 calls in a week and about half would have booked, that's 3 lost jobs. Multiply 3 by your own average job value, then by the number of busy weeks in your season. Now you know what missed calls are worth to you, not to someone else's business.

Repeat customers make the number bigger. If a new customer tends to come back or send friends, one lost call can cost more than one job.

Why do missed calls add up so fast?

Most owners miss calls for good reasons:

  • You're on a job, on a roof, under a sink, or out on the water.
  • You're with a customer and don't want to be rude.
  • It's the busy season, and the phone rings more than you can answer.
  • The call comes after hours, when the customer finally has time to look for help.

The trouble is that a caller who can't reach you has a list of other businesses one tap away. Some won't leave a voicemail at all. They just call the next name on the list.

What are simple ways to answer more calls?

Start with the free fixes, then add tools.

  • Update your voicemail greeting. Say when you'll call back and offer another way to reach you.
  • Set callback times. Block a few minutes midday and at the end of the day to return every call.
  • Forward calls when you can. A family member or office person can catch calls during your busiest hours.
  • Put your hours everywhere. Customers are less likely to give up if your hours and callback times match on your website and your Google Business Profile.
  • Text back automatically. This is the one that works when you truly can't pick up.

How does missed-call text-back work?

When you can't answer, the caller gets a text from your business automatically. It says you saw the call and asks how you can help. The caller can reply by text, which is often easier than waiting on hold or leaving a message.

  1. A customer calls while you're busy.
  2. They get a text from your business number right away.
  3. They reply with what they need.
  4. You answer from your phone when you're free, and the conversation is all in one place.

The caller stays with you instead of moving on to the next number on their list. Missed-call text-back is the first feature in our Growth Plan, along with two-way texting and one inbox for every message.

Running a charter or rental business with a short, busy season? See getting your charter or rental business ready before summer.

Questions

How do I figure out how many calls I miss?

Check your phone's recent calls for a normal week and count the ones you didn't answer that you never called back. Your phone carrier's call log can help too.

What is missed-call text-back?

It's an automatic text sent to anyone whose call you miss. The caller hears from your business right away, can reply by text, and you can pick up the conversation when you're free.

Is a voicemail greeting enough?

It helps, but many callers hang up without leaving a message and try the next business instead. A text back gives them an easy way to keep talking to you.

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