2026-09-15
What a missed call actually costs
Missed calls get filed under office admin. They belong in the revenue report. The arithmetic is simple enough for a napkin, and the result is usually larger than people expect.
The four numbers you need
Use your own figures, not an industry average: how many inbound calls you get in a month, what share of them go unanswered, what share of answered calls turn into a booked appointment, and what a booked appointment is worth to you on average.
Multiply the missed calls by your booking rate and by the value of an appointment. That is the monthly number. It is an estimate, and it is close enough to make decisions with.
Why the number is usually understated
The calculation assumes a missed call is worth the same as an answered one. In practice people who call are further along than people who fill in a form, so the missed calls are often the better enquiries.
It also ignores the second loss. Someone who reaches voicemail rarely calls back, and the next number on their list belongs to a business that looks exactly like yours to them.
Where missed calls hide
Most businesses cannot see the problem because the phone system does not report it. Calls that ring out during an appointment, calls after hours, calls that reach a busy line and calls abandoned inside a menu all disappear in different places.
A tracking number per channel fixes the visibility problem. One number on the ad, one on the website, one on the map listing, all forwarding to the same place. Now a missed call has a source and a cost.
What to fix first
Close the after hours gap before anything else. It is the cheapest to fix and usually the largest. A text back within seconds that offers two times turns a missed call into a booking without anyone picking up the phone.
Then fix the busy hour. One overflow path, whether that is a second person or a callback queue, removes the calls that ring out while you are with a client.
See where your bookings leak. The audit is free.
Leave an email or phone number. We will ask three quick questions about your business and send the report within 48 hours.
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