Why a missed call costs more than it looks
When someone needs a plumber, a dentist or a mechanic, they usually have more than one name in front of them. If you don't pick up, the next business on the list is one tap away.
How often does that happen? In a 2024 test, the marketing company 411 Locals called 85 small businesses across 58 industries during business hours. A live person answered only 37.8% of the calls. Another 37.8% went to voicemail, and 24.3% got no answer at all. It's a small test, but it shows how easily calls slip through on a normal workday.
Speed matters too. When researchers checked how 2,241 U.S. companies responded to inquiries from their websites, the ones that responded within an hour were nearly seven times as likely to reach a decision maker as the ones that waited even an hour longer, and more than 60 times as likely as the ones that waited a day or more (Harvard Business Review, 2011). That study was about web inquiries, not phone calls, but the lesson carries over: the first business to respond usually gets the first shot.
Do the math with your own numbers
| Step | What to put in | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Missed calls a month | Count them in your phone's call log or your phone company's account | 20 |
| 2. Share that are new customers | Leave out spam, vendors and people you already work with | 50% |
| 3. Share you'd normally win | Out of every 10 new callers you talk to, how many hire you? | 40% |
| 4. Average first job | What a typical new customer spends the first time | $400 |
| Lost each month | Multiply 1 × 2 × 3 × 4 | $1,600 |
And that's only the first job. It leaves out the repeat work and referrals you never got from those customers.
Where missed calls come from
- You're on a job, driving, or with a customer.
- After hours and on weekends, when a lot of people finally have time to call.
- Lunch, or the one person who answers the phone is out.
- A full voicemail box, or a greeting that doesn't say when you'll call back.
- The wrong number or wrong hours on your Google listing, so people call when you're closed, or call a number you don't use anymore.
Fixes that cost little or nothing
- Check your number and hours everywhere. Your Google listing, your website and your social pages should all match.
- Fix your voicemail greeting. Say who they reached and when you'll call back, then keep that promise.
- Call back every missed call, even without a voicemail. Your phone shows the number. Aim for within the hour during business hours.
- Share the load. Forward calls to a second phone or a teammate while you're on a job.
- Give people a second way in. A short form on your website lets someone reach you at 10 p.m. without waiting for you to pick up.
- When the volume justifies it, get help. An answering service, or missed-call text back, which texts every caller you miss so they know you'll call back. See how we set it up.
See what your business might be missing
Our free business checkup looks at your Google listing, your reviews and your website, and estimates what the gaps may be costing you each month, using public information and industry benchmarks. Type in your business name and city, and the report shows up on screen in about two minutes. Run the free checkup.
Sources
- Harvard Business Review, Oldroyd, McElheran and Elkington, The Short Life of Online Sales Leads, March 2011 (figures as reported by SmartCompany)
- 411 Locals 2024 call test, as reported by Aira
