The Cost of Missed Calls
A missed call is not a nuisance. It's a lost customer walking to your competitor. Here's what that actually costs, broken down by industry.
The formula
Weekly lost revenue = missed calls per week × average ticket × close-rate-when-you-answer. Multiply by 4.3 for monthly. Industry research from Invoca and BIA/Kelsey suggests SMS text-back within 60 seconds recovers roughly 40% of that number — the rest is the customer who already booked a competitor.
By industry
| Vertical | Missed / wk | Avg ticket | Monthly loss | Recoverable |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surf shop / hire | 18 | $95 | $2,941 | $1,176 |
| Mechanic | 22 | $420 | $21,853 | $8,741 |
| Lawn & landscaping | 25 | $180 | $8,708 | $3,483 |
| Trades (plumb/elec/HVAC) | 30 | $650 | $41,925 | $16,770 |
| Mobile detailing | 15 | $210 | $6,773 | $2,709 |
| Salon / barber | 20 | $75 | $3,870 | $1,548 |
Numbers use the industry-average missed-call rate (~22% of inbound volume per Invoca) applied to realistic per-vertical benchmarks. Your mileage varies — that's the point of running your own numbers.
Why it's worse than the table suggests
The direct revenue loss is only half the picture. Every missed call also burns:
- The cost per lead you paid to make the phone ring in the first place ($45–$75 in most local-service ad channels).
- Your Google review profile — unanswered calls are a top driver of one-star reviews.
- The referral chain — a happy customer sends 3–4 more; a hung-up caller sends none.
Run the numbers on your business
The Xnswer calculator lets you plug your own missed-call count, ticket size, and close rate, then shows monthly loss and how much Xnswer would recover.
Open the calculator