Field notes

What does a missed call cost a trades business?

By Eric Berg · Last updated August 2026

A missed call does not automatically equal a lost job. The useful estimate is: missed calls × share that were qualified × your normal close rate × contribution per job. Use your own records; the result is a decision tool, not a universal benchmark.

The arithmetic (run it with your numbers)

Illustrative example only: six missed calls a week × 50% qualified × 50% close rate × $350 average revenue = $525 in potential weekly revenue. That is not proof of actual loss, profit, or recovery. Replace every input with your call logs, close rate, margin, and customer mix.

Where the calls actually leak

• Mid-job. The owner may be on tools while the phone rings somewhere else. Whether that call mattered is something the call log can show.
• After hours. Some urgent inquiries arrive outside the staffed window and need a deliberate intake or recovery path.
• One-person office. Quoting, ordering, driving, and answering all compete for the same person's attention.

Why voicemail doesn't catch it

Voicemail works for some callers and fails for others. The way to know is to track unanswered calls, voicemails received, contacts recovered, qualified opportunities, and booked work. A dramatic anecdote is not a measurement system.

What catching a missed call actually takes

A recovery system needs a clear trigger, lawful message, known sender, owner visibility, and a route back to a person or approved employee. Response time matters, but this page does not promise an instant text, live callback, or saved job on every miss. Test the actual implementation and measure it.

The fix isn't more discipline

The fix may be better call routing, a human desk, an answering service, an AI employee, or a combination. Hire Whoever lets you audition a business-specific employee without a card. Keeping the same employee is CA$149 per month, cancel anytime. Whether it pays back depends on your actual usage and margins.