Every call counts. Yet, many businesses underestimate the true impact of missed calls. Beyond the immediate loss of potential revenue, unanswered calls can lead to loads of problems. Low customer satisfaction, a (permanently) tarnished reputation, and follow-up issues, to name a few.
If you're here for the number, here it is: the cost of a missed call is $12.15.
Are you thinking, "Wait, that's low" or "That's not even close to what I've been seeing elsewhere!"? If so, keep reading to learn about how many answering services inflate these numbers to hook you and how this number—as low as it is—is actually *really* high.
I've been in the answering service and call center industry for just over 30 years. I've heard countless stories of American businesses losing tons of business from missed opportunities from missed calls! That's a lot of money every year. And a lot of disappointed callers.
In this blog, we're not going to just look at anecdotes. We're going to look at real numbers that show how devastating missed calls can be to your business. Then, we'll talk about what are some ways to ensure you don't become a victim to missed calls.
If you want to jump ahead and see *exactly* how much you're losing from missed calls, you can do so by clicking here to use our 'missed call cost calculator'!
Missed calls translate directly to missed opportunities. I'll show you how. But first...
We've seen many answering services and call centers inflate the numbers we're going to talk about below for the "OMG" factor. It makes you feel like getting call support is an urgent issue. They get these large numbers by assuming that *every* missed call is a potential customer's call. That's just not true. We'll get more into that below.
These are usually the same partners that offer free trials for their call center service. And if you're wondering what one has to do with the other, check out our blog on why free trials hurt you, but not the answering service.
So, I don't want to push you for a service you might not need immediately based on numbers that probably aren't true. That's why I'll be sure to use real numbers only. They're based on my conversations with businesses we've onboarded—from the Fortune 500 to the solo-preneur—so you get the real picture. Now let's look at a real example.
Consider a small business that gets 20 calls daily.
Let's say they have a lead to call ratio of 1:4—so they get 5 leads from the 20 calls.
If you're thinking, "That ratio is too low!" or "Anyone calling into my business to inquire is a lead!", remember that this is for every call. So it's including calls from that someone that got the wrong number, a customer that wanted to check about something, your colleague who left his access card outside...you get the picture. The reason why this is necessary is so that you understand a real picture for how much *a single* missed call costs you.
Now, back to the small business. Let's say their close ratio is 1:5. That's 1 customer for every 5 leads.
At least that would be 1 customer, assuming they pick up 100% of the time (but we'll compensate for that in a second).
But to get to the cost a missed call, we first need to look at what's the cost of a lost customer.
I feel I must preface the number below with this statement: It's hard to say. The cost of losing a customer for your business is going to be vastly different from the cost of a lost customer for the business across your street, and for almost any other business in America.
So that being said, Forbes found the average annual cost of a lost customer to be $243. It's likely higher for many obvious reasons (like if you're a SaaS company charging monthly subscriptions or if you're a B2B company with 6-figure contracts), but let's go with it for now.
Remember: you can do the math for your business by using the missed cost calculator below! But, we highly recommend you stick with us to see the math behind it, so you can better assess what the number shown really means for your business.
Now back to how many customers you lose a day from missed calls. It's unrealistic to say you'll miss 100% of your calls. But, if you're looking up the cost of missed calls, you're probably losing some calls. People also tend to miss most (if not all) calls that come in after-hours.
So if you get 20 calls a day, that's 7,300 calls a year.
If your rate of missing calls is 30% that means you miss 2,190 calls every year.
Assuming your lead to call ratio is 1:4 and your closing rate is 1:5...
You lose $26,608.50 every year from missed calls! That's a big number, and it's real!
But it's not the cost of a missed call. The cost of a missed call is still $12.15! How? Because $26,608.50 is the cost of missing all your potential customers calls! Not *all* your missed calls. So the cost of a missed call is really $26,608.50 divided 2,190 calls (which we got from your 30% missed call rate) which is $12.15!
You see, we don't have to inflate numbers to show what a *huge* problem missed calls are for businesses! And don't worry, we'll tell you how to solve it below. But first, everyone's favorite toy on a pricing page: the calculator.
We created this calculator below just so you can see how much missed calls cost you exactly. We hope this helps! And if the number below shocks you, don't worry, keep reading to learn about the steps you can take so you don't lose out on all that money!
If this number is higher than you thought, remember that this only factors the *annual* value of a customer. Your business' lifetime value of a customer might be double, triple, or even ten-fold the annual value of a customer!
Nobody wants to lose tens of thousands of dollars every year. That's *a lot* of money. Here are some steps you can take to ensure it doesn't happen to you.
Partnering with a reputable answering service ensures that calls are handled professionally, even during peak times or after hours. A professional answering service does more than answer your calls.
But isn't there a cost to an answering service? Would I really be saving that much money? Yes. You can see what an answering service costs here, and compare that to the number you saw above!
A great answering service will help increase your leads, delight your customers, and make your business stand out among the competition.
Training your staff will take time. And patience. But in the end, it may be worth it. If you're running a really small operation that doesn't warrant the cost of an answering service, training your team is a good option.
Consider if it's the best use of your team's time to a) be trained to answer calls expertly and b) answer your phones 24/7/365. If their talents are better suited elsewhere, you may want to reconsider this option.
If you're looking to stop missing calls with an answering service, we're here to help! The following resources have been really useful for our clients when shopping for an answering service. We hope it helps!
Educational Resources:
You might ask "How do answering services work exactly?"
You can read about the pros and cons of hiring an answering service here.
Check out our blog on what you should know before you hire a call center here.
And lastly, are you wondering "What do answering services cost in 2025?". We've got you covered.
You can also check out our services by requesting a quote from us here!
In conclusion, missed calls carry hidden costs that can significantly impact your business' bottom line and reputation. By recognizing these challenges and proactively trying to solve them, you'll make each and every one of your callers happy, and grow your business at the same time.