How to put a number on a missed call
Missed calls are the only lost sale that leaves no record, so the cost has to be calculated rather than observed.
How do I calculate what a missed call costs?
Average job value, multiplied by the share of first-time callers who become customers, multiplied by how many calls go unanswered in a month. For a $400 average job converting at one in three, three missed calls is about $400.
Where do I get the numbers?
Job value from your invoices, conversion from your own sense of how many enquiries become work, and missed calls from your phone's call log over a fortnight. Do not estimate the last one.
Owners consistently guess low on missed calls, because the ones missed while working are the least likely to be remembered.
What do I do with the number?
Compare it to the cost of covering the phone. If missed calls cost less than the fix, do nothing, and be glad you checked rather than bought.