Canada is experiencing a boom in home renovations, with home improvement sales increasing by a staggering $20 billion between 2019-2023. While this is excellent news for home improvement businesses, it has also placed an exceptional demand on customer service. Home services businesses are facing very high call volumes at a time when labour shortages have made it difficult – if not impossible – to hire sufficient staff. Likewise, with the cost of supplies and labour rising due to inflation, some businesses have deprioritized front desk services to keep renovations affordable. As a result, the percentage of missed calls has risen sharply for many home improvement businesses while response rates have dropped, especially for after-hours calls.
Though most businesses don’t intentionally ignore after-hours inquiries, that doesn’t stop missed calls from affecting their bottom line. Not only do missed calls usually result in lost leads, but they also reduce consumer confidence and customer satisfaction, gradually eroding your brand’s reputation. As such, home improvement businesses must find efficient, timely, and cost-effective ways to respond to customers.
What Happens When You Miss Calls?
As a business owner, there are an overwhelming amount of things to keep track of, including business calls and inquiries. Unfortunately, missed calls can have a significant impact on home services businesses. Because home improvement projects are typically complex, most customers prefer to discuss services, costs, and the details of their requests over the phone. As such, businesses in the home services niche face higher customer service demands (and greater customer expectations) than other sectors. Failing to meet these expectations can have multiple consequences, including:
1. Lost bookings and revenue.
When a customer doesn’t receive a prompt response to their inquiry, they rarely call again; instead, roughly 85% will contact a competitor. If your business doesn’t have a system for responding to missed calls promptly, you’ll lose clients – including high-value leads generated through referrals. By some estimates, contractors lose an average of 10% of their income due to missed calls.
These losses can be particularly detrimental with the high cost of home improvement projects. According to Joshua Jones, manager of Mountaineer Heating and Cooling, “Our average job is about $12,000 so we were missing $22,000 out of every 10 calls. That’s $22,000 we were missing out on every week [before implementing a digital communication strategy].” This figure is much higher than the average weekly cost of missed calls across all industries, which is estimated at $2,430.
2. Less satisfied customers.
In addition to pushing away potential customers, missed calls can degrade the experience of existing customers. Research from HubSpot reveals that 90% of consumers expect an immediate response when calling about services. When customers can’t reach your business, they quickly become frustrated, especially if they have urgent questions or concerns.
Over 30% of customers cite being put on hold or having to repeat information to different customer service representatives as their most significant pain points when interacting with a business. Left unresolved, customer frustration can deter repeat business and lead to poor reviews, tarnishing your brand’s reputation. Worse still, unhappy customers can actively work against business growth via negative word-of-mouth advertising. Studies suggest that 95% of dissatisfied customers tell at least one person about their bad experience, while over half (54%) tell five or more people.
3. Reduced operational efficiency.
Though 80% of customers communicate primarily by phone, only 20% leave voicemails. As such, having a high volume of missed calls can profoundly disrupt daily operations. Without a system for responding to missed calls, many businesses struggle to coordinate services, arrange consultations, and collect information about customer needs and preferences. They may double-book or miss appointments, or fail to align with homeowners’ schedules, degrading overall service quality.
With businesses currently losing more than $75 billion per year to poor communication, it’s clear that many need to rethink how customer service is delivered. Automated response systems, such as missed call text back tools, provide a crucial bridge between customers and businesses after hours and during periods of high call volumes.
How Missed Call Text Back From CEN Can Boost Revenue & Improve Customer Retention
Missed call text back (also known as missed call auto-response) tools offer numerous benefits for home service businesses. Instead of making customers wait hours for a reply, these tools send an automated text message that invites customers to schedule an appointment via SMS or share the specific reason for their call. They also collect relevant details about the customer (such as their contact information and preferences), making it easy for businesses to follow up with them later. Not only does it help you track inquiries, but increases customer satisfaction by showing you value them reaching out to your business. This powerful tool ensures your missed calls don’t lead to missed opportunities.
Missed call text back tools have several advantages over traditional methods of responding to missed calls. Their immediacy prevents a loss of connection with the customer, which is a common risk with callbacks. Over half of all businesses report increased customer engagement after integrating SMS into their customer service, and 60% see significant revenue growth from improved lead generation. Missed call text back systems also provide valuable customer analytics that can be applied to personalize services and streamline operations, all while reducing communication costs by up to 97%.
To maximize the ROI of automated messaging, you’ll need a tool that’s easy to use and customize. With CEN’s new missed call text back feature, for example, you can quickly update messages to reflect changes in your services and following up with customers is simple and convenient. Here’s how it wo
How Does CEN’s Missed Call Text Back Feature Work
Step 1: Missed Call Detection
Our intelligent system swiftly identifies a “Missed Call” event when a potential client attempts to make contact, through phone call, and there is no immediate response.
Step 2: Automatic Message Trigger
The system can automatically trigger a text message to customers who made the missed call, demonstrating your commitment to responsive communication and value their outreach. As the goal is to gain the contact information of a lead, it’s important to make them aware that their name will be added to a client database, with the purpose of streamlining future business-client communication, and that they are free to opt out and stop further communication. In the case that they wish to stop text communications, they can still be directed to your website or any other active communication channels, like Facebook and Instagram, as a last effort to engage with them.
Sample Auto-Reply Message:
Hey there! This is [company name]. Sorry we were unable to take your call. For further assistance, please reply with your name.
By replying with your name, you are consenting to us adding your name to our contact list and will periodically receive promotional deals and the latest news about [company name].
To opt-out of receiving more messages from us, reply ‘bye’.
Step 3: Information Gathering
After adding the lead’s first name to a contact list, the system requests essential information to better understand the purpose of their call.
At this stage, it’s also possible to gauge if their inquiry is a common question in your line of business. If so, you can prepare pre-written responses to these questions and they will automatically be sent in response to the lead. This provides clients with a good customer experience as they get their questions answered without needing your direct participation.
Sample Message to the Lead (simple free response):
Thank you, {{contact.first_name}}. Your details have been added to our records. Can you tell us your concern and elaborate on the details so we can forward it to our staff?
Step 4: Business Response Options
The system offers the lead options to choose their preferred mode of communication, ensuring a tailored approach to engaging with them.
Sample Message to the Lead:
Thank you for sending the details, {{contact.first_name}}.
In order to serve you better, could you please let us know your preference for contact? Reply with:
’email’ if you prefer email communication
‘call’ if you prefer a phone call
Step 5: Confirmed Communication via Email/Call
Upon confirmation of the lead’s preferred communication via Email or Call, our system gathers the requisite data – their email address, updates the contact details, and dispatches a confirmation that the assigned user has received the message.
This final message should also let clients know when to expect you to get back to them – whether it be within 24 hours or the next business day.
Sample Message to the Lead:
Thank you, {{contact.first_name}}! Your email address has been added to our records. Our staff will get in touch within 24 hours to assist with your concern.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
To derive full value from missed call text back tools, you’ll need to know how to avoid common pitfalls. Before you get started, review the best practices below to create an effective automated response strategy:
1. Don’t send vague or generic responses.
Text messages should be polite, specific, and reflect your brand voice to maximize ROI. Start by apologizing to the customer for missing their call (optionally, you can provide a reason for being away; e.g., you’re currently on a job, they contacted you during off hours). Then, give the customer a time frame for when they can expect to hear back from you and ask for further details about their inquiry. You can also ask how they would prefer to receive follow-up communications (i.e., via phone, email, SMS, online chat, etc). When phoning a customer back, always give them the option to select a call time.
2. Don’t keep customers waiting.
Ensure you have a follow-up strategy where customers hear from you within 24 hours of responding to an automated message. Organize follow-up so the most urgent inquiries are given priority.
3. Keep content relevant and fresh.
Though missed call text back tools are highly effective, they aren’t a “set and forget” solution. Whenever you change your services or business hours, you should update your auto reply messages. You should also customize messages to reflect your current status. For example, create specific messages for use during operational hours, after hours, and when you’re on holiday. Remember that missed call text back tools should seamlessly integrate into a broader customer engagement ecosystem, keeping customers connected and informed during each stage of their journey.
Conclusion
Using a missed call text back tool is one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to increase lead generation and improve customer retention and satisfaction. These tools alleviate the burden on front desk staff and reduce the potential for error and miscommunication, allowing home improvement businesses to align their services with customer needs. They also ensure that after-hours inquiries receive proper follow-up, preventing lost revenue.
Are you ready to propel your home services business to the next level with a flexible, comprehensive automated response system? Contact CEN today for a free consultation on implementing Missed Call Text Back, so you never lose a lead again.