Every unanswered call is a possible booking that went elsewhere. To estimate the cost, multiply the calls you miss in a month by the share that would have booked and by what an average visit is worth to you. The calculator on this site does the arithmetic with your own numbers.
Most phone systems and mobile phones keep a missed-call log. Count a typical week, including evenings and Sundays, and multiply by four.
Do not forget calls that rang while the line was busy. They often never appear in any log.
02
Estimate how many would have booked
Not every caller wants an appointment. Look at the calls you did answer last month and count how many ended in a booking. That share is your booking rate.
Use your own figure, not an industry average. It differs a lot by specialty and city.
03
Put a value on each visit
Use the average amount a new patient's first visit brings in. If patients usually return for more sittings, the real value is higher, so the estimate stays on the safe side.
Missed calls times booking rate times visit value gives the monthly figure.
Questionsdoctorsask,answered
Do patients call back if the clinic misses their call?+
Some do. Many call the next clinic on the list instead, especially for new appointments. Counting only the calls that never called back gives a more conservative estimate.
