Turning Missed Calls Into Revenue

Juliana Yorio

Okay, Simon, let's just dive into it—because this one always surprises people. When we talk about missed calls, we're not just talking about, you know, one or two voicemails piling up. We're talking about a silent, persistent leak in revenue that most business owners barely see coming. And honestly, I've worked with companies where they think, "Oh, our CRM handles everything, we're good." But no—most CRMs, they’re just not showing the real cost when those calls go unanswered during peak times or after hours.

Simon Carver

Yeah, it's wild, right? People assume all those missed calls are...eh, just noise. Somebody'll call back, or the lead wasn't that serious. I actually heard about this service business—I think it was an HVAC company, correct me if I'm wrong—that found out after tracking call volume that something like 30% of their inbound deals just vanished if the calls came in after regular hours. I mean, that's not just loose change.

Juliana Yorio

You’re spot on. That was actually a client of mine—a small HVAC company, and what blew their minds was realizing their highest-value, most urgent jobs? Saturday morning calls. They didn’t even realize it because none of that showed up in reports. The CRMs were only capturing what made it through when someone picked up. So if you’re only tracking closed deals, you’d never know how much is left on the table just from those missed connections.

Simon Carver

That just makes my stomach drop a little, honestly. Nobody wants to be leaving money on the table, especially when it’s invisible. And it’s even worse because—you know, like we talked about last episode—AI isn’t about some hyped-up promise. It’s about fixing these sneaky bottlenecks. If leadership isn’t even aware of what’s leaking out, they can’t fix it.

Juliana Yorio

Exactly, which is why missed calls should be treated like any other operational drag. If you saw a 30% drop-off on your ecommerce site, your socks would be on fire. But with phone calls? There’s a weird blind spot that’s just as costly—if not more in some industries.

Simon Carver

It gets even messier after hours, right? Like, you think, alright, workday’s over, I'm off the hook. But for so many businesses, after 5pm or weekends, that’s when a lot of their high-intent leads actually come through. And those are the hottest—you know, people who are, like, ready to buy, or at least, they want to take action now. But if a human isn’t there to answer or follow up instantly, those leads? They cool off fast. Dental clinics, law firms, you name it. Just... poof, gone.

Juliana Yorio

Yeah, and I've seen the numbers. It’s always a shock when I show a dental clinic, for instance, that maybe 18% of their inbound weekend calls never result in a scheduled appointment, simply because nobody followed up quickly—or at all. Law firms, it’s sometimes even higher. And—this is where it gets fun—just qualifying a lead an hour late can turn a hot opportunity into more of a lukewarm maybe. Speed isn't the only factor, but it still beats out that perfect, personalized script every time. Customers just want to know they’ve been heard.

Simon Carver

So true. And I always hear about that balance: do I go for a hyper-personal human touch, even if it takes a little longer—or do I shoot for instant, even if it risks feeling a bit more automated? But honestly, I’d rather know I’m gonna get a response in sixty seconds—even if it’s, yeah, automated—than radio silence for hours. I mean, it’s kind of like, if you show up at a restaurant and the door’s locked, are you coming back? Probably not.

Juliana Yorio

That’s the analogy I always use—and it’s terrible, but it works. The truth is, in 2026, picking up the phone still closes more deals than most web forms or email chains. People forget that, but direct contact wins. That doesn’t mean only people can do it, though. Which brings us to—what’s actually fixing the problem now—AI voice and SMS.

Juliana Yorio

This is where the real magic happens for modern operators. AI voice and SMS tools now let you reach back out—instantly, automatically—whenever a call gets missed. Doesn’t matter if it’s 2am or a Saturday. And the payoff isn’t just theory. For example, we worked with a property management company that brought in these tools, set up automated follow-up on every missed call, and saw an 18% jump in monthly closed sales. That’s just from plugging that follow-up gap.

Simon Carver

I love that—because, uh, I remember hearing from this founder, a real skeptic, right? He was convinced AI follow-ups would just annoy people or lead to more dropped leads. But after, what, maybe thirty days of real usage—suddenly he’s seeing double-digit conversion increases. Sometimes, it literally just comes down to showing up first, and showing up every single time, even if you weren’t right there at your desk.

Juliana Yorio

I hear a version of that all the time. There's this assumption that adding AI means you’re replacing people—I get pushback on that from almost every founder at first. But really, it's not about replacing anyone. It's about making sure absolutely nothing slips through just because someone happens to be away, or busy on the other line, or, you know, living their life. The AI’s just making sure you’re there, 24/7, in a way humans can’t be. And that’s where you see real, measurable revenue come back.

Simon Carver

It’s kind of freeing, honestly. AI can cover those cracks, pick up the slack, and humans can focus on what they’re best at—building relationships, handling the tough stuff. It all circles back to what we keep talking about, Juliana—AI isn’t some science experiment. It’s just a lever. You pull it, and if it actually works, you see the result in the bottom line, not a pile of hype.

Juliana Yorio

Exactly. That’s what all these conversations come back to. Not adding tech for tech’s sake, but to recover lost opportunities and move the needle, fast. If you’re curious what this looks like for your business, start by just tracking missed calls for a week. The numbers usually surprise people. And, you know, that's a good spot to wrap. We’ll dig deeper into even more real-world AI plays soon—but for now, Simon, thanks for having this conversation, as always. Everyone, thanks for listening. Simon—see you next time?

Simon Carver

You bet, Juliana. Always a pleasure. Can’t wait for the next one. Take care, everybody!