missed appointment
A no-show is an appointment a prospect or client fails to attend without cancelling. For appointment-based businesses (health, consulting, trades, services), it is a double loss: the slot is wasted and the expected revenue disappears, even though the lead had already been paid for and converted.
The formula
Annual cost = Missed appointments per week × average appointment value × 46 weeks
A concrete example
Example
Three missed appointments a week at $180 average value represent about $24,800 a year, not counting rebooking time.
Why it matters
No-shows are one of the easiest losses to reduce: an automatic reminder the day before and another the same morning eliminate a large share, and a slot freed early can be rebooked. A few days of setup, an immediate and permanent effect.
Frequently asked questions
- What no-show rate is normal?
- Depending on the trade, 5 to 20% is common without a reminder system. What matters is not the norm: it is that the rate drops sharply as soon as a double automatic reminder (day before + same morning) is in place.
- Text or email for reminders?
- Text messages are read almost systematically and within minutes: they are the king channel for appointment reminders. Email complements well (initial confirmation with calendar invite), but is not enough on its own.