Unbooked Call Reason Card

One sheet, ten reasons. When an answered call doesn’t book, circle one letter before you pick up the next call. On Friday, count the circles. No software required.

How to use it

Print one card per week. Tape it next to whichever phone takes after-hours and overflow calls.
Only unbooked calls get a circle. Booked calls go on the board. Missed calls go on your callback list.
Circle one letter per call, in that day’s row. Write “Other” calls on the lines at the bottom, in the caller’s words.
Friday: fill in the count box. Put the never-bookable count (A–D) right next to the bookable-but-lost count (E–J). If never-bookable keeps growing, ask why.

The ten reasons

Never bookable (doesn’t count against you)

A. Not a customer call. Wrong number, spam, vendor, job seeker, staff, personal.
B. Existing job or bill. Status, reschedule, confirming a time, invoice question.
C. Outside our area. Real problem, but you don’t go there.
D. Work we don’t do. Wrong trade, or a job type you don’t take.

Bookable but lost (what you can fix)

E. Fee declined. Heard the dispatch / after-hours fee and said no.
F. Wanted a price first. Wanted a repair price over the phone.
G. No slot that worked. Capacity call — on the owner, not the phone.
H. Calling back / thinking it over. Note “wants regular hours” here.
I. Needs spouse, owner, or landlord. Person on the phone can’t say yes.
J. Getting other quotes. Calling around.

Other: one line, in the caller’s words. Read every one on Friday.

This list is our suggestion, not an industry standard. Keep it fixed for at least a month so the weeks compare. Why these ten, and where they come from: Issue #4: Unbooked call reasons.

Want the log version?

If you’d rather type than circle, the Night-Call Log template uses the same ten codes and does the Friday math for you.