The reality of paid leads
Even with exclusive routing and qualified callers, you'll see no-shows. The industry baseline is 5–10%. Some of that is the homeowner rescheduling. Some is buyer's remorse. A small percentage is outright tire-kicking.
The right framing isn't "eliminate no-shows" — it's "process them efficiently and don't pay twice for the same bad outcome."
Confirmation cadence that works
- Same day after booking: SMS confirming time + your truck arrival window
- Day before: SMS or call asking the homeowner to confirm or reschedule
- Hour before: "En route" SMS with truck plate or tech name
Don't leave the homeowner in silence between booking and arrival. Most no-shows are people who forgot or got busy, not people gaming the system.
When the homeowner doesn't answer the door
- Knock and ring the bell with reasonable persistence
- Walk the perimeter (some homeowners are in the back yard or garage)
- Call the number you have on file — leave a voicemail naming the appointment time
- Wait 10–15 minutes after the scheduled start, log it as a no-show, and roll
Documentation for refund disputes
When a no-show or late-payment dispute escalates, the platform's billing record is the source of truth. Document on your end:
- Time-stamped photo at the property (front of house with timestamp visible)
- Call log of the door-call attempt
- Text exchange leading up to the appointment
- If you're paid and didn't serve: nothing to do — your money's already in
For CallerSync calls billed at connect, the call recording (with disclosure played) and dashboard transcript are auto-stored. You don't need to keep your own copy.
When to refund vs. when to push back
If a homeowner reaches out claiming they were billed for a connected call they don't remember, the recording resolves it almost every time. Listen back, send the relevant 30-second clip, and the dispute usually evaporates.
Refund-worthy: accidental dial, you can hear there was no real conversation. Not refund-worthy: they were qualifying you, didn't like the price, and now want their money back.
Late-payment handling for your own invoices
CallerSync billing is prepaid — you top up your wallet, calls bill against it. There's no late-payment scenario on the platform side.
But if you're billing the homeowner (job invoice), the same documentation rules apply: written quote signed before work, visible line items, photos of the completed work, and a payment terms statement on the invoice. Most late-payment problems are documentation problems in disguise.
The unwritten rule
The contractors who process no-shows fastest and least emotionally are the ones with the highest net hourly take-home. Don't spiral on each one — process it, document it, dispute the platform-side billing if there's a real platform error, and move on to the next call.