Cutting no-shows
Most no-shows are decided at the door rather than on the day. Appointments booked far out, without a specific time, or without the other decision-maker present are the ones that fail. A confirmation shortly before helps, but it mostly reveals a weak appointment rather than saving a strong one.
The cause is usually in the booking
A no-show is rarely a change of heart. It is normally an appointment that was never solid: a day rather than a time, a gap long enough for the interest to fade, or a household where the person who agreed was not the one who needed to.
Which means the lever is at the doorstep, days earlier, not in whatever you do on the morning of.
What confirming actually does
A confirmation gives them a low-cost opportunity to cancel, and a meaningful number will take it. That feels like a loss and is not: you have converted a wasted evening into a free one, and learned something about how you booked it.
When one happens anyway
Log it accurately, including that it was a no-show rather than a not-home, and treat the address as a callback rather than a closed door. A missed appointment is still a household that agreed to one, which is more than a fresh door has ever done.
Common questions
- What is the main cause of no-shows?
- A weak booking. Booked too far out, with no specific time, or without the person who actually decides.
- Should I confirm the day before?
- Yes, accepting that some will cancel. A cancellation recovers your evening; a no-show does not.
- Is a no-show worth chasing?
- Usually. They agreed to an appointment once, which puts them well ahead of an unknocked door.
More on callbacks
The doors you already earned: callbacks, appointments, follow-up timing, and where they get lost.