What Is Missed Call Text Back?
Missed call text back sends an automatic text to anyone whose call to your business goes unanswered, from the same number they just called, within moments of the missed call. Instead of leaving a voicemail or calling the next business on their list, the caller can answer one question by text, and the conversation carries on until you or your AI assistant picks it up. With Awava it is included in the Core and AI Pro plans.
From missed call to conversation, step by step.
The call goes unanswered
You are on a job, on another call, or closed for the night. The phone system sees the missed call on your existing business number.
A text goes out from your number
Within moments the caller gets a text from the number they just dialed, naming your business and asking one open question.
The caller replies
They answer in their own words: what they need, where, and how soon. No voicemail, no phone tag.
Someone picks it up
You take over from your phone or desktop, or in AI Pro the AI assistant carries the conversation and books the appointment.
What the first text should say.
Example first text
Sorry we missed your call - this is [Business name]. How can we help? Reply here and we'll get back to you. Reply STOP to opt out.
132 characters typed, plain characters only: one text message, even with a business name up to 40 characters long.
- It names the businessMany phones show only the number. The caller needs to know who is texting before they answer.
- It asks one open questionPeople call about a quote, a warranty, a bill or a reschedule. An open question fits all of them; “Want a free quote?” fits one.
- It says “we,” never “I”Nothing in an automatic text should suggest a person typed it.
- It has no linkA link in the first text to someone who has never texted you looks like spam to carriers and to people.
- It uses plain charactersOne curly apostrophe, long dash or emoji switches the whole text to a format that fits 70 characters per part instead of 160, so a text that fit in one part can need two or three, and each part is billed.
- It says how to stopUS carriers expect opt-out wording such as “Reply STOP to opt out” in the first message of a sequence.
Four habits that make text back backfire.
- A sales pitch in the first textA discount or a “free quote” turns a reply into a marketing message, and marketing texts carry stricter consent rules than an answer to someone who just called you.
- A string of textsTwo automatic texts a few minutes apart read as a bot. If there is no reply, one later follow-up is plenty.
- Texting people who did not callText back answers people who just called you. It is not a way to text lists of numbers, which carriers prohibit.
- Pretending to be a personIf an AI carries on the conversation, it should say it is an AI. Awava’s does.
What happens after the caller texts back.
- From the number they calledThe thread lives on your existing business number, so a reply reaches you, not a new number your customers have never seen.
- One inbox, on your phoneReplies land in one place with the call and the text history together, so you can pick up where the text left off.
- Different hours, different wordsThe text sent at 9pm on a Sunday can say when you will be back; the one during a workday can say you will reply shortly.
- A short summaryWith Awava you get the gist: who called, what they need, how urgent it is and what happens next.
The federal texting rules behind it.
What the FCC’s rule and the carriers ask of an automatic text, with the primary source linked for each.
- A reply, not a pitchA text that answers someone who just called you, about what they called for, is the simplest kind of business text. Once a message promotes something, the stricter rules for marketing texts apply.
- Opting outUnder the FCC’s rule, people can revoke consent by any reasonable method. Replies of stop, quit, end, revoke, opt out, cancel or unsubscribe count automatically, and other words count if a reasonable person would read them as a request to stop, such as “please stop texting me.” Requests must be honored within ten business days, and a business may not require one exclusive way to opt out. 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(10)
- One confirmation, nothing moreOne text confirming the opt-out is allowed if it only confirms it, carries no marketing and is the only message sent; sent within five minutes, it is presumed fine. 47 CFR 64.1200(a)(12)
- Quiet hours for sales textsThe federal rule bars telephone solicitations before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. in the recipient’s local time, and applies it to texts to cell phones. Some states set stricter hours or daily limits for sales texts; see the rules by state. 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1) and (e)
- Carrier registrationUS carriers require business numbers that text through software to be registered (A2P 10DLC) and review sample messages before approving them. This is carrier policy, not law, but an unregistered number gets filtered. CTIA Messaging Principles
- Saying it is an AIA missed-call text sent from a fixed template is not a chatbot. When an AI carries on the conversation, Maine requires a clear notice that the consumer is not dealing with a human wherever the chatbot could mislead a reasonable consumer. 10 M.R.S. §1500-DD
General information, not legal advice. Checked October 19, 2026. Laws change, and how they apply depends on your business; check with a lawyer licensed in your state.
Measure it with your own numbers.
Count three numbers for one month: missed calls (from your phone’s call log), how many of those callers replied to the text, and how many of the replies became booked jobs or appointments. The replies are conversations you would otherwise have lost to voicemail; the bookings are what the text back earned.
Questions about missed call text back.
See what faster response is worth in your business.
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