Why does a customer inquiry via email sometimes cost more than via phone?

A customer inquiry via email costs organizations more on average than a phone call, even if that seems contradictory at first glance. The reason is that email handling involves hidden time costs: multiple reading and writing moments, back-and-forth communication for clarification, and a higher chance of repeat contact. Below you will find answers to the most frequently asked questions about the costs of email versus phone in customer service.

Why does handling an email take longer than a phone call?

Email handling takes longer because an employee touches the same question multiple times: when reading, looking up information, writing a response, and possibly processing a reaction. In a phone call, this takes place in one continuous interaction, which makes the total processing time significantly shorter.

In a phone call, you actively direct the conversation. You ask follow-up questions immediately if something is unclear, give an answer right away, and close the contact as soon as the question is resolved. In email, that direct feedback is missing. An employee writes an answer based on assumptions, after which the customer may write back with a follow-up question or clarification. Each of those moments costs reading time, thinking time, and writing time again.

Furthermore, employees switch between tasks more often with email. An email is opened, half-read, set aside, and picked up again later. Those interruptions increase the effective handling time without this being visible in the registration.

What hidden costs are involved in email handling?

The hidden costs of email handling lie in the time that is not registered: touching the same question multiple times, time spent searching for customer information, internal coordination, and the delay caused by emails ending up in a queue. These costs are rarely measured, but they add up significantly at high volumes.

Concrete hidden cost items in email handling are:

• Multiple touches: the same email is opened an average of two to four times before a final answer is sent.
• Search time: employees have to look up customer history in multiple systems because information is not centrally available.
• Internal forwarding and escalation costs: emails that are passed on internally cost extra actions for multiple employees.
• Quality control: for complex or sensitive emails, a second look from a colleague or supervisor is common, which costs extra time.
• Queue and lead time costs: a longer lead time increases the chance that the customer calls in the meantime, causing double handling.

All these factors together mean that the actual costs per email inquiry are structurally higher than the direct handling time would suggest. A thorough business analysis of your customer contact processes makes this insightful.

How does repeat contact affect the total costs per email inquiry?

Repeat contact is one of the biggest cost drivers in email handling. When a customer calls anyway after an email exchange because the answer took too long or was unclear, you pay for the handling of that question twice: once via email and once via phone.

In practice, it looks like this: a customer sends an email, waits two days for an answer, and in the meantime calls customer service. The employee on the phone handles the question, but the email is still open in the queue. Later, another employee answers that email anyway, without knowing it has already been resolved by phone. The result is double labor effort for one question.

Repeat contact is difficult to measure if your channels are not linked. Organizations without a central customer overview rarely see this pattern reflected in their reports, causing the actual costs per customer inquiry to be structurally underestimated.

When is email actually cheaper than phone contact?

Email is cheaper than phone when the question is simple and unambiguous, the customer experiences no time pressure, and the answer does not depend on additional information from the customer themselves. In those cases, an employee can efficiently formulate a standard answer without back-and-forth communication.

Situations in which email structurally turns out cheaper:

• Questions that require written proof, such as confirmations or invoice overviews.
• Non-urgent information requests where the customer does not expect immediate feedback.
• Questions that can be answered fully automatically via templates or AI support.
• Contact moments outside office hours, where email can be processed asynchronously during quieter periods.

The advantage of email disappears as soon as multiple messages are needed to reach a solution. One email with a clear answer is cheap; three emails for one question are more expensive than a four-minute phone call.

How do you calculate the actual costs per channel in your organization?

You calculate the actual costs per channel by dividing the total personnel costs for customer contact by the number of handled contacts per channel, including repeat contact and indirect time. Those who only look at direct handling time miss a large part of the actual costs.

A practical step-by-step approach:

1. Measure the average processing time per channel, including reading time, search time, and writing time for email.
2. Count the repeat contact. How many email inquiries lead to a follow-up message or a phone call?
3. Calculate the indirect time, such as internal forwarding and escalation moments.
4. Compare the costs per resolved question, not per contact moment. One question resolved via three emails counts as three contacts but is one customer inquiry.
5. Map out the lead time. A long lead time for email has an impact on customer satisfaction and increases the chance of repeat contact.

This type of analysis requires insight into data from multiple systems simultaneously. Organizations working with fragmented channels and separate systems usually do not have a complete picture of this.

What can you do to reduce the costs of email handling?

You reduce the costs of email handling by reducing repeat contact, shortening the processing time per email, and automating simple questions. The biggest gain is not in working harder, but in organizing the process smarter.

Effective measures are:

• AI-supported answer suggestions: employees are immediately offered a draft answer based on the content of the email, which greatly reduces writing time.
• Automatic categorization and prioritization: emails are directed immediately to the right employee or department, without manual sorting.
• Central customer overview: if an employee immediately sees what the customer asked previously and via which channel, search time is eliminated and repeat contact is more easily recognizable.
• Self-service for frequently asked questions: customers who find answers via a knowledge base or chatbot do not send an email, which directly reduces volume.
• Channel steering: actively redirect urgent questions to phone or chat, so that email remains for questions where asynchronous contact is appropriate.

How does Pegamento help in reducing your customer contact costs per channel?

We help organizations gain control over the actual costs of their customer contact channels and structurally reduce those costs. We do this not with isolated advice, but with an approach that runs from analysis to implementation and continuous optimization. Everything under one roof, with one point of contact.

Specifically, we offer:

• Channel analysis and business case: we map out the actual costs per channel, including repeat contact and hidden time costs, and show where the greatest gains can be made.
• AI-driven email processing: intelligent support that categorizes, prioritizes, and generates answer suggestions for emails, so that employees respond faster and more consistently.
• Omnichannel customer contact: telephony, email, chat, and other channels integrated into one overview, so that repeat contact becomes immediately visible and manageable.
• Process automation via Agentic AI: an evolution from executing bots to self-thinking assistants that not only follow instructions but independently take initiative and handle routine tasks without human intervention.
• Phased implementation: not a costly project all at once, but a step-by-step approach with proven modules that align with your processes and systems.

Do you want to know what the actual costs of email are in your organization and where the greatest opportunities for improvement lie? Contact us and we will look together at an approach that fits your situation.