My 2 Cents on the Best Times to Make B2B Phone Calls

Full disclosure:  I use AI to get ideas for blog posts.  I asked the best time to do B2B lead qualification and cold calling when using the phone.  Since 1994 It’s Your Call has been offering B2B telemarketing services to the smaller companies and based on our experiences AI got it wrong.  Here is the result and my responses in italics:

There isn’t a single perfect time to reach every B2B lead, but research suggests some general guidelines to optimize your chances of connecting:

Best Days:

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: These tend to be the busiest workdays, so prospects are more likely to be at their desks and focused on work during these times.

Tuesdays can be hard times to connect with prospects.  People take Mondays off so calling on Tuesdays can have the same results as calling on a Monday.  If the calling needs to happen on a Tuesday wait until the afternoon.

Best Times of Day:

Late Morning (10 am – 11:30 am): People are usually settled in and ready to tackle tasks after the morning rush. Meeting are often scheduled at 10 to ensure attendance, thus your prospects are not at their desks.

Late Afternoon (4 pm – 5 pm): Especially for decision-makers who might have cleared their plates for some uninterrupted focus time. Agree except I would say calling until 6 pm can be appropriate depending on your audience.

Times to Avoid:

Early Mornings (before 9:30 am): People might still be commuting or getting settled into their day. Although this is true, most outbound calling starts at 10 am.  Reaching out to a prospect between 8:30 and 10 am is differentiating yourself.

Lunch Hour: Self-explanatory, people are likely unavailable. Lunch hour is a way to get around the gatekeeper.  The gatekeeper goes to lunch and who answers the call? Often times it is the decision maker.

Evenings and Fridays: Generally considered less focused work times. Fridays can be an exceptional time to call including the afternoons on Sundays.  Prospects tend to be more laid back and waiting for the weekend so the call will be accepted and the prospect is more willing to talk.  This is true with all calls being made in the summertime when the work load is typically slower. The only time to call in the evening is if you want to leave a voicemail message.  

That’s my 2 cents and I’m sticking to it!