Still struggling to get prospects to pick up the phone when you call? Have you thought about your timing?
The key to success in sales often lies in knowing the best time to cold call. Most reps spend the majority of their energy perfecting their pitch, researching prospects, and refining their talk track, but they give almost no thought to when they’re actually dialing. That’s a mistake. Even the best cold call script will underperform if it lands at the wrong moment.
Connection rates (conversations lasting over 30 seconds) tend to improve when people are not feeling stressed or too busy to take a call. Think about it from the prospect’s perspective: if someone is deep in a Monday morning planning session or racing to hit a Tuesday deadline, they’re not in a headspace to have a real conversation. But catch them at the right moment, when the week’s pressure has started to lift, and you have a fighting chance.
The best time to cold call comes down to catching someone in a headspace where they are actually open to a conversation.
So, when is the best time to cold call?
Generally, it’s at the end of the week. As the week progresses, people are often in better moods and less preoccupied with their workload. Targeting the second half of the week for your cold calls can significantly impact your success rates.
Remember: TGIF! According to research, connection rates actually go up as the week goes on. By targeting your cold calls on Thursdays and Fridays, you can take advantage of this trend. Chances are your prospect will be more relaxed and open to conversation, increasing the likelihood of a successful call.
Thursday is widely regarded as the single best day to cold call. The week’s heaviest work is typically behind your prospect, but they haven’t mentally clocked out for the weekend yet. They’re reachable, relatively relaxed, and if you’ve done your homework, potentially receptive to a conversation that’s relevant to something they’re already thinking about.
Friday gets a bad reputation in sales. Conventional wisdom says prospects are checked out and rushing toward the weekend. But the data tells a different story!
Friday afternoons in particular can be surprisingly productive, especially if you’re calling someone who has the autonomy to make decisions and isn’t buried in back-to-back meetings. The key on Fridays is to keep your opener tight and your ask small. You’re starting a conversation, not closing a deal.
Knowing the best time to cold call is only half the picture. It’s equally useful to know when not to dial.
Monday mornings are the hardest window to crack. Prospects are triaging email, sitting in planning meetings, and mentally ramping up for the week. Even if they pick up, they’re rarely in a headspace to engage.
Tuesday and Wednesday are middle-of-the-road. Not bad, not great. If Thursday and Friday aren’t available to you for some reason, Wednesday afternoon is your next best option since people have usually found their rhythm by midweek.
First thing in the morning and right after lunch tend to underperform as well. Early morning calls can feel intrusive before someone has settled into their day, and the post-lunch window is often eaten up by internal meetings.
Day of the week gets most of the attention, but time of day matters too. Research consistently points to two windows that outperform the rest.
8 to 9 AM in the prospect’s time zone can be effective for reaching decision-makers before their day fills up with meetings, but only if you’re calling someone senior enough to control their own schedule. For managers and directors, this window is hit or miss.
4 to 5 PM is the other high-performing window. The day’s meetings are wrapping up, decisions have been made or postponed until tomorrow, and your prospect may actually have a few minutes to take an unexpected call. This is especially true on Thursdays and Fridays, when the combination of time of day and day of week stacks in your favor.
The worst time of day is right after lunch, typically noon to 2 PM. Energy is low, meetings are common, and return-to-inbox is real.
Save your outbound cold call dialing for Thursdays and Fridays. Use the first half of the week for research and strategy, so by the time Thursday rolls around you have a list of prospects, triggers at the ready, and a smooth “Why You? Why You Now?™” just waiting to be delivered.
Monday through Wednesday well spent looks like this:
Making the most of your cold calling efforts goes beyond crafting the perfect pitch. Knowing when to cold call is key. By focusing your efforts on the end of the week, you can remove friction, improve connection rates, and enhance your overall success as you Start the Deal™.
Use Monday through Wednesday to build and prepare. Use Thursday and Friday to execute. Stack your timing right, the right day, the right time of day, the right prospect, and the right reason to call, and you’ll start having conversations that actually go somewhere.
So, next time you plan your outbound calls, remember to consider the timing. It could be the key to unlocking better results.
Want to sharpen what you say when someone does pick up? Explore the Start the Deal™ methodology and learn how to open conversations that actually convert.
Explore more prospecting tips with Jeff on YouTube!