Are Monday Mornings A Good Time To Prospect?
As I’m writing this post, I’m also on the telephone (#22 in the queue) trying to get through to my doctors to set an appointment for my 3 year old daughter Holly.
What with swine flu, changes in temperatures etc I bet the phone is ringing off the hook.
But it got me thinking about how everyone is mad busy on a Monday and especially Monday mornings!
Now there has been a lot written about when are the best times to make cold calls and when to prospect.
My take?
Well, it’s going to differ from industry to industry but if I were you I’d be focussing on planning my week ahead and getting everything in order so you can start making calls from Monday afternoon onwards with no calls on Monday mornings.
So don’t make any calls on Monday mornings. Your prospects will be gossiping about the weekend and for those who are getting into their work will be far too busy and then start your plan of attack to them in the afternoon.
Give it a go and see if it’s the right approach for your industry.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained!
Happy selling
Sean
Sean McPheat
MTD Sales Blog
Telephone: 0800 849 6732
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Hi Sean,
I totally agree that Mondays are not the best time to call and the afternoon would be far more productive however, I’m in work now and I know my boss wants me to keep plugging away at the calls. So, I wanted to ask how would you recommend if I was to say I would get on with some other work now and carry on with the calls later? I know he wants me to get on the phone… I know it would be far more productive later when people are more in working mood! Your advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks Hannah
Hi Hannah,
What you need to do is provide evidence.
You need to provide evidence what works and what does not work.
You should be keeping stats anyhow on how successful each period of the day per week is for you anyhow.
What you need to do is prove or disprove that Monday mornings are a waste of time.
That includes:
- Number of calls made
- Number of people spoken to
- Number of appointments set/made
- Number of closes
It’s all about proof.
We measure everything! Calls, responses, times of the day etc
I recommend you do the same to provide the proof that you need.
Sean
I’d agree that first thing monday morning is not the best time to be making sales calls. Just out of curiosity do you think that there is an optimum time to be making calls? For example is Friday afternoon best since there is a better chance the person you speak to will be in a good mood!
Hi Rich,
There are no hard and fast rules but here are some general pointers.
MON AM – No
MON PM – Better!
TUES AM & PM – Yes
People are really into work mode now.
WEDS AM & PM – Yes
Middle of the week and for some they are planning for the weekend!
THURS AM & PM – Yes
For most it’s the last day of “full out” work. i.e schedule no meetings for Friday and use Friday for a planning day and catch up on admin etc
FRI AM – Yes
FRI PM – No
Thinking of the weekend. Lose momentum for the weekend.
The reason why Friday PM is a no is because for many it is wind down time and you’ll lose some momentum over the weekend. I’ve seen it where people will agree to set up an appointment over the phone on a Friday PM or say “I’m busy now, can you call me on Monday” just as a put off.
Of course, these are generalisations.
I’ve seen some where Friday afternoons work very well.
You need to step into your prospects shoes and know what works best for them. Do they need to be flat out at the start of week? Or do they have a culture of 2 hour lunch breaks on a Friday?
I’d find out all you can about your prospects and then centre your calling campaigns around that.
Sean