When to Call Sales LeadsTime-of-Day vs. Call Sequence Approach

When Should I Call?

Salespeople often ask, “When should I call prospects in order to increase my chances of getting them on the phone?” The answer most expect when they ask this question is a specific time of day. For example, is 10am better then 3pm? The analysis of millions of calls and leads revealed the actual time of day (a specific hour of the day) is much less important than the actual timing of calls in relation to each other, the call sequence.

Some key findings include:

• The difference between the “worst” time of day to call a prospect and the “best” time of day to call is only about two and a half percentage points.

• Speed-to-call is the most important factor in determining whether you contact and convert an interested prospect.

• Using an optimal call sequence can more than double your call success rate.

• A call sequence approach is much more practical and easier to implement than a time-of-day approach.

Research Methodology

For this study, Velocify looked at millions of lead records and phone calls across hundreds of client databases to evaluate the success rate of different call times. The study sample included sales data from B2B and B2C companies across a wide variety of industries.

Call Strategy Definitions

Time-of-Day Strategy:

Calling at a specific time of day that has been found to be most effective (e.g. always calling during the 2pm hour, regardless of when a lead comes in or when the previous call attempt may have been made).

Call Sequence Strategy:

Calling based on the call attempt number relative to the time a lead is received (e.g. making a second call attempt 30 to 60 minutes after a new lead expresses interest and an unsuccessful first call attempt has been made).

1 | When To Call Sales Leads

Does Time of Day Really Make a Difference?

Sure, some differences exist between contact rates at different times of the day, but ultimately, those differences are pretty trivial. The difference in connection rate between the “best” time to call and the “worst” time to call is only 2.6% -- probably not enough to base your entire calling strategy on these findings.

Per

cent

age

ofC

onne

cted

Cal

ls

10 AM7 AM 11 AM6 AM 12 PM 1 PM 2 PM 3 PM 4 PM 5 PM 6 PM8 AM 9 AM

0%

3%

5%

7%

17%15.6% 15.6%

14.4%

15.7%16.1% 16.4%

15.2%

16.8% 17.0%

14.9%15.8% 15.6%

16.4%Best

Average

Worst

9%

11%

13%

15%

2 | When To Call Sales Leads

First Call Attempt

The question of best time of day to call is probably least relevant when it comes to first call response to a new lead inquiry. Although one can claim that, in general, 2pm is the best time to call someone, if you receive a new lead at 3pm, should you wait almost 24 hours to call back at 2pm?

Our research has shown, time and time again, that speed-to-call after an initial inquiry could be the most important factor within your team’s control. The probability of contacting and converting a new lead drops exponentially with every minute you delay your response.1 Leads are most likely to be available and willing to speak to you about your product or service immediately after they fill out an online form or somehow express interest, regardless of the time of day.

1The Ultimate Contact Strategy

Impr

ovem

ent

on L

ead

Con

vers

ion

Rat

e

Time Elapsed

1 hr.2 mins. 5 hrs.1 min. 24 hrs.3 mins. 30 mins.

0%

100%

200%

300%

400%

391%

98%

160%

62%

36% 24% 17%

3 | When To Call Sales Leads

Subsequent Call Attempts

What if you still don’t get a hold of your lead on your first call attempt? When should you call back a second time, a third time, etc.? Fortunately for you, Velocify has answered this question for you through extensive research. While calling a lead incessantly in an effort to get through may improve your contact rate, it will probably hurt your likelihood of ever converting many of your leads. They may eventually pick up the phone just to tell you to stop harassing them. The key is balance, both in persistence and in subsequent call timing.

2The Ultimate Guide to Inquiry Response3The Ultimate Contact Strategy

CALL 10-1 min.

CALL 230-60 mins.

CALL 31-2 hrs.

CALL 4 CALL 5 CALL 6

Previous research has found that the right level of persistence is about six calls, at which point you will have contacted about 95% of all leads that will eventually convert.2 Calling more times than that will result in wasted efforts and resources and is likely to upset prospects as well. The figure below is Velocify’s recommended call sequence and timing in relation to the lead create date and time, optimized to increase contact rates and maximize conversion rates with each and every call- because in the end, conversion is what matters most.3

4 | When To Call Sales Leads

Lift in Contact Rate

By making all calls at 2pm, the optimal time of day uncovered in this new research, sales teams can expect a 7% improvement in contact rates. While for some, this small uptick in contact rate may seem worthwhile, following Velocify’s optimal call sequence approach can result in much greater gains.

The call sequence approach on the previous page was the result of optimizing for highest conversion rates. Remarkably, optimizing for highest contact rates yields very similar call sequence timing recommendations, and shows a 110% increase in contact rates. This significant lift in contact rate is largely due to leads’ increased availability and readiness to communicate with you on the day they show interest in your product (three calls on day one) and the rewards of an appropriate level of persistence with adequate spacing between calls (calls four through six).

Impr

ovem

ent i

n C

onta

ct R

ate

Optimal CallSequence Approach

Best Time-of-DayApproach

0%

30%

60%

90%

120%

7%

110%

5 | When To Call Sales Leads

Implementing Your Call Strategy

Velocify’s optimal call sequence not only provides far superior results, but is also much easier to implement than a time-of-day approach.

Even if calling at a specific time really were incredibly advantageous, what would you do? Salespeople couldn’t possibly make all of their calls at the optimal time, and if that time were really that much better, it would mean they would be connecting more often, which would leave even less time to make more calls during that time. They would be incredibly busy during that peak hour, wouldn’t get much done, and would have little to do the rest of the day.

A call sequence approach is not dependent on a specific time of day. It is more dependent on lead flow, which for most companies is pretty well distributed throughout the day. This enables salespeople to prioritize brand new leads as soon as they come in to ensure the fastest speed-to-call possible. Subsequent calls can then be made according to the last time a previous call was attempted, following the recommended call sequence.

As would be expected, contact and conversion rates drop the more times a lead needs to be called in order to make initial contact. Therefore, if multiple leads require the same call back time, the newer leads should be prioritized since they usually have the greatest chance of getting contacted. Call sequence and timing should be one of the primary factors for prioritizing lead follow-up. For more, see The Power of Prioritization.

Everyone would be overwhelmed one

hour of the day...

…leaving little to do the rest of the day

Time-of-day calling strategies are not effective

6 | When To Call Sales Leads

In Summary

The best time to call inbound leads should be determined by their priority and status, not dictated by a clock on the wall. Waiting to call all leads at the same time every day is virtually impossible and counterproductive.

Velocify’s recommended call sequence approach allows salespeople to make calls throughout the day at the optimal time that is specific to each lead, resulting in more than double the contact rate, thereby maximizing conversions and revenue.

7 | When To Call Sales Leads

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Call: 888.843.1777Email: sales@velocify.comWeb: velocify.comBlog: velocify.com/blog VELOCIFY.COM

Velocify® is the leading sales acceleration platform. The company helps more than 1,500 sales teams sell more by bringing speed and control to the entire sales process. Velocify helps sales teams prospect with more precision, accelerate lead engagement, and implement optimized workflows, ultimately helping sales teams find and convert more leads.

Velocify has recently been recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in North America by Deloitte and Inc. and a Best Place to Work by the Los Angeles Business Journal. For more information, please visit velocify.com or follow the company on Twitter @Velocify.