One of the most popular myths surviving from the old-school days 
of sales training is the idea that you will have a better chance 
of reaching business prospects if you try calling either early in 
the morning or in the late afternoon, after regular business 
hours have ended.  The theory behind this myth is that, because 
the receptionist and other gatekeepers are gone, the business 
owner will personally answer the phone himself.

As a business owner myself, I can tell you that this idea is a 
ridiculous idea that will only waste your time and make you even 
more frustrated with cold calling.

First of all, this idea dates back to the seventies and eighties, 
before voice mail existed.  In those days, a business owner would 
occasionally pick up the phone because it would simply go on 
ringing if he didn't.  Nowadays, phones are forwarded to voice 
mail outside of regular business hours.  They usually don't even 
ring at all.

Secondly, if a business owner is in the office early or late, 
it's because he's trying to get a jump on the day and be 
productive without anyone or anything else in the office to 
distract him.  As a result, he surely isn't going to answer the 
phone, or for that matter, take the phones off voice mail so they 
will ring.  Chances are, the phone on his desk is turned off 
during this private productive time.  And if you do manage to get 
the owner on the phone when he doesn't want to be disturbed, you 
greatly increase your chances of annoying him with your cold 
call, even more so than cold calls already annoy people.

Finally, if your funnel is so empty that you are resorting to the 
before- and after-hours tactic to drum up new business, you need 
to step back and take a look at the bigger picture.  If you're in 
that situation, you definitely are lacking an effective lead-
generation system.  If you had one you wouldn't need to cold call 
at all, let alone early and late in the day!  Self-marketing is 
the answer ... trying to call a business owner at seven in the 
morning is not. 

Frank Rumbauskas is the author of the hit sensation "Cold 
Calling Is A Waste Of Time: Sales Success In The Information 
Age". His training and products teach salespeople how to 
generate hot leads without cold calling and how to keep their 
power and remain in control of sales situations. To download 
Frank's free e-book please visit http://www.nevercoldcall.com