Offline Service find clients

Let's say you have a service or product to sell to a local business, but not quite sure how to get started finding clients. For the purpose of this example, we'll be selling custom Mobile Apps that streamlines the customer's part and component sales. 

Generally, you start with the customer, never the product, but assuming we have an app already in development, and a loose grip on a market need:

You have to ask yourself some important questions before you run out there or pick up the telephone. 

A short list would be:
Who am I marketing to?
What problems does my service/product solve?
Does the client already buy what I'm selling?
Is there competition and how do they market to my prospect?
What are the red hot benefits and must-have features of my product/service?

The first question is perhaps the most important. Do some research and break this down to get some detail. Speak with business owners in your target to uncover some of the specifics.

Who is our customer?
Plumbing Supply Companies in Anytown, USA
Sells about 1000 products (Fittings, Pipes, Accessories, Tools, Hard to Find Parts)
Services local plumbers: 350 regular local plumbers who buy parts
Sells to out of state plumbers and general contractors

Now identify their problems:
Outdated online catalog with poor part lists
Has a website that is difficult to navigate (built in 2003)
No mechanic to accept inquiries
Hard to find physical location in an industrial park
Ordering is done via carbon paper (arcane)

Now - does the client buy my services/product?
Has tried buying search keywords before but never got many sales
ASK WHY - maybe because their website isn't setup to accept orders or inquiries
Purchased a website back in 2003

** Arguments can be made both in favor and against this client buying our services/products. To me, it is clear that they are open to purchasing technology that enhances the sales and user experience and can be sold on the benefit of reaching a wider audience and streamlining sales. Remember, you can't market a widget to someone who doesn't buy widgets. You'd be wasting your breath. All indications are that this type of client would invest in the technology.

Is there competition, and how do they market?
After searching high & low, I cannot find another parts supplier who has a mobile application for catalog, user experience
Therefore, I can't find a development agency who has done this before
I did find one developer who build an mobile app catalog for welder's supply, which is similar insomuch as they have hundreds of parts and a wide range of industrial customers

All indication is that these agencies market direct as I can't find any advertising for this agency
The technology may have been developed in-house or by the owner

Not finding any competition is not necessarily an indication of a blue ocean (a blue ocean market is another buzzword for a completely untapped market,) but it can also indicate there is opportunity. Kind of confusing and counter-intuitive, I know - but these are the breakers. You'll have to test, and that often means a brief discussion with the owners of your target businesses.

What are the red hot benefits and must-have features of my product?

The mobile app will:
Give the supply business complete control over the online category
Presents part number, description, specifications and price of the item
Can support an unlimited number of products
Easy to manage administration panel
Accepts import of csv/spreadsheet for one-click inventory update
Accessible via any Android or iOS device with mobile data connection
Accept orders and generate purchase orders
Accepts build in sales inquiry messages
Searchable specialty part breakdown by manufacturer
Provides reporting features and business metrics

** These points are what will let you speak intelligently with these business owners. If the owner gets 'hot under the collar' for these benefits then you've struck something worth pursuing.

Using the benefits and features, we can educate and convince the business owner that our (in this case) technology is great for business, will expand business, and make ordering/finding parts easier for existing customers. The end result is an increased bottom line (more money) and happier customers (better customer service/support)

This could be further refined to provide greater detail and even more research on the clients can be done to uncover even more red hot benefits and irresistable reasons to buy. The above is enough to start outreach to the target market and conducting some sales.