How to Locate Clients for Your Offline Consulting Business

While some beginning marketers have the mistaken impression that throwing a wide net will draw in more fish (i.e., consulting clients), that’s not often the case. Instead, by narrowing your niche and focusing on a specific type client, you’ll have greater results and build your business faster. In addition, you’ll develop a reputation as a specialist in a particular industry or field, and that in itself will attract more clients.

As an offline consultant offering Internet marketing advice and services, your clients will typically be small business owners. They will have a brick and mortar shop located within 50 miles or so of your location. They may have a website but it won’t be making them money—or at least not enough money. And they could potentially not even be online at all. Ideally, your target client will be someone who understands the value and the need for doing business online, but who doesn’t have the Internet marketing skill, knowledge or resources they need themselves.

While your clients may vary, these criteria will give you a fairly clear image of who you’ll be targeting with your ads and promotion. Then you can narrow in as needed for your own business. For instance, you may decide to focus on a more narrow niche such as day cares, or clothing stores.

Once you understand who your target audience is, you can determine where to find them. Some of your prospective clients may hang out online in various forums or discussion groups. If so, they’ll be looking for small business advice and information, website design ideas, and possibly even sales and Internet marketing strategies. The majority of your clients—and your promotion, however—will be offline. And you’ll do best by focusing your marketing efforts locally.

Networking groups such as Business Networking International (BNI), your local Chamber of Commerce, or even business classes such as those offered by the Small Business Administration are good places to meet prospective consulting clients. Don’t overlook the businesses you frequent, or those owned and managed by friends and family members.

Grab your local phonebook and see what kind of businesses are listed. Search online for the companies you find. Do they have a website? How well is it put together? Do they have a Facebook page, a Twitter profile, a LinkedIn account? Make notes on ways you can help them improve and refer broadly to your findings when you call on them or send them your marketing materials.

You can also search for local businesses online. Enter the type of business (such as “day care”) along with the city. Or visit YellowPages.com and search by business category. You’ll get the name, phone number and address for any business that has a business telephone.

Knowing who your target client is will help you determine how best  to locate clients for your offline consulting business. Once you understand who you’re after, it’s simply a matter of knowing where they hang out—online or offline—and doing some research to find their contact information so you can call them or mail them a brochure, sales letter, or both.

Eric Green AKA
The Digital Gangster

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