How do you market an offline product?

Haven't found a solution yet but I'm in exactly the same boat, down to the target industries. My strategy at the moment is to find a partner with experience in that industry who can do sales. I think it's crucial to get out there actively, cold calling, not just in the beginning but as a fundamental part of the business. I don't see myself doing it though, I need a partner to make this work.

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying here.

What's an "offline software product"? You mean not a web app? And, why would this make a difference in terms of your sales and marketing?

I think that there are a lot of things you can do to sell to your industry. Having worked in restaurants and going to culinary school, I have had a first-hand opportunity to see the inner workings of these places. Here are some selling strategies that should work.

1. Develop a list of your potential customers. Keep this local in the short term, so it doesn't overwhelm you.

2. Create a 2 page business brochure that has stats about the industry, the problem you are solving and stats about where the industry is heading. Think infographic. On page 2 describe how your product meets all those needs, include some scenarios and a lot of screenshots. This needs to look good, not too technical, not too salesy. Look at the datasheets from NCR http://ncr.com/products_and_services/self_service_kiosks/foo... a minimum they need to good this good)

3. Take the list you created in step one and try and connections in your network of friends to them, linkedin is good for the bigger companies. For the SME's (small/medium enterprises) you need to think a little harder and maybe even make some calls.

4. Start making calls but DO NOT sell on the phone. People in restaurants don’t have time to talk on phones they have too much crap going on that they can’t be tied to the phone for 30 mins while you pitch. Only ask one question to start "When is the Chef/Owner/Manager in?" If you get the Chef/Owner/Manager on the phone ask them when is a good time to come in to talk to them is. If they ask you why, tell them you want to show them a product you developed for restaurants and you want to spend 5 minutes showing them how it can help. If they keep probing then try and say as little as possible about your product, focus on asking them questions about the need you are trying to solve. So if your product is in a new ordering system then ask them when they do there ordering from suppliers, are they happy with that process, etc...

5. Go there in person, be mindful how you look because before you even say a word they will judge you based on appearance. Don’t dress to formal (so no suit) or too casual (how you would look after 30 hours straight of coding). Make sure your breath and you don’t stink because people in the restaurant business have keen senses of smell (flavours are 10times smell, 1 times taste). Hand them a brochure and ask if they have 5 minutes. Then give them 30 seconds to scan the brochure, you will know based on the look of their face whether you need to continue your pitch or move on. If the face is blank then it’s a 50/50.<br>

That’s just the foot in the door, after that you need to convince them to buy your product or service. And the variability in that is too great to explain without knowing what you are selling.

Hope this helps