Marketing in Undiffrentiated Industries – Software Outsourcing

3 points by yuvib ↗ HN
As we're figuring out the levers of business development for my software outsourcing startup (based in Hong Kong), we'd love it if you can tell me about your sales outreach and lead generation process (preferably in detail). We don't have years of experience in the industry to be able to draw on contacts.

To paint the picture: Personally, we've gotten 90-95% of our leads through networking at HKSTP and Cyberport (Hong Kong biggest tech incubators). Most of these projects are MVP development projects. This is not a sustainable strategy in the long run, because it is neither very profitable (since startups are usually cash-strapped) nor is it "easy" (since startups, by definition, are building new innovative one-of-a-kind things for which no playbook exists). Recently, we've begun the process of online sales generation using Facebook ads, SEO and SEM, but then again, this is a slow process and it takes time to get impressions.

Ideally, we'd like to break into mid-market and enterprise company services since that's where the money is. In fact, we've successfully built a team of almost 15 people (primarily in India). We're very good salesmen (but we lack the trust factor; maybe because we don't have Hong Kong locals in our team, since they're very expensive to hire comparatively).

Additionally, we have a few other things going for us: we're smart, young guys who exude the entrepreneurial spirit and work very well together. We're quite good at aggressive cost-cutting and bring to the table the "consultant" mentality.

So here's what I'd love to hear from you about: 1) How should we get into the circles where the real money exists and win contracts in an industry that is pretty undifferentiated. I'd ideally not like to pick a niche since we'd not like to narrow down even the most basic money making opportunities at the moment (for example website or mobile app development projects) because they're at least A source of income. 2) How do you guys do it? (if you can name drop actual technical information/links/services that you know, that'd be great).

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any help would be appreciated!!
Don't stay undifferentiated. Find a strong basis upon which to differentiate your offering.

From your description you are outsourcing resources that you outsourced. But there are lots of Indian, Eastern European, etc firms canvassing for business in the same areas. You need to do SWOT analysis on your competitors and find a gap that is not being serviced.

To break into mid-market and enterprise sectors, focusing on building trust and demonstrating your team's technical expertise is key. KindGeek here https://kindgeek.com/, a Ukrainian software development company, could be a great model to follow. They emphasize trust, transparency, and social responsibility in all their operations. KindGeek offers comprehensive services including UI/UX design, software development, and business consulting. Their approach integrates tech expertise with a consultant mentality, just like yours. You might find their methods useful, especially their focus on delivering end-to-end solutions like Android, iOS, and custom software, which are essential in higher-tier markets. They also emphasize the importance of clear communication and trust-building with clients, crucial for your growth in more profitable markets. You can learn more about their services on their site, and perhaps even consider a collaboration for insights into enterprise contracts.