How to Find Clients Online for Your Local Business in 2025

“The art of marketing is the art of brand building. If you are not a brand, you are a commodity.” This quote by Philip Kotler emphasizes the art of brand building and that is exactly what you need to do to find clients for your local business. 

Here are some top marketing strategies you can use to scale your business and expand your customer base. 

• Create a Google Listing

Around 97% of people learn about local businesses online, primarily through a Google search. In today’s digital age, it is next to impossible for a local business to grow without an online presence. The best way to start is to create a Google My Business listing and put your company on the digital map. 

Once your business is listed, you must focus on optimizing the listing by entering the right details including contact details, timings, website links, images, etc. Ideally, you must also list down all the services, areas served, service options, and how they can schedule a delivery.

You can complement this activity by creating and maintaining a website to ensure more people know about your business. 

But having said that, it is important to note that this is not an activity that you set and forget. Local business listings need to be routinely updated in order to retain their utility, and so must be a part of your bi-weekly or monthly marketing approval process. 

• Direct Outreach

Cold and direct outreach is one of the most effective ways to acquire customers as a newly setup organization. This method lets you approach potential customers via email, phone, WhatsApp, or even in person. 

To succeed with this strategy, look for partnerships where you can offer something strategic and of value. Going back to the example of a courier company, you could offer “home delivery as a service” to businesses like pharmacies, supermarkets, printing shops, and other retail chains. This opens up a new distribution channel for them.

You could also reach out to D2C eCommerce businesses that are based in other cities and offer to deliver their product to customers in your location. 

Find such strategic opportunities to bring value to your customers, and you will find a high conversion rate for your offering.

Some online tools that can help you with such direct outreach include Hubspot, GetResponse, SmartReach, to mention a few. 

• Online Marketplaces

Online marketplaces exist for several industries and are ideal to acquire new customers for your business. This includes platforms like Yelp, as well as niche portals for different local industries.

In some cases, you may also partner with such online platforms to offer a white labeled service where you represent the partner, and fulfill their obligations in return for a share of the revenues. 

While the bigger players turn to subcontracting to handle resource constraints during peak loads, you can grab these opportunities to expand your business and geographic reach. A win-win scenario for both parties. 

• Building Online Authority

There are typically two broad categories of customer acquisition strategies – some, like cold outreach and subcontracting can help you acquire customers at a short turnaround. While this is critical to ensure survival, they are generally not highly profitable. 

To ensure longevity, you need to invest resources in authority and brand building. Social media channels like Instagram and YouTube are very helpful in establishing your authority and building a brand.

You could also launch an online course to reach target customers. For example, if you run a diagnostic clinic, you could launch an online course helping your target customers perform easy tests at home to identify potential health ailments.

Such strategies are not only extremely valuable to your target group, but can also help establish your authority and bring in a steady stream of new customers. 

• Email Marketing

Emails are a great way to build customer relationships and send personalized informative messages to customers based on their preferences. You can set up email campaigns to find new customers by educating your potential customers about your company, pricing, and other factors that help you stand out. 

Email marketing is all about nurturing warm leads. The strategy involves building a hook (could be a marketing brochure, a free downloadable, etc.) that prospective customers may want to check; and once you have brought these prospects in as a lead, nurture them so that when the time is right, they turn to you to fulfill their couriering requirements.

If you are in a country where WhatsApp is popular, you may also consider investing time in building a WhatsApp Channel – this has a lower barrier to entry and could thus be a more scalable community-building strategy.

• Referral Programs

While your online marketing efforts will help you find clients for your local business, you must never overlook the power of word-of-mouth marketing and referrals. Imagine this –  you acquire a new customer and they recommend your courier business to someone in their network? Isn’t that great? 

However, referrals and word-of-mouth marketing only work when you provide top-notch and high-quality services. But, how can you make referrals work for you? One way to do it is by setting up a referral program where you reward your customers for making referrals. For example, you can give a discount or offer a limited-period free service to customers for every successful and verified referral. 

• Launch a User-friendly Application

Thanks to their convenience, on-demand mobile applications have become increasingly popular with users of all ages. While most major players have dedicated mobile applications for users, small and mid-size local businesses haven’t adopted the technology yet. 

Although on-demand applications are primarily associated with food and quick commerce, they are gradually gaining momentum in other sectors as well. 

You can create a mobile application for users where they can seamlessly place an order, add the service location, and destination, and make payments. Additionally, they can also use the app to track orders, buy memberships, refer new users, see their order history, and redeem loyalty points. The objective here is to provide a seamless customer experience in exchange for customer loyalty.

• Networking

Despite investing significant resources toward expanding your customer base via online and offline channels, networking remains one of the most effective ways to promote your business. The best part? It is simple; all you need to do is talk to as many people as you can. 

There are plenty of networking groups for all types of businesses including local chambers of commerce, business referral groups, and sector-specific associations. You can also look for new clients at exhibitions, trade fairs, and similar events where you are likely to meet and interact with potential customers.

Also, keep your LinkedIn updated, and get professional business cards done. Make sure key elements like your website and sales deck are prominently showcased on these profiles – your new connections may want to learn more about you from these links. 

• Website

A website serves as the face of your company in the digital world, allowing you to reach a wider audience across different geographies. Even if your focus isn’t on digital marketing, it is very important to have a well-designed company website with compelling graphics, engaging content, and visuals.

Think of it as a gateway for potential clients to learn about your business and its services. Your website should have all the important information regarding your services, pricing, customer support, achievements, and your company to build credibility and trust. 

You can also create an interesting landing page especially if you decide to run ads on social media and other digital mediums. Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing is one of the best ways to attract eyeballs in locations you are looking to expand your presence.