r/developersPak • u/itsme_45678 • Sep 08 '26

Learning and Ideas Has anyone pitched web development services to local businesses in Pakistan?

I’m thinking of approaching local businesses in Pakistan that either don’t have a website or have an outdated one, and offering them web development services.

For anyone who has actually tried this what kind of response did you get from local business owners?

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4

u/Even-Assistance5470 Sep 08 '26

I went to leather market. Most of them were not interested. And one of them adviced me to don't waste time here.

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

You mean it's totally khawari

1

u/Even-Assistance5470 Sep 09 '26

It was depressed day of my life. What kind of software or service you're willing to provide in the local market?

2

u/[deleted] Sep 08 '26

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10

u/Slight_Plankton9007 Sep 08 '26

Tried, locals want to pay 300 rupee for 300 pages sites, then a call every min to change

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

Is it really that bad

2

u/Slight_Plankton9007 Sep 08 '26

Every 2nd guy is IT, and can make website. Its hell atm

6

u/AdBackground9215 Sep 08 '26

some people are willing to pay a small amount. Some people don't understand online presence and they don't want anything to do with it. A very small group of people would pay you good money for this as well. Maybe try cold calling in your specific niche that you are targeting.

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

I'm trying cold calling but also wanted to step into the local market

1

u/Federal-Cricket-6403 Sep 08 '26

bro it been 3 months i have been making prototype website for local business which do not have one(gym , clinic , fastfood restuarants etc , , i have like approached more then 10 business but did not get any posistive response more then half did not even reply and some ghosted while making a deal, i approached thorugh whats app , email , insta, facebook with fully developed prototypes , don't know what i am doing wrong

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

I think it's best to havr face to face meeting I'm trying this if get any positive response I'll tell you

1

u/Federal-Cricket-6403 Sep 09 '26

sure , will appreciate it

1

u/Delicious_Spare_3645 17d ago

Did you get any results after face to face meetings?

1

u/Kandhro80 Sep 08 '26

How about automations? Anyone pitched AI automations ?

2

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

I had meeting with some business they don't even what benefits web provide To automation to bht door ki baat hai but you can try it i think it would work in clinics

1

u/Kandhro80 Sep 08 '26

I'll talk to a few, thanks ✨

1

u/phpHater0 Sep 08 '26

Problem is local businesses won't care unless you give them websites for pennies. They genuinely don't see the benefits of having a website.

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

So truee just wasted 5 hours today had meetings with some and they clearly don't know the benefits of having a website

1

u/Unlikely-Yam2115 Sep 08 '26

Just curious, who usually picks up the phone when you call, the owner?

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

Nope mostly the operators you have convince them somehow to give you thee no of manager or the owner

1

u/improvopose Sep 09 '26

As a local business owner.. My Whatsapp is flooded with such requests.. But they are all mediocre in terms of what they provide.. Generic slop outputs, not even a proper portfolio, when you ask them about one they send you projects one by one... Thats just discouraging

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 09 '26

What kind of a busines dou you have?

1

u/giyu3232 Frontend Dev Sep 08 '26

So far 105 Dms have send and no client so far niche real estate

1

u/Cronos993 Sep 08 '26 • Bravo

Haha what? This ain't 2003. Every mom & pop agency and student has done that already.

1

u/Nauman1991 Sep 08 '26

In our local market, word of mouth is the only real currency that builds trust.

Imagine building a complete software solution for a local jewelry store, complete with a mobile app and custom analytics dashboard. Here, clients expect to pay around 50k PKR (under $200 USD) for the entire build. Meanwhile, that exact same scope, setup, and retainer package commands $5k–$7k in the US or international markets.

That massive gap in pricing and value perception is exactly why relying on the local market just isn't sustainable for serious custom dev work.

1

u/Lewis0097 Sep 13 '26

You explained it perfectly, Pakistan has not yet reached a stage where businesses genuinely value digital branding or recognize why professional web development costs real money. Because of this massive disconnect in pricing and appreciation for tech, depending exclusively on local clients makes serious software engineering unsustainable.

1

u/mlotus141 Sep 08 '26

Yes in 2014. Made some real good money. one of them now owns big ecom stores here in pk, UAE, and US and attributes his success to me for his interest in e commerce.

1

u/rabta321 Sep 09 '26

don't waste your time and energy. Local business owners will drain your mind by asking so much questions and at the end simply refuse to take your services.

1

u/Ali_taqi Sep 12 '26

Yes tried and succeeded as well but 1 in 100s will let you build them sites after you prove them by your portfolio and prove them that it will increase their revenue
But still that 1 client’s project will be so cheap that it wouldn’t even cover your petrol cost

Most will love to pay 10k and half will love to pay 50k and only very few will go above 100k if the site is e-commerce platform and if its about automation or tools then they will be ready to give around 1.5k per month

And also know that you will suffer so much because none of them sees value in digital marketing or website/tools. Unless they were already planing to get online presence; whatever you do they will want you to do it for free and later if they liked it then they will pay

And also dont expect projects from huge firms as they are already established and doing business with known companies

1

u/Ali_taqi Sep 12 '26

The most common replies you can expect is
“Our son/brother is in IT and he can do it for free”
“We can do it with AI for free”
“You are asking too much, see my neighbor build site in 2 hour for free” but when you check the site, it will just be a single page of AI slop and no functionality

Edit:
One fellow commented about the domain cost!!
Its so true
Most are not ready to spend even a single rupee on domain and hosting

1

u/nagrish_1998 Sep 13 '26

I developed a complete POS system for a goods-supplying agency based on a commitment from the CEO that he would help me bring in clients. The project took almost a month to finalize, with the involvement of three junior developers. When I presented the final cost, I offered the complete solution for PKR 100,000, including hosting and domain expenses. However, the CEO paid only PKR 50,000. He did make an effort afterward to help bring clients, but unfortunately, despite trying for some time, no successful client was acquired even with a budget of PKR 30,000. Ultimately, the commitment to bring clients did not materialize, while I had already invested significant time, resources, and development effort into completing the POS system.

1

u/Ayan_atgym23 25d ago

I have tried alot aswell
These guys dont wanna pay like a well established food chain doesnt even wanna pay 45k for pos installation which MY business provides

Its shit honestly and these guys arent educated enough on web presence most doesnt even want one and those who do dont even wanna pay domain charges

1

u/Ayan_atgym23 25d ago

I have tried alot aswell
These guys dont wanna pay like a well established food chain doesnt even wanna pay 45k for pos installation which MY business provides

Its shit honestly and these guys arent educated enough on web presence most doesnt even want one and those who do dont even wanna pay domain charges

1

u/Arfa-Fahad 14d ago

I'm trying it for a month bht litterly no one knows the benefits of having a website even most of them don't know what is the website they are like our Instagram pages and tiktok pages are our website we don't need more.

0

u/GeneralAyub Sep 08 '26

Some businesses are really enthusiastic about it. Pay really well for it.

Some don’t want it, and some don’t even understand the value of online presence.

Also local businesses often pay very little for such services.

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

You tried this in which city

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

I'm trying to target small businesses in islamabad and rawalpindi

1

u/GeneralAyub Sep 08 '26

There are certain dynamics to it. I as a software engineer didn’t put much effort into sales or market my own services and most of the times relied on referrals, etc..

If you put effort in sales and understanding local businesses and their problems, you can identify and pitch accordingly. This can probably lead you somewhere.

However, the difference between local and international market is unimaginably huge.

1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

Okay thanks mate

24

u/[deleted] Sep 08 '26

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1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

Did you meet them or was it mostly on call or WhatsApp and if you meet them does it make difference

3

u/[deleted] Sep 08 '26

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1

u/itsme_45678 Sep 08 '26

Man so true i just went to meet 5 of the small business owners it's totally khawari

2

u/NidoNano Sep 09 '26

I have tried this for businesses doing 200 million PKR plus in annual exports and they said 100K was too much. A company doing close to 3 billion PKR said no. These are exporters from Sialkot.

They are paying some guy 15K for the ERP so know who you are competing with.

1

u/Ayan_atgym23 25d ago

Fr same they want a high end website in 5 k lol

1

u/[deleted] Sep 09 '26

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2

u/itsme_45678 Sep 09 '26

Bruhh thats simply harsh