Like many professional services industries Accountants can find themselves in a vicious, price-driven competition cycle if they don’t think outside the box. Accountants need to find more ways to value-add for their clients. Marketing for Accountants may seem like a foreign concept but it is increasingly important in globalised competitive markets.
No longer is it just about tax returns and government compliance – new tech has made this increasingly easier and more convenient. For an accounting practice to thrive, the message needs to change. You can’t focus solely on cost and need to better educate customers as to the value for what they are paying.
Ideally, you will be able to set up a marketing funnel and plan where prospects arriving at your doorstep are not just there to be sold to, they are already there to buy.
Here are some tips for accountants looking to improve their marketing efforts:
Be a great accountant and tell them how much you have done for them
You need to work damn hard. You need to go out of your way to impress every single client that you deal with and give them the greatest experience possible. Once you have given them a great experience remind them that you have given them a great experience. One way to improve the marketing for accountants is to add a letter as invoices are sent out. Tell them how much of a great job that you did and ask for referrals.
Make your existing clients feel loved
When looking to grow your business it is important to continue “marketing” to your existing clients. It’s important to make them feel special. Treat your most special clients to corporate hospitality and consider running networking events or other events to help connect your clients with each other.
Be Different
When working on your marketing plan you have to analyse your competitors. You need to work out who they are and what they do. Then you need to show these customers what you can do better and why they should be dealing with your business. Nothing is too insignificant here. Sometimes it is the little things that count.
Create your own media channel & continuously educate your clients
High speed internet and associated new technologies have provided accountants with countless opportunities for accountants to reach out and educate their clients – all quite easily and cheaply. You could run webinars, create YouTube videos, eBooks, blog posts, pod casts, Facebook Pages, LinkedIn Pages, Twitter Profiles and more. Traditionally it’s been ideal to get published in other’s publications but now you can bypass the editors and create your own publications. Your email newsletter should become your new best friend. Email newsletters are a great way to easily and effectively stay in touch with clients and prospects.
Get out there and network.
As an accountant you should be networking and fostering relationships with those people in allied industries (allied industries are those that are speaking to the same target audience as you but they are not your competitors. For accountants this could be lawyers/solicitors, bankers, insurance brokers, business brokers, and financial planners – just to name a few. By networking with them and sharing referrals, you are likely to get referrals in return.
Try offering new products or services
I mentioned above the idea of trying to differentiate yourself as a way to stand out in the marketplace. An obvious avenue for standing out in the marketplace is looking at adding new services to your product mix. If you regularly promote these other services to your clients their perception of you will change – you just won’t be an accountant any more.
An important part of your marketing plan needs to be measuring and tracking results. If you aren’t measuring how different activities are progression and what results they are achieving then how will you know if they are successful endeavours.
Some of the metrics you can (and should be measuring) include:
Web Traffic
Lifetime Client Value
Bounce Rates
Conversion Rates
Database Size
Email Open Rate
Social Media Followers/Fans
No of referrals
No of Enquiries
Source of Enquiries
(I know I should explain some of these but their definitions and importance will be covered in future blog posts.)
Where to from here
Accountants are very process driven and can sometimes fail to understand the proactive and creative process associated with marketing. The first thing I want to emphasise is that marketing SHOULD be process driven and should involve a lot of analysis. (I personally use an inordinate amount of spreadsheets tracking different campaigns and other aspects in my life.)
Marketing is something that can be learned. Not everyone will do, or should do, a PhD in Marketing but there are many courses, books, eBooks, websites, videos, seminars, newsletters and manuals available.
For the most part, you will only need to apply one or two skills to achieve exponential results. The most important thing to put in place is a process to ensure that any enquiries are effectively followed up on. You need to ensure no marketing dollar is wasted.
Want to leverage your trusted advisor advantage?
Accountants are generally thought trustworthy and considered a trustworthy advisor. Do you want the opportunity to leverage this trusted advisor status to grow your business.
We offer a number of Coaching Packages for Professional Service firms like Accountants.
Alternatively, you may consider Greenlight Communications to manage your Marketing & PR for you.