CPA Firm marketing shouldn’t be that complicated as long as you understanding what your clients or prospects need. Read more and follow our tips so you’ll be able to strategize for the future, build a high-quality marketing plan, and move forward with a proactive approach.
8 Tips to Successfully Market Your Accounting Firm
Happy tax day everyone! For most of us that pay taxes, this is not a day to celebrate, but for the CPAs of the world, it concludes the end of a very hectic, busy few months as they rush to help clients with their tax returns.
April 15th is actually a calm day for most CPAs however, so for all the CPAs out there – this article is designed to help you think about ways you can make your lives even busier for next tax season by helping you think through marketing best practices for CPA firms.
CPA firms are well-regarded for their accounting but what about their marketing?
Unfortunately, thousands of CPA firms fail to gain traction simply because they don’t appreciate the value of marketing. Instead, they end up solely focusing on number-crunching and never bring in new clients on a daily basis.
Instead of letting this happen, it’s time to look into the best marketing options available to CPA firms in the modern age.
1) Social Media Management
Whether it is Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, CPA firms need to stay relevant at all times.
Social media is a powerful and all-encompassing tool for marketing purposes. Over time, it has become a strong option for CPA firms as a way to humanize the business and make it more than a number-crunching service. In fact, a lot of the top firms remain diligent in spreading awareness, helping the community, and engaging with clients on social media. It’s these little changes that go a long way in managing marketing campaigns.
Take the time to look into these details and make sure the marketing is done properly.
2) Email Marketing
Most CPA firms are going to be collecting emails from their clients. This is normal and over time, the subscribers list is going to end up growing. However, this also means it’s important to think about how you market the firm.
You want to make use of email marketing as a way to keep in touch with clients. You want to illustrate the importance of tax season and other relevant services provided by the firm. By doing this, you are going to remain in their head all the time, which is important as a CPA firm.
3) SEO and SEM
Search engine optimization and search engine marketing are a great way to showcase your CPA firm. In general, search engine optimization refers to free, targeted traffic coming from Google/Bing. This traffic only comes when your CPA firm’s website is ranking for major keywords (i.e. best accounting firm in X city). By doing this, you are going to show up first when prospective clients search on Google/Bing.
Most clients find new CPA firms by doing this, so it’s important to get on top of your SEO strategy as soon as possible. However, you should also take a look at SEM because this is a great way to set up paid ads on Google/Bing. For a set rate (per click) you can have paid ads linking to your website set up on these major search engines. The paid ads will show up with the free results and are going to be placed right at the top!
A good balance of both strategies will lead to a free-flowing marketing campaign.
4) Networking with Relevant Partners
Do you have connections with some of the leading businesses in the community?
For example, it’s never a bad idea to build connections with local businesses including real estate offices. They are going to be sending in new clients all the time and if your CPA firm is linked with them, they will recommend your team.
This is how a CPA firm is able to get off the ground and truly sell itself to prospective clients.
5) Engaging with the Community
The community is full of people needing CPA firms to help with their number-crunching needs. As a result, it’s important to engage with the community and maintain a link with them year-round. To do this, you will want to host events, speak via social media platforms, and continue to engage as much as possible.
When you do this, you will notice an upswing in new clients throughout the year!
6) Sales Prospecting
CPA firms need to take initiative when it comes to finding clients.
Even with the best marketing strategies, sometimes it’s important to seal the deal with a quick email/phone call. This is all a part of your marketing strategy because it ensures no stones are left unturned on your end.
Sales prospecting is all about finding relevant clients (i.e. small businesses) and speaking to them in person. With a good deal, you may win them over and gain a major client in minutes. Spending a few hours on this can go a long way as a CPA firm.
7) Joining Targeted Local Groups
Are you linked up with local groups on Facebook?
You want to find local groups that are targeted around your demographics. For example, most CPA firms are going to be deal with adults and seniors. You are not going to be dealing with young teens because they won’t need accounting services (in most cases).
As a result, you want to go where most of your clients are.
These groups can be found on Facebook whether they’re revolving around city-based discussion groups, small business groups, or any other option where people in your target audience are found.
8) Blogging
CPA firms are relied upon to be experts in their field and that requires the ability to prove their knowledge. To do this, a business needs to set up a separate blog where relevant topics can be discussed in detail by a certified specialist. Until this happens, clients may not trust the business and what it has to offer. It’s these little things that start to add up and creating a well-rounded blog is an exceptional idea.
When people start asking questions and reading through the firm’s blog posts, they will know this is a legitimate business. Therefore, when it comes to signing up with a CPA firm, they will come to the one that’s trustworthy and knowledgeable.
These are the most important tips to keep in mind when it comes to CPA firm marketing. There are several methods a business can apply but these are going to ensure things are done properly. Continue to put in the effort to build a well-rounded marketing campaign and you’ll notice the results pour in.