Getting your accounting firm noticed is no mean feat, especially when many of your potential small business clients would rather walk over hot coals than think about bookkeeping. But, while it may not be glamorous, it couldn’t be more crucial. After all, get those numbers wrong and you’ll be in a lot of trouble.

It’s a competitive space, though, meaning marketing your accounting firm is key to stay in business, especially when the decision to go with one firm over another often comes down to cost and nothing else.

“Generally speaking, your clientele is afraid of numbers, doesn’t understand what you do, and has no idea what they should look for when selecting an accountant,” says Shane Robert Walton, founder of Green Vine Marketing. “As a result, all too often they shop based on the one factor that they do understand: price.”

“We know that accounting is a competitive business and that most accounting firms generate business via referrals,” adds Bill Corbett, Jr., president of Corbett Public Relations. “However, they need to market and take the effort seriously. With new technology and the millennial generation coming, individual and firms who are not prepared to market and be competitive will suffer.

If you’re a solo or small business, it’s likely you won’t have a marketing team to help you get your accounting practice out there and win business. But, if you want to overcome this problem then help is at hand. We’ve asked the experts to provide some tips to help you get your business noticed.

10 Best Tips for Marketing Your Accounting Business

1. Have a plan

This may sound like an obvious one, but if you don’t have a marketing plan which encompasses goals, action steps, and rewards then your marketing efforts are likely to be pretty slapdash. This plan should also include a schedule for your activities as well as the budget you can afford to allocate it.

“Every individual accountant and/or partner needs to have their own personal marketing plan,” says Corbett. “The marketing plan will set goals, identify marketing messages, identify what online sites or tools will be used, such as LinkedIn.”

2. Network better

There are plenty of opportunities to get your business noticed for free (or very low cost) at networking events. However, it’s not just about collecting as many business cards as you can; following up is key. If it’s a particularly relevant event, you could also think of offering your expertise to present or run some workshops, which is an effective way of marketing yourself as an expert accounting firm.

“Have a system for approaching networking events and for follow up – most accountants do not do this well (actually most business people don’t do this well),” says Corbett. “When networking add contacts to LinkedIn and use LinkedIn to communicate with them.”

3. Use content to establish your expertise

Another way to show your expertise is by crafting compelling content. Accounting is a complicated subject, which is where sharing your knowledge in an easy-to-understand way can make your firm stand out.

“Well written content is difficult to come by,” says Ryan O’Donnell, director of Marketing at Avalara TrustFile, a sales tax filing software provider. “Invest in content that helps your target audience answer questions and use it as a way to establish a foundation for future conversations. Capture email addresses and begin to have ongoing communications with your audience.”

4. Invest in the right cloud-based apps

Using cloud-based apps in your marketing can help you reach a larger market much more effectively than your competition. Whether this be to automate key tasks, to manage your campaigns, or to analyze success and failure, there are a lot of good options that will simplify your processes and improve the way you work.

“The key is not to just make your clients’ lives better with these apps, but to market your use of these apps as a competitive advantage,” says Walton. “Use these apps to separate yourself from the competition, making you stand out as offering a different service than any other local accountants.”

To help you select the right marketing apps for your business, can check out GetApp’s GetRank rankings of the top email marketing, social media marketing, and marketing automation applications. These give you an unbiased view of the top apps based on their user reviews, media presence, security, and integrations with other apps.

5. Manage your marketing with CRM

One of the key cloud-based apps you’ll want to invest in is a CRM system, such as Infusionsoft or Insightly. If you want to ensure your marketing campaigns reach the right contact at the right time then you need a way to manage these relationships.

“A strong CRM app, such as SalesForce, Zoho, or my personal favorite HatchBuck, allows you to efficiently stay on top of every client, automate much of your marketing, and ensure that you are reaching all your prospective and existing clients on a regular basis,” says Walton.

6. Keep in email contact

One significant opportunity for account firms to better market themselves is to their existing customer database through email marketing. “Using a cloud based newsletter app such as MailChimp or Constant Contact allows you to efficiently and professionally reach a much broader audience with your message,” says Walton.

“A newsletter goes a long way to keeping you in front of your database and provides you an opportunity to nurture the relationships,” adds Brian Gatti, partner and marketing consultant at Inspire Business Concepts.

Another useful tip is to segment contacts by their interests to ensure you send useful, relevant content. “For instance, send a series of tips on getting the biggest tax refund to individual tax clients,” says Jessica Lunk, digital marketing manager at Hatchbuck. “Send non-profit clients tips on meeting audit requirements.”

7. Send out reminders

Whether they are your current customers or not, reminding clients of key deadlines will keep you top of mind during crucial accounting periods. “Send automated email reminders when clients are due for their next audit or tax return to promote recurring revenue for your firm,” says Lunk.

8. Expand your reach with social media

While email is crucial to reaching clients, expanding your marketing efforts to social media is equally important in helping you to broaden your brand reach. “We work in the sales tax space and have more than tripled our site traffic with this approach,” says O’Donnell.

9. Offer free tools

Show prospective clients that you’re not just looking to grab a quick buck from their business and then disappear by providing useful information on your website. For free. “Attract new clients by offering free tools and resources on your company site, like articles, ebooks and financial calculators,” says Lunk.

“Have videos of firm accountants discussing who they are, why they do what they do, how they help clients, but not focus on giving a list of services,” adds Corbett. “Tell stories and this will resonate with prospects, clients and referral sources. Just telling what you do will not cut it.”

10. Get some PR

Just been abseiling down the tallest building in your state? Or won the prize for best accounting firm at your local business awards? Shout about it. Contact news organizations to get yourself some media coverage, and use it as a less obvious form of marketing. “Use the media coverage to build the firm’s brand and individual reputation as experts and advocates for clients and businesses,” says Corbett.

How do you market your accounting firm? Let us know what tips you have or apps you use in the comments below.

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One thing all accounting firms and freelance accountants or bookkeepers can agree upon, the competition is fierce. In our modern times, especially with internet business taking more and more of the market share, you MUST find a way to brand your accounting practice so that you set yourself apart from the rest. To help you do that--to market your brand in a way that makes you different--below are some helpful tips:

What Do your Prospective Clients Really Want?

Do you know your value proposition and your client's personas yet? If so, now it’s time to determine what really makes you different. Before you can develop your unique value proposition, you have to ask yourself several questions. The largest, of course, is “What pain do my clients have?” “How can I ease this pain?”

The problem most service industries encounter is that the basic pain points are the same. Eileen Monesson, from BuildYourFirm.com, says, “Although most firms think that they offer something unique, hardly any clearly communicate what really distinguishes them in the market. A close look at accounting firm websites will show that most firms use service as a positioning strategy. Service is not a unique selling position, although the way that you deliver that service could be.” Of course consumers also want an accounting firm that is knowledgeable, fair, and honest. That means every accounting firm will base their brand on these standards and just hope buyers find them first. It also means you don’t actually understand your buyers at all.

Dig Deep into Clients' Personas

What does your client or potential client really want, outside of honest accounting services?

• Swift service
• Fair prices
• Latest technology

Sleeter.com says, "Only 38.8% of small to medium business owners believe their accountant uses up-to-date technology. Over 60% of those potential clients would be thrilled to learn your firm makes a point of using the very best technology. Others may be able to integrate swifter service or lower prices for excellent service into their branding standards, but you could pull out ahead of them with your software programs.

Keep Your Promises

Whatever your specific value proposition may be, you must be sure to keep your promises. In fact, delivering what you promise is how your brand will make the transition between abstract and tangible. If your accounting firm not only uses the latest in technology but also trains small business owners on financial software for bookkeeping throughout the year, make sure users always have a firm grasp on their new technology before letting them go. If your promise to your clients is that you’re always available when they have questions, make sure you continue that service after you have their business.

By developing a value proposition that meets your buyer persona’s specific needs—not just those that lie on the surface—you can set your professional services company apart from the rest. That is how you’ll begin to develop the branding standards that give your company its true identity.

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