Selling Accounting Services is hard: Staying hip and relevant is even harder
We know what you're up against, because the services you provide are necessary, but seen by many as a necessary evil. Nobody likes paying taxes. Period. And even dealing with the situation can make your clients' skin crawl.
So, how do you connect with people digitally to put an end to these stereotypes, and position yourself and your firm as the "exception" to the rule?
We have 5 ways to turn the tides for your firm, so you can reverse these unfair stereotypes into engines for your growth:
Turning a Negative into a Positive:
I often talk about how great it is when Google and friends drop new algorithms on us that curb short-cutting behaviors for ranking. One one hand it's devastating, because SEO companies and marketers are often left chasing their tails when they hit as their organic search results plummet. However, WE love them because we're not in the business of gaming Google or finding short-cuts. Our plan is simple: Follow the rules, and create quality experiences and content. Positive results will follow.
For accountants everywhere suffering from this disease by association there are huge untapped opportunities ripe for the plucking. The question is, are you willing to try something completely new? Social media is a great start, and where we'll spend our time today, but it's by no means the end-all be-all. I suggest a full-blown inbound marketing strategy, because it will position you as an ally, somebody who is approachable, knowledgeable, and helpful 24/7/365
1. Set up your personal and company profiles
Do this on LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, & Facebook. Make sure you fill out the descriptions, and that your contact information is the same on all and matches your website. Make sure you have your professional profile and background pictures uploaded, and please stay away from selfies.
2. Blog
The best blog ideas are those that help your audience learn something related to your services without pitching your products. They aren't cleverly disguised advertisements, riddled with esoteric industry jargon, or rants about the Kardashians.
(for a more detailed guide on how to blog for business - check out our free ebook HERE)
Think about this from your clients' perspectives - and help them get their ducks in order with simple hacks throughout the year, so they aren't sweating when you call to get the filings rolling.
3. Follow, like, share
Ask your partners, managers, and staff members to like and follow your company profile and to share your content when you publish or curate something interesting, like a blog about how to quickly gage whether they may qualify for the R&D credit.
4. Do more than talk business
People like to feel good, and talking about taxes all day has the opposite affect on most. Powerful and effective social media management means mixing up the conversation so you're not overloading everybody with content-rich posts all day. Talk about the charity drive your firm runs every year, and post pictures of happy customers (with their permission, of course). Keep the topic off of you as much as you can, but make sure it's SOMEHOW related to you and your firm.
5. Think long-term
Organic digital marketing is something that takes time. It's like exercising. You have to work at it, and although you'll feel that it's working early on, you need to keep at it for the results to really pay off. Curate and post every day (I suggest using social media management tools like Hootsuite or Hubspot to make this easier for you), and keep it relevant!
If everybody else is rowing in a different direction...
Go take a look at your competitors' social media feeds. They're likely doing it all wrong... posting about things that don't make sense to people outside of accounting, posting sporadically, or just having shell accounts and not posting at all.
If you do it the right way, you will find yourself operating in waters that are open and totally awesome.
To schedule an inbound marketing consultation, go HERE.
For a free guide to understanding, designing, and implementing an inbound marketing campaign (social media marketing, email nurturing, website, and more) for your CPA firm, check out this ebook:
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