- Vidit Agarwal
- April 06, 2022
If you have an accounting firm in the UK, you must know that getting new clients is not as easy as it sounds. One of the major mistakes that firms make is expecting that businesses will come to them for help. This is a dated approach, especially in this competitive digital age when the marketing methods are ever-evolving. Having said that, it also offers a great opportunity for ambitious accountants to be found by potential clients.
In this blog, we will discuss the top 10 ways to find new clients for an accounting firm.
Identify your niche: Determine your strengths first and how you can help your clients with them. This would help you to create a unique value proposition for your accounting firm by setting yourself apart from the competitors. Once you identify your strengths, it’s time to identify the opportunities. Ask yourself what would be the areas where you can utilise your offerings with utmost feasibility. The niche clientele can be based on your specialisation, location and interests. Once you know these two, you can easily point out your potential clients.
Identify your potential partners: Partnerships play a pivotal role in marketing today. If a potential client is looking for a service that you don’t offer, don’t hesitate to refer to other firms. This way, you can build strong relationships where you are opening a channel to receive referrals from these firms. Secondly, the prospective clients may already have designated firms to take care of different aspects of their business such as legal, technology, investment or recruitment. You can go ahead and partner with these firms to improve your business alliances where you can get mutual referrals from each other. A strong non-competitive relationship is very crucial to get new clients in this cut-throat competitive age.
Invest time to know your clients: You must understand that not every client will be of equal stature. Start with your existing clients and divide them into GREAT, GOOD and OKAY categories. Focus on the GREAT clients and try to fissure out what makes them GREAT. Some key factors you can keep in mind are, how easy they are to deal with, how happy they are with your services, how much they contribute to your profile, how big they are in terms of network etc. Once you know what your ideal clients look like, it will be easier for you to identify and chase them.
Create a solid marketing strategy: If you want to get noticed, you have to spend your time and energy on marketing. The marketing efforts should be online as well as offline. Start with a list of elements that you want to focus on. Second, decide your core messaging, and what you want your prospective clients to know about your accounting firm. After that, settle on a brand voice. Remember, all these factors should be in sync for your online and offline marketing. For example, if you create a brochure, you need to make sure that it should contain the same message, look and feel that your website offers.
Build a great website: Remember, all the businesses that will require an accounting firm. start their search online. Consider the website to be your face in that space. So building the first impression with a website is the most important factor for your accounting firm. So just a website will not be sufficient. Your website has to stand out in the crowd. Put a video on the home page. List your services with precision. Include all the possible channels where your clients can contact you in the contact information section of your website. Add testimonials gathered from existing clients. Have clear CTAs on every web page. A website is not only a place to put what you do, but it is also a great tool to establish the value you will add.
Go social: Social media footprints are important as a part of your marketing strategy. Get a LinkedIn and Facebook page for your accounting firm. Post regularly. As a professional, it’s also very important that you maintain a good personal profile on social media. Make a compelling LinkedIn profile. Share insights, new achievements, and news on social media. It creates thought leadership and credibility as a professional. Also, try to join some relevant groups and contribute to the discussions, which is another tool to find potential clients. LIVE is another tool, you have now, to market your knowledge and expertise.
Start a blog: While a website is essential to create the first good impression, a blog establishes your voice and thought leadership in your domain. It’s also an efficient tool to communicate with your potential clients. You can choose your blog topics from various pillars starting from the latest legislation changes to tips for personal finance. Write blogs at regular intervals. Share them on your social media pages and profiles. Another important significance of blogs is they are extremely SEO-friendly. Having a new blog up every week may help you get noticed more often.
Spend on advertising: Advertising is important for marketing, but what is even more important is advertising in the right channel. If you are just starting off, you may consider digital advertising first because traditional advertising is still very expensive. Moreover, online advertising is more effective since businesses start their search for an accounting firm from a Google search. Try PPC with relevant keywords. Also, start social media ads for brand awareness and lead generation.
Offer referral programs: Nothing speaks louder than a referral from a satisfied client in this competitive age. Don’t be shy to ask for referrals to your existing clients. If you are at a very initial phase of your business and don’t have sufficient clientele, ask your business partners for referrals. Tools like LinkedIn recommendations and endorsements are the easiest way to ask for referrals from your clients and partners. You can also structure referral programmes for your clients with an offer of discount for a limited period of time.
Network more: You should be present where your clients are present. Meet relevant people at professional summits and conferences. These are some excellent channels to build and grow your professional network. Platforms like LinkedIn are another wonderful way to meet and network with potential clients and businesses. Join relevant social media groups and start making conversations. However, remember that push-selling is not the way to go as you are networking. Establish your credibility as an accountant first. You will find how people will reach out to you for help in no time.
Increasing the clientele is important for any accounting firm to grow and sustain. However, the key is to do it effectively and fast. Call us for a quick talk if you want to decode the puzzle of how to get new clients rapidly.
