Accounting Marketing Strategies for Accounting and Tax Firms and Professionals
As an accounting and tax services firm owner, your prospects, clients, vendors and your social connections will keep asking you many questions about your practice all the time. Your answers can make or break your practice growth. I learned many lessons over the last 10 years in my business and if anyone told me 10 years ago this is how I will answer some key questions, I would have been dumbfounded, then!
It requires all of us to be ALWAYS in the sales mode, but from a client’s perspective. From tens of hundreds of questions that my prospects ask me, and from several questions that accountants and tax professionals shared with me on what their prospects ask, here are the 7 most defining questions you’ll need to absolutely master the answers for…
1. What do you do?
Pay close attention here. It is NOT just the what in terms of description of your services. From your description of “what”, your prospects need to know “why they should do business with you“.
Tip: Typically, you would want to tell a few real results that you produce for your clients. Stating something like “Our clients hire us to (your top 3 results here)” helps.
2. How is your firm doing?
Prospects need to feel your energy and positivity – despite all the challenges you are facing.
Tip: Stating some real facts helps.
3. How big is your firm?
This is one question when asked puts smaller firms on the back-foot. Small has its advantages yet small has its challenges. You need to account for all the work that you deliver – not just done by yourself and your staff. Do you have technology that automates something? Do you use contractors?
Tip: How many clients do you work for who are similar to your prospect asking you the question?
4. How long have you been in business?
They are actually asking – “will you survive long enough?” No one wants to take efforts to do business with an entity that might disappear soon – as it wastes valuable time and money for prospects.
Tip: If you are relatively new, also share some details about your investment in growth, learning etc..
5. Why should I do business with you (but not with others)?
In other words: are you a commodity? (If yes, let’s negotiate price!) Your best bet is to share real experiences of your real clients, ideally of those who are similar to the prospect. Make introductions to existing clients proactively. What you promise to deliver and what people perceive they will receive are always two different things due to the difference in perspective.
Tip: Show it to them from “their side”.
6. What’s your price?
It’s a tricky question. And it gets asked always. If you have not created enough value from your earlier answers, this can commoditize you instantly. Is there something you do better than others, that the clients find value in?
Tip: Reinforcing your real differentiators absolutely helps.
7. What next?
Congratulations! You are about to CLOSE the sale. BUT, take this opportunity to START the new relationship on a sound footing. Reduce as much risk as possible for the new client. The prospect is still anxious, on the fence, (invisibly) pleading that you pull him/her on your side and protect him/her from the fall into unknown.
Tip: Say something like “Tom, our expert, will take care everything to get you started quickly. It’s simple and easy“. (make sure you do what you say).
Are there any other really defining questions/answers you think you / your firm need to be ready with?
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