november2021 - 23

BRIDGING THE GAP
5 Growth Trends for
JON HUBBARD
Shareholder/Consultant, Boomer Consulting, Inc.
As you finalize your goals and
plans for next year, keep the following
growth trends front of mind.
DIGITAL MARKETING IS
ESSENTIAL
It's never been easier to attract and
deliver value to clients worldwide,
and the firms that are best at
attracting new clients with digital
marketing strategies will win the
marketplace.
Clients today expect the businesses
they work with to have an
online presence. According to a study
by Visual Objects, a directory of
design and creative agencies, nearly
44% of consumers frequently use
search engines to find information
about businesses and services, and
76% look at a company's website
before visiting their physical location.
Compared to traditional advertising
methods, digital marketing -
including search engine optimization
(SEO), social media, paid advertising
and organic search - is more effective
at helping companies reach
their target audiences. In the digital
marketplace, potential clients are
looking for companies to solve their
problems. You win more clients when
you use digital marketing channels
to educate your target market on how
your firm can solve its problems.
FRICTIONLESS PROSPECT
AND CLIENT EXPERIENCE
You should be obsessed with the
experience your prospects and clients
have with your firm and your team
members - before and after they
become clients.
AS WE HEAD into the final quarter of 2021, it's time to start planning for the coming year.
The decisions you make today don't just impact your firm today. They help determine your
trajectory over the next five to ten years. That's why it's so important to take time out of
working in your firm to work on your firm and consider your long-term mission and strategy.
When you're evaluating new technologies
and marketing strategies,
think mobile-first. After all, that's
where your clients are. Nearly 95% of
all people in the U.S. own a mobile
phone, according to Pew Research.
And according to eMarketer, people
spend over 3.5 hours per day on their
mobile devices.
If there is too much friction in the
process of engaging you for services,
clients will leave and find someone
easier to work with. Some questions
to consider include:
■ How easy is it for our clients to get
us the information we need? Snail
mail, in-person drop-off, and " print,
sign and email " do not help the client
experience; they detract from it.
■How many individuals in our firm
have contacted the client over the
last two weeks? In many firms,
clients feel like they're working with
two different firms rather than two
different departments of the same
firm. That's an issue.
■What activity should clients be able
to perform from their mobile device
but currently can't? Filling out tax
organizers, sending PBC documents,
reviewing and e-signing tax returns,
paying invoices and more can and
should be done online now.
MARKETING AND BUSINESS
DEVELOPMENT
SOPHISTICATION
The marketplace is too competitive
to be lazy about your marketing
and business development strategies.
Firm leaders can't view the
marketing department as " graphics
and party planning. " Instead, your
strategy needs to be intentional,
sophisticated and focused on generating
high-quality leads.
Business development can no
longer be something that happens
" when work slows down. " Many other
companies (both within and outside
of the accounting profession) will
gladly take business development
seriously if you don't.
We've seen a serious uptick in
firms focusing on marketing and
business development far beyond the
" traditional " activities of attending
local business networking events
and sponsoring golf outings. If your
competitors are marketing their
services, this should tell you that
marketing is important.
CONTENT STRATEGY IS
KING
Content marketing helps build
trust between you and your current
and prospective clients because it
involves sharing valuable content
without asking anything in return.
As a result, you gain your audiences'
trust faster and more deeply. And
when people trust you, they're more
likely to support you and seek your
advice and recommendations.
Your content needs to answer
your clients' and prospects' questions
and solve their problems.
Every service in your firm (or at
least the services you are interested
in growing) should have a clear
and concise content strategy. That
strategy should include clear messaging,
a lead-generating website,
marketing emails and social media.
DATA-DRIVEN BUSINESS
DEVELOPMENT
STRATEGIES
Your firm is sitting on a goldmine of
data that can inform your business
development strategies, and you can
leverage this data with both your
current clients and prospects.
For example, for your top 20% of
clients, create a report that shows
which services they do with you
and which services they are good
candidates for but don't currently buy
from you. With this information, you
can create a strategy to cross-sell and
grow them into buying more of your
existing services.
For prospects, based on their
interactions with your digital marketing
efforts, reach out with direct
emails and phone calls with relevant
conversation topics. For example, if a
prospect is showing interest in your
Strategic Planning service,
reach
out with a direct message for them
about selecting a Strategic Planning
facilitator.
Start looking at the kinds of data
you have and looking for ways to make
your business development efforts
more valuable and effective.
It's a competitive market out there,
and if your firm wants to maintain
relevance, you need to grow. As you
work on your plans for next year, it's
crucial to stay one step ahead - not
just of your competitors, but of your
clients, too. Use these five growth
trends to kick start your efforts and
make 2022 your most profitable year
yet. ■
NOVEMBER 2021 ■ www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
23

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november2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of november2021