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50% of Accountants Market New Clients Before Current Clients
50% of Accountants Market New Clients Before Current Clients
While roughly 1/3 of accountants are spending the majority of their marketing efforts on existing clients, fully 50% are investing too much time in the resource intensive process of seeking new clients.
Atlanta,
GA,
India
(prbd.net)
12/08/2011
Atlanta, GA – August 10, 2011 - Finding new clients is an important aspect of managing a business. It is also a resource intensive undertaking. Soliciting new business requires a great deal of “leg work” in order to explore potential markets, advertise services, develop new client relationships, and more. Finding new clients is a process fraught with mental and financial stress, so it would make sense to undertake such an endeavor only as often as necessary.
While finding new clients may be difficult, selling additional services to existing clients is comparatively effortless. After all, they are already familiar with a firm, trust has been established, and the accountant is in an excellent position to understand and assess the client’s needs. In many cases, an accountant may be aware of needs that the client is not and able to offer “ah ha!” insight into services that would benefit the client greatly.
With the relative ease of up-selling compared to soliciting new business, it comes as a bit of a shock that the newest survey from Secrets of Marketing Accounting revealed that fully 50% of small accounting firms are spending half of their time seeking new clients and only 30% of their time attempting to expand business with existing clientele. This practice compares unfavorably with mid-tier firms and even the “big four,” who spend 80% of their marketing efforts on existing customers. In truth, only a third of small, independent accountants in the survey indicated that they followed practices similar to those of larger firms by spending 80% of their time marketing to existing clients.
Mr. Ward, Managing Director of Secrets of Marketing Accounting has pointed out in the past that increasing "Wallet Share," is one of the most important aspects of expanding revenue for firms of any size. As he explains, "the familiar adage, 'Do you want fries with that'’ is less about friendly service and more about cross-selling a product in a setting that makes sense. Cross-selling is important in many markets, but it can be especially valuable to clients purchasing complex services, like accounting." In complicated industries, cross-selling is often favored by clients because it reduces the overall intricacy of conducting business. Accountants hold unique positions with their current clients because they understand the inner workings of the client’s business. As such, they are in an opportune position to offer ancillary services that are of great benefit to a client.
Typical cross sales might include using payroll services as “door openers” to full service bookkeeping or using tax preparation engagements to segue into financial planning. Another example might occur in the setting of a small business owner who is seeking representation before the IRS. An accountant may recommend that full service, bookkeeping, accounting, and payroll service be considered by the client in order to ensure compliance during the period of representation. A successful outcome for the client should then prompt the accountant to recommend an extension of the relationship. The whole premise is to cross-sell a service in a setting that makes sense to both client and practitioner.
The average accountant-client relationship lasts five years when a single service is offered. The same relationship lasts over ten years when even a single additional service is added. Cross-selling provides value in a business relationship. Practitioners are able to sell value-added services while clients are spared the pains of interviewing new accountants and starting new relationships.
The key to expanding a firm is not necessarily to seek new clients, but to seek new business from existing clients. The bulk of marketing energies in an established firm with a solid number of existing clients should be focused on the requirements of those clients. Cross-selling services to meet their needs is both smart business practice and responsible accounting, both of which are endorsed by the experts at Secrets of Marketing Accounting.
More information on the survey may be found at Secrets of Marketing Accounting Services(http://goo.gl/CBN8U)
About Secrets of Marketing Accounting Services:
Secrets of Marketing Accounting Services is the premier source of marketing tools and materials for small and growing accounting practitioners, providing a variety of pre-written and private label resources that practitioners can use in growing their practice.
For more information, visit http://secrets-of-marketing-accounting-services.com or call the Secrets of Marketing Accounting Services office at (563) 265-1491.
Contact Information:
Press Contact:
Kirk Ward
Secrets of Marketing Accounting Services
Atlanta, GA
(706) 698-5475
kirk@secrets-of-marketing-accounting-services.com
http://secrets-of-marketing-accounting-services.com
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