Firm Management
The Accountant’s Guide to the Social Media Galaxy
Traditionally, accountants and accounting marketers relied primarily on face-to-face networking for marketing and business development. With the proliferation of social media, a paradigm shift has occurred from in-person conversations to online ...
Aug. 01, 2018
Traditionally, accountants and accounting marketers relied primarily on face-to-face networking for marketing and business development. With the proliferation of social media, a paradigm shift has occurred from in-person conversations to online networking. If your firm remains reluctant about joining the social sphere, consider the opportunities you may be missing.
Accounting firms engage in social media for many reasons, including the following five most common drivers:
- Brand awareness
- Website traffic
- Lead generation
- Client retention
- Influence
Still not convinced? Here are three ways accounting firms can take advantage of social media for client retention, recruiting, prospecting and growth.
Social Media = Influence
Social media is not just about earning clicks, followers or likes. Let the statistics speak for themselves:
- 83 percent of Chief Marketing Officers claim that social sharing is the primary benefit of social media marketing
- 74% of consumers cited relying on social media to make purchasing decisions
- 52 percent of online adults now use two or more social media sites
- 2.95 billion global users will be on social media by 2020
Content Makes All the Difference
Quality content comes in many shapes and sizes. Sometimes, it’s a bylined whitepaper. Sometimes, it’s a million dollar viral video. But essentially, quality content is any message that provides recognizable value to the recipient. Value is most often perceived as helpfulness, entertainment and/or emotional impact.
When creating content for social media, focus on providing helpful, entertaining or emotional value, regardless of the type of content you’re posting. A good social media content mix includes equal parts of the following types of content:
- Thought leadership
- Promotional content
- Interaction with followers
Visual Elements Increase Engagement
A picture is worth a thousand words. When used in the right way, an image can have an impact like no other medium. If you are not yet focusing on visual content in your social media marketing strategy, it’s time to re-imagine your plan. Visualize the benefits of incorporating stunning imagery and visuals to increase your reach, enhance your brand and earn more new business.
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Becca Fieler is marketing manager, Checkpoint Marketing for Firms, with the Thomson Reuters Tax & Accounting Business