Marketing Your Accounting Firm - IRS Solutions

Marketing Your Accounting Firm

A Survival Guide for Tax Pros

By Drew Foster & David Stone

Don’t Refer Clients Away!

The accounting industry is becoming increasingly competitive. By adding tax resolution services to your portfolio of offerings, you will be able to retain clients while adding a new revenue stream to your business.

New technology means more consumer choice. Customer reviews are plentiful and your breadth of services and knowledge can make or break your business. These can be threats...or, to a nimble accountant with an understanding of IRS collection cases and a solid marketing strategy, these can be opportunities.

We created this guide to help accountants like you market your services – just like we created our software to make accountants’ lives easier and to give you the confidence to pass along the same expertise and peace of mind to your clients.

Ultimately, our goal is to give you the tools you need to succeed. Use this worksheet as a roadmap to kickstart the marketing of your tax resolution services, grow your business, and succeed.

David Stone, EA Drew Foster, EA

Marketing Your FirmA Survival Guide for Tax Pros

Step 1: Refining Your Target Market The first step in marketing your tax resolution services is understanding the needs and defining characteristics of your ideal clientele that are (or will be) dealing with IRS collection issues. This allows you to tailor your approach, better-serve your clients, provide more value, define your brand, and ultimately grow your business.

What type of IRS collection situations do you prefer to handle for your clients?

square-full Income tax due

square-full Payroll tax / Business clients

square-full Trust fund recovery

square-full Back tax returns filing

square-full Bookkeeping services

Step 2: Determine Your Message Style Once you’ve refined your ideal clientele type, you can tailor your messaging to that audience. Consider their lifestyle, goals, and pain-points. Design a message that will resonate with your taxpayer client and speak to what is most important to them. Through your exploration, a consistent tone and theme should begin to surface and dictate your messaging going forward.

From the below list, what type of accounting firm would your ideal client value most?

square-full Fully transparent; a tax service you can trust.

square-full Calming; take a deep breath...we’ll get you through this.

square-full Compassionate; we understand what you’re going through.

square-full High-End; boutique services for upper echelon clientele.

square-full Passionate; we eat and breathe tax resolution.

square-full Powerful; hands down, we’re the BEST advocate.

square-full Wise; we have all the answers to your IRS questions.

square-full Low-Cost Leader; we can beat the ads you hear on the radio, Guaranteed!

Other:

PRO TIP:

Realistically, how much would a client need to owe in order for tax resolution services to be a viable solution for both you and your client?

Generally, both parties would benefit from tax resolution services if a client owes upward of $20,000. For example, if your client owed $20,000 and you were to charge a flat rate of 10% of the total amount due, you would make $2,000 and still save your clients thousands of dollars.


Step 3: Create a Simple Media Strategy What sort of media will you use to reach out to your potential tax resolution clients? This should reflect your audience’s preferences. For example, do they check their email? Are they active on social media? What is their preferred method of communication? Whatever the answer, that is the way you need to communicate with them. Check all that apply to your ideal client below. If you have trouble, consider reaching out to your top customers for feedback. Where did they hear about your products? What type of research did they conduct prior to purchasing?

square-full Direct-Mail

square-full Email Marketing

square-full Networking Groups

square-full Partner with Bankruptcy Attorneys

square-full Phone Calls

square-full Print Ads Referrals

square-full Purchase Federal Lien Lists

square-full Search Engine Marketing

square-full Social Media Marketing

square-full Local Radio Commercials

Other:

Step 4: Plan Lead Capture & Organization It is imperative to have a professional system in place for housing and scoring those leads. Are you managing your leads in an Excel spreadsheet? Are you utilizing a lead generation software that helps you to record website visitors? Whatever your strategy, you must have steps in place to collect and score leads effectively.

How I plan to capture and organize leads:

PRO TIP:

Let someone else make your marketing materials. Partner with a company like IRS Solutions Software that will provide you with all the marketing assets you will need to share the news that you are available to assist with solving IRS collection cases and other tax resolution services. This will save you time while still realizing a valuable return for your firm and your clients.


Step 5: Nurture Your Leads Now, how are you planning to nurture those leads? Will you be setting reminders to follow up with them once a week via phone or email? Are they going to receive a monthly newsletter? It’s important to create a plan that keeps these leads engaged. As you probably expected, this engagement should tie back into the preferences of your clients. Map out your lead nurturing strategy below.

A good strategy is to map out a drip email campaign for all new clients when they sign up with your firm. Did you know email marketing is still a worthwhile marketing strategy? In fact, email generates $38 for every $1 spent, which is an astounding 3,800% ROI, making it one of the most effective options available.

Example:

Email #1 - Immediately After Signing Up a New Client

{Your firm name here} provides a wide variety of accounting and tax resolution consulting services. Working with {Your firm name here} can provide you and your business with significant cost savings when it comes to paying routine taxes as well as when dealing with IRS collection cases.

We make filing and reconciling easy and cost-effective for our clients and our firm is here to help should you need any accounting services, big or small.

Please reach out to us to learn how we can help you save more of your hard-earned money by contacting {Your firm’s contact info: Email and Phone Number}.

Email #2 - Within a Week or Two of First Email

Just checking in to make sure you have all of the information you need. Should you have any questions regarding tax resolution or any other accounting needs, please reach out to us at {your firms contact info here.}

Additionally, if you have a business and are looking for additional accounting support, we are now offering a 10% off filing discount if you move your business filings to us by {date here}.

Email #3 - A Few Weeks After Email Two

Thanks for being a valued customer of {Your firm’s name here}. We are thankful for our clients. Some of our clients have been with us for 3 decades. Here is how we helped {Customer Name Here} save a significant amount of money and come to a reasonable agreement with the IRS.

‘Testimonial Here’ {Place a customer’s testimonial in the body of the email.}

We are here anytime you need us. Have a wonderful day.

{Your firm’s contact information here}


Step 7: Provide a World‑Class Experience In today’s highly competitive business environment, you should constantly be asking yourself, “How can I deliver a world-class experience for my clients?”

Here are some ways you could present unparalleled service:

square-full Be sure to provide a TV and reading materials in your waiting room.

square-full Distribute free pens and notepads with your firm’s logo so your client can take notes during their appointment.

square-full Offer coffee mugs or water bottle with your firm’s logo.

square-full Set aside time or hire a secretary to handwrite thank you notes.

square-full Send appointment reminders.

square-full Keep track of clients’ birthdays and to send a Starbucks card or another small gesture on their birthday.

square-full Give referral gifts when clients refer a family member or friend.

square-full Give free pies out for Thanksgiving or any random time just to say thanks.

Step 6: Increase Conversions So now you have introduced yourself as the tax expert who can and will help clients solve their tax issues for a reasonable rate. It’s time to close the deal. This is where it’s helpful to have a few tricks up your sleeve. We recommend utilizing the following tips for increasing conversions:

check Learn and practice the best responses to their common sales objections.

• Your service is too expensive.• There’s no guarantee it will work out. • I can do it myself.• I need a couple of other quotes.

check Respect a persona’s preferred method of communication. This will assist you in utilizing the best follow-up methods.

check Highlight your unique selling points that are most important to the core values of your clients.

check Showcase social proof whenever possible. Make sure you are posting positive reviews and testimonials on your social media channels.

check Show each prospect they are valued by referencing a specific detail from a past conversation with them.

check Set expectations and stick to a tax resolution meeting agenda.

check ALWAYS follow up.


Step 8: Increase Customer Lifetime Value Data shows that the most effective strategy for producing steady, predictable revenue is to increase customer lifetime value (CLV) by retaining and delighting existing clients. Check all the tactics below that you feel would increase your customer lifetime value.

square-full Improve your onboarding process: First impressions are the most impactful. Consider giving out a “New Client Packet” that showcases your accounting services, provides a list of important dates, contacts, etc.

square-full Keep customers engaged: You might send customers a weekly or monthly email telling them how much money you’ve helped them save that month or promoting a contest/giveaway

square-full Offer high-end customer service: Offer omnichannel support with quick response times

square-full Maintain a knowledge base: Provide educational content in the form of classes, webinars, videos, etc.

square-full Foster relationships: Ensure that your clients feel heard and appreciated with personalized attention and proactive check-ins.

square-full Collect feedback: Send customer surveys to gather invaluable insight into your personas and processes. (Survey Monkey or Google Surveys)

square-full Do yearly financial check-ups for a low-annual fee after the client has had an IRS case resolved.

Step 9: Stimulate Referrals Customer referrals are like a snowball gathering snow as it rolls. When someone comes to you based on a referral, they’re more likely to make a referral themselves if they’ve had a positive experience. Customer referrals can lead to exponential growth – without the salary of an expensive salesperson. The trick is to Ask!

Here are some ways you can ask for referrals:

square-full Invoice stuffer

square-full Desk signage

square-full Website pop-ups

square-full Social media mentions

square-full Add an ask to your emails

square-full Send postcards out a couple of times a year

square-full Try a referral program with a discount per referral, etc.

square-full Remind your clients at the end of every meeting

PRO TIP:

Don’t be shy about building your business with tax resolution services. Be sure that your clients, your friends, your family, and people you come into contact with on a daily basis are aware of what you do. There are networking opportunities every day; you just need to get used to working your tax resolution services into the conversations you already have.

“Recently we on-boarded a new client because I was having my car fixed at an auto shop. I was talking to the owner and just by happenstance found out that he was being hounded by the IRS for back taxes he owed on his business. I told him I could help him save some money and time by dealing with the IRS on his behalf and he was so excited. Just by mentioning my services in a casual conversation I was able to help someone out.” IRS Solutions Customer


1-844-447-7765 (844-4IRSSOL)www.IRSSolutions.com

A Tax Pros Best Friend!

Call Us or Visit Our Website to

Join IRS Solutions Software Today!

Step 10: Embrace the Proper Tools Know that you are not doing this alone. We are here to help you on your journey to building a stronger and more fulfilling business.

By making the decision to enhance and promote your tax resolution services, you are making the choice to become a greater asset to your clients, their families, and friends. There are people out there right now facing cases that they are totally unprepared to deal with. You can help them and we are here to support you with answers to any questions you might have.

IRS Solutions software gives you the tools to better serve your clients. We encourage you to utilize all the resources available in our software from step-by-step instructions, to downloadable forms, templated responses, informative videos, free content offerings and more. Gain instant access to everything you need to manage and expedite IRS collection cases, audits and offers in compromise, giving you negotiation intelligence at your fingertips.

Thank you and we look forward to hearing how you are helping your community.

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Marketing Your Accounting Firm - IRS Solutions