Lead Generation For Accountants

Plus a sneak preview into the new RAN ONE marketing solutions initiatives

Upcoming Events – Take Two!

• Two Half day workshops• Two Key topic areas:

– Proven Marketing Strategies for Accountants Find out more: www.ranone.com/Events/Event20.asp

– Gain, Train and Retain Great PeopleFind out more: www.ranone.com/Events/Event25.asp

• Sydney 11 June 2008 • Melbourne 12 June 2008 • Brisbane 18 June 2008 • Perth 24 June 2008 • Adelaide 26 June 2008

Introducing Alicia Olesinski

• Owner and marketing strategist for New Angle Marketing, LLC, a full solution marketing and communications company

• 12 years of marketing and selling experience specifically in the accounting sector– Sole practitioners– Small to mid size practices– Large firms of 500+ team members

• Services : development and implementation of company, niche and personal marketing plans; retreat facilitation; internal marketing programs; client retention programs; copywriting; seminar development; advertising; graphic design; lead generation; and more

• Partnered with RAN ONE to develop our new range of marketing solutions for accounting practices

Today’s Challenges

How do I find clients?

How do I consistently position myself as a valuable member of the team?

It’s Your Move

53% - 88% of business owners (in the U.S.) are willing to switch to new

service providers.

How Clients Buy: The Benchmark Report on Professional Services Marketing and Selling from the Client Perspective, 2007

We can expect Australian / New Zealand statistics to be similar

Satisfaction ≠ Loyalty

Switching accounting firms is stressful for most so they often adopt the attitude:

“At least I know what I’m getting.”

Your job is to show them the value they are not getting from their accountant.

Where Firms Go Wrong

• Did not listen to me• Did not understand my needs• Did not respond to my requests and

correspondences in a timely manner• Did not convince me of the value I

would receive from using their services• Talked too much

Nurture Your Leads Long-Term

Over 80% of generated leads are never followed up on,

are dropped, or mishandled.

BPM Forum, Gauging the Cost of What’s Lost

25% of proactively generated leads are short-term leads

75% of proactively generated leads are long-term leads

Give up too soon and you may miss out on ¾ of your opportunities.

Why Long-Term Efforts are Critical

Which strategy will have the greatest impact and

generate the most leads?

Referrals are the #1 way to obtain new business

• It’s not who you know, it’s who knows you

• Develop personal relationships everywhere you go (associations; team sports; playgroups; church ; wine tastings etc.) and nurture them

• Everyone in your team is important to this and can contribute

Top 3 Ways (After Referrals)

• Top three ways business owners found their professional service provider:

1. Presentation at a conference2. General awareness of the provider3. Attended an in-house seminar

How They Learned Of The Event

• Direct Mail: 74%• Referral: 61%• Email invitation: 57%• Email sent by third party: 39%

Events Materials: BGR Seminar Topics

• Competition• Customers• Family Business• Business Environment• Vision• Strategy• Structure• Culture• Client Service

• Time Management• Products & Services• Pricing Strategies• Marketing & Sales• People• Recruiting &

Retention• Systems & Processes• Finance

Most Effective Strategies

Most Effective Strategies include:• Seminars• Articles• Case study on issues related to client• Consultative sales call• Company conducted published research

Extemely Effective Strategies

Extremely Effective Strategies include:• Warm calls to existing contacts• Speaking at conferences and trade

shows• Company sponsored events• Professional/Trade association

involvement• Public Relations

Direct Marketing As A Strategy

Create a plan that includes:• Testimonial based mailers• Article offers or summaries• Timely industry information• Research• Gifts

Direct Marketing Checklist

• Verify prospect list• Mail in small groups• Hand stamp all envelopes• Write (or print) addresses on envelopes• Mail on a schedule• Follow up• Measure

Strategy: Become A Thought Leader

Say something interesting

Say it first

Differentiate with Technology

• Post audio and video files• Provide text transcripts to assist when

speakers not available• Blogs (a “web journal”)• Forums (online discussion group)• DVD brochures

Strategy: Online Marketing

• Ideal for communicating timely information• Content is king• Every communication needs a call to action• Customized landing pages• Contact information clearly visible• Great visual design to reinforce your brand• Integrated with other marketing

What To Look For (And Beware Of)

• Web site with strong content• Fresh content• Ability to segment lists• HTML• Banner advertising• Beware of becoming a spammer

Online Strategies

• Social and Professional Networking (i.e., LinkedIn, Facebook)

• Blogs and Forums

What’s in Store in 2008

Ask Yourself…

• Does your web site generate business opportunities?

• Are your ideal prospects finding you?

• Are you communicating with clients enough about everything you do?

• Do you have the expertise and time to develop and manage a powerful integrated business development plan all year round?

What Lies Ahead

RAN ONE and New Angle Marketing have teamed up to develop a solution that will:

• Make you more discoverable to your prospects• Communicate your offerings to your clients• Uncover needs and wants that you can match to

your own solutions• Help you to connect with business owners in a

way that demonstrates your value and builds relationships

• Engage people so that they want to work with your firm – and no other

The Solutions

Our goal is to keep the solution simple, practical, and affordable for accounting practices to promote their services to clients and prospects.

► Powerful interactive web sites► Templated and custom marketing campaigns► Online diagnostic tools► Client relationship management software ► Implementation guides► Blogs and discussion forums► E-marketing capabilities and creative banner advertising► Reporting and tracking► Strategic marketing support► Outsourced marketing department

The Benefits

• Developing an online business model will increase your prospect pool

• React to client inquiries quickly and efficiently• Access critically valuable marketing information• Create interactive and dynamic communities

that view you as their greatest resource• Communicate with your clients and prospects

consistently, creating new opportunities throughout the year