Even at the height of the digital age, many accounting firms still hold on to doubts about the value of social media. Some may even feel that being on social media is an unfitting dive into pop culture – a move that doesn’t align with their straightforward and results-driven brand image. Some firms only invest in social media presence once they have more room in their budget or when they onboard more staff.
These are nothing but myths. Today, no business is too traditional to be on social media. In fact, having a solid social media marketing strategy has many concrete benefits for accounting firms – benefits so impactful that missing out can be a painful business deficit.
Plus, some of your competitors have already embraced social media, giving them an edge. So, if you haven’t adopted a social media plan yet, now’s the time to rethink your strategy. In this post, ScalingYou will talk about the benefits of social media marketing for accounting firms and why you should pull social media out of the back burner and maximize its marketing power:
The Benefits of Social Media Marketing
One of the primary reasons accounting firms refuse to allot resources for social media marketing is the belief that it has no immediate return on investment (ROI). Since many businesses in the industry are keen on investing in fast, hard results, social media is pushed to the end of their priority list.
Think of social media as a brand-building tool. Its benefits may be less direct and measurable compared to those brought by other digital marketing strategies, but it supports and strengthens your brand image and your visibility. Although social media marketing isn’t the biggest money-making channel, it has the potential to boost sales, generate leads, cultivate healthy customer relationships, and increase brand awareness.
These are factors that future-proofs your business. Nothing is more critical to the long-term sustainability of your accounting firm than a strong brand and customer base.
Apart from reinforcing your branding and visibility, here are other ways you can benefit from social media marketing:
Build relationships
Social media is a great platform for building relationships with respected peers, existing customers, and potential clients.
A crucial part of growing your business is taking care of your customers – something that social media allows you to do excellently. For one, social channels give you an avenue to respond quickly to your customers. And because today’s consumers have grown more impatient than ever, a swift answer can make the difference between a sale and a loss.
Second, social media lets you engage with your audience in a more personal way, whether it’s through the comments section on your posts or group discussions. Here, you can also address any negative feedbacks or responses, giving you a chance to clear your name.
Also, you can build your network through social media by following colleagues and industry leaders to gather new insights. Social media is a great avenue to gain followers of your own, using them to catapult your brand as a thought leader. These connections can potentially develop into business opportunities in the future.
Establish thought leadership
Maximizing social media can help you establish your position as a thought leader. By sharing your insight on social media, your followers see you at your best: knowledgeable, thoughtful, and on top of the trends in your practice areas. When you share quality content, be it your own by others in your niche, you inform readers, you answer their questions, and update them on breaking developments – you begin to get recognized as an industry expert.
This is a chance for you to zoom in on your specialization. Accounting is a broad field, and some specific concerns can only be answered by niche experts. When people see you sharing insights from your focus area, you establish yourself as an authority in this particular subfield, so referral sources and leads will recognize you as someone they can rely on when they need help.
Maintain visibility
Social media allows you to set up ads or create shareable content, so you can stay high in the minds of your prospects. Social media is an effective tool in exposing your name and your ideas to potential clients on a regular basis, so your brand is the first that comes to their mind the next time they need accounting services.
Certain social media channels also have algorithms that push you to the top of the feed if you post frequently, which gives you more exposure. Leverage this setting by staying active on your social pages.
Find new clients
At the end of the day, the most important task at hand is still to attract new clients. A strong social media presence helps bring in new business for your firm, although not in a direct or quantifiable way. It helps you connect to new people, build your business network, create recall, endear you to your followers, and establish your authority, which can all help generate more business.
You can use social media to target your audience by merging it with content marketing. Take advantage of social platform algorithms to feed your target market with content relevant to them. Also, tailor your posts according to different channels. For example, Instagram relies on visual posts with short captions, whereas Twitter ranks content according to timeliness and relevance. Meanwhile, Facebook has grown into a diverse channel where you can post videos, photos, join groups, and even participate in the marketplace.
Reserve your photo-heavy content for Instagram, with around one post each week. Then, use Twitter for industry news and other announcements. Twitter’s algorithm ranks the active users higher than inactive accounts, so be sure to tweet frequently. Lastly, use Facebook for meatier content. For example, host a Facebook Live of an interview with prominent people in the industry and discuss trending topics.
Content like these are likely to get clicks because they’re relevant to your audience and fit the medium where you publish them.
Ultimately, the purpose of social media marketing is to act as a launch pad for your business. With seven out of 10 Americans using social media, this is the best place to cast a wider net.
Ready to Get Social?
ScalingYou specializes in all areas of digital marketing, including social media.
As a full-service agency, we do all the heavy lifting of social media marketing for your firm, from setting your profiles and creating a social media calendar to publishing regular posts and updates, monitoring what your followers are saying, and engaging them in the most meaningful way possible.
Let’s get your social media campaign rolling! Use our live chat feature and have your answers questioned customer service representative. You may also fill out our form and we’ll reach out to you the soonest time possible.