Sales
Business Development and Sales Aren’t Scary (When You Break Down the Process)
It’s well known throughout the accounting and advisory industry that business development and sales terrify accountants, who also are quick to say it’s not what they were trained to do. The reality is number manipulation, which is what accountants do best, is the fundamental building block for sales. Once the framework of sales is broken…
Read MoreAccounting Firms that Invest in Technology and Virtual Communication Likely to Come Out Ahead
After nearly a year of dealing with the pandemic and all the changes and challenges that came with it, accounting firms were asked in the Inovautus and Association for Accounting Marketing Growth Outlook Survey about their investment outlook into marketing and business development (BD) activities. The pattern in survey responses showed that a correlation…
Read MoreAccounting Firms Continue to Evolve Services to Meet Demands Amid Pandemic
The pandemic has forced nearly every industry to evolve and rethink the services they offer to meet the turbulent and changing needs of clients. For accounting firms, this has been highly evidenced in the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) which accounted for the majority of new services offered by accounting firms in 2020, with client…
Read MoreCPA Firms Focused on Advisory More Likely to Come out of COVID-19 Ahead
Before COVID-19, CPA firms were trending away from reliance on compliance services toward growing advisory services. As firms addressed the inherent value of CPAs in terms of business strategy and growth and looked to fill the growth revenue stream when compliance just wasn’t enough, advisory services became the mission and strategy of firms nationwide.…
Read MoreCreate Account Plans to Save Clients and Win New Business
We often introduce the concept of account planning to CPA firms who want to take a more proactive approach to marketing. Account planning describes a process for collecting and sharing client and prospect information in a methodical fashion that can improve client service and strategically grow your firm. Many of our clients report almost immediate…
Read MoreTop 3 Questions to Ask a Prospective Client to Win Their Business
The proposal process for CPA firms can often feel like shooting at a target while blindfolded. You might have a general idea of what the prospective client wants, but are probably unsure of which services to highlight, how to differentiate your firm or how much to bid. By qualifying prospects through informational meetings or Q&A…
Read MoreInovautus Spotlight: Using Technology to Assist in Proposal Development
Developing a proposal or Request for Proposal (RFP) can be a challenge considering all the components that are necessary to produce a comprehensive and accurate document. Add to this the fact that many people in your organization need to weigh in on the content, and you’re on deadline, and suddenly an RFP becomes a Really Frustrating…
Read MoreThe Price Is Right! How to Get the Right Fees for the Job
My latest home-improvement project is focused on the landscaping of my house, and I found our vendor through a well-known third-party referral site. Their landscaping service business has a similar structure to that of an accounting firm: they have a couple of partners who manage the business and get involved in high-level decisions; they have…
Read MoreKnow Your Audience to Win Their Attention – and Their Business!
I recently sat through a CRM software demo and I was blown away – but not in a good way. The salesperson leading the demo initiated contact with me to set up the demo after we met at an accounting profession conference. He knew my marketing and consultant role so you can imagine my surprise…
Read MoreAre You Solving Your Clients’ Problems?
Why focus on solving your clients’ problems? The simple answer is, why wouldn’t you? Most people don’t get into business to not solve their clients’ problems. When we go out and present ourselves to potential clients, we tend to forget to focus on the very simple concept of problem-solving. Instead of learning how we…
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