Do you still feel like your firm is just another accounting office? Today let’s blast through these seven quick tips for ways you can immediately try to make your firm stand out from the crowd.
Partner up
You can become the accounting firm of note for an industry or sector of society by partnering with a big noise in that field.
For example, if you to become the firm for the restaurant industry in your area then you might look to the leader in produce distribution. Offer them a deal in your services, with additional bonuses for referrals. They’ll spread your good name to their clients, becoming a funnel for new business and lending their industry authority to your name.
Deliver shockingly good service
This is one we keep coming back to. If you bend over backwards to not just satisfy but delight your clients then they’re not going to look anywhere else.
Can you offer money-back guarantees? Can you go even beyond that and offer a free service on top of the money back if something goes wrong? In this case, not only are you making things right with the client, but you’re introducing them to a service that they might want to pay for once this free sample runs out.
Get weird
This one depends somewhat on the overall brand you’re trying to create – quirky actions might counteract your firm’s vibe if you’re going for a classic super-serious financial institution feel.
If your brand does allow for some productive weirdness, open up the floor to ideas from your employees. Maybe it’s something as simple as giving away a really good homemade coffee cake when someone signs on. Or perhaps you’ll agree to do some kind of stunt for charity (like a dunking booth) if a big client signs on.
If you’re worried about how other firms will look down on you for your weirdness, well… who cares? It’s not like they’re going to hire you.
Make your office awesome
Most people would probably rate a visit to the accountant’s office just above a trip to the dentist’s. You’ve been around the accounting world so you know why – accounting offices tend to be drab and stuffy.
Can you make a trip to your office a pleasurable event for your client? Can you serve outstanding gourmet appetizers and coffee? Can you get some interesting and energizing interior décor up? Can you make your presentations more understandable with graphics?
You’ll know you’re on the right track if your clients start mentioning their visits to you in a positive light on their social media accounts.
Tie your firm with a charity
Lots of businesses do a bit for a charity here and there. But if you really want your social consciousness to help your firm stand out you can intertwine it with your cause of choice. For example, with every services package you sell you’ll buy another bit of farm equipment for a farming family in country X. Or you’ll sponsor the planting of a number of trees in country Y.
In other words, for every action a client makes with your firm you’ll automatically react with your contribution to your cause. It’s not just a bit of charity you do here and there; it’s noteworthy philanthropy built right into the bones of your firm.
Do it right where other firms do it wrong
This point ties into the idea of finding the why of your firm we mentioned a couple of weeks back.
Is there something that is just done wrong in the accounting industry? Make your firm the one that does it right. Address the complaint that accounting clients in your field commonly voice; make it the very reason your firm exists at all.
Fill a niche
And as always, don’t try to be all things to all people. You’ll water your skillset down, resulting in mediocre service for every type of client you take on.
Find business niches that don’t have an accounting firm zeroed in on them and become their financial champion. Become the go-to firm for that particular field that is generally not well-served by the accounting world in general.
