Accounting Firm Website Goals
When you set out to develop a website for your accounting firm you need to consider what it is you want to accomplish by developing an accounting website. In other words you need to define your goals.
Most often the two biggest goals should be to attract new accounting and tax clients and improve service to your existing accounting and tax clients, right? That may be true, but how do you execute that and make your accounting firm website relevant, informative, easy to navigate and all those good things that you've heard your CPA website should be?
Building a Website for an Accountant
The content on the site should be driven by the goals you have discussed for your accounting marketing and your firm.
Website Content That Attracts New Clients
One set of goals will be around trying to attract new accounting clients. You want to leave a favorable impression on your visitors while showcasing your firm's accounting and tax services in such a way that the visitor can see how your accounting firm can add value to their organization. That includes providing valuable content any specialty services you can offer. For example, you may want to add pages on audits, business valuation, industry-specific accounting services, financial services, etc. Customizing the pages on your website will differentiate your CPA firm from other accounting firms with similar services in your area.
Communicating Your Accounting Services to Clients and Google
Other goals will center on the keywords needed for search engine optimization for accountants and improving communication about your accounting services to clients and potential clients. For SEO purposes, that means including relevant accounting and tax service keywords that will help Google and other search engines understand what your site is about and display it in the search results when someone searches for an accounting firm in our area.
For clients and existing clients, the communication could mean that you expose them to the other types of services your accounting firm offers and hopefully cross-sell them into one of those services.
For clients and existing clients, the communication could mean that you expose them to the other types of services your accounting firm offers and hopefully cross-sell them into one of those services. For example, retirement planning, financial services, insurance, business plan development, etc. Other ways to keep existing accounting and tax clients coming back is to provide valuable information in the form of tax tips, downloadable tax forms, tax deadline dates, online bill payment, a monthly accounting newsletter, etc.
Getting Started
An accounting industry website should have some basic elements in order to develop a framework for the website. It's what you add to this framework that makes your accounting website personal and standout in a sea of similar services in your area. Some of the basic features you should add that will improve the perception visitors have of your accounting firm include:
- Detailed descriptions of the accounting services your firm offers
- Branding to match your company logo including colors and fonts
- Contact information so visitors can email or call your CPA firm when they have questions.
- Contact forms so visitors can request a free consultation or ask questions
- Partner biographies with professional photography
- Tax tips or other article content that will interest visitors
- Links to relevant accounting industry websites
Who Will Build Your New Accounting Website?
Whether you decide to hire a professional website design firm or plan to do it yourself, if is important for you to know what your accounting website goals are before you start work. Once you decide what features your website will feature, you can work to find a partner that meets your needs and goals.
Many low-cost DIY website builders use standardized templates that may not be robust enough to accomplish what you want, especially when it comes to SEO. Consider working with a website builder that will do the search engine optimization work for you and designs professional looking websites for accountants.
