The Guide to Social Media For Your Accounting Firm
It can difficult to know where to start when it comes to using social media to grow and support your accounting business. While you probably hear everyone preaching to you about the importance of social media for your business, you might be hesitant and not know what to do or how to get begin.
Which social media platforms should you use?
How often should you post?
How do you gain new followers?
Is all this time and effort even worth it?!
Social Media For Accountants
It’s no surprise that many accounting firms haven’t jumped on the social media wagon just yet. Or, maybe they’ve dipped their toe in the water only to decide “it’s way too cold!”
We think of social media as places were people share trending videos, funny pictures, and well, social content. Accounting isn’t exactly the most social industry there is. But, the truth is there is potential out there for accounting firms to leverage social media to their advantage to not only elevate their firm’s online presence but also develop a level of trust, boost SEO, and increase leads.
The key to success for accountants using social media marketing is to focus their efforts on the social platforms that make sense for them, as opposed to trying to tackle the “do it all” mentality and attempt to conquer every social media.
Benefits of Social Media
It’s Where the People Are
People and businesses are all on social media. “97% of adults between the ages 16-64 say they logged onto at least one social network in the past month,” according to research done by Sprout Social. It’s also estimated that about 1 of every 3 minutes spent online is spent on a social site. Getting on social media means you can reach out where your clients and prospects already are.
Stay Top-of-Mind
The most obvious benefit of social media is it allows you to show up on the feeds of your clients and prospects, keeping you and your practice top-of-mind.
Gain a Competitive Edge
Social media allows you to show off your accounting practice. You can share valuable accounting/tax content, announce practice happenings, and highlight your services. This positions you as a valuable and knowledgeable expert in your field.
Connect with Other Accountants
Many accountants look at social media simply as a marketing tool, but it has other benefits. It can be a great place to connect with other accountants and likeminded individuals and learn about things happening in your industry.
Getting Started with Social Media in Your Accounting Practice
The first hurdle is deciding where to focus your efforts. How do you know which social media platforms you should use? For a more in-depth look at each platform and how to deduce which is right for you, I suggest you read our article Which Social Media Is Right For my Accounting Practice?
But, in general, most accountants tend to lean towards the “Big 3,” those being Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Choosing which one is right for you depends a little bit on your own preference, your experience on each, and what you’re hoping to gain from the platform. Typically, we suggest LinkedIn because it’s the most professional of the networks and where you can find others in your industry and other local businesses who may be in need of your services. Facebook can be effective if it’s being run by someone who already uses and understands Facebook, and it’s a great place to connect with individuals – if that’s the bread and butter of your practice. We don’t typically suggest Twitter as your first social media choice just because it tends to be a little bit more about sharing quick bits of info as opposed to really growing connections online. Not to mention, it can be a harder social media to gain and grasp of if you’ve never used it before. However, if you’re already an avid and active Twitter user, you may be able to find ways to capitalize on it.
Once you’ve chosen and created your social media account for your practice, it comes down to posting content and posting consistently and frequently. Having a social media account where the last post was 6 months ago is just as bad as not having one at all. Social media does need to be timely. This is what stops most practices in their tracks because “who has time to post to social media, I have real work I need to do?!”
Luckily, there are a lot of ways around this. If you’re using Facebook you can schedule posts in advance right from your page. Sit down once a month (or every few months) and schedule out content all at once- it’s like a set-it-and-forget-it approach. There are also tools online that allow you to schedule to your social media without having to log-in daily. Buffer and Hootsuite are two great options.
Even if accounting doesn’t seem like the most social industry, there’s still room to use social media to grow your online presence and generate new leads. And, if you don’t have time to take on social media yourself, consider our social media marketing services for accountants as part of our Content Marketing in a Box Service.
