Grow Your Accounting Business Online With WordPress

The digital economy has not only transformed business around the world, it has also created a growing number of challenges and opportunities for accounting and financial services businesses.

Online Challenges For Accountants

Accounting businesses must work harder than ever before to remain in business. Not only do they have to become actively involved in the communities and industries their business serves, they must also maintain a strong digital presence. This includes having a website and learning smarter ways to promote your business services online.

In addition to spending money in offline marketing activities, businesses in the accounting industry are now finding that increasingly larger amounts of their marketing budget need to be allocated towards the development and maintenance of a website that will drive clients, engage users, outperform the competition in search engines and social media, and help them gain a wider amount of exposure online.

This means that your site not only has to look professional, load fast, and your website layout has to be easy to navigate, but even more importantly, your site’s needs will change over time and some aspects may need to be updated frequently. This requires having a sound website and content management strategy in place.

One other challenge that accounting organizations face (as all other businesses do for that matter), is that your site has only around 30 seconds or less to provide users with what they are searching for or they will go away.

“Websites have evolved into central information hubs where service information is still present but enhanced with web portals, hyperlinks to state and federal sites, and a variety of free tools.”

Michael Alter, http://www.accountingweb.com/technology/accounting-software/tips-for-improving-your-website

Online Opportunities For Professional Accountants

As well as facing many new business and technology changes, there are also loads of online opportunities available to businesses in the accounting industry that are willing to adapt to meet the demands of the digital economy and can think outside the box when it comes to marketing themselves better online.

This comprehensive article will help you uncover opportunities to find new clientele and improve your business presence online.

As well as providing practical tips and information on cost-effective ways to improve your web presence, we also recommend that you consider using the WordPress Content Management System (CMS) to power your accounting website or blog.

For more information about the benefits and advantages of using WordPress, see these articles:

• How A Poorly Built Web Site Can Cost You Customers
• Using A WordPress Blog To Grow A Successful Business

Ways To Improve Your Accounting Website

This section looks at how to improve your website and get better results. We will look at what pages you need, what type of content works best for accounting websites, navigation structure, etc.

If you need assistance or help planning your accounting or financial services website, go here: The Web Site Planning Process Explained - A Comprehensive Blueprint For Non-Technical Business Owners

Your Website Pages

Professional business websites require some basic pages. Let’s go over these.

Your Services

It’s essential to have a page that describes your products or services.

Your page will include all the services and products you offer, such as:

• Business – planning, company formation, accounting, payroll, preparing financial statements, book keeping, financing, budgeting, forecasting, strategic planning, consulting, etc.
• Taxation – preparing, planning, reviewing, auditing, advising, problem resolution
• Investment strategies
• Corporate finance
• Wealth creation
• Superannuation/retirement plan (401k) advice
• Audit risk assessment and assurance
• Quickbooks – setup, training, tune up, and support
• Specialist services – mergers, acquisitions, information technology, secretarial, rentals, trusts, fiduciary accounting, succession planning, selling businesses, transfers, etc.
• Lending and leasing

Make sure to list all of the services you provide. Provide your visitors with information that will educate them about the benefits of using these services and why they should choose you.

Who We Are

This page should give a description of your business and what it stands for, its unique approach, community contributions, etc.

Remember to also list any industry awards, recognitions, certifications, accreditations, associations, publications, etc., that you can use to promote your company and position it above the competition.

(List all of your awards recognitions, accreditations, certifications, associations, publications, etc. in your About page. Screenshot source: deloitte.com)

Your Staff Page

Are you searching for quicker and easier ways to sell more products online and increase user interaction on your site? Then help your prospective clients get to know you, your team and your organization better.

You want your business to be relatable. One great way to do that is to have a page that introduces your staff or team members. It should include a photo and a mini biography. Since most visitors will not tend to be well-versed in accounting terms your bio descriptions should tell who they are and what their specialties are. You may also want to explain what those specialties mean. It should also include social buttons that will allow your visitors to follow individual team members on their social pages.

On this page, make sure to outline your team member’s qualifications, why they are an asset to your team, and more importantly, how they can help add value to your clients’ business.

(Make sure to add a page that introduces your team to prospective new clients. Image sourced from: deepsky.com)

We have created a detailed tutorial about how to add an easy-to-maintain simple staff directory to your web site without coding skills here: How To Easily Create A Simple Employee List For Your WordPress Site

Recruitment

This is a listing of career opportunities within the company. This page would include training offered, employee benefits, advancement opportunities, etc. You can also include case studies of recruits who have established a solid career path thanks to your organization and information such as the job outlook and upcoming career opportunities in the accounting industry.

Include also a positions available section in this page. If there are no positions currently available, consider inviting people to return periodically to this page, join your announcements list, follow your social pages, etc.

Testimonials

Case studies and testimonials from previous clients are a great way to show prospective clients the benefits of doing business with your firm. Adding a web page with testimonials from past clients and case studies also establishes social proof.

(Add a page to your site with client reviews and case studies. Image sourced from: pcg-services.com)

We have written extensively about using client testimonials and reviews improve your business online. Go here to learn more: How To Create Better Results Online With Highly Effective Testimonials

Contact Us

Having a functional contact page is essential.

It should include some or all of the following information about your firm:

• Company Name
• Your physical location
• Phone number
• Facsimile
• Email address
• Google Map and directions
• Web address
• Contact form
• Contact name
• Social media links
• Live chat (optional feature)

If you operate from different locations you should make this clear when displaying the address and contact info.

Consider also including links to an FAQ section, main pages, special offers, support area, newsletter, blog, etc.

Add A Blog

A blog can be a powerful marketing tool for your business. Most blogging platforms are built around a content management system that allows you to promote your business by publishing timely content such as company news, product updates, useful articles and tutorials, informative posts, promotional videos, media presentations, etc.

If you already have an accounting site, then consider adding a WordPress blog to promote your organization.

If you don’t have a website yet, or your existing accounting site is hard to keep updated or not giving you the results you want, then WordPress can be used as both your business website and business blog.

Not many people know this, but an expertly configured WordPress site can become an automated traffic system that can begin to attract targeted traffic to your site, simply by publishing new content on a regular basis to your website.

(An expertly configured WordPress site can automate your traffic generation)

Go here to learn more about this: Web Site Traffic Blueprint – Learn How To Turn Your WordPress Website Into A Web Traffic Machine

Legal Information Pages

As a professional accountant or financial services provider, ensuring that you have a website that complies will all legal requirements online is really important, not just for establishing trust and credibility with prospective clients, but also to ensure that no laws and regulations are being breached wherever you provide services to.

Adding the legal pages below to your accounting website will help keep you out of trouble with most regulatory authorities, third-party service providers, and other potential legal threats or inconveniences:

• Contact Us
• Privacy Statement
• Terms And Conditions
• Website Disclaimer
• Affiliate Agreement
• Anti-Spam Policy
• Compensation Disclosure
• DMCA Notice
• Earnings Disclaimer
• External Linking Policy
• Financial/Health Disclaimers
• Refund Policy
• Video/Audio Terms
• and others

We have written a comprehensive article about adding legal pages to your site. Go here to learn more: How To Add Legal Pages To Your WordPress Site

How To Improve Your Web Content

In today’s globally competitive economy, content generosity has become one of the key business differentiators.

You want to provide great content with advice and tips that will get your readers to share your content with others and come back for more. Content marketing is the most effective way to educate site visitors and prospective clients about your business and about doing business with your organization.

For example, topics for an accounting business can include the following:

• How balance sheets work
• Overlooked tax deductions
• Directors’ duties and legal responsibilities
• Presenting accounts for fundraising activities
• Business cashflow planning tips
• Business insurance
• Risk prevention
• How to structure your self-managed retirement fund
• Dos and don’ts of … (e.g. purchasing vs leasing, setting up payroll systems, etc.)

You can also create a series of educational articles that will help your your prospective clients understand your accounting services, such as forensic accounting, small business accounting, tips on using office accounting software, reducing business debt, financial concepts made simple, etc.

Remember to use keywords in your content that your readers will be searching for.

We recommend subscribing to our Content Marketing Email Training Series. You will receive regular training emails with easy-to-digest information and practical tips that will teach exactly how to drive more traffic to your website or blog, save money creating high-quality content that will add value to your site visitors and grow your business online using content. It’s not only a great course with loads of useful information, it’s also 100% FREE!

Improving Visitor Experience

Improving your website’s user experience (typically referred to as UX) helps keep visitors coming back and using your site. This section will show you ways you can improve your visitor engagement and UX.

RSS Feeds – Content Syndication

Adding RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds can help to improve visitor engagement and user experience in many ways.

If you provide content that adds value to others, other sites will want to syndicate your content.

Some of the benefits of syndicating your content to other sites using RSS feeds, include:

• All of your updates are kept in one place
• Content distribution doesn’t rely on email
• Can be shared
• Feeds allow for subscribing
• A feed provides a way for links to point back to your content
• Feeds can be submitted to RSS directories and aggregators
• RSS provides a number of ways for your readers to receive your content (e.g. subscribers can read your content on their mobile device using different applications)
• It’s built into WordPress

There are also benefits when it comes to providing great information on your website from other sites, such as the fact that you don’t have to write, manage or update the content.

You can find RSS feeds with loads of useful content by visiting sites of relevant government departments or respected industry bodies.

Below we have listed a few RSS feeds you could consider adding to your website:

• Taxation Policy Center: http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/press/rss.cfm
• Australian Taxation Office: https://www.ato.gov.au/RSS-news-feeds.aspx
• Canada Revenue Agency: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/rssfeeds/
• UK HM Revenue and Customs: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/rss/rss.htm
• South Africa Revenue Service: http://www.sars.gov.za/Pages/RSS-Feeds.aspx

(Use RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds to improve your accounting website’s user experience.)

Checklists And Forms

Checklists and forms are a fantastic way to increase user engagement, add value to your visitors and provide something unique. Checklists and forms can provide visitors with useful step-by-step instructions and resources to complete a task. They can also be great business planning tools.

You can provide a range of forms and checklists (or links to these) covering subjects such as:

• How To Set Up A Company
• Rental Property Worksheet
• Non-Profit Activity Checklist
• Disclosure Requirements
• Individual Tax Checklist
• Trust Tax Checklist
• Income Tax Variation Forms

Online Tools

Providing unique online tools, gadgets and applications for businesses on your website can help increase visitor engagement and significantly add value to your potential clients. Calculators, such as loan and tax calculators, are useful tools for accounting websites. Other applications would include time cards, or retirement and interest calculators.

In the next section of this detailed guide, we take a look at a number of online tools you can add to your website using WordPress plugins and themes that can help to improve search engine optimization, improve user engagement and generate more web traffic to your business.

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This is the end of section one.

Click here to view the rest of this guide:

• A Practical Step-By-Step Guide To Building And Growing Your Accounting Web Presence Successfully With WordPress – Part 2

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