Grow Your Accounting Business Online With WordPress

Accounting professionals today face significant challenges.

Challenges Accountants Face Online

Now, more than ever, accountants must find smarter ways to stand out from the crowd, obtain new business, and retain current clients. Not only do they have to be fully involved in the communities and industries they serve, they must also develop a strong presence online. This includes having an effective web presence and learning how to better market your business services online.

In addition to spending dollars marketing offline, businesses in the accounting industry are now finding that increasingly larger amounts of their marketing budget need to be directed towards the development and management of a website that can drive new leads, engage visitors, outrank the competition in search engines and social media, and give their business a wider amount of marketing reach online.

This means that your website not only has to look professional, your web pages have to be fast-loading, and be easy to navigate, but it’s also important to keep in mind that the needs of your website may change over time and sections will need to be updated often. This requires the implementation of a well-developed website and content management strategy.

Another challenge that CPAs face (as most professions do for that matter), is that you have only around thirty seconds to help visitors find the information they are looking 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 a number of challenges, there are also plenty of online opportunities available to accounting businesses that are willing to adapt to meet the challenges of the online economy and can think progressively about marketing their business services better online.

In this guide, you will learn ways to source new business and create significant improvements in your accounting and financial business presence online.

As well as providing useful website improvement tips, we also focus on the benefits and advantages of using WordPress to power your accounting or financial services business website.

For more information about the benefits and advantages of using the WordPress Content Management System, see the articles below:

• Discover How A Poorly Constructed Web Site Can Cost You Customers
• WordPress In Small Business – An Online Guide To Building Your Successful Small Business Using WordPress

Practical Tips For Improving Your Website

In this section we will show you how to improve your accounting website and get better results online. We show you what web pages you need, what type of content works best for accounting websites, your navigation structure, etc.

If you need assistance or help planning your website, visit this page: A Basic Guide To Web Site Planning For Business Owners

Your Website Pages

Professional websites need some basic web pages. Let’s take a look at the pages your  need to have and how to set up your accounting website for best results.

Services And Products

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

This page will include services such as:

• Business accounting – planning, incorporation of companies, general accounting, payroll, financial statement compilation, bookkeeping, forecasting, budgeting, financing, 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, asset transfers, etc.
• Lending and leasing

List all of the services you provide. Provide your visitors with information that will educate them about what your services do and direct them to your contact or appointment booking page.

About Us

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

It’s important to mention any industry awards, certifications, recognitions, accreditations, associations, publications, etc., that could be used to promote the company and set it above the competition.

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

Meet Our Team

If you are searching for simple ways to grow your business online or get people to stay longer on your site, then make it easier for your prospects to get to know, like and trust your business better.

Your business needs to be relatable. A great way to do that is to have a page that introduces your employees or team members. It should include a photo and a mini bio. Since most visitors won’t be familiar with 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. This page should even include social buttons that will allow your visitors to follow your team members on their social networks.

On this page, don’t be afraid to humanize your people with personal stories, hobbies, etc., but make sure to outline each employee’s qualifications, how their skills and knowledge add value to your team, and more importantly, how they will help add value to your clients’ business.

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

To learn more about how to add an easy-to-update directory of staff members to your web site with no coding skills required, see this tutorial: How To Add A Simple Employee List On Your WordPress Site

Recruitment

This is a listing of career opportunities available within the firm. It could include training, benefits, opportunities for advancement, social aspects of working for your firm, etc. You can include stories of graduates who have risen within your organization and information about career opportunities in the accounting industry.

Maintain a positions available section in your page. If there are no positions currently available, consider inviting people to return periodically to this page, subscribe to your announcements list, follow you on social media, etc.

Case Studies And Testimonials

Case studies and testimonials are a great way to show potential clients what kind of solutions you are capable of implementing to help solve their problems. Adding a page with case studies and testimonials from previous clients also provides visitors social proof.

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

We have written extensively about using case studies, testimonials and client reviews to improve your business results online. Go here to learn more: How To Improve Your Sales Conversions With Engaging Testimonials

Contact Us Page

A contact page is absolutely necessary.

It should include:

• Business Name
• Your physical address
• Phone
• Fax
• Email
• Map and directions
• Web URL
• Contact form
• Contact name
• Social media links
• Chat feature (optional)

If your business services multiple locations you want to make that clear when showing the address and contact information.

You should also include links to an FAQ page, main pages, special offers, helpdesk, newsletter, blog, etc.

Add An Accounting Blog

A blog is a very powerful marketing tool for your business. Most blogging platforms typically comprise of a content management system that is easy to use and allows you to easily promote your business by publishing timely content like industry announcements, company updates, useful information, opinions and discussions, videos, webinars, etc.

If you already have an established accounting website, then consider adding a WordPress-driven blog to promote your firm.

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

You may not be aware of this, but an expertly configured WordPress site can become an automated traffic-generation machine that will help begin attracting targeted traffic to your site, simply by publishing content on a regular basis to your website.

(WordPress can automate your traffic generation)

For more details: WordPress Website Traffic Blueprint – A Complete Guide To Attracting More Traffic For Your Business Automatically

Legal Information Pages

It’s vitally important to ensure they have a website that complies will all legal requirements online, not just for building trust and credibility with prospective clients, but also to ensure that you are not breaching any laws and regulations wherever you provide services to.

Adding some or all of the legal pages below to your accounting or financial services site will help keep you out of trouble with most regulatory authorities, third-party service providers (e.g. Google), and other potential legal threats or inconveniences:

• Contact Page
• Privacy Statement
• Terms Of Use
• Website Disclaimer
• Affiliate Agreement
• Anti-Spam Policy
• Compensation Disclosure
• DMCA Notice
• Earnings Disclaimer
• External Links Policy
• Financial/Health Disclaimers
• Refund Policy
• Video/Audio Terms
• and others

We have written a detailed article on adding legal pages to your website. To learn more, go here: Why You Need To Add Legal Pages To Your Website

Tips For Improving The Content On Your Website

In today’s globally competitive economy, the ability to deliver valuable content to visitors free of charge has become one of the key success differentiators for businesses selling similar products or providing similar services.

Providing great content with information and tips will get your readers to share your content and come back for more. Publishing content is the most effective way to educate your visitors and prospective clients about your business and about using your services.

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

• How balance sheets work
• Understanding profit & loss statements
• Directors’ duties and legal responsibilities
• How to present accounts for non-profit activities
• Business cashflow planning advice
• Maximizing business insurance cover
• Risk protection
• Structuring 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 informative articles that will help your prospective clients understand your services, such as finance accounting, small business accounting, tips on using business accounting software, reducing business debt, financial concepts made simple, etc.

Remember to include the same keywords and terms in your articles that your prospective clients would search for online.

We recommend subscribing to our Content Marketing Email Training Series. You will receive a comprehensive series of training emails with actionable information and practical tips that will teach you how to drive more traffic to your site, save money creating useful content for your site visitors and grow your business online using content marketing. It’s not only a great course with loads of useful information, it’s also 100% FREE!

Improve User Experience

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

Adding RSS Feeds

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

If you provide content that adds value to others, other businesses may want to syndicate your content to their visitors.

Some of the benefits of having other businesses syndicate your content, include:

• All of your content updates are in one place
• Content distribution doesn’t rely on email
• Your feeds can be shared and picked up by other sites online
• Users can subscribe to your RSS feed
• A feed provides a way for links to point back to your site
• Your feeds can be submitted to RSS directories
• There are several ways your readers can receive your content (e.g. subscribers can read the content on their mobile device using different applications)
• It’s built into WordPress

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

You can find many useful RSS feeds by visiting sites of finance and tax-related government departments or respected industry bodies.

Here are some useful RSS feeds you may want to consider adding to your accounting 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

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

Adding Online Forms And Checklists

Checklists and forms are a fantastic way to help increase visitor engagement, add value to your visitors and provide something unique. Checklists and forms can provide step-by-step instructions and resources to perform necessary tasks. Checklists and forms are also great business planning tools.

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

• How To Set Up A Company
• Rental Property Checklist
• Not-For-Profit Governance Checklist
• Disclosure Checklists
• Company Tax Checklist
• Trust Tax Checklist
• Income Tax Variation Forms

Unique Tools

Providing useful online tools and applications for businesses on your website is a great way to 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, we will look at a several online tools you can add to your website using WordPress plugins and themes that can help improve your seo, increase user engagement and drive more traffic to your business.

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This is the end of section 1 of this comprehensive article on ways to build your accounting business presence online.

To continue reading, click this link:

• Grow Your Accounting Website – WordPress Plugins And Themes That Can Improve Search Engine Optimization, Increase User Engagement And Generate More Visitors To Your Site

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