In Part One of this guide on ways to grow your accounting web presence, we covered the following topics:
- Online Challenges For The Accounting Profession
- Opportunities For The Accounting Profession In The Digital Economy
- Your Website Pages
- How To Improve The Content On Your Site
In this section, we explore more ways to grow your accounting business online. Areas covered below include:
- Improving Web Traffic Using WordPress
- Generate New Leads & Enquiries
- Improve Search Engine Optimization, Increase User Engagement And Increase Web Traffic Generation With Plugins
For more information about WordPress plugins and themes, see these articles:
- Using WordPress Plugins To Enhance Your Website’s Capability
- A Newbie’s Guide To Understanding WP Themes
Ways To Improve Web Traffic
Web traffic is a vital part of your online business growth. This section will help you improve your web traffic.
Optimize Your Website For Search Engines
There are so many ways WordPress can help to optimize your accounting or financial services website for search engines:
- Search Engine-Friendly URLs – WordPress lets you set the permalinks to create search engine-optimized web addresses for your article pages (called posts).
- Post Tags – Specify the keywords that you want search engines to index your posts for.
- Categories – Create search engine-friendly categories for your posts and products.
- Post Excerpts – WordPress lets you compose an excerpt that search engines will display in their search results.
- Images – add search-optimized titles to your images for improved search engine results.
- Internal Content Linking – WordPress has a built-in feature that allows you to easily link internal content
- Pinging – Configure your site to automatically notify (ping) other sites and directories the moment a new post is published on your site.
WordPress Plugins For Improving Search Engine Optimization, Increasing User Engagement And Generating More Visitors
As well as the built-in features of WordPress, the WordPress development community makes available also a number of plugins that improve your website’s SEO, increase engagement and drive more traffic to your business.
For example, you can install the plugins below to improve your SEO:
- Yoast SEO – WordPress SEO plugin
- Google XML Sitemaps – WordPress XML sitemap plugin
- Page-List – WordPress site map plugin
(Use a plugin like Yoast SEO (previously called WordPress SEO by Yoast) to improve your SEO)
Other WordPress plugins you can add to improve your accounting or financial services website’s SEO, increase user engagement and drive more web traffic to your business are to add a forum, newsletters, commenting, and social sharing features. Here are some useful WordPress plugins that can help (many of the plugins listed below are also free):
- BuddyPress – Use the BuddyPress WordPress plugin to set up and manage a social networking community on WordPress, with member profiles, user groups, activity streams, messaging, and more.
- bbPress – Set up your own online community forum on your site.
- E-Newsletter – Use this WordPress plugin to send professional email newsletters, track results and manage subscribers from your WordPress dashboard, without third-party subscriptions.
- Disqus – use this WordPress plugin to power discussions and increases user engagement on your website.
- Floating Social – Use this WordPress plugin to add social buttons and features that allow visitors to share your content online on your posts and pages.
(You can easily add social features to your website with WordPress plugins)
Tips For Generating New Leads & Enquiries With WordPress
In this section we will show you ways to improve sales and generate leads and enquiries online.
Provide A Newsletter
Adding a newsletter is an excellent way to grow and retain your readership. Adding email newsletters] provides a number of benefits and advantages, like:
- Drives targeted traffic to your website
- Keeps readers from forgetting about you
- Keeps readers updated
- Provides you with a targeted marketing channel
- It’s a way to provide special products or services to a select audience
- Provides regular opportunities for user interaction
- Provides you with additional opportunities for your content to be shared with new potential customers
A proven way to attract newsletter subscribers is to provide high value content and give users free gifts in exchange for their personal details. This can be a handy guide, tips for handling finances, access to tax calculators, discount coupons, access to videos, contests, etc.
Contact Forms
A contact form provides an easy and simple way for prospective clients to get in touch. A contact form also lets visitors provide feedback, contact specific departments, ask for quotes, and more.
Contact forms provide many benefits and advantages including:
- Reduces spam
- Automated response
- Giving you control over what is sent to you
- Allows you to keep your email address private
- They can be added to any page or post
- Improves the professional look of your website
- Convenient for users
One of the most popular WordPress contact form plugins is Contact Form 7.
Contact Form 7
(Contact Form 7)
Contact Form 7 is easy to install and configure and lets you add and manage multiple contact forms, customize your forms and the mail contents, add fields, and more.
International languages, Ajax-powered submissions, CAPTCHA, and spam filtering is also supported.
Something to consider is adding sections to your contact form so prospective customers can choose which aspect of your business they are contacting you about. This ensures that visitors’ requests reach the right person.
Add Maps
Adding a map to your site helps your visitors and customers find you.
Maps are useful tools for several reasons:
- They improve local SEO
- Allows customers to better plan their visits or appointments
- Show location of events
(A map helps your visitors and customers find you)
Some of the more popular map plugins include:
- Google Maps
- Advanced Google Maps Plugin for WordPress
- WP Google Maps
- Comprehensive Google Map Plugin
Improving Search Engine Optimization, Increase User Engagement And Increase Web Traffic Generation With Plugins And Themes
WordPress Financial Plugins
WordPress lets you add a number of plugins to your accounting or financial services website that will immediately make available a range of practical tools for your site visitors. Here are some of the plugins you can choose from:
Calculator Pro Calculators
(Calculator Pro Calculators Plugin)
This is a free collection of 400+ calculators that you can provide to users on your website. Internationalization is supported.
Most of them aren’t focused specifically on accounting, but there are a few you can use for:
- Mortgage
- Loans
- Tax
- Debit
- And more
For more details, go here}:
Show Stock Quotes
(Show Stock Quotes – WordPress Plugin)
This plugin installs a widget that displays up to 20 different stock quotes per portfolio. You can show as many portfolios as you like.
(Show Stock Quotes Plugin – Stock Portfolio)
For more details, go here}:
Custom Stock Ticker
(Custom Stock Ticker WP Plugin)
This plugin lets you place a custom stock ticker on any sidebar, page or post with shortcodes.
This plugin comes with a number of customizable ticker. Choose from built-in themes or customize it yourself to match your site. You can also create custom stocks for specific categories.
Customize the appearance by changing height, width, scroll speed, opacity, number of stocks displayed at one time, font size, font family, text color, etc.
For more details, go here}:
Finance Calculator
(Finance Calculator)
This free calculator lets your users calculate indicative repayments online. It’s great for vehicle loans, property, or other large loans.
(Finance Calculator WP Plugin – Loan Calculators)
This plugin also contains an application form that sends a message to a specified email address.
Other features of this plugin include displaying payment protection, calculating 12 to 60 months loans and creating a form that can be placed in any page or post.
For more details, go here}:
WP-Invoice
(WP-Invoice WP Plugin)
WP-Invoice lets WordPress blog owners send itemized invoices to their clients.
This plugin integrates billing into WordPress. You can send clients itemized invoices. It even allows you to set up recurring billing. WP-Invoice can be expanded through both free and premium add-ons that let you manage business, accept electronic signatures from clients, create PDF invoices, create quotes, create checkout forms, and more.
The plugin ties into the WP user management database to keep track of your clients and their information, and integrates with payment processors like PayPal, Authorize.net, Stripe, and many others.
The plugin gives you the ability to add custom payments and charges, add pre-defined line items and discounts, view invoice status and progression, easily filter and find invoices, see invoice receipts and invoice history, create e-mail notification templates, display reports (collected vs uncollected invoices, valuable clients and top grossing line items), and more.
For more details, go here}:
All In One Business Management Application
(All In One Business Management Application – WordPress Plugin)
This is a complete business management system that includes accounting management, invoicing, order management, help desk with ticket management system, client relationship management and many additional features.
(All In One Business Management Application Plugin – Client Invoice)
All In One Business Management Application supports different languages, is fully customizable and provides additional tools like document management, to do app, and more.
For more details, go here}:
iBilling – Accounting And Billing Software
(iBilling – Accounting and Billing Software Plugin)
This is a scalable business software that lets you manage clients and invoicing, tracks your company’s cash flow and net worth, send single-click payment reminders and payment confirmations, and lots more.
(iBilling – Accounting and Billing Software Plugin – Client Invoice)
iBilling integrates with several online payment gateways.
For more details, go here}:
WordPress Themes
To benefit the most from using WordPress, it’s best to choose a theme specifically for accounting. Here is a look at some of the best WordPress themes available for accounting firms. With the themes below you can have a professional-looking accounting website within minutes and save hundreds to thousands of dollars on the cost of website design.
Accounting Pro
(Accounting Pro)
Accounting Pro is an inexpensive turn-key theme designed for accountants and accounting firms. It’s responsive, has a drag-and-drop page-builder, has several page templates, custom menu features, a content composer (gives you an improved WordPress editor), a sidebar manager, performs auto resizing for images, and a whole lot more.
Accounting Pro can be customized with premium add-ons.
Visit this site for more information about this theme:
Accountancy
(Accountancy Theme)
This one comes in a variety of built-in styles and layouts that helps make your accounting website look and feel professional.
It includes a custom slider, a featured testimonial section, and more. It’s lightweight, search optimized, fast loading, and fully responsive. It provides the flexibility you need without bloating your theme with features you don’t need. Your purchase includes free updates and 1 year of support.
For more details, go here:
Accounting
(Accounting)
Accounting Theme includes a drag-and-drop builder that allows you to design your website any way you want. It also has unlimited sidebars and custom widgets, four different types of headers, a custom admin panel, different color schemes, custom slider, 3 blog types, and is fully responsive (mobile-friendly). Accountancy is a clean-looking, modern and fast loading theme.
To learn more about this WordPress theme, visit this site:
Kathryn
(Kathryn Theme For WordPress)
Kathryn is developed for accounting services. It allows you to use WordPress as a true CMS and offers a slider, multiple layouts, multiple sidebars, call to action boxes, a variety of colors, is easy to use, inexpensive, search engine friendly, and is fully responsive. Although this theme can easily fit any profession, it builds a great looking accounting theme. It includes a license for the Soliloquy WordPress responsive slider plugin and must be purchased separately from the Genesis Framework.
For more details, go here:
Accounting WordPress Theme
(Accounting WordPress Theme – WordPress Theme)
This premium theme for WordPress was developed with the idea of professionalism within the accounting industry. Every color, layout element, icon, menu item, page structure, call-to-action, etc., is designed specifically to give your accounting site a professional look while not looking dull. It’s a turn-key installation but you can still modify it if you want. It’s mobile-friendly and includes pages for your services, contact form section with consultation requests (downloadable as a CSV file), testimonials section, and a blog.
To learn more about this theme, go here:
WP Advocate
(WP Advocate)
This is a free corporate theme built specifically for professional service providers such as accountants and attorneys. Use the theme’s bundled images or upload your own. It also includes a custom post type adding employee profiles. It will also integrate with BeSpoke profile templates. It’s clean and loads fast.
Visit the theme site to learn more about using this WordPress theme:
Divi
(Divi)
This is one of the most flexible themes in Elegant Themes‘ entire collection of WordPress themes. Divi lets you create a professional site using the page builder or beautiful and unique pre-made layouts. You can modify your layout as much as you need.
Divi’s page builder transforms web elements into visual building blocks, allowing anyone to understand and redesign the structure of their web pages without touching a single line of code.
(Divi – WordPress Theme – Flexible Page Builder)
It comes with 40 content modules that you can drag and drop anywhere you want. These include multiple layouts, a slider, you can place pricing tables, testimonials, call-to-action, and lots more. It is fully responsive and fully customizable. Elegant Theme prices start at $69 per year and includes access to all professional themes.
For more information, go here:
The Corporation
(The Corporation – WordPress Theme)
This premium theme for WordPress was built specifically to make corporate sites look great.
This theme has a page-based home page design with a prominent slider. It also has a blog design. It has six color schemes. It also has multiple page templates which include contact pages, blog feeds, sitemaps, search page, gallery page, and more. Elegant Theme prices start at $69 per year and includes full access to over 80 themes.
To learn more about about using this theme, go here:
Adviser
(Adviser)
This one was designed to help finance industry professionals build trust online through clean design. It’s perfect for those that provide services like investments or tax advice. The theme includes a recruitment page with hiring announcements and where to send applications, a lease calculator, widgets and multiple shortcodes, and the drag-and-drop visual composer..
To learn more about about using this theme, visit the theme site:
Tax Help
(Tax Help – WordPress Theme)
This premium theme was specifically designed for financial organizations, tax and financial advisors, and businesses providing tax services. The theme is designed to show your services in a professional way to help build your business reputation. It comes with different blog styles, uses the drag-and-drop visual composer, includes a shortcode builder, the Revolution Slider, and many custom shortcodes.
More information:
Finance Business
(Finance Business)
Finance Business Theme was specifically developed for firms that provide financial services including tax help, consulting, corporate, finance, insurance, accounting, loans, and more. The theme includes a custom CMSMasters Visual Content Composer plugin, around one hundred shortcodes that includes charts and financial content, custom drag-and-drop composer, 2 premium sliders, page options, color management, animated elements, and a lot more.
Visit the theme website for more information about using this WordPress theme:
Avada
(Avada Finance WordPress Theme)
Avada is a fully responsive and versatile multipurpose theme that lets you easily build, configure, and run any kind of website you want without touching code, including a website for an accounting or finance-related organization.
To learn more about the Avada theme for WordPress, go here: Avada
We hope that you have found this comprehensive guide on WordPress plugins and themes for improving SEO, increasing user engagement and driving more web traffic helpful.
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"If you're new to WordPress, this can stand on its own as a training course and will stay with you as you progress from beginner to advanced and even guru status." - Bruce (Columbus, Ohio)
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