In Part One of this guide on ways to grow your accounting web presence, we provided in-depth information on the following topics:
- Challenges Professional Accountants Face Online
- Online Opportunities For Accountants
- Your Web Pages
- Improve The Content On Your Site
In this section, we will continue exploring more ways to grow your accounting services business online. Areas covered include:
- Ways Of Improving Traffic
- How To Generate Leads & Enquiries
- WordPress Plugins & Themes That Can Improve SEO, Create Better User Engagement And Increase Traffic Generation
To learn more about WordPress plugins and themes, see these articles:
Ways Of Improving Web Traffic
Web traffic is an integral part of your business growth. In this section we explore ways to help you improve your web traffic.
Optimizing Your Website For Search Engines
There are many ways WordPress can help to optimize your website for search engines:
- URLs – Set the permalinks to use the title of the post.
- Tags – WordPress lets you select the keywords that you want your articles to be indexed for in the search engines.
- Categories – Add search engine-friendly categories for archiving and organizing your content.
- Excerpts – Set an excerpt that will show to search engine users.
- Images – title images used in your content with keywords for improved search results.
- Content Linking – WordPress provides a built-in feature that allows you to easily create internal links for better page indexing
- Post Notification – WordPress can be set up to automatically notify other sites and directories whenever a new post is published on your website.
Improve SEO, Increase User Engagement And Drive More Visitors With Plugins
In addition to the built-in features of WordPress, the WordPress developer community makes available also a number of plugins that improve SEO, increase engagement and drive more traffic to your site.
For example, you can use the plugins below to improve your site’s SEO:
- Yoast SEO – WordPress SEO plugin
- Google XML Sitemaps – WordPress sitemap plugin (for search engines)
- WP Tree – WordPress site map plugin
(A plugin like Yoast SEO (formerly known as WordPress SEO by Yoast) can improve your site’s search engine optimization)
Other things you can do to improve SEO, increase engagement and drive more web traffic to your site are to add a forum, newsletters, commenting, and social sharing. Here are a few more fantastic plugins that can help (many of the plugins listed below are also free):
- BuddyPress – This plugin can be used to run your own social community on your WordPress site, with member profiles, user groups, messaging, activity streams, and more.
- bbPress – Use bbPress to set up and run your own online forum on WordPress.
- E-Newsletter – This plugin lets you send professional email newsletters, track results and manage subscribers from your WP site.
- Disqus – Power discussions and increases user engagement on your website or blog.
- Monarch – Use this plugin to add social buttons and features that allow visitors to share your content online to your website or blog.
(You can easily add social sharing to your website using free or inexpensive plugins)
Ways To Generate New Leads & Enquiries Using WordPress-Based Tools
Let’s discuss now ways to improve sales and generate leads and enquiries for your business.
Adding A Newsletter
Adding a newsletter is a great way to grow and retain your readership. It] provides many benefits, like:
- Drives targeted traffic to your site
- Keeps readers from forgetting about you
- Provides updates that could save businesses time and money
- Provides you with a targeted marketing channel
- Allows you to provide special products or services to a select audience
- Provides new opportunities for user interaction
- Provides another way for your content to be shared around with other prospective clients
An effective strategy for getting your visitors to subscribe to your newsletter is to provide them with high value content and give them free gifts in exchange for their personal details. This can be a useful report, tips for handling finances, access to tax calculators, coupons, membership access to videos, contests, etc.
Adding A Contact Form
A contact form makes it easy and simple for prospective customers to get in touch with you. A contact form also allows readers to report issues, ask questions to specific departments, request a quote, and more.
A contact form provides several benefits, like:
- Reduces spam
- Set up automated responses
- Gives you control over what is sent to you
- You can keep your email address private
- They can be added to any page or post
- Looks professional
- Convenience for users
One of the most popular contact form plugins for WordPress is Contact Form 7.
Contact Form 7
(Contact Form 7)
Contact form 7 is a free plugin that lets you insert and manage multiple contact forms into any page on your site, customize the form and the email contents, add fields, and more.
International languages, Ajax-powered submissions, CAPTCHA, and Akismet spam filtering is supported.
Something to consider is to segment your contact form so prospective customers can choose the department they want to contact. This ensures that contact form requests reach the right person.
Provide A Map
A map helps your visitors and customers find you.
Maps are a very useful tool for several reasons:
- A map helps to improve local SEO
- Customers can better plan their meeting or appointments
- Show location of events
(Adding a map helps your visitors and customers find you)
Here are some of the more popular plugins that let you embed, customize and display maps on your website:
- Google Maps
- Advanced Google Maps Plugin for WordPress
- WP Google Maps
- Comprehensive Google Map Plugin
WordPress Plugins & Themes For Improving SEO, Increasing User Engagement And Web Traffic Generation
WordPress Financial Plugins
WordPress makes available a number of plugins you can add to your accounting website that will immediately add a range of functional tools for site visitors. Here are just some of the plugins you can choose from:
Calculator Pro Calculators
(Calculator Pro Calculators – WordPress Plugin)
This is a free collection of over 400 calculators that you can provide to users on your website. Internationalization is supported.
Most of the calculators aren’t focused specifically on accounting, but there are quite a few you can use for:
- Mortgage
- Payments
- Tax
- Credit
- And many more
For more details, go here}:
Show Stock Quotes
(Show Stock Quotes Plugin For WordPress)
This plugin lets you add a widget that displays up to 20 different stock quotes per portfolio. You can display as many portfolios as you like.
(Show Stock Quotes – Stock Portfolio)
For more details, go here}:
Custom Stock Ticker
(Custom Stock Ticker WP Plugin)
With this plugin you can add custom stock tickers to any post, page or sidebar using shortcodes.
This plugin offers a number of customizable features. You can choose to use built-in themes or customize it yourself to match your site. You can also add custom stocks to specific categories.
Customize the appearance by changing colours, size, speed, text, and symbols, etc.
For more details, go here}:
Finance Calculator
(Finance Calculator)
This free plugin allows your site visitors to calculate indicative repayments online. It’s great for automotive loans, real estate, or any other large loan.
(Finance Calculator – WordPress Plugin – Loan Calculator)
This plugin also contains an application form that will send a message to a specified email address.
Other features of this plugin include showing payment protection, calculating 12 to 60 months loans and creating forms that can be placed in any page or post.
For more details, go here}:
WP-Invoice
(WP-Invoice WordPress Plugin)
WP-Invoice lets you send itemized invoices to clients.
This plugin integrates billing into WordPress. You can send itemized invoices, set up recurring billing and expand plugin functionality with both free and premium add-ons, like business location, electronic signature, PDF creation, quoting, checkout forms, and more.
The plugin ties into your WordPress user management database to keep track of your clients and their information, and integrates with payment processors like PayPal, Authorize.net, Stripe, 2Checkout, Interkassa, and several others.
You can add custom payments and charges, insert pre-defined line items and discounts, view invoice status and progression, filter and find invoices, see invoice receipts and invoice history, create notification e-mail templates, access 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 Plugin)
This is a complete business management system that includes accounting management, invoicing, order management, help desk with knowledgebase and support ticket management system, client relationship management and many more features.
(All In One Business Management Application – Client Invoicing)
The plugin supports different languages, is fully customizable and provides additional tools like document management, notice board, and more.
For more details, go here}:
iBilling – Accounting And Billing Software
(iBilling – Accounting and Billing Software Plugin For WordPress)
iBilling is a scalable business software that lets you manage client data and invoicing, track your company’s cash flow and net worth, and lots more.
(iBilling – Accounting and Billing Software WP Plugin – Invoicing)
iBilling Accounting and Billing Software allows you to get paid faster by integrating with several payment gateways.
For more details, go here}:
WordPress Themes
To benefit the most from using WordPress, it’s best to choose a theme specifically suited for accounting businesses. Here is a look at some of the best accounting themes available. These themes allow you to have a professional accounting website within minutes.
Accounting Pro
(Accounting Pro Theme For WordPress)
This premium WordPress theme is a turn-key theme 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 (which improves on the standard WordPress editor), a sidebar manager, performs auto resizing for images, and lots more.
You can easily customize this theme using premium add-ons.
More info:
Accountancy
(Accountancy Theme)
This inexpensive theme comes with a variety of styles and layouts that helps make your accounting site look and feel professional.
This responsive (mobile-friendly) theme includes a custom slider, a featured testimonial section, it’s lightweight, search engine optimized, and loads fast. It provides the flexibility you need without bloating your theme with features you don’t need. Free updates and 1 year of support is included in your purchase.
More information:
Accounting
(Accounting Theme)
This one includes a drag-and-drop builder that allows you to design your website any way you want. It also has unlimited sidebars with custom widgets, four different types of headers, a custom administration panel, different color schemes, a custom slider, three different blog types, and is fully responsive. It looks clean and modern and is fast to load.
Visit this website to learn more about this WordPress theme:
Kathryn
(Kathryn Theme)
This premium theme for WordPress was created specifically for accountants. The theme comes with multiple layouts, slider, multiple sidebars, call to action boxes, many colors, is easy to use, search engine friendly, and is fully responsive (mobile-friendly). Although it can easily fit any profession you like, it builds a great looking accounting theme. It includes a license for the Soliloquy responsive slider plugin and is a separate purchase from the Genesis Framework.
Visit this site for more information about this WordPress theme:
Accounting WordPress Theme
(Accounting WordPress Theme – Theme For WordPress)
This theme was created with the idea of professionalism within the accounting industry. Every color, layout element, icon, menu item, page structure, call-to-action, etc., was designed specifically to give your accounting website a professional look. It’s a turn-key installation but you can still modify it if you want. It’s fully responsive (mobile-friendly) and includes pages for your services, contact section with consultation requests (downloadable as CSV), testimonials, and a blog.
Go here for more details about this WordPress theme:
WP Advocate
(WP Advocate)
This is a corporate theme developed specifically for professionals such as accountants and attorneys. You can use the theme’s bundled images or upload your own. WP Advocate also includes a custom post type adding employee profiles and can also integrate with BeSpoke profile templates. WP Advocate is clean-looking and loads fast.
Go here for more details:
Divi
(Divi WP Theme)
Divi is the most flexible theme in Elegant Themes‘ entire collection. You can create a unique, professional website using the page builder or pre-made layouts. You can modify your layout as much as you need.
Divi’s page builder transforms elements into visual building blocks, allowing anyone to understand and easily change the structure of their page without editing code.
(Divi Theme – Flexible Page Builder)
Divi comes with 40 content modules that you can drag and drop anywhere you want. These include audio player, call to action, contact form, email optin, gallery, login, post title, slider, social media follow, toggle, fullwidth header, fullwidth map, fullwidth post title, and more.. Divi is responsive and completely customizable. Theme prices start at $69 per year and includes access to all themes.
More information:
The Corporation
(The Corporation Theme)
This one from Elegant Themes was specifically designed to create great-looking corporate websites.
This theme has a sleek page-based home page design with a eye-catching slider. It also has a blog design and features that toggle on and off. It comes with six color schemes. It also has multiple page templates which include contact pages, blog feeds, sitemaps, search page, gallery page, and more. Theme prices start at $69 per year and includes full access to 80+ professional themes.
To learn more about this theme, visit this website:
Adviser
(Adviser Theme For WordPress)
This theme was designed to help finance professionals build trust online with a clean business design. It’s perfect for businesses that provide services like investments or tax help. Adviser includes a recruitment page with hiring announcements and where to send applications. It also includes a lease calculator. It includes widgets and multiple shortcodes, and includes the drag-and-drop visual composer.
Go here for more details:
Tax Help
(Tax Help)
This premium theme for WordPress was built for financial companies, tax and finance advisors, and businesses offering tax services. Tax Help is designed to showcase your services professionally to help build your business reputation. It has different blog styles, uses the drag-and-drop visual composer, includes a shortcode builder, the Revolution Slider, and additional custom shortcodes.
To learn more about using this theme, visit the theme site:
Finance Business
(Finance Business)
This one was designed for firms that provide financial services such as tax help, consulting, insurance, corporate, finance, accounting, loans, and more. It includes a custom CMSMasters Visual Content Composer plugin, around 100 shortcodes that let you add charts and financial content, custom drag-and-drop composer, 2 premium sliders, page options, color management, animated elements, and a whole lot more.
More info:
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
Hopefully, this comprehensive guide has helped you learn WordPress plugins for improving SEO, better user engagement and driving more web traffic.
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