Before setting out those marketing distractions that I believe accountants should avoid I need to offer some context. Over 20 years ago, the start of the century(!) was when I began presenting talks to accountants about practice related matters. I quickly learned to avoid any mention of the M-word as, back then,
Regular readers will know that I am both very active on social media and highly ranked for my online influence (such as it is!) Equally you will also know that I do not routinely encourage accountants to use social media for promotional and marketing purposes. And I challenge the apparent evidence and
There are two types of accountants who use social media and Linkedin. Those who understand what works and those who have bought into the hype and hope that what they do will work. Chances are you are in that second category just like most of the accountants I know. Indeed, the vast
What's more important to you? To spend time on promotional activities that don't seem to cost anything or to get cost-effective results from promoting your services to people who you know are looking for someone like you? Many accountants, bookkeepers and tax advisers spend time on various social media platforms, on Linkedin
I forget how long ago I added the word 'debunker' to the list of my roles/activities. It's on my business card, my marketing materials, my online profiles and on the title slide for many of my presentations. I was first asked what I mean by 'debunker' when I was facilitating a workshop for an international
I have referenced what I call the 5Ms of marketing an accountancy practice before. This blog post is related to the fourth M. That is, which Media should you use to get your chosen Messages to your chosen Market? The answer to the question depends on where you will find your chosen Market and
This was another question I was asked during a recent interview. This post is drawn from the notes I made before giving my answer on air. Many accountants and bookkeepers reference their best source of new business as being referrals and recommendations. So let's deal with this first. Tools I would recommend here include: Linkedin
In the days before email there were only 3 ways that clients could communicate with their accountants. In person, by phone and by letter. Now the list of options is much longer. Do you encourage, tolerate or refuse to accept communications by less conventional methods? How does this impact your client base? Email is perhaps
I have lost track of the number of accountants I see trying (and failing) to use social media to build their brand and to attract new clients. It’s tempting to try things out and to experiment on social media, as we think of it as being ‘free’. Except that it’s not. It takes time to
A research student asked me this question and, after drafting a short reply, I have now expanded my response as it may be of wider interest: "As regards how much of my business comes from social media, forgive me but the question is too simplistic. Social media is never a source of business for me.
After being ranked in the top 3 of online influencers by the ICAEW I was recently interviewed about my social media journey. The following extracts may be of interest. When and why did you start using social media? It was 2006 when I first registered on Ecademy.com This business focused online networking site predated
It’s all too easy to get caught up in the game of chasing followers, likes, connections and social media klout. It may be fun to keep track of these metrics and to keep increasing them. But, in real life, they are not important by themselves. There is little point in simply pursuing these metrics. You
How long do you need to spend on social media to build up a decent following, contribute effectively and secure a good level of engagement? I'm not sure much has changed over the years since I started to use social media in 2006. The answers to those questions depend on your reasons for getting involved
I recently wrote an article which posed the question: Should accountants be more active on facebook? I concluded by noting that every survey I have seen about accountants’ use of social media suggests that facebook remains a minority interest. This comes as no surprise to me and I don’t see this changing very much celebrex 200
Too many people play at social networking and don't really 'get it'. Then they assert that 'social networking' doesn't work - although the fault is not so much with the medium as with the way they used it. There are many posts on this blog that can help social media novices - and also more
Every so often someone asks how I allocate my time across all of the social media with which I am involved. What follows is the current answer. It's my third blog post on the subject. The first was in 2010 and the second was in April 2012. I started to use social media in 2006.
Has anyone told you that social media is all about collecting as many connections, friends and followers as possible? That 'bigger is best'? It's an issue that seems to divide the social media advocates. I can tell you now that I believe in Value over Volume. Most online networks make announcements when they reach milestone numbers
I have heard a number of stories about firms of accountants trying to limit their staff (and partners') access to social media sites. This is generally based on fear of the unknown. The motives may also be driven by misconceptions drawn from misleading, inaccurate or simply ill-informed media reports and references to twitter, facebook and
I was asked recently how I allocate my time across all of the social media with which I am involved. I guess this might be of interest to others so thought I'd blog my response. I then found that I drafted a blog post along these lines around 18m ago. It's interesting (to me at
This is the second of a 2 part blog series in which I set out some practical, commercial and informed thoughts re social media policy making for accountancy firms. Part one is here. Let's start here with a couple of bizarre practices I have heard that some ill-informed firms have attempted to implement as regards
I was interviewed recently to provide my views as regards social media policies that accounting firms might wish to institute in-house. I've summarised the key points I made and spread them over a couple of blog posts. Part one below. Part two later today. There are two very different issues here. The first is the extent
As part of my focus on how accountants can use social media I have not, to date, paid much attention to Facebook. I do compare key features and benefits of facebook with other social media sites during my talks and articles but that's about it. My gut tells me that spending BUSINESS time on
It is becoming more and more common to 'Google' someone before meeting them for the first time - whether for a potential business meeting, to interview them or to be interviewed by them. If someone Googles you now or in the future what will be revealed? I've just given an interview to a journalist who
I've just penned the following letter to Accountancy magazine - and guess it's self explanatory. My apologies that this then becomes another blog posting about Facebook. In June I introduced the subject under the title, Facebook for professionals; At the start of July I commented on the need to be aware that what you post
