Talking with an accountant recently I learned that he regularly receives phone calls from people who have found his website or phone number. Sounds good?  Yes it does and it’s not at all uncommon. Many accountants get such calls.

He was complaining actually that most of the callers were after some free advice. And if the matter is quite straightforward he gives them the advice they require. These calls typically take 5-10 minutes.

Why do you do that I asked?

He told me that he quickly establishes that they have no immediate need of his services and doesn’t want to waste more time than necessary dealing with these callers. He sees it as good PR and marketing. On what basis I asked?

“I hope they’ll tell someone” he said.

I pointed out that what he was really doing was:

  • Hoping that the caller would remember who they had spoken with
  • Hoping they would remember his firm’s name and/or contact details
  • Hoping that they will tell other people about him
  • Hoping that they will think of him at some stage in the future when their circumstances change and they need a (new) accountant.

And that they would do this regardless of how much time elapses after the phone call.

I’m all for being positive and hopeful. But I think that he’s hoping for a bit much on the back of a 5-10 minute phone call with someone who has found him on the web. I shared some ideas as to what he could do to get more from the calls.

What about you? Do you just ‘hope’ or do you do something to turn your hopes into reality?

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