outlook & analysis

got leads? get real. learn how to qualify big opportunities

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four strategies for focussing on the win.

by gale crosley
crosley + company

eighty percent of lost opportunities are due to poorly qualifying a lead. countless hours and effort are wasted on prospects with odds to win near zero. firms with a thin pipeline pursue any potential buyer who has a pulse and fogs a mirror. in order to stop this insanity, discipline is necessary in lead qualification.

click here for more from cpa firm growth consultant gale crosley. or buy her book.

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5 ways to strengthen your email marketing

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becky livingston
becky livingston

and how to prove they work.

by becky livingston
royal apple marketing

it’s a new day and you’re starting your marketing strategy with a welcome message to new clients. you want to engage them from the start, yet, know they might not remember how you got their name in the first place.

click here to see more from becky livingston on 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间.

to help get you started, here are a few staples to include in your welcome message: read more →

what accountants are learning about marketing

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ultimately, professional services marketing 3.0 is a new kind of partnership.

bruce w. marcus

by bruce w. marcus
professional services marketing 3.0

today’s accountants understand that, unlike most other occupations, they must be active participants in the marketing process, at least as suppliers of grist for the marketing mills, and certainly as part of the ultimate selling process.

what’s more significant is that they begin to see the professionalism in marketing, and particularly the selling aspect of it.

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new survey findings: tech investments, better economy, more complex returns buoy busy season outlook

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four in five expect the same or better  than last year’s busy season.

by rick telberg

as busy season 2012 gets into full gear, tax and accounting professionals are holding steadfast to their confidence that this year’s results could show a marked improvement over last year’s, according to current readings of the profession by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间.

with january 2012 just beginning, 55% of accountants expect 2012 to be overall  “somewhat” or “much” better than 2011, which is relatively unchanged from readings in november and december. to be sure, 26% expect no change from last year, and 19% are bracing for “worse.”

in other findings from the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer and related reports:

complete findings are published in the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practitioner’s tax season performance review and outlook report. (learn more here)

 

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two smart ways to keep the marketing engine running during tax season

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two days of smart marketing that can actually benefit your practice for the rest of the year.

by completing just two marketing tactics in january, you will be able to “touch” clients, prospective clients and referral sources throughout busy season even if your schedule doesn’t permit face-to-face communication.  you will have been “seen and heard.”

marketing consultant debbie andrews at marketri, a philadelphia-area marketing agency, says:

1. youtube video series: film 6-10 short video clips that contain (1) planning advice and /or (2) tax news / law changes.  these videos should be no more than 60-90 seconds in length.  when developing the material for your shoot, think about the many questions that you were asked by clients throughout the year.

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cpa firms lead accounting and bookkeeping sector in adding 3,100 jobs in december

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cpa firms account for 2 in 3 new jobs.

accounting and bookkeeping services, thru december 2011

the nation’s tax, accounting, payroll and bookkeeping businesses added 3,100 employees in december, bringing the industry’s total headcount to 943,100, according to the latest government data obtained by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间. read more →

will overtime lawsuits “reform” the big four?

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entry-level auditors at kpmg win class-action certification.

a new york federal court conditionally certified a national collective action lawsuit that alleges that kpmg llp violated the federal labor laws by denying thousands of entry-level audit employees overtime pay.

“denying associates overtime pay is a problem among all of the big four accounting firms, not just at kpmg,” says attorney justin m. swartz. “we hope that this case, as well as audit, advisory, and tax cases against deloitte, pricewaterhousecoopers, and ernst & young will reform the accounting industry.”

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ed guttenplan, w&g: every staffer gets a coach

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strategy 2012: management development.

what are your critical challenges for 2012, and what can do you about them? a number of the profession’s leading lights have been sharing their thoughts with accounting today. here’s one:

ed guttenplan
wilkin & guttenplan

we see the top challenges as being leadership development and building your “bench,” and practice growth profitability. also, remaining efficient in light of new standards and, of course, preparing for the future.

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dave sibits, cbiz: five new niches

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strategy 2012: leadership, pricing, competition

what are your critical challenges for 2012, and what can do you about them? a number of the profession’s leading lights have been sharing their thoughts with accounting today. here’s one:

dave sibits
cbiz financial services

accounting firms are facing: 

  1. an aging of leadership at the partner level.
  2. second, firms are facing a continued erosion of pricing in service areas, which is mostly a result of a challenging business and economic climate.
  3. the last concern is the competition for the best and brightest talent, especially among top firms seeking to add specialty expertise or employees to groom for the future. read more →