Firm There's a lot of argument these days about the marketing value of Twitter. On one side there are a host of number crunchers and most of them appear to feel that the ROI of Twitter isn't good enough to justify it's use.
Other marketers jeer at trying to quantify the ROI of online networking instruments like Twitter. Personally I approve of Twitter as a marketing instrument, but when all is said and done you'll need to decide for yourself if you agree.
So what is Twitter? How does it affect your accounting Practice?
In the simplest possible terms it allows it's members to send out short notes, called "Tweets", to their followers. It is an extremely successful and popular example of what is often referred to as a "social networking site". This isn't Email. "Tweets" are not sent selectively. Instead they are broadcast publicly for everybody see. Your friends, or "followers", each have their own homepage, however, and your message will be added to it so they can see it the next time they log in.
So what's the selling promise of Twitter? There are actually many techniques you can use. Client retention is a good place to begin.
Many of your clients already use Twitter. That, in itself, is a solid reason to use it yourself. They will appreciate that you're displaying an interest in their lives by following them.
Twitter also offers you an excellent chance to park your brand in front of your clients. Even if a tweet is essentially a rather impersonal method, it feels personal. By tweeting now and again you are sending them the message that you are thinking about them and working hard for them. Another advantage is that by reading your clients' tweets you will hear things about them that you might not otherwise be privy to, and be able to contact them more personally when appropriate. I'm not just talking about catching a client tweeting about accounting problems that you can help them or their friends with. That will only happen sometimes. I'm talking about their private lives. As an accountant you are oftentimes not privy to events like births, marriages, and deaths in time to send out suitable congratulations or condolences. Twitter will put you in the loop.
Does anybody want to argue that simple personal contact isn't good for client retention?
Finally, all tweets are public. Not only do they post on all your friends Twitter home pages, they are also posted to the site's main homepage (at least for a tick or two) there are applications you can use that will allow you to keep watch over this flow of data and email you if anyone sends out a tweet about, for example, you or your company. It's an excellent way to not only detect the clients that are providing positive referrals, but to catch complaints in time to address them.
Accuratetly calculating Twitters ROI seems unlikely to me. I don't trust that it's actually possible to fix the dollar value of these types of customer retention strategies. In deference to Twitter's countless and frequently respected naysayers, there's likewise no way to prove with any certainty that they accomplish something either.
Things become even more nebulous when you deliberate client acquisition, but this is where I consider that Twitter has a chance to truly shine.
How do you land new clients with twitter? Like before, there's a lot of techniques.
You can put links in your posts. This can be used to drive visitors to your site, and (if the material you're linking to is important) there's a fine chance a number of of your followers will "ReTweet" it, meaning they will forward it to their followers. This works great if you have a personal blog, but even if you don't you could take them to a free report on your site, (just as an example) "How to get Top Dollar for Your House". There's a good chance that several of your friends are familiar with at least one person who's selling a house. If so they might ReTweet it, and this tweet will be shared not just to the person who's selling, but to ALL the ReTweeter's followers also. Tweets can, and regularly do, "go viral". This can acquaint your brand to many new people.
The backlinks in tweets also have a little bit of search engine optimization (often called "SEO") advantage.
Now I have made my good living doing professional CPA Website Design for a lot of years, so what I'm about to offer may give the impression of being self-defeating at the outset. It's not, however, because I plan my websites with this marketing doctrine in mind: A well considered accounting site is designed to be a networking tool.
The brightest, best informed, most successful business owners don't, commonly, pick their CPA willy-nilly from Google searches or the local phone directory. The best prospects locate their CPA or accountant by networking. They contact you because a person they know and believe in suggested you. Sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn are an organic online evolution of traditional network marketing, and as such, deserve profound respect as marketing tools. Brian O'Connell is the owner and founder of CPA Site Solutions, one of the country's leading web design firms dedicated exclusively to accounting websites. His company at present provides websites for more than 4000 CPA and accounting firms.
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Other marketers jeer at trying to quantify the ROI of online networking instruments like Twitter. Personally I approve of Twitter as a marketing instrument, but when all is said and done you'll need to decide for yourself if you agree.
So what is Twitter? How does it affect your accounting Practice?
In the simplest possible terms it allows it's members to send out short notes, called "Tweets", to their followers. It is an extremely successful and popular example of what is often referred to as a "social networking site". This isn't Email. "Tweets" are not sent selectively. Instead they are broadcast publicly for everybody see. Your friends, or "followers", each have their own homepage, however, and your message will be added to it so they can see it the next time they log in.
So what's the selling promise of Twitter? There are actually many techniques you can use. Client retention is a good place to begin.
Many of your clients already use Twitter. That, in itself, is a solid reason to use it yourself. They will appreciate that you're displaying an interest in their lives by following them.
Twitter also offers you an excellent chance to park your brand in front of your clients. Even if a tweet is essentially a rather impersonal method, it feels personal. By tweeting now and again you are sending them the message that you are thinking about them and working hard for them. Another advantage is that by reading your clients' tweets you will hear things about them that you might not otherwise be privy to, and be able to contact them more personally when appropriate. I'm not just talking about catching a client tweeting about accounting problems that you can help them or their friends with. That will only happen sometimes. I'm talking about their private lives. As an accountant you are oftentimes not privy to events like births, marriages, and deaths in time to send out suitable congratulations or condolences. Twitter will put you in the loop.
Does anybody want to argue that simple personal contact isn't good for client retention?
Finally, all tweets are public. Not only do they post on all your friends Twitter home pages, they are also posted to the site's main homepage (at least for a tick or two) there are applications you can use that will allow you to keep watch over this flow of data and email you if anyone sends out a tweet about, for example, you or your company. It's an excellent way to not only detect the clients that are providing positive referrals, but to catch complaints in time to address them.
Accuratetly calculating Twitters ROI seems unlikely to me. I don't trust that it's actually possible to fix the dollar value of these types of customer retention strategies. In deference to Twitter's countless and frequently respected naysayers, there's likewise no way to prove with any certainty that they accomplish something either.
Things become even more nebulous when you deliberate client acquisition, but this is where I consider that Twitter has a chance to truly shine.
How do you land new clients with twitter? Like before, there's a lot of techniques.
You can put links in your posts. This can be used to drive visitors to your site, and (if the material you're linking to is important) there's a fine chance a number of of your followers will "ReTweet" it, meaning they will forward it to their followers. This works great if you have a personal blog, but even if you don't you could take them to a free report on your site, (just as an example) "How to get Top Dollar for Your House". There's a good chance that several of your friends are familiar with at least one person who's selling a house. If so they might ReTweet it, and this tweet will be shared not just to the person who's selling, but to ALL the ReTweeter's followers also. Tweets can, and regularly do, "go viral". This can acquaint your brand to many new people.
The backlinks in tweets also have a little bit of search engine optimization (often called "SEO") advantage.
Now I have made my good living doing professional CPA Website Design for a lot of years, so what I'm about to offer may give the impression of being self-defeating at the outset. It's not, however, because I plan my websites with this marketing doctrine in mind: A well considered accounting site is designed to be a networking tool.
The brightest, best informed, most successful business owners don't, commonly, pick their CPA willy-nilly from Google searches or the local phone directory. The best prospects locate their CPA or accountant by networking. They contact you because a person they know and believe in suggested you. Sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn are an organic online evolution of traditional network marketing, and as such, deserve profound respect as marketing tools. Brian O'Connell is the owner and founder of CPA Site Solutions, one of the country's leading web design firms dedicated exclusively to accounting websites. His company at present provides websites for more than 4000 CPA and accounting firms.
Related Articles - Twitter, Marketing, CPA, Website, Accounting, Websites, Design, CPA Website, CPA Websites, Accounting Websites,
Email this Article to a Friend!
Receive Articles like this one direct to your email box!
Subscribe for free today!
http://www.amazines.com/Marketing/article_detail.cfm/1839426?articleid=1839426
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