Directory Listing Management for Accountants Can Be Very Time Consuming If You Don’t Know What You’re Doing.
With endless listings to choose from and an array of methods for creating profiles, the process can be overwhelming. Here are some guidelines that can help accountants select the most impactful listings for their firm, and how to get the best results by using them appropriately.
Which Directory Listings are Best for Accounting Firms?
Before listing your accounting firm in a directory, you must determine whether the directory will have benefits for your firm.
- Does it give you an unique advantage not offered anywhere else?
- Some directories have expenses associated with listings, so when you pay for them, ask yourself where your marketing budget is going
Answering these questions in advance can save you from spending money and time on directories that may not even benefit your accounting firm.
Does This Directory Benefit Your Potential Clients?
Its important to remember the benefits of directory listings for accounting firms and for your potential clients as well when using accountant directory listings. Keeping the benefit of your prospective clients and your firm in mind when you are choosing which directories to use will help them be more effective.
Some things to consider:
Does this particular directory provide value to its users? Is it popular with the type of clients you want to attract? What is the likelihood that a qualified potential client is going to find your firm on this directory? Can you estimate how many people are actually using this directory to find accounting firms like yours?
In a situation where you have to choose between a directory platform such as Yelp and a less popular accounting directory, Yelp is best choice to start with, and here’s why: Yelp has millions of users each month and is incredibly popular. The sheer volume of traffic on Yelp provides more opportunities for your accounting firm to be found by searchers. A smaller, more obscure directory won’t be able to provide the same amount of search volume. and you can make sure potential clients find your accounting firm with directory listings you choose.
Accountants Should Start With Popular Directories First
There are an endless number of directories out there, but setting up a profile on every single one of them is not a good use of your resources either. Too many profiles risks diluting the messages your accounting firm is trying to communicate, and may muddle your firms image online.
We recommend that accountants publish their businesses on directory platforms like Yelp and Google to start, and then transition to the more obscure channels. Your potential clients are typically going to be using the more popular directories than the smaller ones – it comes back to the sheer number of searchers on these platforms. There is just a much better chance of your accounting firm will be found by qualified potential clients when you make sure you are listed where they are actually searching.
Yelp is a very popular directory channel with mobile users, particularly in larger, tech-savvy metropolitan areas such as San Francisco. People similar areas use Yelp frequently for searches ranging from coffee shops to doctors. Many Yelp users conduct searches for businesses (accounting firms included) to see reviews, feedback and learn more before they make any decisions.
It is also important to note, that during this process is the perfect time to make sure every listing you choose has the correct NAP or Name, Address, and Phone Number. NAP management for accountants doesn’t have to be a headache, particularly if you make sure this information is correct from the outset.
Build Up Directory Profiles With Reputation Management Tools
It is a good plan to claim your profiles on directory platforms like Yelp and Google, then use those profiles to circulate relevant information about your firm, and you accountants.
Your accounting firm can develop these profiles steadily with testimonials from satisfied clients. Potential clients use the feedback your previous clients have given when making a decision to hire you. The value of reputation management is increasing exponentially. For many people, online reviews carry just as much weight as testimonials from a relative or friend.
We are often asked how to get bookkeeping clients, and what influences them to contact a particular accounting firm. Stacking your directory listings with customer reviews and testimonials is a great way to attract new potential clients to your accounting firm.
The good news? The process of gathering, displaying and managing your accounting firm’s online reputation does not have to be tedious.
Good Reputation Management Tools For Your Accounting Firm
The AdInfusion system has built-in recommendation engines that allow you to add reviews to your accounting firm website rapidly and effortlessly. What’s more, our system produces an index that permits potential clients see reviews that are most relevant to their needs or situation. Our system gives accounting firms complete control over which of their reviews are shown and where.
These recommendations will become a fundamental component of your website, but they do not reach out beyond your site, like to other directory platforms such as Google and Yelp.
Consider Smaller Directories Later
Once you have taken the time to set up your accounting firm’s profiles on the bigger, more prominent directories, and developed them with customer testimonials, then it might be the correct time to start considering some of the smaller directories.
Ensure this process doesn’t distract you from cultivating the resources on things that your firm does control – like your blog and website. If you get too focused on directory listings instead of publishing up high-quality, engaging content on your site, you may subtract from your web presence, and you’ll be throwing resources away on strategies that don’t give you a return on your investment.
Let AdInfusion Launch Your Accounting Firm’s Digital Marketing
At AdInfusion, we are driven by the quest for the best strategies for marketing for each individual accounting firm. AdInfusion was established to empower accounting firms to take control of their digital marketing, and to have spectacular marketing success without blowing your budget.
AdInfusion offers more effective marketing solutions for accountants. If you’d like to learn more about how we can help your accounting firm succeed online, call us at 916-798-5707 today.
