Accountants and bookkeepers are a unique breed and don’t advertise the same way as other products or services would.
Products will usually use the 5 senses to create appeal:
- A visually imposing truck will give you a feeling of power
- A good smelling restaurant will immediately make you want to eat
- A harmonious tasting wine (which you can swallow without grimacing) will mean premium quality
- A quiet washing machine will give you a high-end feeling
- And finally, touching those thick and comfortable leather gloves give you a feeling of quality
But would you say your bank reconciliations are smooth and soft? Or that your financial statements are powerful? Probably not.
Avoid speaking about what you do!
People don’t care about what you do; they care about how good life will be if they hire you and you can solve their problems. This is why we use the Story-branding strategy created by Donald Miller. This method involves structuring your marketing around the concept of telling a story (with a villain and a hero) that dictates how the client should traverse your service or product.
For an accountant to say, “we provide accurate financial statements” is of no value. It is assumed and understood that what the accountant will produce is accurate. It would be like an electrician saying, “I will properly connect your wires”. Well of course you will. That is what you do.
For some clients, the expectation is simply being accurate. For others, the expectation is much greater.
On your website it’s important to highlight what your client is feeling, how others like working with you, and resources to help guide them:
- Clearly define how you help your clients by including it in your tagline and elevator pitch
- Ask your clients to provide testimonials
- Write blogs with meaningful content that will help your clients
RECAP:
It’s important to think about your website and ask yourself if it clearly explains ‘how you help your clients’ rather than ‘what you do’. Your tagline and elevator pitch are the first step in explaining this to your clients.
In the Story-branding strategy, the hero is the client, not you.
If you are looking for help with your marketing, reach out to us for a free diagnostic. We will look under the hood of your business to give you an idea of where you’re succeeding and where you might need some help. Reach out to us today.