Wondering how you can increase website traffic while targeting the right audience? You’re not alone. It can be difficult to develop content that grabs readers when you’re in an industry like accounting. After all, most people don’t read blog posts related to accounting for enjoyment. It can be difficult to pinpoint what topics will get noticed or “go viral”.
For accountants and CPAs, it can be tricky to increase traffic in very specific niches. There is a lot of content online, and the accounting field is also extremely competitive. That’s why it’s important to build a cohesive content strategy to help you develop the right content, but also to make sure your content is found. It’s not only about what you publish on your own website, but how your target audience will find you through all of the noise.
We know that publishing high-quality content is important. After all, you want it to be conversational and enjoyable while giving your readers the valuable information they’ll love. But that’s not the end of the story.
Even if you publish awesome content, it’s not going to be found unless you use some techniques that help you cut through the noise. In today’s post, we’ll show you eight strategies you can start up today to help increase your traffic and get you found by the people who need your expertise.
1. Manage & Optimize Your Google Business Profile
This is a step many businesses miss, which puts you ahead of the game. And it’s relatively simple to do. Your Google Business Profile is free and it gives your audience a place where they can find all of the information about your accounting firm that they need.
Another key point to realize with your Google Business Profile is that optimizing this and managing it will signal your business to Google. You’ll rank higher and it will prioritize your business in local searches for your accounting firm.
Another benefit to using your Google Business Profile is that it acts as a quick and easy way for new clients to find and contact you. It puts your business on Google Maps, so a person searching for a local accountant can easily find you.
It’s all about the user experience. There’s a link to your website if they want to research you further. You can include business hours and contact information. They can even find reviews about your business right there with your listing.
2. Claim and Manage Your Local Business Directories
Adding your accounting firm to local directories helps local customers find you. These also act as another link and mention online, so it will help your website appear in search. There might be many directories that you can add your business to and it’s important to maintain your profile on each of these.
For instance, claim your profile on review sites, like Yelp and CPA Directory. You can also maintain your listing on the Better Business Bureau. Other local directories might include things like Clutch, TaxBuzz, and WalletHub. Claiming these directories gives you the ability to respond to reviews and add new information that might be helpful for clients to know.
3. Get More Reviews
Reviews are important for accountants because most prospective clients will research your business before they contact you. They want to see good reviews and hear about your work from somewhere other than your own website and content.
The social media platforms you need to concentrate on are specific to your business. For instance, we often recommend Facebook pages because Facebook has such a high number of active users. You’ll also want to encourage reviews on places that cater to your field. You’ll want to concentrate on Google reviews, possibly Yelp reviews as well. There are also specific sites for accounting services, such as Clutch, Lending Tree, and CPA Directory. Making sure you have a presence on some of these sites will put your business directly in front of searchers actively looking for your service.
4. Be Active on Social Media
If you’re going to have social media accounts, and you should, you need to maintain them. This doesn’t just mean posting once or twice a month and then closing the app. The best social media accounts are ones that maintain and increase engagement. And this can be difficult to begin but it’s very much worth your effort.
Social media is a place where your prospective clients can interact with your firm, or you personally. LinkedIn is one of the more advantageous social media platforms for accountants. You can post links to current blogs, follow business leaders and interact on posts. This is a free way to network with people on a larger scale. You can also publish directly to LinkedIn.
That’s not the only social media platform you can try. Many accountants do well with Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok. Choose your social media platforms based on your own comfort in using them and where your target audience is most likely to be found.
5. Publish High-Value Content
The quality of your content is key. Google ranks your website based on user experience. While it is good to regularly update your content, you also want to make sure that the audience is interested. Google measures bounce rate, which means that people came to your site and didn’t find what they wanted, so they left. You want to make sure that your headlines and keywords are targeting the right audience and that you’re very clear in what you’re presenting.
This way, when your audience finds you, they will be delighted. Content isn’t only landing pages and blog posts. Your content is everything that you post for your audience, from pictures to videos to written copy.
6. Leverage Email Marketing
Email marketing is still one of the most effective ways to market to your audience. And you can approach your email campaigns in the same way that you approach your other content, by focusing on providing value. Your email marketing campaigns should give your audience something that they want or need or answer a pain point.
You can include Calls to Action (CTAs) that give the reader a link to one of your offerings or a blog post.
Your email list is essential because it’s a personal way to interact with prospects, current clients, and past clients. Providing well-thought-out emails and newsletters helps you maintain contact with past customers while cultivating your list for future clients. It also provides an excellent way to promote your content and drive traffic to your website.
7. Set Local Targeting Parameters for Google and Facebook Ads
When you’re working with Google and Facebook ads, one of the great benefits is that they offer you ways to tailor your audience. If you set local parameters for these ads, you’re able to bring in the exact target audience that is local for your business. For accountants who work across a wide section of the state or geographic area, you can work with the settings in your Facebook and Google ads to widen the search.
Pay attention to the metrics when you launch ad campaigns. You’ll find that some areas respond and engage more frequently with your ads and some copy work better than other types. As you move forward, you can develop a good feeling for the type of ads and audience that responds, which helps you project and benchmark your results for better performance.
8. Set Hyperlocal Signals Across Your Online Presence
Hyperlocal signals are a fantastic tool for accounting firms whose target audience is local. If you’re aiming for a specific area or a wide radius, setting hyperlocal signals will allow you to target that ideal customer in a more productive way.
How does this work exactly? A hyperlocal signal is how you tag check-ins, photos, and reviews when someone has visited you on location. If, for instance, your client checks into your office, you can follow up by sending him or her a link to review your firm on Google after the visit.
It sounds much more complex than it needs to be. But it is difficult to maintain manually. There might be too many people dealing with one individual and you might not understand how to measure social signals or set alarms. Luckily, that’s exactly why we created GeoJuice. The app lets you manage your hyperlocal signals easily and intuitively. We hope these eight tips will help you boost the traffic to your accounting site in measurable ways. If you’d like help with your strategy, feel free to reach out for a demo with Surefire Local.