In this article, you will learn different marketing stategies for startup and existing accounting and bookkeeping services, with a final review and links to other articles on the best technique- word of mouth.

No business will be successful, with any product or service, without some form of marketing. Regardless of what those get-rich-quick schemers say, you will have to do more than just hang out your shingle, and start counting the money. You need to get the word out.

Any good marketing program requires that the company have an edge over the competition.

A story of three furniture stores, sitting side-by-side in a shopping center helps to emphasize this point:

Being in a recession, furniture sales had dropped way off. Each furniture store owner was considering ways to improve sales. The owner of the store on one end had a thought and raced to the sign shop to pick up a banner, which he proudly displayed across the front of his store, “Inventory Clearance Sale.”

It worked! Customers were coming to his store instead of the other two.

In an effort to regain customers, and boost sales, the owner of the furniture store on the opposite end acquired his own sign announcing, “Year-end Clearance Sale”. It worked, too. His old customers returned, and he even had some new ones coming in.

That caused the owner in the middle store, in a state of desperation, to get his own banner, which he proudly displayed above his door, stating, “Main Entrance”.

Each owner, providing the same merchandise, worked to get an edge over the competition. You too must seek an edge or a competitive advantage because, as you are surely aware, there are other accountants doing the same thing as you will be doing.

There are all types of advertising mediums we can use today; everything from expensive freeway billboards to high-cost television advertising. Each medium might do a good job with a particular type of industry while working poorly with others.

Word-of-mouth is the most effective and consistent marketing method for a bookkeeping and accounting business. It’s inexpensive, it’s the most direct approach, and it produces results.

I have three articles to help you get the most out of Word-of-Mouth marketing.

See: The best way to market an accounting and bookkeeping service

How to get a new client every week

Save time and money by finding clients near your home

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Other Articles about starting your business:

Accounting Tutorials:

Accounting and Bookkeeping Information

Selling:

Selling the benefits of your bookkeeping service

Make your first impression count

Five Tips to Strengthen Your Client Presentations

Outsourcing your bookkeeping

Marketing:

Finding Clients near home

Find leads at networking events

Promote your website

The best marketing strategy: word of mouth

Get a new client every week

Trade shows can be a gold mine!