Social media ideas for accountants
If you feel that social media isn’t really the place for accountants, you aren’t alone. Many accounting firms that we work with see social platforms as arenas for trendy start-ups and sole traders – but they can also be a useful place for serious and established businesses to reach larger audiences. In fact, 88.5% of businesses see social media as an important part of their digital strategy, so there’s no reason why accountants should miss out on the benefits it offers.
Here are seven ways social media marketing for accountants can be used to your advantage without compromising your brand identity and authority.
- Post to relevant channels
The first thing to determine is where to post your content. Accounting firms using social media would be justified in steering clear of Instagram and TikTok, but Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are platforms that will help you to build your brand awareness and keep content professional. LinkedIn is, after all, designed to connect businesses, and its users are more likely to engage with longform content than, say, Pinterest users. Facebook and Twitter meanwhile, have huge audiences, and individuals can benefit from the content you have to offer.
- Offer bitesize content
Offering tips and useful nuggets of information on social platforms is a great way to stay relevant and provide value to consumers. Whether it’s a handy shortcut on Excel, a trick that makes bookkeeping easier on Xero, or some general advice, there’s always someone who could benefit. Remember that while text is fine, an image tends to get more engagement.
- Invite your audience to contribute
Once you’ve built up a reasonable following on social media, you can begin to invite your audience to engage. Ask them what they’re most concerned about in the coming year – is it the rising cost of living and the impact on estate planning? Is it the introduction of Making Tax Digital for landlords? Perhaps they just want to know if their Amazon Music subscription is tax deductible. Think about conversations you’ve had with existing clients too, and create content that targets pain points they have raised.
Instead of presenting this content as a long-form article, try making videos that answer each question. You needn’t go into exhaustive detail – simply highlight the key points and invite consumers to find out more by visiting your website or having a chat with your team. In doing this, you’re offering something of value without giving away a service for free.
- Show the human side
Social media is a fantastic tool for showing the human side to your business. It offers a chance for customers to put faces to names and understand more about the people behind the brand. If you are involved with the local community, or take part in charitable activity, social platforms are the place to talk about it. Let others know which causes you care about and allow them to gain an insight into your company ethics and culture. This helps to create loyalty and trust while also providing some good PR for the business.
- Express opinions
As an extension of the previous point, don’t be afraid to express opinions on social media – as long as they align with the brand. Keep these opinions professional and on topic; perhaps the Chancellor has announced a measure in the Budget that you think deserves some analysis, or you feel there are particular advantages (or downsides) to a change in tax regulations. If your opinions create some constructive discussion, that’s great for your engagement levels.
- You heard it here first
As accountants, it’s part of your job to keep up with the latest news from the Treasury and HMRC. You can put this to good use by jumping onto LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter to share the latest announcement. Stick to the who, what and when – you can go into more detail in a blog post if you wish later on, outlining what the announcement means for taxpayers, businesses and so forth. If you can pick out a detail that’s particularly relevant to your clients and expand upon it, so much the better.
Showing your followers that you’re on top of the news indicates that you can be relied upon to deliver up-to-date and relevant information and advice when they need it, and that you can be proactive with your services.
- Share and shout out
Although social media for accountants will largely be about establishing your authority and building brand awareness, it shouldn’t always be about you. Let your followers know what you’ve been reading, or which relevant podcasts you’ve found interesting recently – or praise a colleague or other local firm for a presentation they’ve given at an event or conference. Pull a key insight out and highlight it so others can learn more too. Remember that including a picture or graphic in your post will help to boost engagement.
A note on monitoring
Don’t forget that amongst all this content creation, you need to carry out some analytical work. Monitor your posts to see how much engagement they get on the social platforms you’ve posted them to, and keep track of how much traffic has been driven to your site as a result of the posts. Over time, you’ll see what kind of content creates the most interest and engagement, and can refine your strategy accordingly.
Help with your accountancy social strategy
If you’re unsure about how to get started with your social media strategy for accountants, or you’re struggling to find inspiration, why not speak to the team at Whitefish Marketing? As a specialist marketing agency for accountancy firms, we can advise on everything from which social platforms to use to what sort of content to provide. We can even supply content on your behalf to ensure you maintain a consistent presence. Learn how we can help by getting in touch today.
