12 monthly tips to win new clients in 2017 using mobile technology

It’s the age of connections and a mobile App is the powerful connector that links accountants and clients on their smartphones or tablets in the here and now. Even on a tiny budget, it is possible to win new clients using mobile technology effectively. These 12 tips – one a month throughout 2017 – demonstrate how firms with a mobile strategy are successfully using the new technology to drive new business.

Website promotion with clear ‘call to action’

One of the main reasons why most landing pages are not converting leads into customers is a weak call-to-action. A call-to-action message should compel visitors to the site to take the right action, for example to download the firm’s App, but according to recent research, 70% of small business B2B sites do not even have a call-to-action.

Accountancy firms that offer their own mobile App free to their clients and prospects on the home page of their website attract large numbers of downloads and once it’s downloaded, it keeps on differentiating that accountant.

One successful firm promotes its’ mobile App by saying that it is ‘changing lives by simplifying business’ and there is a clear call to action to download the free App. Another firm uses the strap line; ‘Saving contractors time and money’ to encourage businesses to download the App and highlights the Net Pay Calculator as a useful tool.

Make automated technology work for you

Generating new clients can be time consuming, so why not let automated technology work for you. In this example, smartphone detection – a piece of invisible code embedded into the accountant’s website – detects when there is a potential client browsing and automatically asks them the question ‘we see you are looking at our website, would you like to download our free App?’

In the first week of using this automated tool, one small firm with limited budget and a sub £100K turnover used it to brilliant effect. A prospect visited their website, downloaded the free App and they arranged a meeting via the App.

The prospect even used the mileage tracker to get to the meeting and the engagement was finalised on that day.

Email signatures

Think about how many emails you send, here’s a neat idea to make these work for you without you having to work any further. Each time you send an email to a client, prospect or business colleague, it is very straightforward to add an email signature that encourages the download of the firm’s App. This can be taken a stage further by including a QR code that allows Tablets and Smartphones to simply scan and automatically download the App.
Invite your contacts to download the App

One Mayfair based accountant emailed his contact list with an invitation to download the firm’s App and in the days when walk-ins are a thing of the past, one prospect decided to turn up at the office and following a short interview, the engagement was sealed. The new client said he got the email and liked what he saw so decided to check the accountant out.

iPhone flyers

Presentations and Events

Instead of telling accountants to turn off their phones during a presentation, one accountant tells them to turn them on and download his App. This creates a memorable impression and the audience has all the tools including a mileage tracker, receipt management etc. at their fingertips long after the presentation is over. In an even smarter approach, event material can be preloaded to the App and delegates can refer to it within the App on their smart phones.

David Houston case study: http://www.myfirmsapp.co.uk/mfa-case-study/

Push Notifications

As one key influencer to the profession said: ‘Push notifications are a game-changer’. Because they go directly to the recipient within the App, there is a 0% bounce rate and an 80% higher open rate than email shots.

They take seconds to send and can be segmented to clients, prospects, sectors or everyone on your contact list. Smart firms use them to approach those that may be thinking of selling their business along the lines of ‘Thinking of selling your business, call now for a free business consultation.’

Affiliates and Referrers

One firm gave a Bank Manager its’ App and he then went on to give it to bank customers to use for loan calculations. He even showed them how to download it.

Telemarketing

Latest statistics suggest that it now takes an average of 2.5 days to generate one appointment. Telemarketing is not as effective as it once was if the objective is to set up a meeting with a prospect. But some firms are finding it easier to engage if they invite the prospect to download their free business App with mileage tracker and receipt management tool.

Think outside the box

It’s always great to hear accountant’s own stories about what works and how they have added to the number of App downloads.
Here are a few that caught our eye:

• Run a competition and give away a free iPhone to promote the new App
• Put together a video on what the App does and let clients and prospects see it
• Hang external banners on the outside of the office building to announce the App. One firm hung a banner outside its office and they picked up both downloads from passers-by and lots of coverage in the local press
• Railway station posters – if people are standing on a platform they have time to spare and may download the App
• Hire a cinema – one firm sponsored a film showing and used the screen as a call to action to download the App

This story might be of interest. An Australian accountant gathered his team together and asked them to spell out the biggest challenges facing the firm. The top two were to achieve better communication with clients and to find a better way to get data from them in a hassle free way. The accountant went back with a demonstration of an App and showed them how easily messages can be sent to clients and how easy it is to get data back. The team was won over and they saw how they were back in control with all the accounting systems and data integrated into one place on their clients’ smartphones or tablets.

The use of mobile technology in this way, links clients to tax authorities, 3rd party software suppliers and allows the accountant to keep control. Accountants give away something their clients want and they like using. Unlike other soft offers, it has longevity and what benefits clients, benefits the accountant.

 

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