Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Poll #1
What best describes your role in your organization?
Partner, Owner or Niche Practice Leader Marketing Director or Manager Marketing Coordinator
Agenda
Identifying your niche practice value proposition and story Identifying top brand and lead generation strategies to grow your specialty practice Managing and measuring your marketing activities
Poll #2
What niches does your organization have in place? (check all that apply)
Specialty audits (i.e.. employee benefits, governmental, NPO, SEC, etc.) Tax services (i.e.. planning, consulting, etc.) Small business services (write up) Management advisory or consulting services Financial planning services Business valuation services Industry specializations Accounting or business management software CRM Security, privacy and/or disaster recovery planning Network services Other accounting niche Other technology niche
The 5 Ps of Marketing
Positioning - how youre going to define your place in the market Product or Service - what youre going to offer Price - how much youre going to charge for your services Place - who youre going to serve and where youll find them Promotion - the activities youre going to undertake to drive interest in these services
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Positioning
SWOT Analysis
Strengths Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats
Competencies?
Strengths and Weaknesses
Leadership
Your intention is to gain information that will enable you to create a differentiating positioning for your niche
Poll #3
Please check the statement that most applies to your organizations knowledge about your primary niche competitors:
We conduct annual research about our niche competitors and share it with the team We gain anecdotal information word of mouth about our niche competitors and sometimes share it with our team We dont conduct research about our niche competitors or pay attention to what theyre doing in our niche I dont know if we conduct research about our niche competitors
Benefits articulate the difference that you will make in your clients lives and businesses
They answer the WIIFM question Whats in it for me? or So what?
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Subscribing to niche publications get your news from the place they get theirs
Joining niche associations
Attending niche conferences and CPE opportunities -- get your education where they get theirs
Educate Others
Take the time to educate your niche team members in depth Share important messaging ideas and language with your marketing team Or vice versa, have the marketing team share these thoughts with service delivery personnel
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Place
Associations
And their constituencies or lists
Promotion
Next, youll need to identify what brand positioning, brand marketing, and lead generation activities youll undertake
In addition, use certifications or logos in the above and your letterhead and business cards
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Choose (or reaffirm) the activities that are most in-line with your niche positioning and ideal target client profiles:
Advertising
Public speaking
Networking and alliance development Trade conferences
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Teleprospecting
Seminar marketing Lunch and learns
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Poll #4
Which brand or lead generation marketing activities do you find most successful in marketing your niche? (check all that apply)
Advertising Public relations press, community outreach, sponsorships Article writing Public speaking Networking and alliance development Referral sources Trade conferences Surveys Direct mail Teleprospecting Seminar marketing Lunch and learns Internal networking with partners Other client cross selling activities Other
Referral sources
Existing clients if you do not feel you would be conflicted out
Meet regularly to review the calendar with all marketing activity owners
Discern patterns of success and also areas that havent produced the results you intended
Use it to manage your niche marketing investments and future marketing plans Use it as a reporting tool to track ROI
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Next Steps
Next Steps
Identify and document your niche strategies your core competencies, competitive differentiators and rallying messages in writing Document your firms brand positioning and ideal target clients in your plan Choose which brand positioning, brand marketing, and lead generation activities youll undertake this year Determine the audience that each activity will address, the objective, timing, owner, cost, and other elements in your marketing calendar Communicate your plans and outcomes internally
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Thank you!
Contact us at anytime!
Tamera Loerzel tamera@convergencecoaching.com 952.226.1780 Michelle Baca michelle@convergencecoaching.com 505.217.2094
www.convergencecoaching.com Copyright ConvergenceCoaching, LLC 2000-2008 All rights reserved.
Resources
Association for Accounting Marketing
http://www.accountingmarketing.org/required_rea dingCat.asp?readCat=Niche%20Marketing%20zxc%2 0Target%20Marketing
ConvergenceCoaching, LLC www.ConvergenceCoaching.com Contemporary Marketing by Louis Boone and David Kurtz Management by Bartol & Martin Marketing Management by Peter Dickson
www.convergencecoaching.com Copyright ConvergenceCoaching, LLC 2000-2008 All rights reserved.
Resources
List Brokers
Dunn & Bradstreet at www.dnb.com InfoUSA at www.infousa.com Melissas Lists Chamber of Commerce
Resources
AICPA
http://www.aicpa.org/ebpaqc http://www. aicpa.org/tax
AICPAs Marketing: Successful Strategies for CPA Firms and Successful Selling Strategies for CPA Firms self-study video courses
For more information or to order, visit www.cpa2biz.com
Marketing Toolkit
http://www.aicpa.org/Professional+Resources/Public+Accounti ng+Firm+Resources/CPA+Marketing+Toolkit/