Posted by Angelica Garcia
Jan 03, 2025
Share
Expanding its service line and reaching more clients are some of the top goals of any accounting firm.
However, it’s not always easy to achieve since many factors can affect the success of your expansion efforts, including the size of your firm and its reputation in the industry. But there are also some things you can do to make sure you’re on the right track.
In this article, we’ll discuss some of the most effective ways to expand your accounting firm's services and grow its client base.
Understanding Your Current Services
Before thinking how to expand services, it is important to have your data ready and take a look at your current offerings.
To start, you may do a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) to get a clearer picture of your firm's current status.
Doing this gives you a better overview of what services you provide for your clients and identify potential gaps or areas for improvement that can serve as a solid foundation to begin expanding your firm’s services.
1. Assess client needs
One way to do it is by conducting an interview or a discussion with your existing clients to understand more of their pain points and additional services they might be interested in.
2. Evaluate internal resources
After assessing what your client's needs are, you should be able to determine or evaluate whether you have the necessary expertise, technology and staff to support your new services.
3. Compare your firm to others
Finally, do benchmarking with other leading firms in the accounting industry so you get to know and identify the potential gaps in your service offerings.
Read: Spearheading Change: How to Direct your Company’s Growth
How To Expand Services
Now that you understand and have assessed your current service offering, it’s now time that you start thinking about how to expand your firm’s services. Here are some tips on how you can do it:
1. Offer More Services
One way to expand is by adding new services to your list, since many clients nowadays prefer accounting firms that provide a broad range of services beyond just bookkeeping.
Here are some services you can consider adding:
- Tax Planning and Preparation
This is one of the most common services that accounting firms offer. It involves helping clients with their tax planning and preparation, which includes filing tax returns on their behalf.
- Financial Advice
Many businesses are also looking for financial advice—especially those who are just new to this endeavor. You can offer them your expertise to help them make better decisions about their finances and investments.
- Payroll Management
Payroll management is another service that many clients are looking for, especially those who have several employees. You can offer payroll management to help them with their payroll needs and ensure that all of their employees are paid on time.
- CFO Services
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) services are a growing need for businesses that require executive-level financial expertise but lack the resources to hire a full-time CFO. Offering this type of service can give clients access to the strategic insights and leadership they need.
2. Create Tailored Marketing Strategies for Your Firm
After adding more services, it’s time to focus on your marketing efforts. This initiative plays an important role in growing your client base and effectively communicating the value your firm offers.
Here are some steps you can take to build a strong marketing plan:
- Understand Your Target Audience:
Identify the type of clients that aligns well with your brand. You can do this by looking at your current customer base and seeing what types of companies they are. You can also use market research to find out who is looking for the services that you offer.
- Build a Website
A website is one way to showcase your expertise in the industry since you will get to showcase your service offerings and testimonial on this page.
- Optimize your Website for SEO
Building a website and filling it with content is just one side of the equation. To attract your ideal audience, you must optimize your pages and articles by using targeted keywords and offering value-adding insights. Doing so can increase your brand’s visibility in search engines and even position your brand as a credible thought leader.
- Try Email Marketing
Another way to build and nurture relationships with prospects is by having email marketing campaigns. A way to do this is by sending newsletters, promos, and other service offers to your email list.
Even if they’re not yet ready to engage in a partnership, you can at least loop them to important information about your services. It can also help you ensure that your firm remains on top of their mind once they’re ready to outsource your services.
- Social Media
Utilize social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube to reach and connect with potential clients.
You can do this by showcasing your expertise, sharing success stories, case studies, or engaging in Q&A sessions and live discussions. Sharing insights into your company culture can also give clients a glimpse of your work environment.
3. Get the Best Technology to Scale Your Operations
To streamline processes and make it easier for your team, get the best technology out there. This will help scale your operations and make it easier for everyone in the company.
Here are some tools to consider:
- Cloud Accounting Software
Cloud accounting software allows you to work and collaborate with clients in real-time, making it easier to manage their accounts. Unlike other general business tools, accounting software is specifically designed for handling financial data and offers specialized features that track expenses, generate reports, automate bank reconciliation, and provide multi-user access with specific permission levels. This ensures that both accountants and clients can work efficiently and securely.
- Automation Tools
Use automation tools to automate repetitive tasks. Aside from saving time, it can also help your team focus on more strategic, higher-level tasks.
- Train Your Team
If you want to offer more and level up your services, then it's time to consider training your team to ensure they are ready to handle new challenges in their role.
You can do this by hiring a professional trainer or using online courses. You can also consider having a mentorship program where your employees can learn from each other and share their experiences. This will help them develop new skills that will benefit your firm in the long run.
4. Stay on Top of the Trends
Another way to expand is by staying updated on the latest industry trends. This will help you stay ahead of your competition and ensure that you are offering the best services possible.
Here are some ways to stay informed:
- Join accounting groups or forums.
- Read industry news and blogs.
- Take online courses or attend webinars to learn new skills.
Related: Top 6 Free Online Accounting Courses for PH Professionals
5. Build Partnerships
Lastly, if you want to build and grow your firm faster, then it's time to consider partnering with a third-party that offers similar services. Doing this will help you expand your reach and offer more value to your clients.
You can do this in two ways: work with a company that offers complementary services or join forces with another company in your industry, such as an accounting outsourcing provider.
Not only does this give you access to a wider talent pool, but it also benefits your firm in the long run as you will achieve higher cost savings without compromising the quality of your service delivery.
Moreover, you can optimize these benefits by outsourcing services, typically in a lower-cost location like the Philippines. This way, you can keep your service top-notch while cutting down on expenses.
Read Next: A Comprehensive Guide To Accounting Outsourcing Services
In Need of a Reliable Accounting Outsourcing Partner?
Consider D&V Philippines. D&V Philippines is a business process outsourcing firm specializing in finance and accounting that has been in the industry for more than a decade.
Serving clients all around the globe, we pride ourselves on delivering quality accounting solutions. You may talk directly with our expert today to find out more about how we can help you.
You can also read testimonials from our clients and access our whitepaper D&V Philippines’ Solutions for Modern Accounting Firms to know how we can build a great back-office support for your organization.
