Closing Deals by Hosting Seminars

Chris Perrino, Principal, Business Development, Barnes Dennig & Co., recently presented this program at the AICPA Accounting Firm Marketing Forum. He knows what he's talking about since Barnes Dennig hosts about 18 events per year. Their seminars are free. The goal of these events is to make client/prospect relationship development easier.

The three critical parts of seminar success - topic, topic, topic. The title needs to be honed, the speaker needs to be honed, and the topic choices should demonstrate your firm's industry expertise. Here are a few sample winning topics:

• Economic Reality for Manufacturers
• Rich Contractor, Poor Contractor: Pricing for Profits & What Makes a Good Contractor
• Building and Engaging Your Dream Board
• Tax Reduction Strategies for Developers

Here are a few other tips for seminar success:

• Entertaining speakers outscore those with better content.
• Send a "Save the Date" 6-8 weeks prior.
• Send weekly e-mail reminders starting one month prior.
• Expect 20% to 30% no shows.
• Consider holding seminars at not-for-profit client locations, e.g., museum.
• Do not hold seminars on Mondays or Fridays.
• Barnes Dennig's contractor seminars are hold at lunchtime, all others at breakfast.
• Consider co-sponsoring your seminar with a law firm or bank. Barnes Dennig hosts four seminars featuring "celebrity" speakers that are co-sponsored.
• Invite clients to have lunch with the celebrity speaker after the seminar.
• Follow up consistently.

What I've learned so far is that seminars can be an excellent source of new business. It is a face-to-face marketing tactic that demonstrates your firm's knowledge and expertise. Chris' final thought was that hosting seminars takes a lot of time, money, and patience. He's right, and that investment can deliver quite a return for your firm when implemented correctly.

Maximizing Marketing Communications

Mitch Reno, Chief Marketing and Sales Officer, The Rehmann Group, presented "Top 10 Ways to Maximize Collateral!" at last week's AICPA Accounting Firm Marketing Forum. Mitch was his usual entertaining self and provided us with a scorecard (below) and many examples.

• Select and Segment Audience (5 points) - REACH, correct profile, psychographic and demographic understanding
• Lead with a Headline (10 points) - USP, questions, emotion, humor, attention grabbing
• Create Arresting Visuals (15 points) - Use of color, size, unique images, brand building continuity
• Devise Clever Copy (15 points) - Relevant, clear & concise, easy to read, on point, actionable
• Add Dimension (5 points) - Pop-up and cut outs, 3D, and interactive
• Repeat and Touch Again (10 points) - Frequency, repeat content, create repetition within and across vehicles
• Call to Action (5 points) - Next step, easy to find and act
• Integrate MarCom Approaches (10 points) - PR, direct mail, events, electronic, broadcast, etc.
• Electrify Pathways (10 points) - Linked to emarketing, captures email, self-guided education reach
• Track Results and ROI (15 points) - Track and measure the impact of every investment

How do your collateral materials measure up?

AICPA Accounting Firm Marketing Forum '09

The Annual AICPA Accounting Firm Marketing Forum was held on January 15-16, 2009 in New York City. Walter Timoshenko, CMO, Weiser LLP and Sally Glick, CMO, Sobel & Company once again put together a fabulous program, this year focused on the theme of communication. Topics ranged from branding to collateral to events to crisis communications to social media to integrating all of these components.

I'll be sharing what I learned over the next week. For now I thought it would be fun for you to hear about the best ideas from the perspective of the participants. Enjoy!

Seven Keys to Successful CPA Firm Management

Capstone Marketing continues its research with Bay Street Group about the Seven Keys to Successful CPA Firm Management. Be a part of the study and receive a free copy of the results! Here are the links to all of the active surveys:

Job Satisfaction and Staff Development:
http://snipurl.com/cpa_staff_dev

Tech Savvy:
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey.zgi?p=WEB227T89QT852

Client Service, Satisfaction and Expectations:
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB228BQ3CVGBZ

Marketing and Business Development:
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/?p=WEB227NJYWY3KA

Leadership:
http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/survey.zgi?p=WEB228E6XGDMGK

People Are Paid to Do That

I was traveling back home after visiting family for Christmas headed to the baggage claim at Norfolk International Airport. While riding the moving walkway and talking on his cell phone an airline crew member dropped his newspaper. I called to him to let him know but he didn't seem to care. I picked up the newspaper and gave it back to him. Still talking on his cell phone he said to me, "People are paid to do that." Clearly, he was fine with leaving his garbage on the ground for someone else to clean up. Can you imagine if the newspaper was left on the moving walkway, rolling off onto the ground, to be trampled by thousands of people? I was so disappointed in his attitude.

As the New Year approaches let's make 2009 the year in which we are the doers, not those that expect things done for them. Let's examine how our actions affect others and how we can have a positive impact on our world. Let's be accountable. I know that many of you already exhibit these qualities; I always think there is room for improvement.

Happy New Year!

Winning Is Everything

The Advisory Board - Gary Boomer (Boomer Consulting), Allan Koltin (PDI Global, Inc.), Rebecca Ryan (Next Generation Consulting) and Gary Shamis (SS&G Financial Services, Inc.) - are getting ready for their 8th Annual Winning Is Everything (WIE) Practice Management Conference, January 28-29, 2009, at the Mandalay Bay Hotel, Las Vegas.

You may be cutting back on your conference budget given the state of the economy. However, the value of networking with your peers, learning from first-class speakers, and brainstorming ideas for your firm is greater than ever. In addition to its planned agenda WIE speakers will address economic issues and the importance of teamwork in achieving your goals.

Conference details can be found at www.winning-is-everything.com. Register by December 31, 2008 and receive the reduced Mandalay Bay room rate of $159!

What I've learned so far is that it's important to reenergize your internal battery. I'll be doing that at Winning Is Everything. I hope to see you there!

The Importance of Internal Marketing

In order to effectively identify clients’ needs and cross-selling opportunities your team must know about the services your firm provides. That was the motivation behind Yount, Hyde & Barbour’s Internal Trade Show this fall.

YHB’s industry and service teams were challenged to create exhibit tables that were set up after their Firm Day meetings and networking training provided by Capstone Marketing. The displays included signs, handouts and promotional items to educate firm team members about their areas of specialty. Many teams also sponsored games and prize raffles.

“Our YHB Trade Show was a huge success,” says Mark Rudolph, President & CEO. “Our team members were able to practice their networking skills as well as learn more about the services and capabilities of our firm. We will use what we learned today in our marketing activities going forward.”

Pictured (left to right): Brian Kling, CPA, Manager; Mark Rudolph, CPA, President & CEO; and, Greg Plotts, CPA, Manager.

What I’ve learned so far is that learning is continuous. Look for new and interesting ways to educate your team about your firm’s areas of expertise. This will result in added value for your marketing program.