Sales Leads and Appointments for Accounting, Tax, and Financial Services
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Being honest about your limitations is important in appointment setting. Because, during the first few minutes of the meeting, the last thing you want to give a prospect is disappointment. More specifically, it is disappointment from being unable to receive the clear, accounting prediction they have been hoping for.
If you’re outsourcing to get your accounting leads, then it’s only natural that you apply the same BPO standards to them as your own clients do to you. There’s no doubt that the processes can be different but as far as outsourcing goes, you and your outsourced lead generator will have a lot in common.
Now there are many ways to generate accounting leads. From a simple, singular approach to a complex, integrated, multi-channel approach. But for simplicity’s sake, try first comparing yourself to a telemarketing company. You’ll find that you both still share the following basic requirements:
So far, there’s barely a mention of how different your services are from telemarketers. It would be the same had you compared yourself to other forms of lead generation, even multi-channeled ones. It doesn’t matter whether it’s onshore or offshore lead generation either.
Perhaps that’s a good thing. Since you both are familiar to the common standards expected of all BPO firms, you will know what to expect of them when it’s your turn to to do the outsourcing. They must have a secure database, a dedicated, work force, cost-efficiency, and top-of-the-line expertise. Outsource your lead generator, the same way your customers would outsource to you.
Outsourced accounting isn’t an entirely new B2B industry. However, with the rise of the internet, it has enabled such companies to gain more exposure in eyes of their target market. This includes you but it also includes your competitors. Have you ever then wondered how they managed to set appointments with so many business prospects more than you despite the fact that you use the same online strategies?
This is even under the assumption that you’re both doing the same thing. Both of you are in a neck in neck race for top search engine rankings. You each have a reputable LinkedIn reputation with over hundreds of connections. You even take time to compile email contact information into a list so as to send them your newsletter.
What are you missing then? Here are some things to consider:
All these three have one thing in common: the qualification process. It doesn’t matter what method you use, if you don’t know how to handle lead qualification well and set up a good filter, then you either won’t generate a lot of leads or the ones that you do always end up dead and dry.
Back then, companies used to generate and qualify sales leads via telemarketing. However, the rise of anti-telemarketing laws in countries like Canada and Australia seems to have intimidated a lot of them into using online methods thinking it would keep them safe. Frankly, such fears are baseless because even today’s telemarketing services are aware of what such laws actually mean. The old ways still work and in fact, these laws are more likely to boost the telemarketing filter than hamper it because it roots out private citizens (the last thing a B2B telemarketer would want to call.)
Going back to the three possible causes above, they can be avoided if you use all means to carefully and thoroughly qualify your leads. This means you need to find out more about your target, meaning less talking about yourself. It means you must be ready to get additional information (like how they would like their accounts handled, when and how they would like their reports etc). Communication with you should be open to all channels (be it online or the phone).
Companies shouldn’t be afraid to explore all means of getting sales opportunities regardless even they’re Canada sales leads or Singapore sales leads. Your options aren’t all that limited but you will limit your chances until you make use of everything to build a strong filter for such leads.
A lead is a lead is a lead.
The importance of a business lead holds no bounds. Acquiring a potential client can “almost” be a cause for celebration. When an organization gets a whiff of a certain someone or any information regarding another business that is interested in one’s products or services, then said organization is now one step closer into making a long-term relationship with their newfound client. Doing so can lead to many more sales transactions in the coming months (or even years).
Business leads are even a greater importance to accounting firms. Yes, you may be sick of the phrase that “a lead is a lead is a lead,” however, there is a reason behind the different level of importance for accounting leads than prospects for other industries.
Let us look at some examples shall we?
First of all, when a business starts out one part of their operations will be, of course, accounting. Simply speaking, said businesses cannot exist without this department. They are the professionals that undergo daily tasks regarding data handling with regards to sales, purchases, and expenses. Aside from this, they also compile and prepare tax reports, general auditing, and even computing periodic payroll statements.
Additionally, people tend to safeguard any information regarding their financial data and output. Think about it; how would you feel if some stranger suddenly asks you about your financial status?
So what does this have to do with getting accounting leads?
In short, accounting firms need to create a suitable interest for other companies to outsource their accounting services to them. Hence, when a prospect shows interest, it is not just a single step to acquiring that much needed sales transaction but maybe even that of a giant leap.
Doing all these lead generation procedures may be time and money consuming for the accounting firm’s part. The best thing that they can do is to outsource to a telemarketing firm to handle accounting marketing campaigns.
Why are professional telemarketers the key to the lead generation campaign’s success?
Number one, today’s call center industry breeds professional sales representatives that expertly handle each and every call that they make. They are able to adapt to situations brought upon them by the accounting lead. Therefore, if they are bombarded with objections they can still skillfully generate interests that can convert sales ready leads into respected clients for the accounting firm. If said lead shows no progress or no interest whatsoever, then they can let go of the lead and still safeguard the firm’s name.
One of the best things about outsourcing the accounting marketing campaign to a professional telemarketing company is the advantage of being able to target leads with near pinpoint accuracy. This is due to the their highly detailed and lengthy list of leads they use to target the accounting firm’s markets. So for example, if the firm wants to target Australia as their main target market, then the telemarketing company screens their list for leads only located in the land down under.
There are still other major benefits that accounting firms can obtain from their outsourced lead generation campaign if it handled by a professional telemarketing company. These firms should contact a reliable call center to know more on how they can start their outsourced campaign.
Along with medicine and law, accounting remains as an in-demand service whether the economy is peaking or at its lowest ebb. Hailed as the language of business, this function is used to determine a firm’s financial position, performance and cash flows. Aside from this basic form, accounting is of great help in budgeting, forecasting, investing and other relevant decisions. It is also engaged in top-notch missions, like auditing, management advisory and litigation support. With a limited pool of professionals, some companies seek the expertise of CPAs and accountants from accounting firms.
The need for accounting services is what forced professional accountants to form partnerships. Before, these organizations are flocked with clients from a variety of industries. However, today, the growing population of accounting firms has changed this situation. Though the established, big names in this service sector are enjoying their sales performance, small-and-medium businesses may not be on the same page. Even if their goals aim on providing solutions, these firms also need accounting services leads to continue their services.
In order to obtain qualified appointments with clients, there is a need for an effective accounting lead generation. However, there are three problems that hinder accounting firms to accomplish this responsibility. First, who would handle the task? They cannot sacrifice their own services just to concentrate on marketing. Their core competencies are still their lifeline. Second, what must be done? Generating accounting leads, like tax leads, bookkeeping leads, audit leads or cpa leads, requires a good program, budget and procedures. Only few can craft all of these requisites while doing their own homework. Third, how to implement this function? Well, it can only be answered when the two preceding queries are solved.
It would also come as a big burden for an accounting firm to shoulder this non-core function. Hiring additional employees, buying equipment and spending time in monitoring is not a feasible plan. In this case, the professional partnership has to look for another and better option. Actually, they can scout for a lead generation specialist in the form of an outbound call center. As they look for their partner, they have to consider the number of accounting service leads they need and the limit of their budget. If they need a small number of leads and that their funds are very tight, then the best thing to sign up for is an outsourced telemarketing.
Perhaps, some accounting service providers are not anymore new to outsourcing and not a total stranger with telemarketing and outsourcing. Several companies have been using cold-calling to get new clients, and win more sales. However, they could not do so in-house because of the large costs involved and the complexity of the function. Partnering with a service provider can remove these obstacles. How? BPO partners usually charge lower costs than the total expenses to be incurred with an on-site campaign. Apart from that, the challenges can be eliminated with the skills of the professional telemarketers, good management and quality systems, and technology used by a credible appointment setting company.
Accounting firms have to adapt with the changing times. They cannot rely too much on what they have, but focus their attention and ample time on their core competencies. One important undertaking that they should strengthen is B2B lead generation. To succeed on this function, they need to partner with the experts. Through outsourced telemarketing, they can use their limited funds to buy high-quality leads and appointments.
