Social Networking for Accountants – Don’t Get Left Behind!

Social networking sites are exploding in popularity, and the hype and interest continues to build. Facebook topped 200 million users in 2009 (Wauter 2009). But for most firms sorting the facts and benefits from the hype is an impossible challenge. The big question firms face is not what social networking is but what it means to your firm and what to do about it!

Our Social Networking for Accountants service provides the modern practice with an extremely exciting communication channel.  It is an effective way to communicate through a persistent channel with your most vocal customers and potential customers. By embracing social networking information firms can use it to help identify their most influential clients and source/find new potential customers.

Engaging with clients

Accountants are in fact perhaps the most likely of all social media customers. After all your client base is one of the most loyal and you are most likely their most trusted business advisor (Clients for Life).

Therefore we advise all firms that already have a good digital presence to embrace social networking at a basic level. Don’t get left behind!

This includes Linked In, twitter and Facebook. Insight have developed a unique package to help firms get started and benefit from social media.

The social package

• Registration to Twitter, Linked In and Facebook
• Design of email footer for all your staff to use that promotes your social sites
• Accounts linked to your current website
• Design of corporate accounts and background
• Email instruction to staff to set up staff linked in accounts
• Input of your current contacts through outlook or similar programme
• Available for just £500

Are these legitimate business tools for accountants?

Are social networking tools legitimate business tools for accountants and other professionals? Let us answer this question by looking at the volume and momentum of some of the social media tools in use today:

• Facebook currently reports over 200 million active users, over half of whom log on to the site at least daily.
• The fastest growing demographic in Facebook is those 35 years old and older.
• LinkedIn had over 12 million unique visitors and 48 million visits in the month of April.
• Usage of Twitter is increasing rapidly, with over 19 million unique visitors and 125 million visits in the month of April.
• All of the Big Four CPA firms have a presence on Facebook.
• The AICPA along with a large – and rapidly growing – number of state CPA societies have presences on both Facebook and Twitter.
• Intuit, Thomson Reuters, and Sage Software all have a presence on Facebook and many of their team members use Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to communicate.