3 Sales Communication Strategies for Accounting Firms to Close More Deals

We’ve all seen the popular stereotypes of “closers” in sales: flashy, aggressive people who pride themselves on being competitive and getting a deal no matter what. But in reality, these tactics are outdated and ineffective for connecting to modern accounting clients and prospects.

Today’s buyers don’t respond to pressure or slick presentations without much substance. Unfortunately, a significant portion of accounting professionals still don’t understand how to connect with prospects in a way that meets their needs while nurturing them towards a sale. According to data from Salesforce, nearly 3 in 4 B2B buyers say that most of their sales interactions feel “transactional.” Almost 60% say that sellers don’t take the time to understand their goals.

If you want to avoid these obstacles to closing sales in your own firm, below are a few key communication tactics to implement that will help you better connect with prospects:

Use real data for accounting firm sales communications

The complex nature of accounting services means the return on investment isn’t quite as obvious as it might be for other software tools or services. For example, plenty of studies have been released on the efficiency benefits of electronic signature (eSignature) technology, which can increase sales closing rates by 28%.

It’s not as easy to find a single quantifiable number for a complex service like accounting. Conversely, the benefits you can quantify tend to be significant improvements. One of the well-accepted advantages of working with an accounting service is the time your clients save. The best marketers know that using real numbers is much more persuasive than general statements.

Think about the following two statements:

“Our clients say we save valuable time for their executives.” 

“The CFO at Client X told us our service helped him save 7 hours a week on administrative approvals.” 

It’s clear to see which one will have more impact during a sales conversation. If you don’t have this kind of specific data and can’t find it online, you might think about running your own survey or collecting informal testimonials from your best clients. 

Avoid too much hard selling to accounting firm prospects

Ultimately, a sale requires your firm to get prospects to say yes and agree to sign a contract to retain your services. However, we see too many overeager accounting sales professionals try to rush into this stage when a client hasn’t been properly qualified or nurtured towards a close.

How do you find a balance between adding value and asking for the sale? We suggest Gary Vaynerchuk’s classic “jab, jab, jab, right hook” strategy. As Vaynerchuk describes on his blog, “jabs” are the value a company provides to their audience and “right hooks” are when the company asks their audience for something. And while he might have formulated this concept to apply to marketing, it’s useful for sales interactions too. In accounting, it’s rare to close a deal on the first interaction with a prospect. Make sure you’ve provided enough value (jabs) before you ask for their business (right hook).

Use solution selling to stand out 

For most of human civilization, merchants were expected to push their specific kinds of wares on prospective customers and rely on them to make the buying decision. Consider the typical bazaar format throughout history: blacksmiths, chefs, leatherworkers, tailors and other specialists would bring a standard set of goods and make them available to anyone who could afford them. 

In today’s era, the prevalence of information means that most buyers know what they’re looking for before they even begin searching for a vendor. To continue the bazaar analogy, there’s no need for them to walk around to see what all the merchants have available: they already know the exact specifications of the item they need. 

This situation has given rise to a sales strategy called solution selling. Some refer to it as the “trusted advisor” method. According to Salesforce, solution selling is a method of sales that “focuses on your customers’ needs and pain points and provides recommendations to solve them.” Ideally, this process should happen long before you even engage with a prospect. Throughout the sales process, you should use what you learn to align your services to your client’s needs as much as possible. 

Just remember that solution selling must provide a real, practical solution to prospects. You have to be honest about what will work best for their business – even if that means they don’t become a client right away. You may lose out on some revenue in the short-term, but you’ll gain respect and trust from prospects when they realize you’re not only focused on getting the sale at any cost. 

Sales communication doesn’t have to feel wrong

If you’re the kind of accounting professional who cringes at the idea of selling, hopefully we’ve helped ease your discomfort. Just remember that successful sales is less about forcing and more about matching. With the right practice management software, plus a good attitude about what sales really involves, you can improve your communication to help you close more deals and help your firm meet its goals.

Sponsored Content: This article is generously brought to you by one of our valued sponsors. Their support enables us to continue delivering expert insights and the latest industry trends to our dedicated community of accounting professionals.