The Covid-19 pandemic has created new and unprecedented challenges for all businesses. CPA firms have not remained untouched by it. With governments announcing lockdowns and social distancing norms, the way businesses operate has changed significantly. As the pandemic curve straightens, the emphasis is on returning back to business. So how do you re-build your clientele in a post-crisis situation? Will you get the help of outsourced accounting firms, embrace cloud computing, or build a new social media strategy?

Here are 5 strategies to re-build your clients and business relationships.

1. Build an Innovative Social Media Strategy

You will need a new and revamped social media strategy to rebuild your relationships with clients. How you interact with your clients will have to change.

1. Listen More: You must spend more time and effort in finding, engaging with, and answering customers on social media.
2. Post with Clear Purpose: Every time you post on social media, make sure there is a clear purpose. Determine who the post is intended for, how it informs or benefits them, and what change in behavior or thinking are you expecting.
3. Post About People: It has always been important to post about people and not just about your brand. This has become even more important in a post-pandemic era. Post about people that include your clients and people within your organization.
4. Run Influencer Marketing Campaigns: In times of uncertainty, people rely on people whom they trust or believe in. Start an influencer marketing campaign if you already don’t have it.

Trying new formats, new social media publishing schedule, elongating your sales funnel, and focusing on helping, not selling should be your new campaigns.

2. Ask Existing Clients for Referrals

It is important to realize that the clients who continue to stick with you after a crisis are highly loyal. They are in a special league. There is a very good chance that they will be happy to provide referrals.

It is interesting that this is one of the most overlooked strategies for building or re-building a business. As already mentioned above, people trust people they already know. You should also be ready to give something in return – most probably a business link.

3. Partner with Other Professionals

Partner with other professionals and services that your clients will be using. You can help these professionals with referrals and get referrals in return. Examples of such services include legal representation, recruitment services, investment advice services, and technology solutions.

This strategy can not only help build new clients but re-built relationships with existing clientele. 

4. Outsource Accounting Functions

Outsourcing accounting functions is a cost-effective step towards making your organization more efficient. There are many ways in which the benefits can be transferred to your clients, helping you build stronger relationships with them:

• Saves valuable time
• Reduces overhead costs
• Improves data security
• Access to additional services
• Make better decisions quickly
• Meet compliance requirements & minimize risks
• Increased profitability & valuation

One of the main benefits of outsourcing accounting is that it helps you retain clients and projects. It helps save time and allows you to focus on your core business processes. Freeing up time allows you to deliver your core services better and faster to your clients.

5. Embrace Cloud Computing

Given the challenges created by the need for social distancing, business operations rely increasingly on technology. Cloud computing can allow you to connect with your clients and continue providing services from anywhere. Services can be provided remotely. Thus, your services will no longer be affected by distance.

Cloud computing builds a foundation for remote working. Your clients will also value the enhanced levels of security provided by:

• Encryption
• Role-based access
• Multi-factor authentication

This will provide your clients peace of mind that their data, sensitive documents, and files will be safe.

So, it is recommended to follow these tips to re-build your clientele as a CPA firm.