Usually, the Expandly blog features the latest topics and tips for eCommerce businesses, but this week we thought it was time to give our other customers (eCommerce accountants and bookkeepers) some love. And, where better to start than with how to win more eCommerce accounting and bookkeeping clients. Here we go:
Why attract eCommerce clients?
Before we jump straight into how to attract eCommerce clients, let’s take a quick look at why you should want to attract eCommerce accounting clients.
Growth
eCommerce is a rapidly growing industry, with global sales predicted to reach $5.8 trillion by 2022. Accordingly, it’s an industry known for volume, growth, profits and revenue – an attractive combination for any accountant or bookkeeper. It also means that there’s a big pool of potential clients out there – all trying to spend more time growing their business and less time fiddling with numbers (that’s where you come in).
Client variety
We’ve all heard the advice of picking a market and sticking to it, but what if you like a little variety in your life? eCommerce offers the perfect solution – an industry that you can focus on and penetrate, but with enough variety to make every day interesting. From gadgets and homeware to retro games and edible insects – businesses really do sell everything and anything online, and you can get involved.
Tech savviness
eCommerce is fuelled by technology, meaning that eCommerce clients are incredibly open to learning and using new tech in their own business. Forget trying to persuade a client that cloud accounting really is safer – online retailers will happily adopt new software that makes your life easier and their life cheaper.
Recommendations
Finally, it’s definitely worth mentioning the community spirit of online sellers. eCommerce businesses form seller groups across the internet – sharing tips, discussing problems and recommending businesses. Provide an outstanding service, and you could easily find yourself being recommended as the go-to eCommerce accounting or bookkeeping firm among numerous groups.
How to attract eCommerce clients
So, you’re sold – eCommerce is the way to go, and now you just need to get there, but how. In attracting more eCommerce clients, your growth strategy should include the following activities as a must:
Increase your capacity
First, you want to ensure that you can take on as many eCommerce clients as possible, without it affecting the level of service that you provide. Boost your accounting productivity by stripping back meetings, using multiple screens, cutting down the time spent in your inbox, and using sales channel to Xero integration software to automatically push and approve orders to Xero.
Form partnerships
Next, it’s a great idea to form partnerships with other ecommerce-focused businesses such as Xero, eCommerce software providers and webstore developers. Not only can they recommend your services to their clients (and vice-versa) and keep you up-to-date with the industry, but you can also boost your reputation by becoming associated with industry players.
Tip: Find out more about the Expandly accounting partnership package today by emailing [email protected]
Get reviews
If anyone knows the importance of online reviews, it’s eCommerce sellers. Online reviews influence 95% of consumers – making them vital for the success of your eCommerce growth strategy. Pick a specific review site to focus your attention on, and ask previous and current clients to get reviewing.
Offer complementary services
Running an eCommerce business can be pretty hectic – with multiple sales channel(s), marketing channels, suppliers and customers buzzing about. Create a USP by offering complementary services that help eCommerce business owners (and you) out. For example, Expandly multi-channel management software makes it easy for you to import client’s sales orders from all of their sales channel(s) into Xero automatically, but it also offers additional features for your eCommerce customers including:
- Bulk and multi-channel listing;
- Live inventory management;
- Cross-channel order management;
- Bulk shipping label printing; and
- Reporting.
Not only does your client get a faster and more reliable accounting service, but they also benefit from a tool that will make their (and your) day-to-day easier too.
Marketing
Finally, you want to be marketing your eCommerce accounting services in all the right places. Regularly update your Twitter account, join eCommerce groups on Facebook, perfect your Google Ad Words campaign and network at all the must-attend eCommerce events and conferences of 2019.
Final thoughts
eCommerce clients offer a huge opportunity for accountants and bookkeepers; an opportunity that is only going to get bigger. Using these top tips, you can start building your reputation as the go-to eCommerce accountant or bookkeeper today, ready to scale your business tomorrow.
Expandly accounting partnerships
If you’d like to know more about how Expandly helps eCommerce accountants and bookkeepers, and how you can benefit from an Expandly accounting partnership, read this blog and get in touch at [email protected].
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