What Local Accounting Firms Can Do To Optimize Their Google Business Profile

Optimizing a Google Business Profile is an important step for any local accounting firm that is looking to increase its visibility and attract new clients. By following best practices and using the available tools and features, firms can improve the performance of their Google Business Profile and increase the chances that potential clients will find and engage with their business. Here's what local accounting firms can do to optimize their Google Business Profile (GBP) listing.

Steps local accounting, tax and bookkeeping firms can take to optimize their Google Business Profile

1. Have a Completed Google Business Profile for your Accounting Business

One of the first steps in optimizing a Google Business Profile is to ensure that all of the information on the profile is accurate, up-to-date, and complete. This includes the business's name, address, phone number, and website, as well as details about the services that the firm offers and the areas that it serves. While most professional services will do the former, very few spend the time to do the latter. Providing accurate and complete information is important because it helps potential clients to find the firm on Google, and it also helps to build trust and credibility. Adding information about services provided takes very little time to do as you can often use the same information or content that is on your website or other sources. 

Best Practices:

• Make sure the Name, Address, and Phone Number are an exact match to what is on your website
• Add Hours of Operation
• Add Map directions
• Add Services and Service descriptions

2. Add Photos and Videos of your Accounting Practice and Team to your GBP

Another key step in optimizing a Google Business Profile is to add photos and videos to the profile. This can help to make the profile more engaging and interesting, and it can provide potential clients with a better sense of what the firm is like and what it offers. For example, firms can add photos of their office, staff, and services, as well as videos that provide information about the firm's services and expertise.

Best Practices:

• Office photos - exterior, front door, inside lobby
• Staff / team photos (with permissions to post)
• Company logos, certifications
• Company videos

3. Get Reviews from your Accounting, Tax, and Bookkeeping Customers on Google Business Profile and Respond to Them

In addition to adding photos and videos, firms can also optimize their Google Business Profile by encouraging customers to leave reviews. Reviews are an important part of the Google Business Profile, as they provide potential clients with insights into what it is like to work with the firm, and they can help to build trust and credibility. Firms can encourage customers to leave reviews by following up with them after they have received services from the firm, and by providing them with links to the Google Business Profile where they can leave a review.

Best Practices:

• Customer Reviews
• Company responses to customer reviews, even if only to thank or acknowledge them

4. Maintain your Firm’s Google Business Profile and Regularly Update It

Another way to optimize a Google Business Profile is to regularly update posts. 

Making regular posts to your Google Business Profile listing can provide several advantages for your business, including:

Increased visibility: When you post regularly on your Google Business Profile, your business listing will show up more frequently in search results, which can increase your visibility to potential customers.

Improved engagement: By sharing relevant and useful information about your business, you can increase engagement with your customers and build a stronger relationship with them.

Highlight special offers and events: You can use your Google Business Profile posts to promote special offers, events, and promotions to your customers.

Best Practices:

• Regularly monitor traffic
• Post or make updates to your accounting firms' Google Business Profile at least on a weekly basis (social media management tools make this easy) - post reminders of significant dates and events, and news about the office.

5. Promote Your Accounting Firm’s Google Business Profile

Most accounting, tax, bookkeeping, and consulting businesses will normally promote their firms' website. While this is important, if you are a local business, firms can also optimize their Google Business Profile by promoting it through other channels and platforms. For example, firms can include a link to their Google Business Profile on their website, in their email signature, and on their social media accounts. They can also include a link to the profile in their email marketing campaigns, and they can promote the profile to their network of contacts and potential clients.

Best Practices:

• Link to your GBP from your website. An embedded map on your website is an excellent way of doing this.
• Include links to your GBP from social media channels, and email

Optimize Your Google Business Profile and Drive Search Traffic to Your Local Accounting Firm

Optimizing a Google Business Profile is an important step for local accounting firms that are looking to increase their visibility and attract new clients. By following best practices and using the available tools and features, firms can improve the performance of their Google Business Profile and increase the chances that potential clients will find and engage with their business.

For more information on what local accounting firms can do to optimize their Google Business Profile contact the Accounting Marketing Experts at Fixyr