Tennis legend and insightful sportscaster John McEnroe recently fired his accountants (“John McEnroe Is Still Pretty Complicated,” The New York Times Magazine, August 24, 2008) “only after his former numbers men of 10 years ‘dropped the ball’ several times.” Known for his high expectations and “You can’t be serious!” attitude, I find it interesting that he endured several mistakes before making the change. What I’ve learned so far is that client retention is an important business strategy. How many dissatisfied clients are hiding in your client list? What are you doing about it?
Marketing Budget Wastes
A couple of months ago I had the pleasure of presenting “Beyond Basic: How Your Marketing Budget Impacts Your Firm’s Strategy and Your Career” to the AAM-NY Metropolitan Area Chapter. It was an interactive session including how to build a marketing budget, how much CPA firms are investing in marketing, and the impact a marketing budget can have on a marketer’s career. Here are several ways that marketing dollars can be wasted:
• Spending money to reach the wrong prospects/contacts.
• Generating leads that aren’t appropriate for your firm.
• Failing to follow up on leads.
• Overemphasizing new leads.
• Investing in passive initiatives without active participation.
• Losing people on your Web site.
• Failing to get the most out of your email marketing.
• Not knowing what you get for your money.
To receive a free copy of my presentation e-mail me at jcaragher@capstonemarketing.com. Simply put “Free Presentation” in the subject line.