If you’re marketing your services to small and mid-sized business (and what CPA firm isn’t?), then take a look at what leading marketers are saying.
SMB marketers are spending most of their money on direct mail and telesales for generating leads. But according to Warrillow & Co., they are shifting big dollars into electronic media:
– Email marketing
– Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
– Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
The Question: How long can CPA firms stand by the sidelines? READ MORE →
How NOT to use color in financial reports.
by Rick Telberg
for Hewlett-Packard
With color printers becoming commonplace in business, it’s surprising so few tax and accounting professionals have taken a moment to learn a few basic rules about how to use color effectively.
After all, crunching numbers is only part of your job. And crunching numbers, by itself, isn’t enough these days. The numbers are useless – even your analysis is useless – if you can’t communicate effectively. This is where the smart use of color in printed reports becomes essential. You don’t need a degree in art or design. But some guidelines may help. READ MORE →
What professionals are looking for.
Join the study; get the instant download.
by Rick Telberg
If only software lasted as long as a good hammer, wouldn’t that be nice? You buy Hammer version 2.0 not long after you buy your first house, use it for 50 years, then hand it down to the next generation.
But it isn’t often you hear a CPA say, “Son, I used this software application before you were born, back when we didn’t even have fax machines, and it’s still got a lot of good use in it. I hope I can trust you to take care of it, appreciate it and hand it down to your children.â€
It’s good that software obsolesces, of course. A little expensive, but good. Yesteryear’s software seems dumber than your father’s hammer, and the version that just came out practically guarantees to let you do a week’s worth of work before lunch on Monday. READ MORE →
You’re not alone.
What do CPAs want? Join the study; get the instant download.
by Rick Telberg
At Large
Finance and accounting professionals seem to have a love/hate relationship with their most-used software applications. But nowhere is this more apparent than their relationships with their accounting software.
So, if you’re shopping around for new accounting software, you’re far from alone.
Bay Street Group Research is showing that the percentage of CPAs considering switching accounting software packages far exceeds the 50 percent divorce rate for American marriages. READ MORE →
… so writes Paul Quigley, Editor of the London-based A&F365
Newly-appointed CEO Bob Greifeld, who heads up the NASDAQ, doesn’t seem to understand the difference between a 38% mark-up and a 38% gross profit margin. “What is more shocking,” Quigley says, “is that this is the head of the organisation whose recent intent is to take over the London Stock Exchange.”
From The London Times:
Profit and loss: Nasdaq chief lacks skills in economics
Bob Greifeld, the chief executive of the Nasdaq stock market, admitted under oath that he did not understand how to calculate gross profit margin, one of the most rudimentary formulas in business accounting. The admission is humiliating for Mr Greifefld, an MBA graduate who is in the thick of a hostile bid to take over the London Stock Exchange, one of the most significant moves of his career.
— Go the Times article…
— Click to view video of Greifeld’s testimony… READ MORE →
DEXTER, MI [News Release] – Thomson Creative Solutions, a business of The Thomson Corporation (NYSE: TOC; TSX: TOC), announced today that more than 100,000 clients of Creative Solutions customers are being served using portal technology.
This includes clients using NetClient CSâ„¢, a full-service portal system; NetStaff CSâ„¢, which provides portals to a firm’s professional staff; UltraTax/1040 Portals, designed specifically for annual 1040 clients; and Web Employee, a portal service for the employees of the accountant’s clients to view personal payroll information online. This marks a significant milestone for Thomson Creative Solutions customers, representing a 50% increase in portal usage over the last year. READ MORE →
