Marketing Plans Michigan

CASE STUDY 1: PROFESSIONAL ADVISORY SERVICES FIRM

The Client:

A midsized CPA firm located in Southeast Michigan. The economic conditions in this area have been rapidly declining due to the state of the automotive industry. Many businesses‚ especially those who are localized and not selling nationally or worldwide are struggling to survive.

The Challenge:

There’s not much that this midsized CPA firm didn’t know about business. They had been in business for 33 years and had worked in a variety of industries‚ including light manufacturing‚ construction‚ transportation & distribution‚ and engineering & professional services. They had expertise in tax‚ assurance and specialty business consulting. They had many of the tools necessary to succeed‚ but didn’t know how to put it all together in a system that would allow them service their clients effectively‚ while still bringing in new business.

As a result‚ their rate of normal business attrition was exceeding the rate in which new clients were added to the fold. So‚ the trouble was‚ despite all of their business knowledge and the possession of the necessary tools to succeed ––– they weren’t experts on marketing and sales.

Our challenge was to stop and reverse their stagnant/declining trend in growth.

The Solution:

We started by finding out what they did well and putting together the evidence that would support the claims that needed to be made. Their reputation was one of the best in the state –––so what was it they did that other CPA firms couldn’t?

We contacted many of their customers to find out what they could do better. For the most part they said “nothing at all”. Some wanted to meet more often‚ however the majority were ecstatic with this CPA firm.

As we continued this discovery process‚ we determined that their Client Management was unparalleled. Response times were one of the fastest in the industry and to top it all off‚ the average client longevity was over a decade (12.22 years). These were all very encouraging things.

We concluded that it all came down to this: they simply were not generating any qualified leads. They were getting referrals (as is the case with many companies in professional service)‚ but not enough to exceed the normal rate of attrition.

We utilized the strengths of the Educational Marketing System (EMS)™. Based on the customer and prospect surveys‚ the competitive analysis and the industry analysis‚ we put together a four part lead generation campaign that would be delivered over the period of a year.

These four (4) direct mail pieces highlighted the top values of their specific Target Market. We sent them out every month for a year‚ tracking their responses both internally and through their website.

Leads started coming in. They were slow at first‚ but as the messages began to take hold‚ the leads picked up. The key here was delivering the right message to the right people at the right time‚ one of the strengths of EMS™.

The Result:

Within one year‚ they generated 15 new clients and new revenue of $110‚000‚ which was a 65% Return on the Investment that they had put in. And considering that fact that they typically retain their clients for an average of 12.22 years‚ they anticipate an estimated $1.2 million in direct business in that time period.

We’re gearing up for Phase 2‚ which will close the loop in the Marketing Process and allow them to effectively educate all their new prospects regardless of where they are in the Buying Cycle and create a continuous stream of clients as the prospects mature in the timeline.

The competition is shaking in their boots. More to come…