"At the time we started with a marketer, we had a good reputation, but no brand image, no marketing culture, no awareness in the market, and a very unpolished presentation," says partner Bill Hogan of Chicago-based John R. Waters & Company. "We were still a small firm, but were having success recruiting great people. To keep them, I knew we would have to provide them with a career track. To do that, we had to grow. Given our structure, I knew that I couldn't do it alone, and would need the help of a marketer." Now, three years later, Waters has almost doubled in size, created a solid image in the marketplace, honed a more polished presentation, and developed a marketing culture internally.
"I remember during the interview warning Linda Forbes, our marketing director, that she'd be expected to start a new department, and that while the partners would support her, she was expected to do most of the heavy lifting," recalls Kevin O'Connell, managing partner of Macias Gini & Company, Walnut Creek, Calif. "We'd never really focused on marketing prior to Linda's arrival. Each of our partners had a good sense of their local markets and did a great job generating new business. Working with Linda, we started to realize that marketing is more far-reaching than generating new business. She's helped us to create a comprehensive marketing plan that integrates with our overall strategic plan for the firm. We've worked on our more foundational areas, improved our messaging and our internal and external communications, developed better lead tracking, created more professional collaterals, had greater coverage in the media, and the list goes on."
"If you want pretty printed materials, hire a graphic artist," says Lyne Noella, director of corporate strategy at California-based Stonefield Josephson. "If you want a thoughtful strategy that combines a firm's internal talents with market opportunities, and someone who can help you make your ambitious goals happen, then you're ready for a marketing professional."
Advertisement
|
Three Quick Tips Consultant Gale Crosley gives a number of pointers for making the most out of your marketer. They include: 1. Change the title from "director of marketing" to "director of practice growth," which is reflective of the more enhanced role and expectation of the next generation of directors of marketing; 2. Include them in all partner meetings of strategic content, even if only as an observer; 3. Ask your director of practice growth to re-write their job description, goals, and compensation scheme. Tie their goals and compensation directly to practice growth. |
An Established Position
Accounting may be a culture of conformity and compliance, but marketing is "a high-energy, fast-paced culture of innovative ideas and aggressive initiatives, where failure is a part of the business," writes consultant Troy Waugh in his book Power Up Your Profits, 31 Days to Better Selling for Accountants (published by Wiley & Sons). At the least, marketers can produce marketing collateral, handle logistics of seminars and newsletters, and produce leads and prospects, Waugh confirms. "They may even be able to train you and your staff on customer service or sales. But they aren't you," he writes, adding that properly using marketers takes awareness and planning. You need to train yourself to use marketing help effectively, and you need to make sure you have the right person who can work with you. Marketers see the huge void of marketing talent in the profession. But they don't see the minefield of conservatism."
