Accountants, you’ve probably heard the saying: riches are in the niches. And while that’s absolutely true, trying to figure out the best way to create an effective go-to-market (GTM) strategy around your niche can be complex.
A quick Google search will likely leave you scratching your head. What should you do, and when should you do it? Do you need a landing page or website? Should you post on social media or run paid ads? What about in-person networking?
The truth is, months of work and refinement go into a niche GTM strategy, and it’s not a one-off scenario. Strategies evolve, and your foundational efforts are what matter most. Your GTM approach will help you appeal to the right people at the right time.
So, where do you begin?
First, you must define the clients you prefer working with the most.
Identify Your Ideal Client
Creating an ideal client profile (ICP) helps firms achieve a 68% higher win rate. You’ll start with understanding who you want to work with. If your firm caters only to businesses, go narrower.
Let’s say you like the real estate industry. Continue to drill down. Who in this niche do you prefer working with?
Developers?
Managers?
Brokers?
Investors?
Drill your ICP down to as narrow as you possibly can. You can always expand later.
If you want to focus on individuals, start with a persona. Learn about your clients and who they are, including:
Age range
Gender
Location
Occupation
Income levels
Needs
Challenges
Values
Firm owners struggling to identify their ideal clients should spend time thinking about who they want to work with. Reviewing your current clients is a great start, but it’s okay to branch out into a new niche. Choose an ICP made up of clients you wouldn’t mind working with day in and day out.
Pick a niche you can truly immerse yourself in, one where you want to attend all the conferences, listen to every podcast, and become a thought leader in the industry.
Your work becomes far more meaningful and fulfilling when you do something you genuinely love for clients who value and appreciate your expertise.
Your positioning will naturally appeal to these unique clients, and your offer will hit on their pain points to solve their problems.
Determine Your Unique Positioning
Once you have your niche, it’s time to determine your unique positioning. Your point of view and approach are different, even if you don’t realize it yet. Prospects need to know why they should choose you out of all of their options.
Unsure of the answer?
Take the time to define your approach and beliefs:
What makes you different from your competitors?
What financial areas are you strongest in?
Are there complex issues you can solve when others can’t?
Do you believe a certain approach is overhyped and not in the best interest of clients?
Your firm may have its own way of doing things, such as a more hands-on approach or a way of communicating that saves clients time. Remain consistent in your positioning and build yourself up as an authority in your niche.
Once your unique positioning is established, it’s time for the fun part: your offer.
Create an Irresistible Offer for Your GTM Strategy
What makes your offer so good that people say, “I need that now?” Alex Hormozi has a great book called $100M Offers that talks a lot about how you can create one. I recommend reading that book if you haven’t already.
Alex has a core value formula, which is Value = (Dream Outcome × Perceived Likelihood of Achievement) / (Time Delay × Effort & Sacrifice).
In other words, value is equal to what your prospect wants and how likely they believe they’ll get it, divided by how long it will take and how hard it will be.
To put this into practice, here’s an example a tax firm can use: We help [niche] legally reduce their tax bill by [$X] per year with proactive strategies. We deliver your custom plan within 10 business days, with zero effort on your part. No CPA switch required, and no risky loopholes. If we can’t find you at least [$XK] in savings, you get a full refund.
Spend time refining your offer before you move on to the next phase.
Develop and Refine Your Packages
Now that you’ve nailed down your offer, let’s refine it and break it down into packages. The goal is to make it as easy as possible for clients to take the next step. One way to achieve this is to create an intro offer that leads to tiered, recurring packages that are relevant to your niche.
Here’s an example of what your packages may look like if you offered CFO advisory services for small businesses.
Introductory Offer: Your 30-Day Financial Roadmap (One-Time Fee)
60-minute financial strategy session
Custom cash flow forecast
Key financial metrics analysis
Growth and profitability recommendations
Monthly Recurring Packages:
Essential
Strategy call
Monthly KPI tracking and financial review
Cash flow forecasting and management
Growth
Everything in the Essential package
Profitability optimization strategies
Budgeting and forecasting with scenario planning
Access to CFO office hours 2x per month
Elite
Everything in the Growth package
Full financial modeling for scaling
Hiring and compensation strategy
Investor/lender financial presentations
Keep in mind that this is just an example structure. Your offerings will likely be very different. Just make sure that your packages are relevant to your clients’ needs and deliver the value they expect.
Develop Your Marketing Strategy
Creating your packages is just one piece of the puzzle. If you want to attract clients, you need to promote them.
Every marketing strategy is unique, but there are some foundations to master first. We’ll walk through those.
Build a Website
Yes, even today, you should have a website. When someone hears about you for the first time, they will most likely go and search for your website. In fact, 97% of people learn about a local company online more than anywhere else. If you don’t have a website, potential clients won’t be able to get the information they want or need.
The good news when it comes to your website? It doesn’t need to be complicated. It just needs to communicate the right message to the right people.
A basic website is all you need right now. My only tip? Make sure it’s not too generic if you want to appeal to a certain niche (and you should!).
Be Active on Social Media
Social media will play a fundamental role in your marketing strategy. That being said, I recommend taking a conservative approach at first. The last thing you want is to spread yourself too thin and feel overwhelmed.
Start with one platform. Master it. Then, you can think about expanding to new platforms.
Be intentional about social media and focus on the relationship-building aspect. Here’s how:
Add new connections regularly
Engage with others
Start conversations
Leave insightful comments on posts
Create your own original content
All of these components work together to create a well-rounded social media strategy that attracts leads and builds valuable connections.
You can watch my webinar on mastering social media here
Implement Signal-Based Outreach
Most people don’t need multiple accountants, which means you need to target the right people within your niche at the right time. Instead of blasting cold emails and social media inbox messages at random, look for signals that suggest a real need: funding rounds, hiring activity, new leadership, or expansion within your niche. These clues tell you who is likely entering a buying window. Use that intel to reach out when your offer is most relevant, when prospects are primed to say “yes.”
Once you have a marketing plan, you can shift your focus to another important part of your overarching strategy: networking.
Weave in Networking
Your website and social media are a great start. Now it’s time to weave in networking to build face-to-face relationships and make valuable industry connections.
Not sure where to start? Here are some tips:
Attend industry events. In today’s digital world, having an online presence is crucial. But it’s equally important to have a physical presence and start attending in-person industry events. See if you can speak at conferences. Even if you can’t speak, show up. While you’re at it, film your appearance to use as social media content.
Build a referral network. Partner with industry-related professionals to create a referral network.
Be a guest on podcasts. Find hosts who serve your audience (i.e., consultants, advisors, coaches, etc.) and reach out about being a guest on their podcast. When pitching, focus on the value you would bring to their show and their audience.
Networking adds another layer to your GTM strategy that will generate some real-world buzz around your offering.
Keep the Momentum Going
Now that you’ve got some momentum going, it’s time to add some fuel to the fire. Double down on what’s working to keep the ball rolling.
Next, look to expand your efforts by:
Implementing SEO strategies
Investing in advanced marketing strategies
Launching a newsletter
Running paid ad campaigns
Investing in new technology that can streamline and enhance your processes, like Canopy’s practice management solution
The goal is to ensure you’re always moving forward and progressing, so you can continue growing and thriving.
The Takeaway
A solid GTM strategy will give you a roadmap to follow when you launch your offering. Identifying your ideal client and determining your unique positioning will lay the foundation for success, helping you attract clients who align with your goals and values. Creating an irresistible offer, marketing, and networking will bring your vision to life and get the ball rolling.
From here, it’s about sustaining momentum and doubling down on what works.
