How to build a CPA website for CHEAP

A good website is essential for effective marketing.

Almost every prospect will spend time on your website before they talk to someone at your firm. Even warm referrals are going to your website first to vet you. A “good” (clear messaging, well-written, modern design, mobile optimized) custom website will cost you $10k-$30k. That’s a lot for a firm under $1m in annual revenue.

Option 1: Use a pre-existing CPA template for your site

The “custom” part is the most expensive part, so many firms use templated, CPA-specific website platforms like CPA Site Solutions or Build Your Firm. These options can be ok if you just need a presence online, but are rarely effective at driving traffic or converting leads into qualified sales calls. 

Here are some of the issues with using a CPA templated website:

• They use the same content on every site, which Google classifies as “duplicate content” which impacts your search rankings.

• The copy is not specific to your business and brings in bad-fit prospects.

• The design is outdated and the same as a lot of other firms, which makes you seem like a commodity instead of a premium service.

• The copy is not sales-focused. It’s not well-written, compelling, or unique. And it doesn’t convert leads into sales calls

Almost all of the significant issues with a templated website are related to the words on the site, but templated websites reuse the content for all websites because custom copywriting is often the biggest labor cost. 

Option 2: You write the website yourself 

The simplest alternative solution is for someone at your firm to write the content for your website. When you’re small you don’t always have the luxury of being able to throw money at a problem, so you have to spend time. 2 major DIY pitfalls often doom the writing of a website: 

1. Lack of direction. You don’t really know what your website needs in terms of writing. What pages do we need? How much text? How “salesy” should it be? 

2. Lack of accountability. You have good intentions, but when other urgent issues come up your website constantly gets put on the back burner. That lack of accountability means that your website may stall out and leave you in a worse spot than you were to begin with.

Why we coach folks on how to make their own website, when we also build websites. 

With a bit of guidance, we believe most firm owners are perfectly capable of writing their own website. That’s why we led an 8-week guided course earlier this year to help accounting firms write their website. In it, we guided folks through a two-day live zoom workshop where we helped them create a Brandscript based on the StoryBrand framework. We then used homework as an opportunity to have them create their own sitemap and then fill it in with the basic content they’d need to have an awesome site!

For us, it was a great experience being able to provide professional feedback for folks who were thirsty to have a great website. We even provided two follow-up calls for each guest. Trust us. There was plenty to talk about!

So, can you create your own CPA website for cheap?

Yes, you can. But it’s going to cost you in other ways: time, knowledge, and effort. That’s OK if you know it going in and still want to do it yourself, but it’s totally understandable if you need some help. That’s where we come in! We design and build websites for accountants that are designed to increase leads and sales. It’s literally our favorite thing to do in the world. Interested?

If you’d like to talk, feel free to visit our website. marketingforaccountingfirms.com