Marketing for accounting firms
Marketing for an accounting firm is the work that supports the ways new clients reach the firm.
New clients reach an accounting firm by referral, through existing clients who buy a further service, through a search for a named service, and through local listings. A partner can count last year’s new clients against each of these from the firm’s own client list.
Firefly provides a marketing lead for part of the week. Saad Afsar fills the role for about five hours a week, and this website calls the arrangement a fractional CMO or a fractional marketing director.
Some partners look for marketing for accountants, an accounting firm marketing consultant or CPA firm marketing. This page covers all three.
Where a firm’s new clients come from, and the marketing work behind each source
| Source | Marketing work that supports it | How to count it in your client list |
|---|---|---|
| Referrals | Keep the firm’s services and contact details correct in the places a referred person looks them up, which are the website, the Google Business Profile and LinkedIn. | Count last year’s new clients who named a client, a lawyer, a banker or another adviser as the reason they called. |
| Existing clients | Tell existing clients about the services they do not yet use, by email and at the year-end meeting. | Count the existing clients who bought a further service last year, and the fees it brought. |
| Search for a service | Give each service its own page on the website, written in the words a client would type. | Ask each new client what they searched for, and write the answer on the client record. |
| Local listings | Keep the Google Business Profile complete, and answer each review. | Ask each new client whether they found the firm on Google Maps or in a local directory. |
What a marketing lead does for an accounting firm, week by week
Saad works on the firm’s marketing for about five hours a week. The rows show what those hours go on, in the order the work happens.
- In the first month
- Saad uses the first two weeks for an audit of how clients reach the firm, the channels and the data. He then writes a plan for the next 90 days, with a target and an owner for each item.
- Each week
- Saad directs the firm’s staff and its agency as they carry out the plan. The partners receive a report that measures the marketing against revenue, using the figures in the firm’s own systems.
- Each month
- Saad reviews the strategy once a month.
- Each quarter
- At the end of the quarter Saad resets the plan against the revenue figures.
- The profession’s advertising rules
- The AICPA’s Code of Professional Conduct states that a member in public practice shall not seek clients by advertising or solicitation that is false, misleading or deceptive. CPA Ontario’s code allows a firm to advertise, and it bars statements that are false or misleading or that the firm cannot substantiate. The partners decide whether a piece of marketing meets the rules that apply to the firm.
The firm’s staff or its agency carry out the daily work on the website, the emails and the listings. Saad’s hours go on decisions and direction.
The arrangement suits a firm that has a marketing budget and people to carry out the plan. Our page on the fractional marketing director shows how that title relates to a CMO.
The two statements about advertising rules come from these documents, which we read on 8 October 2026.
- AICPA Code of Professional Conduct, 1.600.001 Advertising and Other Forms of Solicitation Rule American Institute of Certified Public Accountants · updated for all official releases through September 2026
- CPA Code of Professional Conduct, Rule 217.1 Advertising and promotion Chartered Professional Accountants of Ontario · last amended 26 August 2016
What clients ask Google and AI assistants about accountants
A person choosing an accountant can put the whole question to Google or to an AI assistant. One example is “Which accountant in Toronto works with family-owned companies?”
The assistant answers with the names of firms and links to the websites it relied on. A partner can type the firm’s own questions and see whether the firm is named and whether the description is correct.
Firefly’s AI visibility audit records what ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity answer to those questions. The first review is free, and the full audit costs $1,500 for one location.
The terms of the engagement
An accounting firm engages Firefly on its standard terms.
The fractional CMO at Firefly is Saad Afsar. He has 15 years of marketing experience, has led marketing for 40+ brands, and has enterprise experience at Unilever and Samsung.
Firefly works with owner-led businesses in Toronto and New York: hospitality groups, professional firms and independent brands.
Our page on what a fractional CMO costs compares these terms with published market rates.
- Rate
- $100 an hour
- Standard engagement
- $2,000 a month
- Time
- About five hours a week
- Minimum term
- Three months
Results from fractional CMO engagements
Firefly has published one result for a firm in this field. Paperchase is an accounting and CFO advisory firm in New York and London, and its result is a rise in website visits. It is not a figure for revenue or for clients won. Each result below is measured in the client’s own system, over the period shown.
- Two Boots New York pizza, since 1987 +12% same-store net salesyear over year · Toast POS
- YYZ Law Aviation and travel law, Toronto 4.3× organic search clicksover three years · Google Search Console
- Boqueria Spanish tapas, multi-city US +73% private-events revenueyear over year · Tripleseat
- Paperchase Accounting and CFO advisory, NYC and London +69% website visitsyear over year · Google Analytics
Questions and answers
How do accounting firms get new clients?
New clients reach an accounting firm by referral, through existing clients who buy a further service, through a search for a named service, and through local listings. The firm’s own client list shows how many came by each route.
What does a marketing lead do for an accounting firm?
Saad sets the plan and the budget, directs the firm’s staff and its agency, and reports each week against revenue. The firm’s staff or its agency carry out the daily work.
Is this an accounting firm marketing consultant?
Yes. Some partners look for an accounting firm marketing consultant, and others for CPA firm marketing. At Firefly both describe the same engagement, in which Saad Afsar leads the firm’s marketing for about five hours a week.
Has Firefly worked with an accounting firm?
Firefly has published one result in this field. Paperchase, an accounting and CFO advisory firm in New York and London, recorded 69% more website visits year over year, measured in Google Analytics. The result is a figure for website visits and not for revenue or clients won.
Are accountants allowed to advertise?
The AICPA’s Code of Professional Conduct bars advertising and solicitation that is false, misleading or deceptive. CPA Ontario’s code states that a firm may advertise, and it bars statements that are false or misleading or that the firm cannot substantiate.
What do clients ask AI assistants when they choose an accountant?
Clients ask questions that describe a need and a place, such as which accountant in Toronto works with family-owned companies. Firefly’s AI visibility audit records what ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity answer.
What does the engagement cost?
Firefly charges $100 an hour. A standard engagement is about five hours a week for $2,000 a month, and the minimum term is three months.
Book a call, or write first
You can book a discovery call on Saad Afsar’s calendar.
If you prefer to write first, send a few details in the form and Saad will reply within 24 hours.