People depend on services like Yelp to choose everything from restaurants to mechanics. Most people will read Yelp reviews when they’re looking for a service like tax preparation as well.
If you haven’t created a Yelp Business page for your tax preparation business yet, here’s why you should consider it and step-by-step instructions to get it done quickly.
Why should I make a Yelp Business account for my tax business?
Client testimonials and online reputation management
Positive client testimonials are a powerful marketing tool, and Yelp offers an easy way to manage your business’ reputation online. When potential clients are looking for a tax preparer, they’ll want someone with a record of accurate, thorough work and a helpful attitude. You may have plenty of clients willing to sing your praises, but their stories won’t help your business unless others can find them.
Yelp is one of the most trusted platforms for customer reviews, making it easy for current clients to share their experiences and for future clients to discover your business. Since Yelp allows you to communicate with your current and potential clients, it is important to respond to every review, whether negative or positive. Doing so helps show you care about providing the best service.
Your responses should always be professional. If you get a negative review, thank the user for their feedback and ask to connect with them offline through phone or email to help ease their pain points. You want to help resolve their problem while limiting the negative back-and-forth communication visible to the general public.
Read also: 5 Tips for Assisting Unhappy Tax Clients
Local SEO marketing
Yelp provides potential clients with a list of tax professionals in their area. Because Yelp is so popular, they’ll likely find plenty of options and may not even consult other websites.
As a result, Yelp pages are an extremely important aspect of your online reputation. Not having a listing means potential clients may not find your services or know that you are open for business. A Yelp page with several positive reviews, however, goes a long way in helping you stand out from the competition.
Because search terms like “tax preparers” are so general, you’re far more likely to rank in searches that are specific to your local service area. A Yelp page gives your business more opportunities to appear on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs), especially for local searches.
Learn more: Local SEO Strategies for Your Tax Business
Step-by-Step: Create a Yelp account for your tax preparation business
Check for an existing page
If you’ve been a tax preparer for a while, a previous client may have already created a page for your business and left a review. A quick search for your name and your business’s name will confirm whether or not your business already has a page.
If it does, you’ll need to claim your business and then continue with the steps below.
Add your information
After clicking “Claim This Business” or “Add Your Business to Yelp,” you’ll be directed to a page to enter your business information. Fill out the information as thoroughly as possible to help clients find and contact you easily.
If you work from home, you can leave the address field blank but don’t skip your city and zip code fields. These allow you to rank in local searches.
Choose your categories
On the same page, you’ll be prompted to choose up to three categories that describe your business. It’s important to be strategic here as the categories you choose will help you appear in relevant searches.
“Financial Services > Tax Services” is a logical choice for every tax preparation business. Some tax professionals also add “Accounting” and “Bookkeeping” categories if they offer those services.
Click “Add Business” and wait
After you’ve submitted your information, allow a couple of business days for Yelp moderators to verify your business’s information. After that, your page will go live, and your business can begin appearing in search results!
Once you have a Yelp account for your tax preparation business, you can make the most of it by following these social media tips for tax preparers.
