We are currently going through one of the most difficult phases in the history of humankind, especially if you will look at the past couple of decades. When everybody started thinking that we have become so advanced that nothing can beat us, the deadly virus that originated in Wuhan took the world by storm. Even after one complete year of dealing with the virus, we are still dealing with the second phase of the deadly virus, and nobody knows when the death tolls will end in different countries.
Well, the arrival of COVID-19 has affected many industries and firms and even accounting firms are no exception to this trend. But you should not only look at the current changes being introduced due to the current situation in all the countries but you also need to look at the future impact of COVID-19 on accounting firms.
The deadly virus might end someday but it surely going to change how we deal with accounting and it is also going to shape the future of the accounting firm in many different ways. So to make things easier for you, we have come up with a list of ways in which COVID-19 will shape the future of accounting firms.
Digital transformation
It doesn’t matter whether the deadly virus will wipe out completely from our planet or it will stay with us in one form or another, the only thing we are sure about in the current situation, the accounting firms are surely at a pivotal point in their digital transformation. This is mainly happening because accounting firms from all around the world are dealing with daily challenges in the way business is performed. Even the shift to QuickBooks Enterprise hosting services is an example of this digital transformation.
The current accounting firm has currently two options. They can either go with the stop-gas measure while hoping for everything to return to normal or they can start adopting according to the future of accounting firms shaped by the deadly virus. Well, we can say that the latter one is more likely to happen since there are maximum chances that we will never be able to return to normality and we will have to adjust to the new normal in the best possible way.
Advisory service will become crucial
Another important change that you are going to notice in the future of accounting firms is the advisory service will become crucial for each and everybody out there. Slowly, the health crisis is becoming an economic crisis, and most businesses are turning to accounting firms to sort out the maze of government-backed relief programs.
There are many policies changing on a daily basis and in such a situation, many of the firms out there dealing with relief programs are struggling to provide clear information that all the firms and individuals need. This simply means the spotlight has shifted to all the accountants out there. Now, the accountants have become overnight heroes that all the clients out there are looking forward to traversing uncharted economic waves.
Focus on culture will emerge
Digital transformation will always require a digital culture that doesn’t only focus on collaboration, transparency, and innovation but a successful digital culture leads with different types of technological solutions so that all the teams working in the accounting firm can easily adjust to the disruptive changes. So we can say that it will soon become only about being proactive.
Because of the current situation, all the employees working in the accounting firms have been allowed to work from home. They have slowly learned how to conduct meetings by using GoToMeeting and Zoom. All the employees working in such firms have already dealt with a drastic change. There used to be a time when there were many employees in the accounting firms who were not ready to use any type of technological solution but things have completely changed now and this is how the future of accounting will be changed.
A shift in marketing
The way accounting firms used to market themselves is also going to change a lot because of the arrival of the deadly virus. There used to be a time when most of the accounting firms used to focus only on their services while building up a marketing campaign but that is going to change a lot now.
You should know that nowadays, most of the marketing campaigns are focused on giving a little bit of information regarding the deadly virus or tips regarding how to be safe. Even if you add a simple message of staying home and staying safe, this will be more effective in the current environment because this is what people like these days.
So, if you are going to build a marketing campaign for your accounting firm, then instead of just focusing on your services, you will need to incorporate the trending topic like tips on how to stay safe from COVID-19, if you want the best result. Don’t just rehash the marketing campaign, instead make it more appealing by incorporating new ideas.
We are currently going through a tough time where survival has become the prime concern for most people. Due to the current crisis, most accounting firms have to deal with a long list of challenges and this is where the firms need to use a different approach and strategy in order to rise and shine again, even during tough times.
Just rehashing the practices won’t work in this case as you will have to make your strategy fit in the current situation. So, instead of just launching marketing campaigns at a breakneck pace and then gripping about it later, you should start making changes to your strategy and give the best results. This is what the current environment demands from all the accounting firms out there.
The arrival of the deadly virus is going to completely change how the accounting firms used to deal with different types of practices and soon we will see the changes being implemented in all the accounting firms out there.
Published by Kashyapi Prajapati
2 years ago 
