How this tax firm owner is getting clients from…. TikTok ?!
Kesha JonTae, also known as The Millennial Taxpert, has found a way to reach a whole new audience of people looking for tax advice: TikTok. Through one-minute informational videos, she has grown her TikTok following to over 20,000.
Her content, which provides advice related to tax planning and strategies, has grabbed the attention of “influence-preneurs,” Kesha’s term for creatives, consultants, coaches, and content creators who use their social media influence to make a living, leaving her with a business that is more successful now, than ever.
In today’s show, Kesha talks about how she chose a niche with an audience she is familiar with, used TikTok to connect with that audience, and built her website (and business) around providing the best experience for her customers.
Podcast
Summary
- Choosing a familiar niche
- Connecting with your audience
- Building your website to fit the customer
Connect with Kesha
Choosing a Familiar Niche
As a “mini influencer,” Kesha noticed that, in many cases, influencers are experiencing overnight success through apps like TikTok and Instagram. Endorsements, partnerships, custom programs, and more have become a very popular way for millennials to earn money. However, Kesha found that once their hard work starts to pay off, they begin to struggle with translating that work to their taxes. This is where she comes in.
Her experience in the tax industry coupled with her familiarity with the influencer lifestyle, sparked her idea to target “influence-preneurs” as optimal clients. She knew she could provide them with the help they needed to “keep more of their hard-earned money in their pockets and out of Uncle Sam’s hands,” as she puts it.
*Que The Millennial Taxpert*
Kesha’s Advice for Choosing a Familiar Niche
- Utilize an audience you enjoy. This will help you avoid burnout and, odds are, you already know a lot about your audience.
- Look for a need or problem that the audience is experiencing and fill the need. This is the best way to insert yourself into a niche.
Connecting With Your Audience
Once Kesha determined “influence-preneurs” were her ideal client, she took to the internet to find ways to connect with them. Creating an online presence has been the biggest driver for growing her business. Sounding surprised by her success, she mentioned that she has gotten good, quality leads and clients just by being active on TikTok.
She says one of the keys to her TikTok fame was participating in the one video per day challenge. This was when her following really started to grow. For this challenge, she asked followers to leave a comment with a question they had about taxes. Then she would create a short video that answered the question. Luckily for her, the majority of questions were simple for someone with her level of experience to answer, but were super helpful and provided much-needed info for people who aren’t familiar with general tax topics.
By participating in this challenge, she was creating consistent content, interacting with her ideal client base, and proving that she was a credible source when it comes to all things taxes.
Throughout the challenge, she was also sharing these videos on other social media platforms to help drive interaction there as well. This made her goal of staying visible on social media more easily attainable. Once she got in the hang of actively and consistently posting, it started to become more natural and is now the secret behind a lot of her success.
Kesha’s Advice for Connecting With Your Audience
- Stay visible on social media. This will help clients to easily find you when they need you.
- Use TikTok (if it works for your business). Videos you post here live forever, while videos on other platforms do not circulate as long. This keeps you visible to your audience for a longer period of time.
- Use social media to build credibility. It is important your followers know that you know what you’re talking about.
- Try to consistently use just one or two social media platforms that your target customers are using. This will help you avoid social media burnout while optimizing your reach.
Building Your Website to Fit the Customer
Once Kesha started gaining traction through social media and her website, she realized how important it was for her content and copy to convey the message of her brand. To keep things consistent, she writes her own copy, ensuring her voice shines through. She said she writes on her website the same way she would talk to a friend or post on her personal page. Her goal with this is to be as authentic and natural sounding to her clients as possible.
One thing she tries to avoid when working on her website is appearing like the stereotype of an accountant: intimidating and stuffy. She wants to relate to her ideal client as much as possible, therefore she uses their language. Kesha emphasizes that you don’t have to talk a certain way just because you work in a certain field.
Kesha’s Advice for Building Your Website to Fit Your Customer
- Produce content and copy that is natural and authentic. This is the best way to connect with your audience.
- Speak the language of your market. Your audience will listen to and view you as more relatable.
Overall, Kesha taught us the importance of niching down, investing in a community you enjoy (even if it means making a few TikToks), and being who you are to better connect with your audience and build a successful business.
Kesha provided all of this info and more so be sure to listen or watch the full podcast above!