Outbind for accounting firms: win business clients, not just referrals

Accounting firms use Outbind to find business clients in their area or niche, and to email the owners and finance leads who choose an accountant. Obi searches your market every morning, spots signals such as funding and fast hiring, and sends cited, plain-text emails from your own inbox.

It suits accountancy practices, bookkeeping firms, payroll bureaus and outsourced finance director or CFO services that work for businesses. Most start on Pro at $49 or Pro Plus at $99 a month. Every plan has a 7-day free trial.

How do accounting firms find new clients?

Mostly through referrals from clients, banks, solicitors and other advisers. Referrals are the best kind of client, but you cannot plan around them, and they often bring work that is not quite the work you want.

Businesses also rarely switch accountants for no reason. They switch when they grow, raise money, need better reporting or have a new person in charge of finance. Outbind finds those moments.

Who does an accounting firm sell to?

Pick the clients you want more of. Obi reads your website, proposes an ICP and personas, and you edit them in plain words.

Some examples:

• A local practice: "owners of 5 to 50 person trade and construction firms within 25 miles of Bristol".
• A niche firm: "founders of software startups that have just raised a first round".
• An outsourced CFO service: "managing directors at 20 to 150 person companies with no finance director".

Personas are usually the owner or managing director, the founder, the operations director, and in larger firms the finance director or financial controller. Local business search is on every plan, which suits firms that win clients near their office.

Which buying signals matter for accountants?

A business often needs a new or better accountant when it changes. These are the signals Outbind detects.

Recently funded companies are on every plan, which suits firms that work with startups. Read more in our signal-based selling guide.

How would a Flow run for an accounting firm?

Here is an example for a firm that works with startups, on Pro.

1. Each morning Obi searches your market and scores each account on fit, persona and intent, with its reasons shown.
2. A startup announces its first funding round. The funding signal moves it up. Obi finds the founder, verifies the email and researches the company.
3. The first email goes out in plain text from your own inbox. It cites the real source, such as the funding news, and asks one question about how they will handle reporting to new investors.
4. Follow-ups go out if there is no reply, between 8am and 8pm in the founder's time zone. Every email passes 35+ pre-send checks.
5. They reply. Sending stops at once. Unibox sorts the reply as interested, objection, meeting and more. If they want to talk, Obi sends your booking link.

Questions about fees, services or anything unclear come to you. You OK the first leads once, then Autopilot adds good fits by itself, unless you choose to review every lead.

Which plan fits an accounting firm?

• Pro, $49 a month. One partner or a small practice. Hiring and funding signals, local business search, 1 LinkedIn account and up to 3 of your own mailboxes. Up to 20 new leads and 60 emails a day.
• Pro Plus, $99 a month. Adds new leaders, expansions and acquisitions, a research brief on every lead, 2 LinkedIn accounts, and HubSpot and Pipedrive sync. Up to 50 new leads and 150 emails a day.
• Team, $199 a month. 3 seats for a firm where several partners win work, with a shared Unibox and reply assignment.

Writing, sending and follow-ups never use credits. Credits pay for finding and checking data. Yearly billing gives 2 months free. See pricing.

What are the limits?

• Business clients only. Outbind is for firms that work for businesses. It is not for finding individuals who need a tax return done.
• No phone calls or dialer, and no SMS.
• No free plan. Every plan has a 7-day free trial with 1,000 credits. A card is needed at sign-up.
• No done-for-you service. Outbind starts the conversation. You run the meeting, the proposal and the engagement letter.
• GDPR. Data is stored in the EU, and GDPR shapes how contacts are sourced, stored and messaged. People can ask to be removed at /remove-me.

What does the firm still do?

For how this compares with hiring someone to prospect, read AI SDR vs human SDR. For other professional services, see our page for consultants.

FAQ

How do I get more clients for my accounting firm?

Reach business owners when something has changed, such as new funding, fast hiring or a new finance lead. Outbind finds those businesses, verifies the right contact and emails them from your own inbox.

Can Outbind find local businesses near my office?

Yes. Local business search is on every plan, so you can work the towns and cities you serve.

Will Outbind answer questions about our fees?

No. Obi answers people who want to talk with your booking link. Pricing questions, objections and anything unclear come to you.