Your User Experience is your brand

Membership of an international network can win you new clients post-covid through a strong client experience.

User Experience (UX) has  become essential post-Covid and is a key element in your audit, accounting and advisory business development. 

In a recent workshop we hosted as part of the TGS Month, we looked at the importance of (digital) experience design. If you want to grow your audit, accounting, advisory, tax or legal business sustainably in this new, post-covid market, user experience needs to be a big part of your growth strategy.

Sharing an international client experience will win you new clients, keep your existing clients happy and increase your efficiency.

What is User Experience?

“User Experience” refers to the experience as a whole and how the user feels when they use a product or service.

UX with a product could be a combination of smells, sounds, feel  and ease of use. Whereas, a user experience with a brand could be a combination of elements such as the logo, messaging, colors, imagery, typography and tone of voice.

Good user experience

Starbucks are a great example of a good user experience. Their mission and values are to create a community away from home and their user experience reflects this. The coffee chain ask for your name and write it on your cup; they talk about supporting local communities and humanitarian programmes. This brand is essentially built around a consistent user experience across 70 countries, like TGS. 

If a local TGS client has a positive, familiar and reassuring experience, they will use an international TGS member firm when they need audit, accounting, advisory, tax or legal services in a new country.

The value of customer reviews is essential

When buying a new product or service, clients check reviews. Reviews are important to us as they reflect the true user experience. No matter how well a product or service has been designed, until it is tested by users, there won’t be much trust in it. Sometimes user experience isn’t thought of completely throughout the design process.

Promises and claims that your product or service will solve a problem must be supported by your user experience.

TGS has satisfied clients in 70 countries worldwide. When a TGS client has a good experience in France they will think about using a TGS member firm in the US, in the UK, Germany or Japan.

The client experience has become essential post-Covid

A positive user experience is essential because people make decisions based on emotions not on facts. We often think of our professions as a collection of technical expertise but our clients are experiencing and deciding based on their emotions. 

• 90% of human decisions are made based on emotions. TGS client experience is clear, transparent and efficient.

• 95% of purchase decisions are subconscious. A global brand like TGS has an instant, subconscious effect on your potential client.  

• It takes just 50 milliseconds for a visitor to make an impression and the TGS logo is recognisable in the blink of an eye. 

Clients interact with our brand as if it’s a person and they judge experience based on how others interact with it too (e.g. does it respect social norms?). So we don’t ask, ‘What is TGS?’ We ask ‘Who are TGS?’

First impressions of your user experience are quick but long lasting. 

First impressions

Clients use the look and feel of their physical or digital environment as the first indicator of trust. Just like we can be quick in having a first impression of someone we meet. How people and firms dress, their body language and how they talk cause us to make snap decisions.

Networks allow audit, accounting, advisory, tax and legal firms to share a global indicator of trust a global attitude. The network is supported by 70 firms, 4500 staff and more than 20000 clients.

The main obstacle to building a successful brand

It’s difficult to build a successful brand because you have to incorporate user experience. Think about all the small unconscious stimuli: your colours, typography, images, content etc – that make the user feel a certain way.

Digital user experience has been becoming more and more important over the last decade but the COVID-19 crisis has accelerated this shift by several more.

Consumer needs have changed and users prefer digital contact points. Think about remote interactions in your strategy. Can you switch to digital offerings like cloud-based services?

Think about your User Experience

• Google now processes 40,000 search queries every second. As a TGS member, your clients are not searching just for your firm but they are searching for TGS firms. This means your individual firm has an amplified visibility. 

Beyond aesthetics and functionality, think about how you can provide value with your user experience.

Your clients are now finding brands via online methods. Create well-crafted digital content that is optimized for search engines and that provides added value.

Give your content a wider reach

An article about your firm that appears on the TGS branded website will have a much larger impact than your article posted in your local brand in your local market. 

Your potential clients will like how your TGS company looks and feels and they won’t bounce away from your website. Good content should get them to interact, learn more about your brand, and provide value to keep them returning.

A TGS website will add value to your client experience

Your clients and potential clients will enjoy using your TGS site and they will get value from it and the international connections it allows. A positive TGS user experience will help you convert your site visitors into satisfied and faithful clients!

Have a look at a recent TGS member firm website to experience the TGS User Experience.