How AAM Members Are Using AI for Marketing Today
Artificial Intelligence is rapidly transforming marketing in accounting firms, enhancing efficiency, strategic alignment, and client engagement. In a recent AAM High webinar, four firm marketers shared how they are leveraging AI tools to support firm goals. The Association for Accounting Marketing is at its best when we learn from fellow members, so let’s see what they have to share.
Ashley Webb, Mercadien – AI for Strategic Marketing Plan Development
Business Need: Organizing and aligning marketing efforts with firm-wide priorities.
Tool: ChatGPT (Internal AI by BDO)
How It’s Used: Ashley worked with an AAM mentor to develop a strategic marketing planning framework. After creating one comprehensive plan manually, she uploaded it into ChatGPT to generate similar plans for all eight of the firm’s niche practice areas. She provided ChatGPT with key goals and had it generate objectives, tactics, and measurable outcomes.
Impact: This approach saved substantial time while creating structured, data-driven plans. The AI-assisted plans provided clarity for practice leaders, fostering alignment with firm-wide priorities and holding teams accountable. Additionally, using AI for content development within the plan streamlined execution, solidifying Ashley’s role as a strategic leader in the firm.
Kelsea Balde, Anthem Strategists – AI for Presentation Development
Business Need: Quickly creating professional, branded client presentations.
Tool: Beautiful.ai
How It’s Used: Kelsey and her firm, recently rebranded as Anthem Strategists, required a more structured and visually appealing way to educate prospects and clients at strategy sessions. She used Beautiful.ai to generate slide decks instantly based on prompts outlining presentation topics. The tool ensured brand consistency while allowing rapid customization.
Impact: This tool significantly reduced the time needed to prepare presentations. The firm’s new client experience now includes customized, well-structured slide decks. The firm can also track which strategy sessions are gaining traction and driving revenue.
Jaemi Allen, Larson Gross – AI Chatbot for Client Service
Business Need: Reducing repetitive client inquiries to improve efficiency.
Tool: SendBird
How It’s Used: Following feedback from a busy-season debrief, Larson Gross sought a solution to reduce the volume of routine client inquiries fielded by admin and team members by email and phone. Jamie implemented SendBird, an AI chatbot embedded in the firm’s website, to answer frequently asked questions like office hours, engagement letter signing, and general service information.
Impact: By automating responses, the chatbot helps reduce the burden on staff and enhances client experience by providing immediate answers. While still in its early stages, the firm anticipates that the chatbot will free up staff for higher-value client interactions and strategic advisory work.
Sunny Ricks & Drew Madison, Warren Averett – AI Video Avatars for Internal Training
Business Need: Streamlining internal technology training while maintaining quality.
Tool: Synthesia
How It’s Used: With increasing demands for internal technology training, Warren Averett’s marketing team needed a scalable way to produce engaging training videos. Using Synthesia, they created AI-generated videos featuring avatars and voiceovers to teach employees about Microsoft Copilot and other firm tools.
Impact: This approach drastically reduced video production time, from several hours to under 30 minutes per video. The firm benefits from high-quality, consistent training materials while allowing marketing staff to focus on revenue-generating initiatives. Synthesia has also been leveraged for external uses, such as on-hold messaging, showcasing its broader applicability.
Conclusion
These diverse use cases illustrate how AI is reshaping accounting firm marketing, from strategic planning and client engagement to internal efficiency. Each firm has leveraged AI tools in ways that align with their unique business needs, demonstrating AI’s potential to enhance both marketing outcomes and firm operations. As these technologies continue to evolve, their role in professional services marketing will only grow, offering firms more ways to drive efficiency and impact.
Thanks to our moderator, Alison Simons of Simons Marketing and the Virtual Education Committee for putting together this program for members.
About Alison Simons
For seven great years, I was the head of marketing for a regional CPA firm where I would joke "if it's not a tax return or an audit, it crosses my desk." I was responsible for branding and online marketing, recruiting and firm culture, M&A vetting and communications, business development and proposals, and more. Even though I had a job, I was getting requests from firms to help with their marketing; which is, supposedly, how you know you're onto something good. In 2013 I became an entrepreneur. In order to serve more clients, I attracted a team of really amazing people who focus on specialty areas within marketing because (get ready for one of her catch phrases) "Marketing is one word that means a lot of things" and it's all too much for any one person to be good at. So, now I'm focused on working directly with clients on strategies to help them reach their goals while overseeing more of the activities. I've presented multiple times a the MassCPAs annual conference, and have been featured on the Marketing Mistakes (and how to avoid them), and Stop the Noise podcasts. I've also served as a judge for LMA.
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