Innovative Accounting Firms Are Offering Marketing Services

It’s no secret that traditional accounting services are considered a commodity. Businesses can go to any reputable firm for an audit or tax return. The competition is fierce, forcing many firms to lower their fees to remain competitive or to present a discounted estimate fee for the first year of an engagement to win the business with the intention of raising the price in the future. High growth accounting firms are branching out and offering business advisory services in many areas including wealth and investment management, CFO, human resources, training and information technology.

What is surprising is the number of firms offering marketing services to clients. KPMG and Deloitte are among the many firms that are either buying advertising agencies or investing in the talent and expertise to form their own marketing services group. It is estimated that eight of North America’s top advertising agencies are now owned by Big 4 accounting or other large consulting firms.

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