When should an accounting firm start SEO?
About six to eight weeks before a tax deadline, so the fixes are live when searches spike. I start with Foundations, a one-off fix of your site, for $1,500 plus GST.
Referrals still bring many accounting firms their best clients, but new clients usually Google the firm first. Good SEO for accountants meets those searchers at the moment they look, and for accounting that moment arrives on a schedule. Miss it and the firm two suburbs over gets the call instead.
Key takeaways
- Accounting searches spike around the tax deadlines, so the firms visible in those weeks win the year’s new clients.
- Most firms tell Google they serve “accountant Melbourne” when their clients search their own suburb.
- I keep auditing firms that do great work but run thin homepages and near-zero reviews.
- Content that answers a real tax question is what earns rankings, not a bag of keywords.
- The ATO sets the calendar your marketing should run on.
What wins the year's new clients for accounting firms.
When accounting clients actually search
Accounting clients search hardest in the weeks around a deadline, not evenly across the year. Someone who left their return late types “accountant near me” in October, and a small business owner hunts for help as the financial year closes in June.
The calendar your rankings run on
According to the Australian Taxation Office, the financial year runs 1 July to 30 June and individual tax returns are due by 31 October. A firm that already ranks through September and October, then again after 1 July, catches the two biggest waves of SEO for accountants demand while its rivals scramble.
The mistakes on almost every accounting site I audit
Two gaps show up again and again: a site aimed at the wrong place, and a homepage too thin for Google to trust. Both are cheap to close once you can see them.
Aiming at the whole city, not your suburb
One Malvern firm I audited had a homepage title and H1 that both read “Accountant Melbourne”, not Malvern, where it actually works. Google ranks suburb by suburb, so a page pitched at the whole city competes with hundreds and wins with none.
A homepage too thin to rank
One Brunswick firm I audited ran a homepage of just 156 words, a fraction of what its competitors published. A Richmond firm showed zero visible Google reviews while the firm ranked above it held 171. Neither gap is about talent, and both close inside a quarter.
Reviews that match the deadline rush
The firms that win the season pair a fixed site with steady Google reviews. A run of recent reviews landing in the weeks before the tax deadlines tells a nervous new client that other people trusted you at exactly this time of year, which is the whole game in accountant SEO.
Content that answers what clients ask
The firms that rank publish plain answers to what clients actually type, like what to bring to a first appointment or which deductions a sole trader can claim. That habit is the quiet engine of accountant SEO and the core of my content marketing in Melbourne, and it tells Google you are the local expert in the weeks that matter.
A firm’s first ninety days
My plan for a new accounting client is built around the calendar. Month one goes to the profile and the review habit, so trust signals are climbing well before the busy season arrives.
Weeks four to eight go to the homepage rewrite and the suburb page that should have existed all along, aimed at the exact service a local client searches for. By the third month those pages have settled, which is when Google starts to trust them for real.
Timed right, the whole thing lands before the deadline rush, so SEO for accountants is paying at the one moment demand peaks. Get the timing wrong and the rankings arrive in November, long after the rush has moved on and the new clients have already picked someone else.
If the busy season brings more enquiries than you can answer, see AI for accountants.
What it costs
The work runs in stages, one at a time. It starts with Foundations, a one-off fix of the site you have, for $1,500 plus GST. If you can, start about eight weeks before a tax deadline, so the fixes are live when demand peaks. After that you take only the stages you need, and Upkeep keeps it all working, with one month’s notice to stop. If you’d rather do the fixes yourself, the Full Fix Plan is $149 plus GST.
Where SEO for accountants starts before a deadline
Claim your Google Business Profile and start asking recent clients for reviews. Then publish one page for your suburb before the next deadline lands, the same discipline behind my wider SEO in Melbourne. That order makes SEO for accountants pay in time for the season, and none of it needs a new website. If you want a hand, or just want to know where you stand, come and see me.
Accounting firms have a new compliance topic to answer for clients this year. My guide to the new AML rules for accountants and real estate agents covers what changed and the search demand it created.
Once the calls come in, AI automation can chase documents for you.
Frequently asked questions
Should I target “accountant Melbourne”?
Usually no. Target your suburb, because Google ranks suburb by suburb and the city-wide term is far harder and more crowded to win.
When should I start for tax season?
About six to eight weeks before a deadline. Profile and review work can move quickly, but a service page needs a head start to rank by October or the new financial year.
How many Google reviews do I need?
Enough to sit level with the firm ranked above you. If a competitor holds 171 and you have a handful, closing that gap is the first job.
Do I need a new website?
Usually not. Most firms can start on their current site, since the profile, review, and suburb-page work carries the early wins.
Do you only work with accountants?
No. I work with accountants and other Melbourne service firms such as medical and real estate practices.
Related guides
Strong SEO for accountants sits on a healthy site. These guides cover the parts that each earn a page of their own.
Where this leads: Foundations, Awareness and Interest
See who is taking customers nearby.
Tell me the business. I look at who is ranking nearby for the work you sell, and send you the names that matter. Or book a call if you would rather talk it through.
