How are the most successful accounting and financial services firms achieving remarkably higher growth compared to the industry average?
This is the question we’ve been addressing for over a decade in our annual High Growth Study. Since we began this one-of-a-kind research project, we have tracked the evolving marketing strategies of successful accounting and financial services firms. The full 2025 High Growth Study: Accounting & Financial Services Edition reveals key factors that separate today’s fastest growing firms from their slower growing peers.
In this blog post, we’ll share a few of the most compelling insights from this year’s research on the accounting and financial services industry. You can purchase the full research report here.
Meet the Fastest Growing Accounting & Financial Services Firms
Accounting and financial services firms are navigating a landscape marked by intense pressures: commoditized services that erode fee structures, rising compensation costs, the complexities of transitioning to advisory services, and a generational shift in leadership. Simultaneously, the rise of AI and a perennial talent shortage are reshaping the industry, demanding innovative strategies for growth and sustainability.
Despite these challenges, a select group of High Growth firms have achieved remarkable performance, demonstrating a minimum of 20% compound annual growth over a three-year assessment period. These High Growth firms constitute slightly less than 30% of the 210 firms surveyed in this industry group.
With an impressive growth rate of 33.2%, these High Growth firms grow 3.7 times faster than the Average Growth cohort—a slight year-over-year decrease in the high growth rate.
What strategies are propelling superior growth in these accounting and financial services firms? How do they navigate the complexities of today’s market? Which marketing tools and strategies are most effective? Let’s explore some of the key insights uncovered in this year’s study.
Finding 1: Marketing Spend is Decreasing in the Financial Services Industry
A notable trend has emerged in the accounting and financial services sector: marketing spending is down. For the second consecutive year, firms are allocating a smaller percentage of their revenue to marketing activities, hitting a low not seen since 2019 in our study. This year’s investment is particularly striking, falling to less than half of the previous year’s figures, effectively returning to pre-pandemic levels.
This raises some intriguing questions. Has the industry discovered new technology efficiencies, allowing them to achieve growth with less marketing spend? Are marketing staff becoming more skilled? Are firms reverting to their historically conservative spending habits? Is this a cautious response to the prevailing market uncertainties? Or, as firms grow, organically or by acquisition, are marketing activities being scaled at the same rate? For firms seeking to grow at a high rate, it’s crucial to understand this shift in relation to the industry’s current challenges and priorities.
Finding 2: Developing Thought Leaders is a Top Priority
While content creation remains a top priority for both High Growth (33.3%) and No Growth (37.5%) financial firms, High Growth firms prioritize thought leadership significantly more than their No Growth counterparts (31.4% vs. 16.7%, respectively). High Growth firms believe that showcasing their expertise can drive growth, and it’s hard to argue with their success.
High Growth firms understand that amplifying the visibility of their experts is crucial for establishing trust and differentiating themselves. They actively cultivate thought leaders by publishing insightful content, speaking at industry events, and participating in webinars and podcasts. This strategic approach positions their professionals as authoritative voices, building credibility and attracting potential clients.
The data further highlights the importance of social media marketing, with High Growth firms (25.5%) again outpacing No Growth firms (16.7%). When thought leadership content is amplified through social media, it creates a powerful, interconnected marketing ecosystem. This approach maximizes marketing ROI by leveraging expertise to drive engagement and generate leads.
Consider your firm’s strategy: Are you actively nurturing thought leaders? Is your content strategy aligned with this goal, and are you amplifying it through social media? The data clearly indicates that High Growth firms recognize the strategic advantage of developing and promoting their experts.
Finding 3: Multichannel Marketing is Necessary
High Growth accounting firms demonstrate a clear understanding of the need for a multichannel marketing approach. If content creation remains a cornerstone priority of marketing, then it also appears that these firms recognize the importance of strategic distribution and engagement across multiple platforms. Their most utilized marketing techniques reveal a blend of traditional and digital strategies, reflecting the diverse ways clients consume information and engage with their service providers.
Developing high-quality business development materials, such as proposal templates and pitch decks, tops the list at 65.4%. These materials play a crucial role in shaping client perceptions and driving business growth. Similarly, speaking at targeted conferences (63.5%) remains a time-tested method for showcasing expertise and building thought leadership. Networking on social media (59.6%), primarily LinkedIn, facilitates direct engagement with potential clients and industry peers. Providing assessments and consultations (57.7%) offers a personalized approach, while email marketing campaigns (53.8%) enable targeted communication and lead nurturing.
Notably, this mix of techniques delivers a balance of offline and online activities. According to our research, a roughly 55:45 ratio of digital and traditional activities tends to yield the best results. This multichannel approach ensures that firms are reaching their target audience across various touchpoints, addressing the diverse ways they learn and buy services.
In today’s interconnected world, repurposing content across channels is essential. For instance, insights shared at a conference can be transformed into blog posts, social media updates, and email newsletters. This strategy maximizes the impact of content and reinforces brand messaging across multiple platforms.
Finding 4: The High Growth Advantage in Research
One of the longest standing findings of previous editions of the High Growth Study is how High Growth firms are more likely than their slower growing peers to conduct formal research on their clients and prospects. This year we decided to dig a layer deeper and identify what kinds of marketing research firms conduct the most—and the findings were eye opening.
High Growth accounting firms are not only more likely to conduct research, they are more likely to do so across a broad range of categories.
High Growth accounting firms demonstrate a clear commitment to understand their audience and market, with 78.4% engaging in regular research compared to 66.7% of No Growth firms. This commitment translates into actionable insights that drive strategic decisions and enhance client service.
Client satisfaction research was most common. It allows firms to gather direct feedback on client experiences. This simple, cost-effective method helps firms improve their service and client perceptions. Additionally, client research, which focuses on clients’ evolving habits and preferences, informs strategic planning, service offerings, and marketing initiatives. Understanding what clients truly value and how their needs are changing is crucial to stay ahead in the competitive accounting landscape.
Marketplace research, which encompasses everything from demand analysis to focus groups, helps firms identify new opportunities and stay attuned to industry trends. Competitive research and SEO research, both of which are used by nearly 40% of High Growth firms, provide critical intelligence on competitors and online visibility. In addition, knowing your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses, as well as optimizing for relevant keywords, are essential for differentiation and attracting new clients.
If you are wondering which is right for you, client research can be a powerful starting point. It can reveal key audience challenges, what clients perceive as your strengths and weaknesses, insights that can inform your competitive positioning, and where your buyers go to learn about the kinds of problems you solve. What you learn is invaluable to improve your business strategy, improve client service, and enhance marketing effectiveness. In short, research equips financial services firms to make data-driven decisions that drive growth and enhance client relationships.
Finding 5: All Financial Services Firms Struggle with Marketing Data
A new addition to this year’s study was a question asking firms to rate their proficiency in capturing and using marketing and business development metrics. The data tells a clear story: This is a massive challenge for the marketers at accounting and financial services firms.
About 3 out of 4 firms rated proficiency as low—a higher percentage than every other professional services industry we studied this year—and High Growth firms were not better, and arguably worse, than their Low Growth peers. Despite rating themselves as more digitally mature than the slower growing firms (another point we measured this year in the full study), that additional digital maturity was not reflected in this data on marketing and business development metrics.
We asked a followup question to those who rated themselves with low proficiency what challenges they face. Here are a few of the responses we received:
- “Time constraints”
- “We do a good job of capturing data. Our challenge is putting the data to work. What story does it tell and where do we go next based on insight that comes from the data?”
- “We don’t dedicate time to this, and even when we do, we’re not very good at utilizing the information.”
- “Long sales cycles and multiple touchpoints across the lead lifecycle coupled with networking and referrals makes it difficult to capture true attribution.”
- “Understanding CRM system’s capabilities well enough to know which reports are to be utilized to analyze the metrics.”
While the specific hurdles cited by firms vary—from time constraints and CRM complexities to the fundamental challenge of translating data into actionable insights—the overarching message is clear: the accounting and financial services industry is grappling with a significant metrics proficiency gap.
This gap, however, represents a substantial opportunity. Firms that are willing to address these challenges and invest in the necessary tools, training, and strategic frameworks will be positioned to benefit from the insights and power of data.
Go Further. Purchase the Full Study.
These findings offer a glimpse into the strategies of the fastest growing accounting & financial services firms in 2025. The full 2025 High Growth Study: Accounting & Financial Services Edition provides a comprehensive analysis of what drives success in today’s market. It offers detailed insights, data-driven recommendations, and actionable strategies. This report is an invaluable resource for any accounting or financial services firm that wants to thrive in a fast-changing environment. Ready to dive deeper and unlock the secrets of high growth? Get the full report here.
