Reconciliation: Full-service marketing agency, usually on a retainer
An accounting marketing agency or a managed website: do you need the whole retainer?
If your firm needs paid advertising managed, PR, events and a marketing strategist, a full-service accounting marketing agency is the right hire, and we do not replace it. If your real need is a fast website that ranks, answers enquiries and publishes every week, a managed plan covers that at a fixed monthly fee, and can sit alongside an agency you already use.
Our side of the ledger
Who does the work: we do. Hosting, domain and updates are inside the monthly fee.
The other optionFull-service marketing agency, usually on a retainer
What you get with a traditional accounting marketing agency
Accounting marketing agencies are full-service firms that specialize in professional services. Typical scopes include strategy, branding, website projects, paid search and social advertising, email, PR and reporting, usually billed as a monthly retainer or by project. A good one brings senior marketing judgment. Scope, quality and pricing vary widely between agencies, so compare proposals line by line. The best agencies earn their retainer through judgment across many channels at once.
Marketing agency vs GetAccountingWebsite, line by line
Twelve things that decide how an accounting firm's website performs and who carries the work, set side by side.
| What matters | Marketing agency | GetAccountingWebsite |
|---|---|---|
| Speed and Core Web Vitals | Depends on who builds the site and on what platform. | 90+ PageSpeed guaranteed on pages we build and host. |
| SEO control | Often strong, as part of a broader program. | Built into the site: architecture, content and technical SEO, included in the plan. |
| Schema and JSON-LD | Varies by agency. | Generated from the site data on every build. |
| AEO and GEO readiness | Increasingly offered; scope varies. | Answer-first content, FAQs, llms.txt and consistent entity data, with no promise of AI citations. |
| Hosting and security | Often arranged separately or through the agency. | Cloudflare hosting, SSL, CDN, DDoS protection and unmetered bandwidth, included. |
| Maintenance burden | Handled by the agency within its scope. | Handled by us, inside the fee. |
| Who does the work | An account team, with meetings and reporting. | Our team, via a client portal, changes within 2 to 5 working days. |
| Content and blog | Usually part of a content retainer. | 2 to 3 researched articles a week; 3 social posts and 2 reels a week on Full Ledger. |
| Design quality | Often high, with bespoke branding. | A design system built for accounting practices and rebuilt around your brand. |
| Accessibility and compliance pages | Varies by agency. | Privacy, terms, cookie consent that gates scripts, accessibility statement and no-advice disclaimers, included. |
| Cost model | Retainer or project fees, often with separate ad spend. | Single Entry at $137, Double Entry at $297 plus AI usage, or Full Ledger at $747 a month. $797 build fee after launch. |
| Lock-in and ownership | Check contract terms for the site and domain. | Monthly plan, cancel with two business days of notice. Domain in your name, transferred free if you leave. |
Be honest about it
When Marketing agency is the better fit
- You need paid search and social campaigns managed. That is not part of our plans.
- You want PR, events, sponsorships or a rebrand led by a strategist.
- You need a multi-channel campaign across email, ads and content, with one team reporting on all of it.
For an accounting practice
When our managed site wins
- Your main gap is the website itself: speed, structure, service pages and content.
- You want a fixed monthly price with no hourly change requests.
- You want the site, AI receptionist, chat and SMS on Double Entry, or articles, social posts, reels and a managed Google Business Profile on Full Ledger, without an agency retainer.
- You are a solo or small practice for whom a full retainer is more than the job needs.
Switching04 steps
Working alongside your agency
Plenty of firms keep an agency for advertising and strategy and hand the website to us. The agency's campaigns point at our pages, which carry a 90+ PageSpeed guarantee, and a faster, relevant landing page can help the landing page experience part of Google Ads Quality Score. Enquiries route into whichever CRM the agency reports from. We coordinate on page requests through the client portal, so your agency asks and we build.
See what each plan includes- 01
Step 01
Check your agency contract for who owns the site and domain.
- 02
Step 02
Tell us in the onboarding form what the agency will keep doing.
- 03
Step 03
We build the site in 7 days on Single Entry, 10 on Double Entry and 15 on Full Ledger and connect forms to your CRM.
- 04
Step 04
Your domain is pointed after approval, and the agency's campaigns update their landing pages.
What firms say after moving to a managed site
- Sample review
Articles go out every week without me writing them, and the Google Business Profile finally matches the website. The quiet months used to be silent online. Now the firm is already visible when the busy season starts.
Grace LiangPrincipal, Tax preparation firmSan Jose, CA · Full Ledger The Content Engine, document checklists and a managed Google Business Profile
- Sample review
Most of our work comes through attorneys, and the site finally speaks to them. Each specialty has its own page and the intake form flags a litigation matter the moment it arrives, which is what a referring attorney expects.
Samuel AdeyemiPartner, Forensic accounting practicePhoenix, AZ · Single Entry Separate litigation support, fraud examination and valuation pages
Sample reviews. These are illustrative examples of the kind of result clients describe, not statements from real, named clients. Verified client reviews will replace them.
Still deciding? See the site you would get
A live 30-minute walk-through for your practice type. Plans from $137 a month, the $797 build fee invoiced only after you approve the finished site.
Queries08 answers
Questions about Marketing agency for accounting firms
Do you run Google Ads for accounting firms?
No. Paid ad management is not part of our plans. We build and run the website your ads point to, and a faster landing page can help Quality Score. We never promise a specific cost per click.
Can we keep our agency and use you for the website?
Yes. That is a common setup. The agency handles campaigns and strategy; we handle the site, its content and its enquiry routing.
What does an agency do that you do not?
Paid advertising, PR, events, broad marketing strategy and multi-channel reporting. Our plans focus on the website, its content and, on higher plans, AI answering and social content.
Is your plan cheaper than an agency retainer?
We do not quote agency fees, because they vary so widely. Our plans are Single Entry at $137, Double Entry at $297 plus AI usage, or Full Ledger at $747 a month, with the $797 build fee invoiced only after launch.
Do you provide monthly reports?
Your client portal tracks every request and its status. If you need detailed marketing reporting across channels, that is agency work.
Who owns the website if we leave?
You own your content, and the domain is in your name and transferred free if you leave.
Can you manage our Google Business Profile?
Yes, on Full Ledger, where it is managed as part of the Content Engine and kept consistent with the site.
Do you understand accounting firms?
We build only for accounting practices: CPA firms, bookkeepers, tax preparers, EAs, fractional CFOs, payroll, forensic and nonprofit specialists. We are not an accounting firm and never give tax, accounting or financial advice.
Other comparisons worth reading
You are probably weighing a page builder, WordPress, a freelancer, an agency or a GoHighLevel setup. Each has a fair, side-by-side comparison written for accounting practices, including when the other option is the better fit.
- GHL funnels vs GetAccountingWebsiteUse a GHL funnel for a single campaign or offer. Use a managed site for the firm itself, and route its enquiries into GHL.
- GHL websites vs GetAccountingWebsiteGHL websites suit a firm with an in-house builder. We suit a firm that wants the site written, run and kept fast for it.
- GHL AI vs GetAccountingWebsiteHighLevel's AI suits a firm that will configure its own agents. Our AI Engine is set up, scripted and kept advice-free for you.
- WordPress vs GetAccountingWebsiteWordPress wins if you have a developer and want full plugin control. We win if you want the site run for you, fast, on one fee.
This page compares a general category of business, not a named agency. GetAccountingWebsite is not affiliated with any marketing agency. Comparisons reflect our reading of public information on the date shown and describe general capabilities, not every plan or configuration.
Closing entry
Let us carry the website so your firm does not have to
Live in 7 days on Single Entry. Book a demo, or email hello@getaccountingwebsite.com and a person replies within one working day.