As recently as rive years ago,
most CPA firms were scrambling
to create an online presence
before they missed the
"virtual" curve. Partners
across the country were
congratulating each other for
their firms' "awesome"
graphics and the "really cool"
Web designs, after which it
was back to business as usual.
The most a firm expected was
the occasional new client that
first learned of the firm on
the Web. In fact, many CPAs
regarded their Web sites as
"just another expensive method
of publishing a list of client
services." If that is all you
still expect from your firm's
site, you are missing the
curve.
Today, the benchmark for
cutting-edge Web development
for business are the
database-driven Web sites.
They are considered
database-driven because the
contents of the site actually
is stored in a database. They
combine a Web browser, a Web
server and database software
in a way that makes the site
accurate, timely, interactive
and, most important,
personalized for each client.
Web sites that are not
database-driven are static and
require programming every time
their content changes.
You most likely have had some
experience using
database-driven sites and
didn't even know it. For
example, some of the best
known companies that have
created database-driven Web
sites include Amazon (www.amazon.com),
Charles Schwab (www.schwab.com),
Federal Express (www.fedex.com)
and American Airlines (www.aa.com).
These sites generate new
clients because they are
interactive and personalized.
For example, they allow
clients to place and trace
orders, access timely account
information and learn about
events or products that are of
special importance to them.
CPA firms do not have to earn
$100 million in revenue to
take advantage of all the
marketing benefits of a more
sophisticated Web site. In
fact, small firms can
establish their own
database-driven sites and
manage them without having to
hire professional Web
designers whenever they want
them updated. This provides
CPAs with a relatively
low-cost marketing tool and
engages clients with timely
and personalized information.
ADD VALUE TO YOUR PRACTICE
Keeping the standard Web site
up-to-date can be a daunting,
nearly impossible task for the
small firm. Practitioners who
have established a Web site
generally pay professional Web
designers--who know Web site
programming languages, such as
HTML and XML--when they need
it updated. Consequently, it
is not the development cost,
but the high hourly
maintenance fees and the lack
of in-house control that
discourage smaller firms from
developing or expanding their
Web presence. Because of this,
many firms neglect this
important duty, or they put it
very low on their list of
priorities. Stale information
is worse than no
information--in most cases a
user looking for timely data
will not revisit a site that
does not provide
up-to-the-minute information.
Alternatively, with a
database-driven Web site, you
can make changes by altering
the database and your clients
will update your site as they
input new information about
themselves online.
Database-driven Web
applications are the most
cost-effective solutions for
Web sites with frequent
content changes. Companies
have applied such technology
successfully to online
catalogs, data broadcasting,
service tracking and airline
reservations. CPA firms can
apply the same technology to
make their sites better
marketing tools. For example,
database-driven sites can
include
* Customized daily or weekly
announcements for clients,
such as tax filing reminders
or SEC requirements.
* Customized updates on local
issues that could affect local
clients such as an increase in
state or county property
taxes.
* New product and services
information such as a hotlink
to information on a new
payroll service.
* An interactive checklist or
calculators that advise users
of the benefits of financial
planning.
* A calendar of social events
at which CPA firm members will
be present to meet with new
and current clients to answer
questions or provide
information about a specific
issue.
ADDING A PERSONAL TOUCH
You can adapt a
database-driven Web site to
the individual needs of each
client. The client inputs an
identification code and
password to log on to your
firm's site. After the client
logs on, the screen announces,
"This Web page was designed
exclusively for [client's
name]." The site provides a
menu of all your firm's
services and the client
chooses the services for which
it would like regular updates.
For example, you can add the
latest about software upgrades
or answer your IT clients'
frequently asked questions.
In essence, you can
cross-market your firm's
services that match your
clients' business needs. The
more you know about your
clients and their needs, the
more you can add to their
personal sites.
COLLECTING DATA
Most CPA firms conduct a great
deal of their business via
e-mail. Information CPAs
receive from clients on e-mail
can be very difficult to sort.
If you just need to answer a
few client questions, e-mail
is fine, but if you want to
store and analyze client
information, you need to
download it into a database.
If your Web site automatically
collects client information
for you, that information is
easy to organize and easily
archived, so you can identify
frequently asked questions and
respond to client needs.
Another useful application
allows you to monitor your
clients' use of the site and
to record your observations
into the database. You will
not only learn whether your
clients are using your site,
but such tracking also will
reveal which of your services
your clients are most
interested in using.
YOUR OWN DATA COLLECTOR
To create your own
database-driven Web site you
need a Web browser, Web
server, back-end database and
middleware. Web browsers are
software programs that process
and display information they
request from a Web server.
Popular examples of Web
browsers are Netscape
Navigator and Microsoft
Explorer. Browsers usually are
"bundled" with new computers
and essentially are cost-free.
Clients who access your Web
site are doing so through a
Web browser. When a client or
any other user makes a request
to retrieve information, the
request is sent from the
browser to the Web server over
the Internet.
The Web server supports the
software needed to create a
Web Site on the Internet.
Popular Web server software
includes Netscape Enterprise
Server, Microsoft Internet
Information Server and Apache.
The Web server software
fulfills the requests it
receives from Web browsers.
The requests range from simply
locating an HTML file to
executing a program.
A database is a huge
repository of data that are
easy to manipulate and easy to
query. The integration of the
database into your Web
applications allows you or
your clients to update the
database through a Web browser
and to post the information
retrieved from the database
onto your Web site. This makes
changing Web site content as
simple as adding, modifying or
deleting data within the
database. Popular database
programs include Microsoft
Access and Oracle.
Middleware is the glue that
makes the Web browser, the Web
server and the database work
together seamlessly. It is
software supported by the Web
server that integrates
database operations into a Web
application. Middleware
recognizes requests that ask
that a "script" be executed.
Scripts are programs used to
process data, format data and
perform database operations.
The emergence of middleware is
largely responsible for the
increased popularity of
database-driven Web
applications. Exhibit 1, page
56, provides an overview of
middleware products.
Exhibit 1: Middleware Products
Products Web site
Active Server Pages
www.asp101.com
Cold Fusion www.allaire.com
Sapphire/Web www.bluestone.com
WebHub www.href.com
WebObjects
www.apple.com/Webobjects/
Exhibit 2, below, shows how
all these tools work together.
When a user with access to the
system requests to retrieve or
manipulate data, the Web
browser sends a request to the
server to execute a script or
program. The middleware on the
server recognizes the request
to execute a script. In
general, the scripts contain a
mixture of HTML commands and
tags that will format and
process data in the database.
In most cases, the database
operation commands are
structured query language
(SQL) statements.
[Exhibit 2 ILLUSTRATION
OMITTED]
Scripts can combine the data
retrieved from the database
with HTML tags to create a Web
page on the fly. Most
important, if the data on the
database change, the Web page
changes.
You don't necessarily have to
install and maintain all these
Internet tools yourself. You
can pay an initial development
fee to a Web designer and rent
space on a Web server that
includes middleware and a
back-end database for $20 to
$50 per month from a Web host
company. A typical
configuration offered by a
large number of Web host
companies includes Windows NT
as the operating system,
Microsoft Internet Information
Server as the server software,
Cold Fusion as the middleware
and Microsoft Access as the
back-end database. Once in
place, you will maintain the
content of the Web site
yourself--this will provide
you with real cost savings
down the line.
IMPLEMENTING YOUR OWN SITE
CPA firm Web sites often post
staff information such as
name, education, e-mail
address, telephone number,
experience and areas of
specialization. Employee pages
need to be changed when the
employee information changes.
Such changes can cost your
firm a lot of money if your
Web site is not
database-driven, especially
when a professional Web
designer maintains the
company's Web site.
In contrast, you can update
the information on your
database-driven site using a
Web browser. For example,
assume you hire a new employee
and have to update your Web
site. You or anyone who has
access to the system uses a
data-manipulation form to
change the content of the Web
site. Exhibit 3, page 58,
shows a form designed to add a
new employee to the database
on the Web server far
Bautista, Hengesbach, North,
CPAs. Note that there is a
place on the form to include a
digital photograph of the CPA.
Because of this, you can load
new pictures on your Web
server for each new employee
without having to rewrite the
HTML code for your Web site.
When you finally click on the
Add Employee button (see the
bottom of exhibit 3), the
browser requests a script or
program from the server to
process the data about the new
employee. The script on the
server contains an SQL
statement that adds a new
record to the employee table
in the company's database.
[Exhibit 3 ILLUSTRATION
OMITTED]
When a client or user anywhere
in the world asks for some
information about the new
employee, a different script
is activated. This time, the
script contains an SQL
statement that retrieves the
requested data from the
database and generates an HTML
document on the fly. The
resulting Web page is shown in
exhibit 4, below. It is the
information in the database
that determines the content of
your Web pages.
[Exhibit 4 ILLUSTRATION
OMITTED]
ENHANCE YOUR FIRM'S IMAGE
It is important that CPAs stay
on top of cutting-edge
technology, especially when
they offer IT consulting
services. Your Web site very
often is the first contact
potential clients will have
with your firm. Imagine what a
potential client thinks when
he or she reads on your site
that your firm provides
technology consulting and goes
on to read something about
Windows 95; your clients'
first impression of your firm
should not be underwhelming.
Database-driven Web technology
will definitely help maintain
and improve a firm's image.
Most CPAs are familiar with
computerized accounting
systems, spreadsheets,
database programs,
computerized tax return
preparation and word
processing. Therefore, adding
database-driven Web technology
will be a snap for most
practitioners.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
* MOST CPA FIRMS HAVE STATIC
WEB SITES with fixed content.
Practitioners can not easily
change this data without prior
knowledge of a Web programming
language, such as HTML.
* DATABASE-DRIVEN WEB SITES
allow practitioners to change
Web content without knowing a
Web programming language, thus
saving CPAs the cost of hiring
Web designers every time they
need to update information on
their sites.
* INFORMATION ON YOUR WEB SITE
can be customized for each
client. Changing the content
in the back-end database will
change what your clients see
when they log on to your site.
* TO CREATE YOUR OWN
DATABASE-DRIVEN Web site, you
need a Web browser, Web
server, back-end database and
middleware. Web host companies
can supply your firm with all
the necessary ingredients for
a setup fee and a $20 to $50
monthly maintenance fee.
* DATABASE-DRIVEN WEB SITES
will maintain and improve your
firm's image for technical
expertise, which is especially
important for firms that offer
IT consulting services. Most
important, the database-driven
site will help you develop
your practice by making your
Web site a personal marketing
tool.
RELATED ARTICLE: Dynamic Web
Technology for Intranets
Intranets are private
corporate networks built with
Internet technology. An
intranet is useful for CPA
firms that have more than one
office and need technology to
communicate with staff who
work in different locations.
Intranets provide a
cost-effective way for your
staff to share best practices,
schedules, research reports
and more. Database-driven Web
technology should be applied
to intranets in the same way
it is used on Web sites.
An impressive example of such
an application is the
compliance research intranet
created by the IRS Compliance
Research Division, which used
database-driven Web technology
to build a searchable
electronic library, a project
management system and a rime
reporting system.
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