The Brief
Mid-size accounting and advisory firm in Paris. Growing international client base. They wanted to reach foreign companies setting up operations in France, specifically CFOs and founders in the middle of European expansion decisions. The firm had the expertise: cross-border tax, French labor law, M&A structuring, international payroll. All of it locked inside partner conversations and client decks. None on LinkedIn.
The 12 partners ranged from skeptical to resistant. One called LinkedIn "a place where people post motivational quotes." The company page hadn't been updated in weeks.
Our Strategy
Partners at professional services firms do not respond well to being told they should be on social media. We knew that going in so we didn't frame it that way.
Training program was designed to respect their intelligence and their schedule. Two sessions, 90 minutes each. First: how LinkedIn distributes content, and real data on how buyers research professional services firms before reaching out. Not motivational. Factual. Second session was hands-on, each partner picked topics tied to their practice and wrote a draft post in the room.
The tax partner said he had "nothing interesting to say on LinkedIn." We showed him three posts from partners at competing firms getting traction with exactly the type of client he wanted. He went quiet for a minute. Posted the next morning.
Every partner left with a content plan matched to their expertise. Tax structuring for foreign-owned entities, employment law pitfalls for new market entrants, due diligence red flags, payroll compliance across jurisdictions.
Company page ran practical, specific content for businesses entering France. Regulatory deadlines. Tax mistakes most foreign companies make. Government incentive programs that are easy to miss if you don't know where to look.
LinkedIn Ads ran in parallel targeting CFOs and founders at companies with European expansion signals. A downloadable guide on setting up operations in France drove lead capture.
The Result
Six of 12 partners posting weekly at day 90. Doesn't sound dramatic. But if you've ever tried to change habits inside a professional services partnership you know how significant that is.
Page went from 430 to 1,200 followers. Guide generated 42 leads at $38 per lead. Partner posts reached 55,000 combined impressions per month. Three new international client engagements in the first quarter traced to LinkedIn.
We wanted eight partners posting, not six. Two never came around. But the six who did are consistent and the tax partner who said he had nothing to say now posts twice a week without prompting.