Last week, the Jon Davies Accountants (JDA) team attended the National Entrepreneurs Convention, not just as attendees but as exhibitors. This was our fourth time exhibiting, and while I always go to learn and find new ways to help grow our business, this year the team and I knew we had to try something different to stand out among the crowd.
With 1,300 attendees, we were aware that 1,000 of them had already booked at last year’s convention, and a large portion of those had been coming for three years in a row. As a result, we needed something fresh to pique the interest of the attendees, so they didn’t just walk past thinking, “Oh, it’s another accountant.”
So, what did we do? We took a risk. Our stand was completely unbranded—nowhere did it say “Jon Davies Accountants” or even “Accountants.” Instead, we focused on something many entrepreneurs can relate to: the loneliness that often comes with running a business. And, of course, being from Liverpool, we tied this to a message everyone knows: You’ll Never Walk Alone.
Our stand was simple—bright red with white writing, boldly stating “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” And you know what? It worked. We spoke to more attendees than ever before. The mystery and intrigue drew people in, and while a few people may have looked slightly disappointed when they discovered we were accountants, they quickly got into the conversation about how we could help their business.
To support this approach, we brought along only one piece of literature: a book titled You’ll Never Walk Alone. It detailed how we help businesses through their monthly management accounts—or, as we call them, Monthly Management Pictures™.
One of the key lessons we’ve learned is that many business owners struggle to understand their numbers, yet numbers are the foundation of any business. As Warren Buffett says, “If you can’t read the scorecard, you don’t know the winners from the losers.” And that’s where we come in. We create management pictures packed with graphs, pie charts, and diagrams to make the numbers easier to understand, so our clients know exactly how their business is performing.
We spent two great days at the event, chatting with entrepreneurs from all over the UK. It was refreshing to have real conversations about how we can help them stay on top of their numbers and never walk the business path alone. We even had a bit of banter, especially with the football fans—one Manchester United fan spent a day and a half avoiding our stand, but curiosity finally got the better of him. Now, he’s in talks with us about handling his accounts.
All in all, it was a fantastic experience, and we’re excited to help more businesses feel like they’ll never walk alone on their journey to growth and success.
And, if you’d like to find out all about the Monthly Management Pictures™, you can download them here:
FIND OUT HERE