A good 2027 marketing plan for a professional services firm fits on a few pages. It covers goals tied to revenue, where your clients come from today, who you’re for, a month-by-month calendar, a budget and the handful of numbers you’ll track. Here’s how I build one with clients every fall.
1. Start with what 2026 actually did
Before you plan anything new, look at where this year’s new clients came from. Pull a list of every new client and note the source: a referral (and from whom), a search, an event, an existing client buying something new. Then check Search Console for the searches that brought people to your site, and Google Analytics for visits from ChatGPT, Perplexity and other AI tools.
Add one question to your intake process for 2027: “How did you find us, and did you look us up anywhere before you called?” More prospects now ask an AI tool about a firm before they reach out, and this is the easiest way to find out.
2. Set goals tied to revenue
“More leads” isn’t a goal. “Six new advisory clients with at least $25,000 in annual fees” is. Work backward from the revenue you want, to the number and type of clients that gets you there, to how many conversations that takes. That math tells you how much marketing you actually need.
3. Decide who you’re for
Pick the two or three specialties, industries or client types you most want to grow in 2027. AI tools and search engines answer specific questions, and they recommend firms that clearly specialize. A firm that says it serves everyone gives them nothing to match.
4. Choose your channels
For most firms I work with, the 2027 mix looks something like this:
- Referral partners and existing clients, with a simple follow-up rhythm and a reason to stay in touch.
- Your website, with one strong page per core service and bio pages for your people.
- Search and AI visibility, including your Google Business Profile and your listings on Bing, Apple Maps, Yelp, ChatGPT and your industry directories.
- Content written from your partners’ expertise, refreshed quarterly.
- An email newsletter to past clients, prospects and referral partners.
- LinkedIn posts from your partners’ own profiles, ideally with short videos.
- A few events, associations or speaking slots where your ideal clients actually show up.
You don’t need all of these. Choose the ones that match where your best clients come from, and do them consistently.
5. Build a month-by-month calendar
Map the year around your firm’s real cycles. CPA firms plan around tax season and extension deadlines. Advisors plan around year-end reviews. Law firms plan around legislative changes that affect their clients. Put the newsletter dates, content topics, events and campaign launches on one calendar with an owner for each.
6. Set a budget
Decide what your team will do in-house and what you’ll hand off. Include the tools, the website care plan, any paid ads, event sponsorships and outside help. A smaller budget spent every month will outperform a bigger one spent in bursts.
7. Track a handful of numbers
Pick five or six and report them monthly: new inquiries by source, consultations booked, new clients won, calls and form fills from the website, Google Business Profile calls, and whether your firm shows up when you test your key questions in AI tools. Traffic and followers are useful context, but they aren’t the goal.
8. Review it every quarter
Put four review dates on the calendar now. Keep what’s working, drop what isn’t, and adjust. A plan nobody looks at after January isn’t a plan.
What’s different about planning for 2027
Two things stand out. First, more of the work of being found happens off your website, in listings, reviews and mentions that AI tools read. Second, each search sends fewer clicks because the answer is often right on the results page, so the visitors you do get are further along. I wrote more about both in SEO and AI search in 2027 and Professional services marketing in 2027.
Frequently asked questions
When should a firm build its marketing plan?
October or November, before budgets are finalized. If it’s already January, a plan built now is still better than none.
How long should a marketing plan be?
A few pages. If it’s too long to bring to a monthly meeting, it’s too long.
We get most of our work from referrals. Do we still need a plan?
Yes. Referrals still look you up before they call, and a plan makes sure what they find backs up what they heard.
Want help putting your 2027 plan together? Every fractional CMO engagement starts with one. Email me at lauren@lhoandco.com.