Know-How Exchange : Advertising/PR

It's going to be difficult to retain your Illinois clients, since you don't feel very "local" to them, and tax prep has traditionally been a very hands-on, face-to-face service business. When you can't have a one-on-one confidential discussion with your tax preparer, it somehow seems like you're not getting personal service ... even though I understand that it shouldn't matter what state you're in, in this era of remote everything. (You might as well be in India or the Philippines, right?)

My sense is that you'd do better trying to build your business in Georgia. At least you don't have to fight the "remote" battle there. You WILL need a carefully crafted marketing plan, however, and that's not something we can do very well in a few short responses on this forum.

You should probably start by defining your primary target audience in Georgia. Don't try to be all things to all people. Find a narrow niche that you can really penetrate, and then do a great job with that niche. Next year you can expand, if you still need/want more business.

Set some specific objectives and a reasonable budget, and develop your marketing plan to achieve the objectives within your spending parameters. What's the lifetime value of a customer? Anything you spend to get a new customer that's less than their lifetime value is going to be profitable for you.

Perhaps it's time for a road trip. Visit the Illinois clients at their businesses. Tell them face-to-face why you moved, how you can help them as well as before, and create a follow-up plan to address their concerns/needs.