Partner POV- Nikki Burgeson

Nikki Burgeson Principal and Director of Sales and Business Development Rehmann

As a principal at Rehmann, Nikki Burgeson develops strategy, leads Rehmann’s business development team and spearheads the firm’s sales culture integration efforts. She does this by aligning the skills, talent and technical expertise of business advisors with new clients to ensure they receive customized, financially rewarding business solutions.

Nikki let’s start with an instance where you’ve adopted new digital strategies in coordination with your marketing department.

Our team knew that outstanding functionality was becoming available in the fast growing area of automated proposals. We decided to bring this opportunity to our Accounting Solutions group as they were eager and receptive to testing and rolling it out.

What were the first steps?

Rehmann’s proposal team, led by Melissa Furest, began our initial research on functionality and key vendors for consideration. Through several rounds of demos and a detailed analysis system, the team vetted several solutions to make a recommendation for advancing the Firm’s proposal process.

We selected Qwilr and the product is very impressive. So much so that other industry groups chimed right up and told us they wanted to be next in line, so we sped up the rollout.

Let’s switch to another digital advancement underway at Rehmann. You have a new website, and it is being put to the test by the firm’s significant investment in digital ads. How’s that going?

We launched our new site in 2023, and since then, we’ve seen a remarkable increase in both the quantity and quality of leads. This surge can be largely attributed to our strategic digital ad campaigns, showcasing the effectiveness of our digital marketing efforts. This has been especially true for Orlando, a market that we have been focusing heavily on with brand awareness campaigns and now, lead generation campaigns.

I believe this is a direct result of the increasingly social nature of business interactions today. Our digital marketing strategy, particularly through targeted ads and engaging content, has significantly boosted our online presence. Digital marketing allows us to meet people where they are, get in front of them, introduce them to our brand and allows for touchpoints throughout the entire buyer journey. For instance, we can host a mixer one night and see a noticeable spike in website leads the next day. This clearly demonstrates the powerful impact of our digital marketing initiatives.

What resources do you bring to this effort?

We have a wonderful digital agency for creative testing, audience segmentation and for media buying. We add to that our new data intelligence tool, ZoomInfo to research leads, integrated with our Client Relationship Management (CRM) database, Salesforce. These resources collectively enhance our ability to generate and convert high-quality leads through our digital strategies.

What’s next and is there an interest in or drive to develop marketing and BD digital solutions in house?

I see digital adoption picking up speed as we learn to use these technologies to boost efficiency, engage clients and stay competitive. Digital transformation is a critical pillar in our strategic plan. We want to ensure we are equipped with the skills that improve efficiency like deploying a digital user experience that drives client satisfaction and using technologies that inspire our people toward innovation. We have a strong interest in creating tailored solutions that meet the firm’s needs. Developing these applications internally can provide greater control over features, like real-time feedback, along with customization and integration with existing systems.

Furthermore, we encourage input through our internal Salesforce steering committee. We meet monthly to prioritize development, share new ideas and develop strategies to increase adoption.

Interview by Richard Shippee