LinkedIn is often thought of as the “professional social media network,” but it’s by no means the only place to make valuable professional connections and learn about your industry online. With almost 2.5 billion monthly active users, Facebook is easily the world’s largest social media platform – and is definitely one that every accounting and tax professional should utilize to build connections, learn from peers, and even find new clients.Using your Facebook business profile to engage current clients and reach prospects isn’t the only key feature for professionals: Facebook Groups offer valuable opportunities to build your network within the industry and join valuable discussions with peers and subject experts. Start searching and you can find a Facebook Group for just about anything. However, in the case of tax and accounting pros, there are professionally-oriented groups that often operate like forums for people with common interests, opportunities, and challenges (i.e. your industry or niche) to discuss the latest issues, news, or questions they may have. Some Facebook Groups may include more self-promotion and are poorly organized – things that busy tax and accounting professionals don’t have time for. The best groups create valuable conversation, engaged communities, and a place to easily connect with industry peers. However, since Facebook is not a fully professional network (like LinkedIn), it can be difficult to find quality groups that offer these benefits without the spam.To save you time, we’ve compiled a great list for 2020 of the 15 best Facebook groups for accountants and tax professionals (in alphabetical order):

• Accountants of the Future – With cloud accounting and new and improved technology, the accounting space is evolving. These changes bring a shift in the role accountants play in working with their clients. The purpose of this group is to share advice, thought leadership, updates and relevant information to help each other to grow and tackle the future of accounting together.
• Bookkeepers Corner Group – This group is for Bookkeepers and Accounting professionals serving multiple clients, to connect and collaborate on general bookkeeping topics.
• Business Boutique Bookkeepers and Accountants – This growing group was created for women in bookkeeping, accounting and/or tax businesses.
• CalCPA Young & Emerging Professionals (OC/LB Chapter) – The California Society of CPAs is a nonprofit organization aimed at promoting the integrity of the profession as well as supporting the success of each of its members. (Reside in a different area? Just search Facebook for chapters in your locale!)
• California National Association of Tax Professionals – This is a closed group that is only open to NATP members. The group provides its members with specific education and support to succeed in the tax profession. (Reside in a different area? Just search Facebook for chapters in your locale!)
• Enrolled Agents – The Tax Professionals – With over 2,000 members, this group is for professionals covered by the IRS Cir. 230.
• National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA) – This is the official Facebook group of the National Association of Enrolled Agents. The group is restricted to members of NAEA.
• QB Power User Community – This group is for QB Power Users, Accountants, Bookkeepers, CPAs, and QuickBooks ProAdvisors looking to improve and share their practical skills and experience.
• Tax & Accounting Practice Management – This Group is for Tax Professionals looking for and sharing Practice Management tools.  
• Tax Planners of America – This group is for all Tax Professionals that specialize in Proactive Tax Planning Strategies, and that want to collaborate, improve and expand in the art and science of Tax Planning.
• Tax Professionals of America – This group of over 6,000 members was created so that tax pros from all over can know we have a community of partners to ask tax and accounting questions and rely on whenever needed.
• Tax Pros CPE/CE Events – Looking for learning opportunities? This group exists to list upcoming CPE/CE events in the field of taxation. Courses may be live, in-person, webinars or recorded.
• Tax Refund Craziness – This huge group of over 18,000 members is a place for taxpayers to ask questions about this year's taxes (or previous and future years). This could be a good group to see trends in what taxpayers are asking and where the biggest points of confusion are in any given year.
• Tax Refund Q&A’s 2020 – With over 8,000 members, this group discusses and answers all things around tax refunds specific to this year.
• The Successful Bookkeeper – With over 8,000 members, the purpose of this group is to have a supportive community to help answer questions and give feedback on anything related to building and growing their bookkeeping business.

Staying up to date on where the important conversations are taking place among key industry voices can be difficult, so be sure to check our other top lists for 2020: The 25 Best Tax and Accounting Twitter Accounts to Follow in 2020The 15 Best LinkedIn Groups for Accountants and Tax Professionals in 2020 The 25 Best Tax and Accounting Blogs – 2020 (coming soon!) Investing the time to build your professional network and glean as many insights as possible from Facebook Groups can be highly beneficial to your practice in the long-term.

If you are an accounting, tax, or bookkeeping professional and have questions about Facebook or about how you can generate more referrals from social media, contact us today at 1-800-442-2477 or set up some time to speak with one of our accountant social media experts. We offer a full suite of digital marketing packages, including posting tax and accounting content to your Facebook business page and also growing your referrals coming from social media.