Many of the accountants who book a call with me are looking to make more money. Although few actually say that.
They may start by asking for help in building their brand, improving their marketing, using Linkedin better or any of a range of other TACTICS where I could support and guide them.
I’m happy to do any of those things but always try to first clarify the REAL underlying objectives. WHY, do they want to do whatever it is?
Often, not always, but often, the underlying motivation is to make more money from their practice.
And, when that is the case we can then look to consider each of the 7 (or 8) of the ways this can be achieved.
The good news is that none involves fancy tax schemes, expensive new tech, or time consuming and costly marketing initiatives.
1. Increase your fees for the work you do each year
This is often the hardest one to embrace — but it’s also the most powerful.
If you haven’t reviewed (vs increased) your fees for years (or since you started), then now is the time.
If you’re like most sole practitioners I know, you have a bunch of ‘legacy’ clients who pay you less than newer clients who get a similar service from you. And some of those newer clients are paying you the same fee as you charged 2, 3 or more years ago too. What happened to Inflation, increased software costs nd other reasons that could justify a fee review/increase?
Experience suggests you are listening to that inner fear that says “they’ll all leave me if I put my fees up.”. Spoiler alert: They won’t.
I”ve worked with accountants on overcoming that inner fee and securing increased profits through well communicated fee reveiws/increases.
2. Get paid faster
Getting the work done is one thing. Getting paid for it quickly is another.
Think about the impact on your cash flow if you:
- Bill promptly
- Take upfront payments
- Secure monthly direct debits
- Have a clear process for chasing unpaid invoices.
Decent clients aren’t offended by accountants adopting a professional approach to billing. In fact, they expect it.
3. Work more efficiently
Getting the work done faster and freeing up time for more billable work is certainly an approach to consider.
If you (or your team) can:
- Help clients to provide their data in a more useable format
- Adopt more/better tech to process client data
- Streamline your systems and processes,
- Automate repetitive tasks and/or
- Delegate work downwards (or outsource it)
…then you can complete client work more quickly, without reducing your fee. That extra time you fee up is then available for more profitable work, for engaging more clients and/or taking a more strategic approach to running your practice.
4. Introduce more services
Many clients don’t know what else you can help them with beyond whatever they engaged you to do at the outset.
You may have told them what else you do for other clients, but if they weren’t interested at the time, they may not remember.
What do you do for some clients that you don’t do for all those who could be willing to pay for that additional work?
Don’t assume NONE are interested. If you’ve earned their trust, they’ll often prefer to pay you than look elsewhere.
Ask me about Mark’s Magic Matrix and Woo chart. Many accountants have told me how much it has helped them address these issues.
5. Provide more value (and charge accordingly)
This one is easy to confuse with point 4, but it’s slightly different.
It’s not about providing additional services. It’s about delivering more value as part of the services you already provide to your clients. For example: Moving from reactive to proactive. From being the year-end person to being the go-to adviser.
As your input becomes more strategic, your fees can reflect that shift in relationship.
6. Get your best clients to introduce others like them
Your good clients invariably know other people who are just like them. When your clients see you as a specialist in their area of work, their industry or their area, you make it easy for them to recommend and refer you. But unless you prompt the conversation, they may never think to do so.
A well-timed nudge can work wonders. Something like:
“By the way, I’m looking to take on one or two more clients like you this year – if anyone comes to mind, I’d really appreciate an intro.”
It’s that simple. And it works.
7. Conduct a marketing campaign to secure more of the right sort of clients
Obviously there are occasions when my work with accountants reaches this point. Whilst I do not profess to be a trained marketing expert, I do have more experience than most in observing what seems to work and what rarely works for accountants in the UK.
I have blogged about many of the different approaches here numerous times. Suffice it to say that there are few quick and easy solutions that work.
The starting point though is always the same 3 questions:
- What sort of clients do you hope to attract?
- What services will they want?
- Why should they choose you over any other accountant?
When you can answer these 3 questions we can look at the various marketing, advertising and networking options available to you and CHOOSE which are likely to be woirth your time, energy and (sometimes) money.
Many is the time I have discouraged accountants from investing money in what I term ‘long-shot’ campaigns. I’ve also had some come back to me months later to apologise after having ignored my advice. I’m just pleased they cam eback and I can help them do something that is more likely to succeed and will probably cost less too!
8. Ditch the duff D-list clients
This makes the list even though it may reduce your income initially. But it also frees you up to take on more of the clients you want. It will also mean you feel less stressed and have more energy and enthusiasm each day as you know you’re not going to have to deal with those PITA clients. (PITA = Pain In The backside)
You know who your PITA clients are. They’re the ones who:
- Make you cringe when you get an email from them
- Put you on edge when they call
- Pay late.
- Upset your colleagues/team
- Argue about your fees.
- Are slow to respond to your data requests and your questions
- Ignore your advice, then blame you later.
Everyone has (or had) PITA clients. They take up emotional bandwidth that could be better spent on good clients. Letting them go makes room for growth and improves your profitability, even if your turnover doesn’t budge.
In summary…
If you want to increase profits, don’t just chase more clients or more work.
Instead, revisit your pricing, your processes, your positioning and your portfolio of clients.
Apply these approaches first to your own firm. Then, once you’ve seen the impact, you can start suggesting the same tactics to your clients.
After all, you’ll be talking from experience. And if you want to discuss any of these suggestions with me, you know where I am.
