strangely, the important ones are being asked the least.
by hitendra patil
client accounting services: the definitive success guide
as a professional accountant, if you are looking to stay more relevant to your clients’ evolving needs, what are the top questions about client accounting services (cas) you must find answers to?
more: cas drives up demand for virtual cfos | the roi on identifying clients for cas | what clients need now, more than ever | how to launch cas in eight steps | survey: why some firms fall behind in cas | how to lead clients into client accounting services
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to find the answer to this all-important question, the best way was to ask the accountants themselves. surprisingly, accountants are not asking the questions that are more important for cas success.
to dive deeper to uncover relevant insights in an unbiased way, i reached out to some accountants across the country, including those with whom i had no prior connection. i asked them to take a quick, preliminary sprinkle-survey to find out what are the questions related to cas that accountants have in their minds. firms of all sizes responded to the survey – from solo practitioners to larger firms. the fact that practitioners from all sized firms participated in the survey gives us excellent insights about cas. let me share the insights with you.
to be or not to be?
it was found that the question is not “whether” to offer cas. it is “when” – and hence accountants want to know “how.” while 60 percent of survey respondents already offer cas, only 3 percent said they do not plan to offer cas. twenty-seven percent are planning to offer cas. the obvious insight here is that a majority of firms will offer cas in some form or other. it is being seen as the “need to stay in business.”
the top six cas questions in accountants’ minds
here are the top six cas questions (among the top 18 unique, common questions) in accountants’ minds. over the last four years of researching and discovering practical insights for cas success, including later conducting one more – the largest – in-depth cas survey in the profession, i identified more than 200 key cas questions you will need to find answers to for your cas success. let me briefly answer each one of the six key cas questions.
6. do i need more/different technology solutions to offer cas?
very strangely, accountants are not asking this really important question more often. cas is about the timely application of accountants’ knowledge, wisdom and expertise to business processes as they are taking place. accountants need to be the ones primarily in control of the technology that drives cas benefits for clients. to deliver the best value cas can provide, you need technology solution/s that you can control, not your clients. after all, you are the professional accountant.
5. do i need specific types of clients to offer cas?
strangely, this important question is not the one that accountants were/are thinking more about. it is a make-or-break factor to identify which clients are suited more for cas. business clients who look for bare-minimum services from accountants to get their books tax ready at the least possible cost are (obviously) not the types of clients you want for cas. clients who have the necessary volume of business transactions and who think they can/should do their accounting themselves are the ones you want to educate about the cas possibilities. (i created a tool/wizard to help quickly identify cas-fit clients and it is available as a bonus download when you buy the cas book.)
4. how is cas different from what i do now?
“accounting” has been synonymized, not so correctly, with client accounting services. the rule of thumb to follow to know how is cas different is “moving your client engagement from mostly after-the-fact to while-and-even-before the client is conducting his/her business process steps.” you can easily identify the new services you need to offer under cas when you apply this rule to your engagements. for write-up, tax, etc. the time deadlines are few and you know them much in advance. for cas, the deadlines for deliverables can be continuous, every day, every week and every month. you need documented procedures and to cross-train your staff.
3. how do i do marketing for cas?
if you already have a few clients, you do not need any marketing for cas. you want to first take cas to your existing clients and you can do that during your regular, scheduled interactions with your clients i.e. you don’t need to invest separate, additional time in marketing for cas. it is, again, just a matter of making your clients aware of the new possibilities and new value under your cas offering. once you have experience of cas with enough number of clients, marketing cas to prospects is just part of your overall marketing strategy and processes.
2. how should i price my cas services?
essentially, cas relieves your clients from accounting process management. hence, it should follow the “replacement cost” principle in your pricing. in other words, your clients must not feel that they will incur less cost if they do it themselves. but, many times the clients don’t value their own time that they spend struggling with the accounting work (and creating a mess for accountants to clean up), and are oblivious to the real and opportunity costs of their time. it is in your interest to make them see the facts.
1. what are the services i must offer in cas?
this is the #1 question asked by over 78 percent of the respondents. there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. your ability to customize the services needed by each of your clients – not just standardized packaging – is the key to solve this puzzle. in many cases, your clients will not even know which of your services they really need and it is your responsibility to make them aware of the possibilities. one simple rule of thumb though – figure out the role of accounting insights can play during, before and after your clients make their business decisions. those roles are the precursors to the cas services you can – and must – offer under your cas umbrella.
cas success is a journey, not a destination
these are just some of the top common cas questions accountants ask. answers to these will not be a master key to cas success but knowing the answers can lead you to find that master key. as you go about creating/growing/enhancing your cas practice, you will experience that you only become better at it. cas success is a journey, not a destination. cas evolves within each firm. the cas evolution roadmap is proven across many firms.
as wayne berson, chief executive officer of bdo usa and chairman and bdo international states, “the roadmap is there; just follow it!”