344 search results for aquila+"creating the effective partnership"

the secrets of great business developers

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man in office writing notes at desk

how to turn a goal into action.

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

i speak with a lot of accountants and consultants every week, and i look for those recurring characteristics that make some of them outstanding in various areas of building and managing a professional practice. those who are great at business development all seem to follow the same process, especially when the going gets tough.

more: how life cycle changes your marketing | eleven possible pitfalls of mergers | six ways to expand your client services checklist | ten questions to refine your successful marketing plan | four questions for choosing your marketing audit strategies | four steps to a successful email marketing campaign | five reasons to implement change orders | make your practice better | eleven marketing strategies for smaller firms | five questions for developing your marketing plan | you only have four strategies | the damage that traditional fee methods do
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briefly stated, these professionals are successful because they have a clear vision of what they want to accomplish. they reinforce that vision with positive phrases and affirmations that reinforce their success. the following quiz will assess your business development acumen. give yourself one point for each correct true-or-false answer. (the correct answers are at the end of this post.)
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how life cycle changes your marketing

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illustration of business life cycle

startups have different needs than mature businesses, so the messaging must be different.

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

the business life cycle refers to the stages that a business goes through from its inception to its eventual closure or exit. each stage presents unique challenges and opportunities, and it is essential for accounting firms to adapt their marketing strategies accordingly.

more: eleven possible pitfalls of mergers | dodge the four curses of a production orientation | client acquisition never stops | ‘sales’ is not a four-letter word | maybe what you need is a marketing audit | three types of marketing message, and which is best | why you need progress billing | five tips for cross-selling and upselling | five keys to successful marketing | twelve fundamentals of planning | one question to guide your growth plans | four ways to prepare for new business development
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here are some marketing strategies that can be effective during different stages of the business life cycle. take a fresh look at your existing clients, and sort them according to their business life cycle: startup stage, growth stage, mature stage and transitional/decline. you want to make sure that as your clients go through these different cycles, your marketing messages and services change and address the right business concern.
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eleven possible pitfalls of mergers

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illustration of merger: four jigsaw puzzle pieces, each held by a different person's hand

what is driving the sale? is your firm ready?

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

the trend for small and midsized cpa firms to merge is accelerating as the competitive environment becomes even more demanding. while hundreds of firms merge every year, history continually shows that at some point in the future, things don’t always work out. like marriage, some mergers are successful while a great majority fail. many of the reasons for failure can be avoided if firms do their homework at the front end before entering the merger.

more: dodge the four curses of a production orientation | clients buy solutions, not features | make sure you know what you will get from your marketing | three pillars support a successful accounting firm | clients have six reasons for needing you | six ways to market your technology consulting practice | sixteen marketing activities to try | the four steps of your personal marketing process | how does your firm measure up? | six questions before asking for all the referrals you deserve | five rules for a marketing orientation | ten keys to marketing success
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the merger and acquisition drivers are constantly changing. some of the drivers we see today are a constantly changing marketplace, the creation of megafirms beyond the big 4, the sophistication of clients, the high demand for qualified people, technology, the cost of acquiring new clients, and finally, the accounting industry being in a mature market.

as we will see, most mergers fail because of non-financial reasons. unlike the sale of the manufacturing company, mergers of accounting firms are a lot more difficult to accomplish.
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dodge the four curses of a production orientation

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bonus: an illustration using two firms, one oriented to both production and marketing.

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

an emphasis on production (billable hours) can have negative consequences for an accounting firm. an emphasis on billable hours causes professionals to focus on internal measurements, i.e., the number of hours charged to a client, and not external measurements such as client satisfaction.

more: clients buy solutions, not features | six ways to expand your client services checklist | ten questions to refine your successful marketing plan | four questions for choosing your marketing audit strategies | four steps to a successful email marketing campaign | five reasons to implement change orders | make your practice better | eleven marketing strategies for smaller firms
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

 

it also emphasizes the technical aspect of accounting work and keeps professionals from developing a marketing mindset. let’s look at the four negative consequences of a production orientation.
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clients buy solutions, not features

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woman points to laptop to explain something to a female client

four elements to consider in every selling situation.

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

selling professional services is not as difficult as some accountants and consultants believe. i like to define sales as solving a client’s problem. if you think in these terms, you’ll realize that this is what we do every day.

sales is the lifeblood of every business out there. if we did not sell our services and products, we would not have a firm or business. so, don’t think of sales as something unprofessional. it’s an integral part of growing your practice.

more: six ways to expand your client services checklist | client acquisition never stops | ‘sales’ is not a four-letter word | maybe what you need is a marketing audit | three types of marketing message, and which is best | why you need progress billing | five tips for cross-selling and upselling | five keys to successful marketing | twelve fundamentals of planning | one question to guide your growth plans
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

my goal is to make you feel more comfortable with the sales process. here goes! remember, you are selling solutions to problems – or, as i like to say, selling the sizzle and not the bacon. it’s not the service or product that you are selling, it’s the benefits to the clients. clients and prospects aren’t buying the features of the system as much as what those features can do for them.
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six ways to expand your client services checklist

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it’s key to client retention.

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

let’s explore ways to provide additional services to existing clients. here is a short checklist that will help you obtain additional services for your clients.

more: client acquisition never stops | make sure you know what you will get from your marketing | three pillars support a successful accounting firm | clients have six reasons for needing you | six ways to market your technology consulting practice | sixteen marketing activities to try | the four steps of your personal marketing process | how does your firm measure up? | six questions before asking for all the referrals you deserve
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

  1. other than accounting and tax services, what additional services do you provide to this client? create a spreadsheet listing the type of service, the fees, the year of service, the engagement leader and the client’s satisfaction on a scale of 1 to 5. if your list of additional services is lengthy, you are providing good service to the client. if it is short, continue to the following questions.

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client acquisition never stops

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nine businesspeople talking in trios at a gathering

six ways to draw people’s interest.

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

a good marketing program never stops marketing the firm. you must always think about acquiring new clients to replace lost ones and to improve the quality of your client base. it’s a fact of life that some clients will move, go out of business, merge or even leave us for another firm.

more: make sure you know what you will get from your marketing | ten questions to refine your successful marketing plan | four questions for choosing your marketing audit strategies | four steps to a successful email marketing campaign | five reasons to implement change orders | make your practice better | eleven marketing strategies for smaller firms | five questions for developing your marketing plan | you only have four strategies | the damage that traditional fee methods do
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

let’s look at some basic client acquisition activities that should be part of your marketing plan. you may be asking yourself, “which ones work?” they all do. the secret of business development is to constantly be in the marketplace because you never know when a prospect is ready to buy from you or to move from their existing accounting firm.
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make sure you know what you will get from your marketing

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smiling man speaking into microphone in front of laptop

are you spending your time effectively?

by august j. aquila
price it right: how to value accounting services

i once knew a firm that was spending a significant amount of money on marketing and was experiencing little or no growth. they could not understand what was going wrong. they tried all sorts of marketing activities. they presented webinars, sent out a client newsletter, did some advertising and public relations, and so on.

more: ten questions to refine your successful marketing plan | ‘sales’ is not a four-letter word | maybe what you need is a marketing audit | three types of marketing message, and which is best | why you need progress billing | five tips for cross-selling and upselling | five keys to successful marketing | twelve fundamentals of planning | one question to guide your growth plans | four ways to prepare for new business development
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

the problem was that this firm did not know what to expect from their marketing activities. sometimes they wanted clients immediately, and when that did not happen, they then tried another marketing activity, never staying with an activity long enough to see results. the moral of the story is that marketing takes time to produce results, and if you are not patient, it can eat up your hard-earned dollars and time.
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