say adios to audit fee pressure
what client goes out for an audit proposal when their auditor provides relevant advice and useful suggestions?
by alan anderson, cpa
transforming audit for the future
fees
quoting tax resolution fees
5 scenarios with fee quotation breakdowns.
by jassen bowman
tax resolution systems
tax season 2018: average fees set for 7% increases
but fees for entity returns are down. why?
12 pricing factors beyond cost
cost-plus is a starting point, not the end point.
by august aquila
price it right
survey results: client retention drives today’s pricing strategies
maximizing revenue comes second. profits, third.
by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 pricing strategy study
join the survey. get the details.
raising rates is risky. but so is not raising rates. you have to raise them right and at the right time. and not on a willy-nilly whim. you need to think about it. you need a rationale.
in search of reasonable rationales—rationales that work—卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 is asking practitioners for the rationale behind their pricing strategy. and they are being generous in their response. most say that strategies were lacking or could be improved. read more →
cpa firms hit the brakes on increases in billing rates
the good news? a lot less volatility.
by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间
after a period of rapid price increases, cpa firms appear to be backing off on rate hikes.
the price index for u.s. cpa firms reached 117.2 in august, representing a 15.1 percent price increase since the january 2005 baseline. this is the second time this year the index has reached this mark, with the other in march, and the highest point except for february’s 117.5. it denotes increases of 0.6 percent for the month and 0.3 percent for the year.
how much overhead is too much?
plus a tip for increasing revenue if needed.
by ed mendlowitz
question: are there any rules of thumb for a cpa firm’s overhead and salary costs?
more practice doctor q&a: when partners stop growing | clear billing procedures make collecting easier | before you even think about selling your practice | are you managing knowledge or wasting it? | 7 ways to lose a client’s trust | 12 must-knows for niche markets | when fees don’t keep up with cost increases | when is it time to merge? | 18 ways to blow a partnership opportunity | 6 ways to know what you don’t know | 6 simple steps to impress a prospect |tax return reviewer ticking and tying |23 reasons clients really need you for taxes |complaining client? no wonder! | running an accounting business
answer: the rosenberg survey has excellent metrics and is highly recommended. on a less scientific basis you can use as a general rule of thumb 1/3 for salaries, 1/3 overhead, 1/3 partners salary.
market pushes back at cpa fee increases
tax prep, bookkeeping level off.
by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
after a year of demonstrable strength, cpa firms’ pricing power appears to be weakening – even if ever so slightly – as the market shows new resistance to rate increases.
read more →
tax leads accounting industry in price hikes
accounting industry shows healthier pricing power than most other industries — and its own clients.
next question: which pricing strategies are best for today’s market? join the survey; get the answers.
by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
following hefty hikes in billing rates during tax season, the tax, accounting and bookkeeping industry is pushing through price increases three times faster than the rest of the nation’s economy, according to a new 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 study.
more: fees and pricing reports for pro members only
learn more: go pro here
while most other industries — and, by implication, most of the profession’s clients — are barely managing to maintain price levels, the accounting industry is forging ahead aggressively. the industry’s powerful position in pricing suggests huge demand for the complex services that only accountants can provide. and many practitioners appear to be taking every opportunity possible. to be sure, costs are rising as well, with talent, technology and retirements putting pressure on many firms.
in this report, 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 analyzes pricing trends and billing rates for:
- cpa firm services in general,
- auditing and assurance services in particular,
- tax preparation and planning, and
- bookkeeping and compilations
when fees don’t keep up with cost increases
it’s not too late in the year to make changes.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
question: my expenses have crept up greater than my fees. what should i do?
more practice doctor q&a: lowballing and why it (usually) doesn’t work | when is it time to merge? | what goes in a client’s permanent file? | why the average fee doesn’t matter | no more printouts at cpe programs? | how to apply value pricing to bundled services | 6 ways to take a client beyond tax prep | 18 ways to blow a partnership opportunity | when experience doesn’t add up | 8 times when hourly billing trumps value pricing | 6 ways to know what you don’t know | 10 do’s and don’ts for making small business clients happy | client’s difficult daughter balks at bill | 6 simple steps to impress a prospect
answer: very important to increase fees at least enough to keep up with your increasing costs. here is a story i have told dozens of times at speeches. this is one of the things i wrote that i really like. in case you wonder, i have given a copy to freddie.
readers sound off: lowballing isn’t worth it
what do you value most?
in “lowballing and why it (usually) doesn’t work,” ed mendlowitz ignited a conversation about getting paid what you’re worth.
it started when two cpas with successful firms told ed about clients balking at paying their bills.
frank stitely took issue with one of the questioners, who had set a $30,000 price, done what he called $44,000 of work and then tried to send an additional bill for half the difference.
“lowballing a proposal and then asking for a higher amount after the work is done screams out to a client that you aren’t a very good business person. if you missed an estimate by a significant amount, it’s on you, not the client,” he said. this can be avoided, he noted: “wildly missing estimates is what happens to people with no time records upon which to base an estimate.”
lowballing and why it (usually) doesn’t work
plus some exceptions and how to pull them off.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
i actually received the same question from two people in one day. these calls were from two cpas i speak to a lot, have a lot of respect for and who have successful firms with other partners and a good number of staff.
question: (1) i lowballed a fee to get a client ($2,000 a month), got the client and the time was running twice what i charged them ($4,000 a month). i asked for an upward adjustment four months later of halfway between the time and the fee (an additional $1,000 per month). they dropped me and went back to their prior accountant, who was charging less than i was ($1,800 a month), but who didn’t do anything close to what i was doing. i feel the client knew it was a lowball and took advantage of it. what did i do wrong? read more →
why the average fee doesn’t matter
not all data is relevant.
by ed mendlowitz
the practice doctor
question: what is the average fee that your firm charges for a review? assume the company is approximately $10 million in sales and $3 million in assets.
answer: what is the average size suit men wear? this might be nice to know but it is not relevant to any specific situation. read more →