growth

is it time to reboot your practice?

by

man in suit pushing a restart button4 steps to turn things around.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

how does your current business look compared to the one you dreamed about before you started your entrepreneurial journey?

more on small-firm growth strategies: 5 ways to get more referrals | 9 ways to boost your value (and your fees) | 3 ways to get to ‘yes’ with prospects | 5 cures for the summertime blues | two daily rituals: focus and measure | how to calculate your ‘opportunity number’ | 9 ways accountants throw away profits | if you don’t develop your business, who will? | draw new clients in like a magnet | 9 ways to increase sales through ‘power networking’ | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast | whip out the wow factor for clients | how to work the same hours and make more money | take advantage of 4 key marketing strategies  | four ways to stop leaving money on the table

do you now have

  • clients you love,
  • a dream team,
  • the financial rewards you are comfortable with and
  • plenty of free time?

if not, don’t give up. you can still get there, and a little business clarity may help you get there even faster.

here are four steps:

read more →

the 5 most common marketing blunders accountants make

by

how many are you making?

by hitendra patil

proactive marketing is as rare as a marketing plan or a marketing budget at many firms. getting new clients is one of the top 5 challenges for firms of all sizes. accountants seem to be not doing enough of the right things.

more on the entrepreneurial accountant:  linkedin adds messaging. finally!  |   re-learning the lingo of the accounting business  |  how the “1099 economy” will transform accounting  |  what cpa firms could learn from google’s alphabet  |  summer reading list: five great books for the five lives of a busy accountant  |  four signs the uberization of accounting has already begun  |  management guru chester elton on success  |  savvy cpas focus on the constants  |  more

1. not doing enough to get found by prospects

it is estimated there are about 660,000 cpas in the u.s., 80% of which are believed to be in the corporate world. that leaves 132,000 cpas in practice. and there about 53,000 linkedin profiles that include the word “cpa” in the profile headline. in other words, 1 out of 2 cpas is either not on linkedin or don’t use the profile headline to reflect that they are cpas.

read more →

the emerging cuba opportunity for cpa firms

by

cuba special report logo vfafter 50 years of practice in international trade and finance, cuba accountants welcome u.s. ties.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

havana, cuba – the united states is ending its 55-year trade embargo on cuba. an embassy has been opened in havana, and cuba is opening its doors to american business.

the blockade isn’t down yet, but it is being dismantled as fast as washington politics allows. it isn’t too soon to start looking for opportunities for international growth just 90 miles off the coast of the united states.

lidya esther rodríguez gonzález
lidya gonzález

among the opportunities for both american and cuban accountants are:

  • american and cuban cpa firms serving cuban-american enterprises and ventures.
  • americans wishing to learn more about business in cuba.
  • cubans wishing to learn more about american accountancy and business
  • american companies wishing to open branches, subsidiaries, and other entities in cuba
  • other non-accounting services that accountants often offer, from it to payroll to valuation

do not underestimate the professional capacity of cuban accountants.

read more →

cpa cannabiz boom

by

250 new clients in two years.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

cannabizcpa.pro

for a couple of years now, guske & co. pllc, has been venturing into a vast new niche in the great northwest where the people are nice, easy-going entrepreneurs with a pioneering spirit and a willingness to learn, follow rules, and take risks. his niche — the booming cannabis biz. booming to the tune of 250 new clients in two years, an annual growth rate of 80 percent.

read more →

need more business? focus on referrals

by

sandi leyva and michelle long
leyva and long

a quick spreadsheet can show you where your money comes from now – and the best next targets.

by sandi leyva and michelle long
the ultimate accounting virtual conference

for those who need more business, boosting referrals is the cheapest way. so when we start to look at our marketing from a strategic standpoint, referrals is the channel we want to maximize.

if you’re thinking, “okay, how do i lower mymarketing cost? is that even an option? we spend a lot of time lowering our other expenses so why not lower our marketing costs?

there is an order on how to use marketing based on what is the most effective for professional services, and referrals is one of the cheapest ways we can add additional new clients without spending a lot of money on marketing.

start with a spreadsheet

read more →

linkedin adds messaging. finally!

by

picture11new chat app accelerates business networking, client communications.

by hitendra patil
pransform inc.

linkedin, undoubtedly the “go-to” social media platform for prospects to check out cpas, is rolling out a messaging feature to allow real-time chat conversations. and it’s about time.

until now, linkedin supported only email-like communication. but with messaging, you can actually have a conversation.

but now, with “messaging,” linkedin makes it possible for cpas to have “conversations” with their connections. everyone knows how “chats” and “text messages” help in short-form, need-based conversations build relationships. with linkedin as the real business-connections platform, messaging on linkedin will now help cpas have conversations that build stronger relationships with their connections.

read more →

re-learning the lingo of the accounting business

by

new tech solutions require new thinking.

by hitendra patil
pransform inc.

it’s tough enough to keep up with the new technical developments in taxes and accounting, but practitioners are also grappling with a whole new vocabulary in technology.

if you’re not speaking the new lingo, you risk losing the millennials you work with and mystifying some of your clients and prospects.

for instance: in the distant past, you “bought” a “software license,” “received” a cd and then “installed” the software on your “desktop.” but now, you go to the “cloud” to “activate” your “subscriptions” to the “software as a service.”

read more →

9 ways to boost your value (and your fees)

by

red "quality guarantee" stamp with wooden stampercan you leave behind a toy? a cheat sheet?

by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

want to charge more for your services? one way is to offer clients more value. your fees and your value to the client should go hand in hand.

here are nine ideas to increase your value to your clients:

1. offer a guarantee.

you might feel like offering a guarantee is taking on a lot more risk than you’d like to, but this is a myth. when you offer a guarantee, you help to lower the perceived risk your client feels they might have when deciding to do business with you. this greatly increases the number of clients who will take that chance, even if they don’t know you very well yet. the surprising truth is that very few people will take the time to ask for a refund, making the increased sales far more valuable than the few returns you’ll need to process, if any.

more on small-firm growth strategies: 3 ways to get to ‘yes’ with prospects | 5 cures for the summertime blues | design your business around your strengths | two daily rituals: focus and measure | 5 cool ways to streamline data sharing | 3 tips for following up with prospects | 5 ways a deadline can help close a deal | 7 ways to get new revenue from old clients | 9 ways to increase sales through ‘power networking’ | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast | whip out the wow factor for clients | if you’re a ‘best-kept secret’ cut it out! | take advantage of 4 key marketing strategies

set limits, qualifications and perhaps money on your guarantee, such as time frames, restocking fees and requiring products to be mailed back in good condition. that way, you reduce your risk of running into the few people who will take unfair advantage of the system.

2. offer affinity discounts. read more →

3 ways to get to ‘yes’ with prospects

by

woman staring at watch in waiting areabonus checklists: checking first impressions, reducing risk, putting a face on your practice.

by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

change is hard on all of us, and there’s no exception when it comes to new customers taking a first step to do business with you.

the question is, how can you make it easier for clients to get through that change so that they will do business with you?

more on small-firm growth strategies: 5 cures for the summertime blues | design your business around your strengths | two daily rituals: focus and measure | 5 cool ways to streamline data sharing | how to calculate your ‘opportunity number’ | 5 things you know that clients don’t | 8 must-haves for a prospect kit | how to work the same hours and make more money | take advantage of 4 key marketing strategies  | four ways to stop leaving money on the table

the key is to be as approachable as possible, and here are some tips to do that. read more →

5 cures for the summertime blues

by

sad businessman sitting at desk outdoors and looking straight aheadshift some of the heavy lifting to your lighter months.

by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

for some of you, summer can be a slow time in your business. if you do taxes, all the action is during busy season and in september if you have a lot of extensions. if you’re a bookkeeper, your busiest month is january. and if you do software consulting or training, it slows down in july and august.

more on small-firm growth strategies: design your business around your strengths | two daily rituals: focus and measure | 5 cool ways to streamline data sharing | how to calculate your ‘opportunity number’ | 9 ways accountants throw away profits | 7 ways to get new revenue from old clients | 9 ways to increase sales through ‘power networking’ | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast | how to work the same hours and make more money | if you’re a ‘best-kept secret’ cut it out!

if you have a good relationship with your clients, you might be able to move some of your busy season work to off season. and if you have clients who are ready to take advantage of new technologies, there are lots of opportunities in the cloud. here are five quick ideas to stir up some revenue in the slower summer months. read more →

design your business around your strengths

by

young businesswoman painting strategythe 24 strengths all humans have – and how to make your top strengths work for you.

by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

most of us have an idea about what our character strengths are.

more on small-firm growth strategies: 5 cool ways to streamline data sharing | how to calculate your ‘opportunity number’ | 3 tips for following up with prospects | if you don’t develop your business, who will? | draw new clients in like a magnet | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast | how to work the same hours and make more money | if you’re a ‘best-kept secret’ cut it out! | 5 ways to turn a tough day into a great one | four ways to stop leaving money on the table

a few years back, a scientist named christopher peterson developed a global list of 24 strengths that all humans have.

these break down into the following six major categories: read more →

two daily rituals: focus and measure

by

calm balanced businessman sitting outdoors on bench in yoga lotus pose meditating, with office building and blue sky in backgroundbonus checklists: 6 sample questions and 10 sample metrics.

by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

there’s something special about the word ritual. it sounds sacred, like you wouldn’t dare break it.

more on small-firm growth strategies: 5 cool ways to streamline data sharing | how to calculate your ‘opportunity number’ | 9 ways accountants throw away profits | 5 ways a deadline can help close a deal | 7 ways to get new revenue from old clients | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast | how to work the same hours and make more money | if you’re a ‘best-kept secret’ cut it out!

it sounds a little mysterious, as if there’s a component you can’t quite control. and it sounds colorful, like something full of character that you would never get bored of.

read more →

5 cool ways to streamline data sharing

by

businessman using internet on smartphone and laptopclients and stakeholders benefit, and so do you.

by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

do you ever get any of the following questions from clients or co-workers?

  • i can’t find your email.
  • i accidentally deleted what you just sent me.
  • my computer crashed and i lost everything. (and i want you to take up your precious time to help me recreate everything you’ve ever sent me.)
  • i lost my tax return and i need it in the next five seconds.

more on small-firm growth strategies: 9 ways accountants throw away profits | 5 ways a deadline can help close a deal | 7 ways to get new revenue from old clients | 5 things you know that clients don’t | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast | how to work the same hours and make more money | take advantage of 4 key marketing strategies | four ways to stop leaving money on the table

these requests can get downright annoying. and they can be expensive, too. knowledge workers spend anywhere from 15 to 35 percent of their time searching for information. executives waste six weeks per year searching for lost documents. read more →