price

14 ways to switch to value pricing

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ed mendlowitz cpa the practice doctor q and aby ed mendlowitz 

question: how do i switch to value pricing?

response: there are a number of ways. ron baker’s books tell how to do this. so does dave cottle’s but in a different way. i believe most firms do some sort of value pricing and that is when a fee is determined in advance with the client. i’ve written previously on this and have presented programs for cpa firm management groups, but here is a descriptive checklist to use as a guide: read more →

is the profit squeeze over?

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new trends emerge in net profit margins and accounts receivable.

after years of intensifying and debilitating pressure on bottom lines, profits at tax, accounting and bookkeeping firms appear to be hitting 10-year highs, according to information obtained by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 from sageworks, the specialist in tracking private-company financials. read more →

are your clients price-sensitive? maybe it’s you, not them

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by sandi smith leyva, cpa
accountant’s accelerator

i hear more accountants grumbling every day about how price-sensitive their prospects and clients have gotten.  and they are right, to a degree.  the economy has caused even the rich to count their pennies, and the percentage of people who look at a price tag before they buy has increased over the last five years.

yet studies show that roughly 54% of buyers are not price-sensitive, and i would be willing to bet even more are selectively price-impervious depending on what they buy:  women’s shoes, men’s cars, personal services, jewelry, vacations, cosmetics, and hair, to name a few exceptions.

so why are so many accounting clients and prospects price-sensitive? read more →

value, billem & dunn: a value billing case study

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frank stitely, cpa, cva, and the managing member of stitely & karstetter cpas, likes to stir things up – especially when it concerns the intersection of timesheets and value pricing. here’s a piece of fiction (we assume) that he titles…

– the editors

cpa firm nightmares

by frank stitely

in this week’s show, my brother and famed practice management consultant, gordon stitely, visits the venerable firm, value, billem, and dunn.  vb&d managing partner bob cratchett took over the firm when founding partner izzy dunn died unexpectedly after jamming an rj45 cable into an electrical socket.  cratchett knew he had to modernize the firm, and he started by banishing timesheets.

related:

why value billing won’t transform your life

the problem with frank stitely?

when he left his previous employer, scrooge & associates, p.c., he vowed never to sell time again.  he would sell knowledge.  he hired a value billing consultant to implement a new business model that eschewed timesheets in favor of trusting employees, since costs will always take care of themselves.

here comes gordon striding into cratchett’s office. read more →

nine value-adds to command a higher fee

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by sandi smith, cpa
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.

sandi smith

more for soloists and small firms: accountants, do you know your opportunity number? • five ideas to reduce client price-sensitivity • rise to the top with a fresh elevator speech • four ways to practice entrepreneurial perseverance • 5 mistakes to avoid when seeking new clients • the top 12 business card blunders accountants make • seven tips to keep the clients you have • how to attract clients like a magnet • eleven easy ways to deliver more value to clients •

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

read more →

when not to offer a free initial consultation

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are we giving it away too easily?

ed mendlowitz answers some of the toughest questions practitioners can throw at him. he’s the right one to ask. after more than 40 years in the business – building his own practice, running the firm, and eventually selling it to a major regional firm, withumsmith+brown, where he remains a senior partner and consultant to professional services clients – he has the answers.

related: measuring growth in yourself, staff and partners  |  what do you think you’re doing?  | can you teach judgment?  |  clients’ calls at home  | what you need to know before expanding into business valuation | asking an attorney for a referral fee  |  are partner retreats really worth the cost? | audit reports without doing the work? | should i really spend the time making checklists? | what’s a tax practice worth today? |

question: i was wondering what your thought is regarding initial consultation fees. currently, i do not charge a fee for an initial consultation, and it seems that most cpas do not charge either (at least not the sole-practitioners that i know). would the fee deter new clients or actually weed out the ones who are most likely not going to become clients anyway? if a fee is charged, then how much, and how long should the consultation last? should the fee be applied to any work that i am eventually engaged for?

it seems to be a toss-up between two different philosophies:

  • people value something more when they pay for it
  • you don’t want to create any barriers to entry

i am eager to hear your thoughts. read more →

new survey results: busy season prices heading up 4.1%

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source: 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

after a conservative 3.2% price increase last year.

complete findings are published in the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practitioner’s tax season performance review and outlook report. (learn more here)

tax and accounting practitioners are again cautiously raising prices this year, prompted by years of little or no rate hikes and continuing step-ups in labor and technology costs, according to new 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 survey data.

becky klotz, the head of small local firm of tax consultants in oregon, says that, with an economy where “i don’t see much improvement in the near future,” her firm will be raising pricing, but “just a bit.”

on the other hand, wray rives at rives cpa in coppell, texas, is holding the line. “we believe we are priced at the right level for our market,” he says.

read more →