3 ways to raise the bar for your business
stop allowing your business bar to maintain the status quo – or worse, lower.
by seth fineberg
at large
pricing
the radical pricing model: start with $25k
deliver more value to clients while freeing your team from timesheets.
by jody padar
the radical cpa
consider the $25k rule.
because this method requires heavy lifting on the front end, a good rule of thumb is to only value-price engagements of $25,000 or more. if the client falls below $25,000, they are eligible for a fixed price or fixed price plus a value add. this rule is important because if your client is a small business, it doesn’t matter how much value they perceive in your services; they will not be able to afford value pricing above a certain level.
more: three critical factors drive the value pricing trend | accounting disruptors are heading your way … with deep pockets | the convergence of trends makes pricing changes imperative | stop looking for talent that does not exist | advisory work must be priced by value, not hours
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
most services are fixed-priced, but based on conversations with the client, those prices may drop or be raised accordingly. some of the data points used to set pricing are the pita factor (pain in the a#%) and the client’s gross revenue.
read more →
the convergence of trends makes pricing changes imperative
kill the billable hour to earn what you deserve.
by jody padar
the radical cpa
the speed of change is faster than ever. how are you going to react to it? that’s what i’m really preparing you for – redesigning your entire business model to become a more client-centric advisor. value-based pricing models are the key component but not the whole story.
more: stop looking for talent that does not exist | advisory work must be priced by value, not hours
today’s automation, new competitors, staffing challenges and new technologies are conspiring to bring clients more value than they could have enjoyed before. all of it is shifting the way you need to think about your services, what clients value and how you get paid fairly for the expertise you bring to the table.
read more →
advisory work must be priced by value, not hours
technology pushes us to handle more advisory work, which allows more value pricing.
by jody padar
the radical cpa
as a professional in the industry, you may find some of what you do easy. just because you find it easy doesn’t mean it isn’t valuable and worth more than the time you put into it. if it were truly easy, your clients would be doing it themselves rather than paying you.
more: how hard do you work to keep your clients? | four things to know about social media | internal communications are underrated | four things better than a company song | let’s lose the word ‘image’ | the risk in not understanding risk | what your marketing program can and can’t do | nine reasons that prospects say yes | how marketing evolved to 3.0
undervaluing ourselves and what we bring to the table is a chronic problem plaguing accountants and cpas. why do i say this? because people pay more for the luxuries they value. let’s look at a comparison:
today, the msrp of a cadillac escalade is over $81,000 while the msrp of a chevy suburban is slightly under $60,000. if these automobiles were priced according to the time it takes to make them, plus the cost of their parts, the difference between their retail prices would probably be far less. to maximize profits, gm spends a lot of time and money researching how much their customers value their different products. certainly, the brand makes a difference, but the cadillac also offers a more luxurious package. it doesn’t cost gm a lot more money to offer these luxuries, but their customers place a much higher value on them, and gm understands that value.
pricing according to value really isn’t a radical concept!
when it comes to pricing it’s about ‘can’t afford not to’
pricing based on efforts is all wrong.
by w. michael hsu
how often do you hear from clients that you’re too expensive or xxx firm can do it cheaper? the lesson in having that conversation is that it can’t be ‘can you afford it’ it’s: “can’t afford not to.’
more w. michael hsu: seven principles to work less and achieve more | how do firm leaders learn? | why your approach to cas and cfo services is wrong | your client base is global |
the concept of “you can’t afford not to” is a popular one in the world of entrepreneurship and one that cpas, especially those pricing cas services, need to learn. it is the idea that sometimes, even if something seems costly, you cannot afford not to do it because the cost of doing nothing or doing it yourself is even greater.
this idea is often applied to outsourcing or hiring, where entrepreneurs may feel they cannot afford to hire someone else or outsource a task. however, the truth is that they cannot afford not to.
clayton oates: one way to keep clients for life
play the infinite game and 11 more takaways
subscribe to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 podcasts anywhere: apple, google, spotify, iheart, deezer, amazon music and audible, player fm, audacy, gaana (india), and boomplay (africa).
the disruptors 
with liz farr for 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间
“we’re ultimately in the people business. we’re in the relationship-building business. we just happen to do accounting.”
that’s how clayton oates, the founder of qa business, views the accounting profession.
more: randy crabtree: follow these three rules to keep employees happy | erik solbakken: yes, you can work less and make more | donny shimamoto: future firm growth requires a mindshift | jennifer wilson: empower young workers to build the firm everyone loves | mike whitmire: re-think your hiring and training practices | hector garcia: success strategies of a quickbooks youtube superstar | blake oliver: why tax work yearns to be free| private equity explodes in u.k. | brannon poe: the status quo must go | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers | disruptor: jason statts shakes up the status quo | think small to think big with matt wilkinson | when financial statements go extinct with corey schmidt | can geraldine carter save accountants from themselves? | re-inventing accounting with tyler anderson
oates also believes accountants can choose whether they are playing a finite, zero-sum game with clients or the infinite game, which continues forever and results in an abundance forever mindset with clients, who will then be your clients for life.
why time tracking still matters
if your team dismisses timesheets as old school, you may want to rethink that strategy.
by frank stitely
the relentless cpa
because capacity is the denominator in the lean six sigma equation, and employee productivity is a big factor in capacity, employee productivity becomes a big factor in determining turnaround time.
more: business owners face one of three exits | don’t let clients dictate tax workflow | make fewer mistakes, increase revenue and capacity | how small firms can win the talent wars | easy ways to avoid ‘done but’ tax returns | six ways to create a millennial-friendly firm | do you know your turnaround time?
first, let’s dismiss all the consultants who tell us time tracking and productivity metrics don’t matter. for the most part, these consultants have never managed or owned cpa firms. rarely have they worked in firms for any length of time. they have never known the struggles of meeting payroll the first pay period in february, when employee hours are up but the tax season money is not rolling in yet.
here’s an example that shows why time tracking and productivity metrics matter:
read more →
ron baker: monetize the relationship, not the transaction
ron baker: the subscription model optimizes lifetime customer value.
subscribe to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 podcasts anywhere: apple, google, spotify, iheart, deezer, amazon music and audible, player fm, audacy, gaana (india), and boomplay (africa).
the disruptors
with liz farr for 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间
ron baker has been on a crusade to transform accounting firms for decades, first by pushing us to kill the billable hour and to implement value pricing. today, he’s advising accountants to switch to a radically different business model. his new book, co-authored with paul dunn, “time’s up! the subscription business model for professional firms,” explains the subscription model and why moving to this model aligns the values of firm owners with those of their customers.
more: erik solbakken: yes, you can work less and make more | donny shimamoto: future firm growth requires a mindshift | jennifer wilson: empower young workers to build the firm everyone loves | mike whitmire: re-think your hiring and training practices | hector garcia: success strategies of a quickbooks youtube superstar | blake oliver: why tax work yearns to be free| private equity explodes in u.k. | brannon poe: the status quo must go | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers | disruptor: jason statts shakes up the status quo | think small to think big with matt wilkinson | when financial statements go extinct with corey schmidt | can geraldine carter save accountants from themselves? | re-inventing accounting with tyler anderson
this book began from ron’s obsession with the question “what would happen if disney started cpa firms?” accounting wouldn’t be a grudge purchase with low prices, but disney “would enhance the experience and you would pay a fortune and you would be delighted to do so.” in today’s world, your customers are no longer comparing your firm to the other cpa firms, but to “any organization that has the capacity of raising our customer’s expectations,” such as nordstrom or amazon. baker said, “we need to up our game as a profession.”