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want better clients? 5 ways to hook them

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word "client" caught on a treble hookfind the sweet spot for your target client.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

many accountants serve clients with extremely small businesses that gross six figures a year or even less. these clients are prone to being price-sensitive and often struggle with budgets and cash flow. if you’re serving these clients, you’re definitely meeting an important need in the marketplace, but you may also start to question your own prices, or worse, underprice your services.

more on small-firm growth strategies: 5 ways tech makes your work easier | take the focus off price | 5 solutions when clients balk at price | keep more of your busy season earnings | want more clients? take these 5 steps

the good news is that, on average, the higher revenues a company earns, the more likely they are to be a higher-quality client for you. owners with larger companies, on average, are less price-sensitive and less emotional about running their businesses.
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5 ways tech makes your work easier

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tech finger blueyour clients may be asking about these already.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

after over 30 years in this profession, accounting has never been more promising and more exciting. the main reason is technology is driving data entry costs so low that it’s just about to disappear. that means we can finally focus on helping small businesses get more out of their accounting dollars through more analysis and better tools.

more on small-firm growth strategies: take the focus off price | 3 ways to save time during busy season | stress less this tax season | prospects like a little wooing | is it time to reboot your practice? | 9 ways to boost your value (and your fees) | design your business around your strengths

here are five areas that i believe are essential to serving clients best:
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take the focus off price

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red dollar sign label3 other ways to differentiate yourself.

by sandi leyva
the 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.

more on small-firm growth strategies: stop thinking small | 5 solutions when clients balk at price | make your services an investment, not an expense | 9 ways to boost your value (and your fees) | 9 ways accountants throw away profits | 9 ways to increase sales through ‘power networking’ | 5 things you know that clients don’t | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast

yet studies show that roughly 54 percent 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.
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3 ways to save time during busy season

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businessman hiding clock in his suit jacketstepping aside from the grind takes discipline, but it’s vital.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

no matter what time of the year it is, it seems like there is never enough time for entrepreneurial accountants to get everything done. here are three not-so-common ideas on how to make the most of your time.

more on small-firm growth strategies: stop thinking small | 5 solutions when clients balk at price | keep more of your busy season earnings | want more clients? take these 5 steps | 5 skills to grow your practice | how a spreadsheet can help stop leaks | 5 cool ways to streamline data sharing | 9 ways accountants throw away profits | 7 ways to get new revenue from old clients | 9 ways to increase sales through ‘power networking’ | 8 must-haves for a prospect kit | if you’re a ‘best-kept secret’ cut it out! | take advantage of 4 key marketing strategies | four ways to stop leaving money on the table

1. promote yourself.
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stop thinking small

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402b05ce-2496-4d4e-aa70-5a7276aa5b53banish these 5 thought patterns.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

if you feel you should be doing better than you are in business, your unconscious may be holding you back.

more on small-firm growth strategies: 5 solutions when clients balk at price | stress less this tax season | want more clients? take these 5 steps | 5 skills to grow your practice | 5 ways to get more referrals | 3 ways to get to ‘yes’ with prospects | two daily rituals: focus and measure | 5 ways a deadline can help close a deal | 9 ways to increase sales through ‘power networking’

the first step is to bring it to the surface. only then can it be addressed, released and replaced with a belief that will lead you to increased success.

here are five of the most common thinking patterns or beliefs that will keep your accounting business from growing.
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5 solutions when clients balk at price

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woman complaining to businesswoman at laptopfor busy season and year-round.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

no matter how small or large your practice is or how experienced you are, you’re probably going to meet some prospect or clients this busy season who are price-sensitive. many of you try to run from them as far away as possible, and others of you tell me you have to take these clients or you wouldn’t have a full practice.

more small-firm growth strategies for pro members (go pro here): stress less this tax season | 5 tax season motivation tips | keep more of your busy season earnings | make your services an investment, not an expense | 9 ways to boost your value (and your fees) | take advantage of 4 key marketing strategies  | four ways to stop leaving money on the table

so you might already have a solution to dealing with price-sensitive clients that you’re happy with. if you don’t, or are ready for more ideas, this post is for you.
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12 ways to stress less this tax season

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happy businesswoman with laptop lying on the grassquick, low-cost stress management tips.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

i don’t want to stress you out, but we really do need to do something about our stress levels.

more on small-firm growth strategies for pro members: 5 tax season motivation tips | keep more of your busy season earnings | make your services an investment, not an expense | do you want to do compliance your whole career? | 5 ways to get more referrals | 3 ways to get to ‘yes’ with prospects

the american psychological association says our kids are getting headaches, having difficulty sleeping, and eating too little or too much due to pressure from school and household finances. the worst part is that  most parents were not aware of the severity of their children’s stress.
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5 tax season motivation tips

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myriad light bulbshistorical figures had some wisdom that carries forward.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

here are a few of the best lessons i’ve received from the masters.

more on small-firm growth strategies: ready for tax season? not so fast | make your services an investment, not an expense | do you want to do compliance your whole career? | how a spreadsheet can help stop leaks | 5 cool ways to streamline data sharing | 3 tips for following up with prospects | if you don’t develop your business, who will? | 3 ways to test your revenue forecast

although tried and true, their stories and hardships keep me energized, upbeat and thinking bigger. read more →

increase fees and keep (most of) your clients

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growing stacks of blocks with an arrow tracing upwardbonus: a sample letter you can send clients.

by sandi leyva and michelle long
the ultimate accounting virtual conference

when is the last time you increased your fees? was it the past year, the past one to two years, over three years … or never? if you haven’t, you should.

how do you increase your fees?

sometimes it’s a sticky situation but you should start setting a policy where you’re going to increase your fees on a regular basis, maybe every year or two. that allows you to avoid having large increases.

if you haven’t increased your rates for five years and you have to go up quite a bit at once that will be harder for the client, but once they get used to an annual or every other year increase and accept it then it’s easier to keep your fees.

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keep more of your busy season earnings

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closeup of money being counted by woman6 profit-growing options besides the usual “lower costs, raise revenue.”

by sandi leyva

many accountants these days are anxious to hit the golden $100,000 mark this year. others are interested in growing their revenues steadily and incrementally. still others are focused on lowering costs, raising profits from that side of the equation.

more on small-firm growth strategies: ready for tax season? not so fast | make your services an investment, not an expense | want more clients? take these 5 steps | 5 skills to grow your practice | how a spreadsheet can help stop leaks | two daily rituals: focus and measure | if you don’t develop your business, who will? | 11 ways to add value for clients

all of these approaches are well and good to help you keep more of what you make, but there are far more options to grow your take-home dollars besides raising revenue and lowering costs.
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the dreaded ‘quick question’

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young businessman in office on phonemaybe a training session is what’s needed.

by michelle long and sandi leyva
the ultimate accounting virtual conference

let’s talk about how to handle those “quick questions.” how many times do we have clients who say “i just have a quick question” and it’s never a quick answer?

more small firm growth strategies: how to manage client expectations | how to handle price sensitivity | how to handle referrals – and how not to | trashing the spreadsheet: best practices in modern expense management | how to find hidden money for your clients | 3 ways to implement value pricing | how small firms can use value pricing | building reputation to build your business | your existing clients are your best leads | need more business? focus on referrals

what are we going to do? are you going to bill? what about the time and effort to track and invoice your clients for those quick questions? what about the questions that are never quick?
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19 ways to boost your cash flow

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three jars of coinscut costs, find more cash for the busy season.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

could you use a bit of extra cash each month? i think most people would say yes.

more on small-firm growth strategies: ready for tax season? not so fast | prospects like a little wooing | is it time to reboot your practice? | 9 ways to boost your value (and your fees) | 5 ways a deadline can help close a deal | draw new clients in like a magnet | busy season survival tips: 5 ways to turn a tough day into a great one

here are 19 tips to start your new year with a little more green in your pocket. read more →

best practices for handling mistakes

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businessman horrified by what he sees on computer screen3 steps to take.

by michelle long and sandi leyva
the ultimate accounting virtual conference

we’ve all made a mistake. admit it; we have all made a mistake before. maybe we missed a deadline or you posted things to the wrong account or overlooked something. what’s a mistake you made before?

more small firm growth strategies: how to manage client expectations | how to handle price sensitivity | how to handle referrals – and how not to | trashing the spreadsheet: best practices in modern expense management | how to find hidden money for your clients | why clients need dashboards | 3 ways to implement value pricing | how small firms can use value pricing | 3 ways to raise your prices | building reputation to build your business | 3 killer lead generation channels | your existing clients are your best leads | need more business? focus on referrals

the first time i made a mistake i thought the world was going to end. i was devastated and thought my future and having my own firm was over. i’m out of business because i messed something up.
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