{"id":10716,"date":"2011-01-11t22:44:24","date_gmt":"2011-01-12t02:44:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/48e130086c.nxcli.net\/?p=10716"},"modified":"2015-01-04t16:48:59","modified_gmt":"2015-01-04t21:48:59","slug":"four-ways-to-stop-leaving-money-on-the-table","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.g005e.com\/2011\/01\/11\/four-ways-to-stop-leaving-money-on-the-table\/","title":{"rendered":"four ways to stop leaving money on the table"},"content":{"rendered":"

most cpa firms miss 60% of their potential revenues. here’s how to start fixing the problem.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"sandi<\/p>\n

by sandi smith, cpa
\nsandismith.com
\n<\/a>a bay street group affiliate<\/em><\/p>\n

accounting firms have done a great job adopting paperless office technologies, the web, and even cloud computing, so you may feel you have been doing all you can to streamline margins, become \u201cclient-centric,\u201d as some consultants call it, and grow your practice.\u00a0 but i believe there is even more opportunity that very few, if any, in the accounting profession have fully identified or embraced.<\/p>\n

i only bring this up because i believe most cpa firms are leaving about 60 percent of their potential revenue on the table (and i can prove it).\u00a0 worse, they are not sharing their badly needed financial expertise with more businesses that could be greatly helped, especially now.<\/p>\n

much has changed since i passed my cpa exam in 1980.\u00a0 up through the 1970\u2019s, there were rules against advertising, which dictated the traditional accounting firm structure and protected our strict fiduciary duty to the public.\u00a0 we had little need (and strong dislike) for sales and marketing people and departments.\u00a0 but it was ok because everyone needed accountants thanks to compliance requirements of a little tax the government started in 1913.<\/p>\n

fast forward to the noisy how-can-we-get-our-message-heard 2011 age of the internet and social media.\u00a0 many firms have added marketing departments, whether a marketing-slash-biz-dev person is hired or the function is handed off to \u201crainmaker\u201d partner.\u00a0 frequently, problems develop among the partners and the marketing person, and there are always partners who bring in more business than their peers, which sometimes cause political issues and create new compensation opportunities.<\/p>\n

in the 30 years since i have been in the profession, i have not seen more than a baby\u2019s handful of accounting firms redesign their organization chart to include a healthy, integrated, functioning, breathing marketing and sales department that works effectively, generates significant revenues with all revenue leaks plugged, and grows the firm for the future.\u00a0 if you\u2019re a sole proprietor, it\u2019s even harder to wear all the hats of cpa, tax person, marketing person, and sales person at once.<\/p>\n

how do you design an accounting firm for 2011 and reclaim the revenue that is justly yours?<\/p>\n

here are the first few steps we suggest:<\/p>\n

1. create a realistic<\/strong> damage report of revenue leaks.\u00a0 you\u2019ll have to get outside, experienced, objective help to do this thoroughly.\u00a0 it requires taking a look at the obvious such as client attrition as well as reviewing missing procedures and processes inside your operations departments to estimate lost opportunity costs.<\/p>\n

2. once you have the \u201cdamage\u201d report<\/strong>, you can educate your senior leadership on the missing revenue opportunities available to them.\u00a0 describe the impact on the bottom line profits and sales of the company if nothing is done to build out a fully functioning sales and marketing department.<\/p>\n

3. understand that training or culture<\/strong> change alone will not fix this revenue gap.\u00a0 no matter what kind of retreats, training, cpe, and conferences you send cpas to, some of them will never be effective at selling.<\/p>\n

4. identify the systems, procedures, and people<\/strong> that need to be in place to create a 21st century accounting firm.\u00a0 prepare a plan and budget to be presented to senior leadership, gain buy-in, and implement.\u00a0 most firms will need outside help to do this step as well.<\/p>\n

what\u2019s telling is that i\u2019ve seen hundreds of multi-million dollar home-based businesses that are more automated, more client-centric, and more marketing-centric than any firm i\u2019ve seen in the accounting profession.\u00a0 these (mostly women) entrepreneurs are defining success on their own terms, working less, and having more fun than most accounting firms i know.\u00a0 and they are your competitors in 2011.<\/p>\n

busy season is just around the corner.\u00a0\u00a0 you have a choice:\u00a0 you can continue to do what you\u2019ve always done and struggle and lose accounts to your competitors, or you can learn to change and thrive in the new normal by leaving the model of our father\u2019s cpa firms behind for good and reclaiming the 60 percent of revenues that is there for the taking.\u00a0 what will you do to make 2011 your best year ever?<\/p>\n

sandi smith leyva, cpa, is a marketing coach to cpa firms and small business entrepreneurs, and a bay street group llc affiliate. click here to join her free teleseminar: “<\/em>3 strategies to fill your accounting or quickbooks consulting practice for 2011<\/a>.”<\/p>\n

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