{"id":124385,"date":"2024-04-26t12:01:07","date_gmt":"2024-04-26t16:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"\/\/www.g005e.com\/?p=124385"},"modified":"2024-08-29t23:53:25","modified_gmt":"2024-08-30t03:53:25","slug":"by-seth-fineberg-at-large-3-ways-to-raise-the-bar-for-your-business-fineberg","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.g005e.com\/2024\/04\/26\/by-seth-fineberg-at-large-3-ways-to-raise-the-bar-for-your-business-fineberg\/","title":{"rendered":"3 ways to raise the bar for your business"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

stop allowing your business bar to maintain the status quo \u2013 or worse, lower.<\/strong><\/p>\n

by seth fineberg<\/em>
\nat large<\/em><\/p>\n

as most accountants prepare to shake off the effects of yet another tax season, the question remains: what will take you and your firm to the next level?<\/p>\n

more fineberg:\u00a0<\/strong>make it ‘productive season’<\/a> | it’s time to do the uncomfortable<\/a> | jeremy sulzmann: can intuit mend fences with accountants at qb connect?<\/a> | meet basis, the new ai bookkeeper on the block<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0is this when accountants start taking freshbooks seriously?<\/a> |you\u2019re doing email wrong<\/a> | careful \u2026 you may be advising!<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0when live events fail<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<\/strong>getting real: accounting tech decisions you need to make today<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0accounting tech doesn\u2019t have to be daunting<\/a>\u00a0|who\u2019s in control? you? or your clients?<\/a><\/p>\n

\"goprocpa.com\"exclusively for pro members.\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>log in here<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a02022世界杯足球排名 today<\/a>.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

perhaps you\u2019re not thinking about what\u2019s next for your business, but you kind of should. if you\u2019re frustrated with aspects of your business, you need to take a good, hard look at what is making it that way and ask yourself, “what is going to raise the bar?” staying the same is easy, but it gets harder as you look around you and see other practices making core changes to improve life-work balance and revenue and remove blockers through technology, service, or client mix.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

at the end of the day, part of the issue is figuring out what, exactly, raises the bar for you. when i was editor of accountingweb us, we ran a survey that asked similar questions about if you feel like you are the agent of change, leading your clients, if they are leading you, or if you felt a combination of being pushed by them and pulling them along.<\/p>\n

ultimately, the bar i refer to (aka the thing or things you wish to achieve) is either raised by you or by some outside factor. figuring out which will start you on your journey toward, hopefully, gaining some control over the trajectory of your business. and make no mistake, your firm is a business, and if you\u2019re not treating it or structuring it as such, then perhaps that is the bar you need to raise.<\/p>\n

i\u2019ve never run a firm, but i have spoken to enough owners and seen enough during my time to know what tends to work if you are motivated enough to make even incremental changes. moreover, raising the bar for yourself and your business does not have to be a herculean task, and to make it achievable, set small or even smart goals and you will see results<\/p>\n

to put it in simpler terms, here\u2019s just a general snapshot of what \u201craising the bar\u201d can be for your business in 3 key examples. take one or all, but make them happen over the next year and let me know (if you so choose) how it went:<\/p>\n

3 ways to \u2018raise the bar\u2019 for your business<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. set your deadlines. <\/strong>i\u2019ve mentioned this before: how tax and non-tax-centric accounting firms need to take more control over their work. while technology is great (and i\u2019ll get to that), setting policies for when work can and needs to come in will control the flow, help manage crucial client (and staff) expectations, and keep frustrations at a minimum. we get that government entities tend to dictate when certain forms and payments need to be submitted. use that as a base for setting your own. like firms that have moved away from time-based billing yet still track time as a base for the pricing levels, you can utilize pre-set deadlines to create your own. too many accountants don\u2019t take control over what works for them or within designated filing deadlines. it\u2019s time to raise the bar and say \u201cwhen.\u201d<\/li>\n
  2. automate what ails you. <\/strong>over the years, i\u2019ve realized one of accountants\u2019 most valued assets is time. having more of it, or even spending less on tasks, opens the doors to many possibilities to add higher-value services or feel more organized and, let\u2019s be honest, freer. but to achieve the aforementioned, systems must be in place to allow this to happen. you\u2019ve undoubtedly heard the benefits of automation, including reducing time spent on tasks, monitoring the state of work, and communicating in real-time with clients and staff. the problem occurs when firm leaders don\u2019t know exactly what to automate, let alone switch from current tools or processes that, while inefficient or issue-ridden, they\u2019ve just become accustomed to. i suggest beginning with your biggest blockers, the things inside of your practice or processes that could use the most extensive overhaul. only you know what gets in the way most or what could be better during the busiest times or throughout the year. i am willing to bet there is a tool to improve how you work internally or with clients. is anything slowing you down or causing frustration with you and your team? start there, and you will see that bar raised within a calendar year.<\/li>\n
  3. change your pricing structure.\u00a0 <\/strong>notice i didn\u2019t say \u201ccharge more.\u201d yes, this has been the rallying cry of all accountants, from tax preparers to bookkeepers and advisors. but it\u2019s not quite that simple, is it? raising fees comes along with any positive change to a pricing structure, but there\u2019s a bit more involved than that. the good news is, with proper planning and direct thought on what prices you\u2019d be raising and why, the bar will be raised for your business. first and foremost, if most or even some of how you get paid is hourly, know that, in no uncertain terms, this is tying you to volume work and not value work. the burnout the profession is experiencing year in and year out is primarily caused by the sheer number of clients you need to work with to hit financial goals. this can\u2019t be the case anymore. there is way too much evidence and use cases available in the market, and i\u2019d wager among your closest colleagues that adjusting your pricing structure from fixed-fee to subscription allows you to work with fewer clients while providing more value to them. for some, a fixed fee does not quite cut it, either. set tiers of pricing (three is usually good, and any odd number, to be honest) and have clients choose their level of service. you\u2019ll find that they\u2019ll pick what works best for you and them.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    none of this is prescriptive, and some, i\u2019m willing to bet, you\u2019ve heard before. guess what? you\u2019re hearing it again because you deserve better. raising the bar on the kind of firm, nay, the kind of business you want to be, begins with making incremental changes, and the aforementioned, in my view, will start to move the needle for you over the next year.<\/p>\n