Business Strategy for CPA's 118 Pent-Up, Flat-line, or Decrease: Anticipating 2021 Demand for Your Advisory Clients
Today I share with you a way of looking at 2021 on your clients’ behalf.
While exactly predicting the future is difficult, the year can be broken down into 3 main phases: hunkered-down, re-opening, and post-Covid. We are likely to be hunkered down through April, then May - September we will see continued business growth as things reopen, then September and beyond as we reach herd immunity, we will find our new post-Covid-normal.
Helping your clients consider these 3 phases and anticipate demand in their businesses can set them up to avoid a crash, or take advantage of a wave of interest.
Four main groups of businesses
There also exist 4 main groups of businesses.
Those who:
- experienced significant growth in 2021 (plexiglass and cleaning suppliers, funeral homes, software that facilitated work-from-home)
- had steady or minimally impacted (professional services, construction, and businesses that were essential or could operate in a Covid-safe way)
- suffered, but are managing to hang on, if only barely (physical therapists, chiropractors, salons, commercial real estate)
- Got walloped (local restaurants, gyms, travel related, anything conference related)
Putting your clients into these different groupings can help them think about how they might be affected in each phase.
Help Your Clients Anticipate Demand
For example:
What should the plexiglass supplier be anticipating for demand in 2021? How about the funeral home - at what point will demand dial down? How should one staff appropriately through each phase?
What should the physical therapist anticipate in terms of demand - if they laid off staff, when should they think about ramping back up? Given that hiring takes time (up to 8 weeks!) when should they begin the hiring process so as not to miss the wave of pent-up demand? If they wait for demand to ramp up to begin hiring, they will be unable to take full advantage of business demand.
For the salon owner: when will demand peak, and how to be best prepared?
Does the restaurant owner need to restock wine inventory?
When should the yoga studio owner begin adding more classes to the calendar?
If you cannot be an expert, at least be a guide
You don’t have to have the answer to all of these questions. Give these questions a few minutes of your attention before your next meeting with them, and address them together with your client, to add significant value.
This is where you earn the title Trusted Advisor.
Want structure for conversations with clients?
Download the 4x3 grid tool here, Anticipate 2021 for Your Clients
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