Business Strategy for CPA's

Some business owners have yet to learn concepts about accounting and tax that would be useful to them in their businesses.  But business owners are - well - busy - and may have little time or interest in wrapping their head information large and small.   Yet, when your business-owning clients understand important money and tax concepts more readily, it makes your job easier.  How then, to simplify information to make it more readily understood? Here today to talk with me about this challenge is my guest, Carl Richards. Carl is a Certified Financial Planner™ and creator of the Sketch Guy column, appearing weekly in The New York Times since 2010. Through his simple sketches, Carl makes complex financial concepts easy to understand.Carl also shares about the experience of compiling his sketches into a book, offering it to his fans, and he has learned from the experiment.   Highlights: — “Nobody cares about your solutions. They care about their problems.”  — “Stop selling, stop overcoming objections, and start listening.” — “If we can get really clear about what the goal is and why we're doing the work, then the prescription can be super easy, super simple.”  — “There's this pile of intellectual property now. And so it all starts with believing it's actually really valuable. We just need to create it as intellectual property in a way that we can see it.” — “To those who are feeling a degree of uncertainty and also thinking there are better ways to share the knowledge and expertise to serve my clients, just try little experiments and interact with people.”  ***Want to learn more about CPA Rebootcamp?***  It's a 6-week intensive starting May 9th, designed to make Big Progress fast, earn $25K new dollars that you wouldn't have otherwise, build a new website with priced services, and so much more. It is designed to guarantee your success. Either you make your money back, or I give it back, AND you can keep the website. Check it out at SheThinksBigCoaching.com/cpa-rebootcamp . Application deadline is March 26th. ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list Connect with Carl: Website: https://behaviorgap.com/   Carl’s book: The One-Page Financial Plan: A Simple Way to Be Smart About Your Money https://www.amazon.com/One-Page-Financial-Plan-Simple-Smart/dp/1591847559

I want to talk with you today about how you relate to time. It's tax season, and if ever there was a time of the year that felt crunched, now is likely it.  But if we simply fall into our habits and autopilot thinking around time, we have less free time than we might otherwise. There are ways to free up some of your time simply by becoming aware of how you think about the time that you do have.  Have you ever been curious to think about how you think about your time? Having different time-thoughts can change how you relate to your time, how you plan your time, and thereby improve your experience of your own time.   Highlights: — It's important to consider that our thoughts are not always facts. » Fact: The Rangers beat the Devils 5-4 in OT. » Thought: I always run out of time. Not fact. — “We've been proving the veracity of our thoughts by creating evidence in our lives for so long that our thoughts just seem like facts.”  — “How we think about our time shows up in our reality.”    Catch the full episode to hear other time-thoughts that are buggy and could use an update.   ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list  

Many CPAs serve a general population of people, doing accounting for anyone with a business, and taxes for anyone who needs a return.  Because they don’t go deep into one subject matter, it makes it hard to provide the enormous value that would warrant high fees.  So, rather than grow revenue by increasing value and therefore fees, they grow revenue by increasing volume.  This is a sure-fire on ramp to the hamster wheel.  Instead, occupying a narrow position in the marketplace can solve the aforementioned problems.  Here today to talk with me about this is my guest, Brandon Hall . Brandon is the founder and managing partner at The Real Estate CPA. The firm serves more than 700 clients nationwide and has 30 employees. Highlights: — “If anybody's going to create courses, I would recommend starting a Facebook group.” — “How do you just get people to continue to want to buy the next thing? Just offer them an incredible amount of value for whatever they've paid.” — “When you niche, you will be able to build a brand where you'll be the go-to person, and that will create multi-million dollar revenue streams.” — “To pick a niche, start with something that you're already interested in, and see if there's a market there.” — “When you create a group you're creating a community. The world is trending towards online communities to talk about your product, to talk about your services, and ultimately sell your services.”   ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list Connect with BRANDON: Website: https://www.therealestatecpa.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonhallcpa/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/bhallcpa Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/taxsmartinvestors

For many CPAs, it feels risky to pick a cross-section of the tax code and burrow in. The fear is around losing clients, having to turn people away, and what if there’s a recession? Consequently, most CPAs work as generalists, and pay the price in the form of seemingly infinite rotations on the hamster wheel.  Longtime listeners to this podcast know that I am a HUGE proponent of niching, because it makes business better in countless ways.  My guest today has built an exemplary business around expertise in one niche, and that person is Tom Wheelright.  Tom is a visionary and best-selling author behind multiple companies that specialize in wealth and tax strategy.    Highlights: — “With the advantage of age, you learn that a very generalized practice is actually the slow way to build a business and an even slower way to build net revenue.”  — “The more education you give away, the more people will buy.” — “Being mission-driven instead of money-driven makes all the difference in the world because then we can be niche-focused. Then we can actually say “these are the people we want to serve, and this is what we want to do with them.” — “We have a very clear message to the public and that's why so many people come to us.” — “An educated client is a better client. If the client gets good education, they become more successful.”   ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list Connect with TOM: Website: https://tomwheelwright.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomwheelwright/ Tom’s book:  Tax-Free Wealth: How to Build Massive Wealth by Permanently Lowering Your Taxes https://www.amazon.com/Tax-Free-Wealth-Massive-Permanently-Lowering/dp/1947588052/  

With so much change happening so quickly when it comes to automation in the tech space, it can be hard to keep up.  But keeping up is a minimum requirement. Here today to talk with me about tech and automation innovation is my guest, Jody Padar. Jody is known as the Radical CPA, and enjoys disrupting the profession with innovative best practices for processes and technology. She also pioneered business solutions that would later become known as Advisory.  Jody brings her expertise in AI and automation to her latest endeavor as head of tax strategy and evangelism at the recently launched company named APRIL.   Highlights: — “April is a new technology company designed to disrupt the tax space. We're creating tax software that's going to be distributed through banks.” — “I don't think our software is ever going to replace the value of an accounting professional.”  — “CPAs need to be aware that their job is going to change in the near future. So they have to figure out who they want to serve, how they want to serve them and how they can put the human back to serving them.” — “You have to figure out the value you're delivering and how you help your clients understand that there is value in what you're delivering because otherwise, they could just go to an automated service.” — “Accounting is ripe for automation because nobody's done anything in it in the last 50 years.”  ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list Connect with JODI: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jody-padar-18a9711/   About April: https://www.getapril.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6889238594121158657/

Many business owners struggle with their financials, especially early on in their businesses when they can lack a basic understanding of financials and can not have the budget to hire quality accounting support. As accountants, listeners to this podcast understand that financials are incredibly important, but what they may have limited insight into is which numbers business owners really need and which they don't and how those numbers fit in context. Here today to talk with me about this perspective from the business owner side is my guest Shelli Warren. Shelli is the team and leadership coach for BizChix, Inc. and the host of the Stacking Your Team podcast, where she provides insight and practical guidance on leadership, team building, and hiring practices.  Shelli has more than 25 years of experience leading technical teams to deliver multimillion-dollar projects for billion-dollar brands at Proctor and Gamble. And now Shelli puts her expertise to work helping women entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses.    Highlights: — ”Women business owners are looking for a guide who will help them to manage their money and to make qualified decisions.”  — ”Women business owners are looking for someone who can ask the hard questions, and push them to be more in the mindset of forecasting for the future versus reacting.”  — ”The team that got you here may not be the team that gets you there.” — ”As you evolve and the business evolves, so does the team, and then so do the requirements that you need in order to always stay out front.”  — ”Women business owners are very willing to pay for reports that are meaningful to them and are designed to help them understand things easier. ”   ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list Connect with Shelli and Natalie (BizChix): Website:  Biz Chix https://bizchix.com/category/podcast/bizchix/ Stacking Your Team podcast https://bizchix.com/category/podcast/team/   Instagram and LinkedIn: Shelli on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stackingyourteampodcast/ Shelli on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelliwarren2/ Natalie on Instagram: https://instagram.com/bizchixpodcast/ Natalie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalieeckdahl/

The idea of narrowing in on your target market is anathema to many CPAs. The temptation to be available to anyone who needs tax and accounting is strong.  But honing in on a segment of the marketplace makes your business so much easier to run.  Here today to talk with me about her own experience getting to know her custom-built market-slice is my guest, Erica Goode.  Erica is a Certified Public Accountant with 12+ years of experience in Big 4 public accounting, Fortune 50 finance, and small business accounting. She is a freelance finance professional, working with a small handful of clients, focusing on financial forecasts while staying out of tax as much as possible.  Highlights: — “In the world of niching, there is no manual. You get to create and make your own manual.” — “People are coming to me way sooner in their business journey than I would expect. And they're so aware that they're in need of help and that the help I provide is so valuable to them that they're willing to pay for what I might have inadvertently given away for free.” — “My strategy sessions turn into discovery calls. They almost are like a jumping-off point for a future relationship.” — “Once you've built that know, like, and trust factor, if you're the person clients want to work with, then they're going to ask what your price is, not go find the cheaper option.”  ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list Connect with ERICA: Website: https://www.ericagoode.com/ Episode mentions: 082 [Coaching] Logic vs Intuition: How to Choose Fulfilling Work, with Erica Goode https://www.businessstrategyforcpas.com/082 116 From Hourly Billing to Flat Rate for Cares Act Documentation https://www.businessstrategyforcpas.com/116

Many CPAs serve a general population of people, doing accounting for anyone with a business, and taxes for anyone who needs a return.  As a result, their focus is broad, but diffuse, and because they don’t go deep into one subject matter, it makes it hard to provide enormous value that would justify high fees.  So, rather than grow revenue by increasing value and therefore fees, many CPAs grow revenue by increasing volume.  This is a sure-fire path onto the hamster wheel.  Instead, focusing on a particular vertical, or niche, can solve the aforementioned problems.  Here today to talk with me about niching and niche drama is SaraEllen Hutchison.  SaraEllen is a solo practicing consumer rights trial lawyer. She stands up for the rights of individuals bullied by debt collectors or overwhelmed by the mess of identity theft, resulting in 6-figure verdicts and substantial settlements.  Highlights: — “Niching creates efficiency and time – I focus on one thing, and get really good at it. That builds confidence and I serve the client better.”  — “Finding where you really belong and where you really fit in is vital to being happy enough to stay in an intense profession like the law.”  — “It's important to be patient with yourself, but also, not get so used to the comfort of the familiar.” — “The nice thing about finding a niche that's not a super obvious one is that you don't have to outspend your competition in advertising.” — “I'm totally better off financially because I niched down and I'm better off in a holistic sense in my whole lifestyle.”   ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list Connect with SARA ELLEN: Website: https://lawyergoddess.com/

If your aim is to work less and make more, there are many benefits to putting some prices on your website, without getting pigeonholed or committed to something that’s not viable.   Highlights: — “Most buyers have some sense of what they want to pay. And if there’s way too much daylight between your prices and their expectations, they’re just not going to work with you.”  — “Putting some prices on your website makes the pricing part of your discovery conversation so much more comfortable for you.” — “Use high anchor prices to make your regular price seem less expensive by comparison.”  — “Having pricing for a single meeting helps the buyer infer what prices for other services you offer might roughly be.” — “Using the phrase “Starting at” allows you to set the floor on the price.” ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list  

Many CPAs struggle with pricing. Some have moved to flat rate or subscription pricing, and many still work by the hour. Subscription of course is a hot topic. But for many CPAs, that business model feels too far out of reach and too theoretical to be able to put it into play in their business anytime soon. But if they don't make the transition, they risk missing out.  Here today to talk with me about the subscription business model is my guest Mark Stiving. Mark is a pricing educator and advisor. He's the host of the Impact Pricing podcast and the author of Win Keep Grow, among other books. Mark helps companies win more business at higher prices. Highlights: — “To make the shift from the traditional transactional model to the subscription model, you have to figure out how you can add value to a customer on a regular basis.” — “A customer who frequently receives value from your product or your service is much more willing to offer to pay you as a subscription because they're paying you for the ongoing value they receive.” — “Accountants and CPAs who want to bring subscription into their business need to really understand what the stream of benefits could be beyond just the delivery of month-end deliverables.”  — “One of the big advantages of subscriptions is it's less expensive to get into and try a new service or a new product.” — “Accountants and other business owners need to talk to their customers on a regular basis and try to find out what problems they're dealing with, and what solutions they want.” Connect with MARK: Website: https://impactpricing.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: mark@impactpricing.com   Past Episodes: 125 Value and Segmented Pricing for CPAs https://www.businessstrategyforcpas.com/125   153 A Formula for Quantifying Value https://businessstrategyforcpas.com/153   Mark’s Books: Win Keep Grow: How to Price and Package to Accelerate Your Subscription Business https://impactpricing.com/resources/books/   Impact Pricing: Your Blueprint for Driving Profits https://impactpricing.com/resources/books/   ***Want one piece of business strategy delivered daily to your inbox?*** Subscribe here: https://www.shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-main-list