Business Strategy for CPA's

Today I speak with Author Barbara Huson (previously known as Barbara Stanny) Overcoming Under-earning and her new book, Rewire for Wealth. Barbara Huson is the leading authority on women, wealth and power. As a bestselling author, financial therapist, teacher & wealth coach, Barbara has helped millions take charge of their finances and their lives. We discuss overcoming under-earning and how your mind must Rewire for Wealth.  Barbara is the author of 6 books: Prince Charming Isn’t Coming: How Women Get Smart About Money Secrets of Six-Figure Women: Surprising Strategies to up Your Earnings and Change Your Life Overcoming Underearning: A Five-Step Plan to a Richer Life Finding a Financial Advisor You Can Trust: A Guide for Investors and Those Who Want To Be Breaking Through: Getting Past the Stuck Points in Your Life Sacred Success: A Course in Financial Miracles Her 7th book, Rewire for Wealth  In her new book, Rewire for Wealth, we discuss the 3 steps any woman can take at any time to rewire: Recognize - your thoughts and the lines you repeat to yourself as if they are true Reframe - how else you can think about things through different lenses Respond - what new choices you will make now that you know something different to be true   We also discuss:  How you can recognize whether or not you are under-earning. It’s relative to your potential and your desire to earn more The element of co-dependency in the accounting profession How growing your income requires changing your self-image The goal of 7-figure earning women is not more profit, but greatness Connect with Barbara: www.Barbara-Huson.com   Rewire for Wealth: https://www.amazon.com/Rewire-Wealth-Program-Financial-Success/dp/1260464237/ref=sr_1_1?crid=BOB4NO2P1SW1&dchild=1&keywords=rewire+for+wealth&qid=1611707302&sprefix=rewire+for+we%2Caps%2C191&sr=8-1   /////////   Upcoming Events: How to Deliver Rolling Forecasts to Your Clients with Laura Landmark Tues Feb 9th noon ET Email geraldine@shethinksbigcoaching.com with “Rolling Forecast” in the subject line and I will send you the calendar invite.   //////////   If you suspect you are under-earning and you are ready to do something about it,  Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options   Download the ebook “6 Simple Steps to Double Your Revenue” https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/download-double-your-revenue

Today I speak with Alan Weiss, owner of Summit Consulting and author of more than 60 business books, including Value-Based Fees, Million Dollar Consulting, Fearless leadership, and more.    What we cover: Value-pricing requires a wholesale shift in thinking.  You have to do a 180 - from starting with your costs and building to some form of cost+, to starting with the client’s objectives, what they are coming to you to help them accomplish, determining what that is worth to them, and pricing back from there.  Once you can do that, then… the really the first sale is always to yourself. You need to be able to say these numbers to yourself in front of a mirror without turning red.  No doubt there will be a big swing in your actual prices. In many cases, my clients are charging 4 - 10 times what they would have had they set their prices based off hourly rates. You will need to get used to this shift, on the inside.  Other shifts in thinking include how you frame what you do.  The value to your client isn’t in the doing. The value to your client is what your doing creates.  Cranking out numbers isn’t it. But cranking out numbers that are scenario plans that help a client make a better informed decision that doubles her margins – that has real value.  Reframe all that CPA terminology.  Your clients don’t understand activities you perform, like: monitor activity for any fixed asset/ intangible capitalization items maintain fixed asset reports  maintain proper accumulated depreciation records What does the above DO, for your clients? Keep them out of hot water? Help them save tens of thousands of dollars? Reframe, reframe, reframe.  There are limits to the value of compliance.  Become an expert in the finance and business side of things for your clients. When you look at your client’s prices, the cost of creating products and services, what the market will bear, and ensuring margins are in the right zone, suddenly the value you provide can skyrocket.  Consider: who else in your clients’ network of vendors they work with, can provide this level of expertise?  No one.  You are uniquely positioned to help them grow their business.  Behind every corporate objective is a personal objective. Clients want to create financial value, but there are often deeper reasons that motivate them.  Those might include: Saving time, getting time back, going from a 50-hr work week to a 40-hr work week (get home for dinner, happy marriage!) Stop wasting money to free it up to use elsewhere in the budget (look good for the boss, get promotion) Stop stressing and fretting about business (my kids tell me I’m always distracted, and I feel like I’m losing them/missing their lives) Focus on results. Always think and act in your client’s best interest. Focus on outcomes and results. Consider how you will improve their condition, and how they will be better once you’re gone. When you orient your business around getting results for your clients, everything gets easier.  Connect with Alan: Website: https://www.alanweisss.com/ Episode mentions: 111 - Better Pricing Methodologies For CPA Firms, with Jonathan Stark 106 - Better Pricing Strategies for Accountants: Stop Billing by the Hour, with Jonathan Stark 081 - Time To Rethink Your Pricing Strategy? Free 5-day email course - Better Pricing Strategies for CPAs Get here   Download the ebook “6 Simple Steps to Double Your Revenue” https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/download-double-your-revenue   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options  

Today I speak with Rob Foncannon, owner of Foncannon Tax & Financial Services about how Profit First has impacted his business and his clients’ businesses.    Rob talks about  What Profit First is and what it’s not How it helps business owners become better stewards of their cash The effect it has on the business owner’s profitability   Misconceptions and Objections Some CPAs will raise objections, asking if you can’t accomplish the same thing with a spreadsheet and percentages. Rob explains that it’s more than that: intentionally moving your cash and directing it to where you want to spend it changes the mindset of the business owner and puts them in charge of their money.    Rob’s Foncannon’s Niches Rob focuses on chiropractors and Financial Advisors. The chiropractors because they are open-minded and accept guidance, and the Financial Advisors because they too need cash flow advice and see it as a useful tool for their clients as well.  If you are curious about Profit First, Rob suggests starting with the book, Profit First, and implementing it in your own business to appreciate the effect it can have.  Connect with Rob: Website: https://foncannontax.com/ Website Mentions: https://profitfirstprofessionals.com/ Get the Book: https://www.amazon.com/Profit-First-Transform-Cash-Eating-Money-Making-ebook/dp/B01HCGYTH4   Free 5-day email course - Better Pricing Strategies for CPAs Get here   Upcoming training:  Value in Pricing: How to assess it, increase it, and get your clients to see it Thursday, February 18th, 12pm ET   https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/free-stuff/   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options  

Today I speak with Blake Oliver, co-host of the Cloud Accounting Podcast and Marketing Director at Jirav.    What we cover: Where is accounting technology going? And what are the implications that you think accountants and CPAs are not seeing? How should CPAs and accountants differentiate themselves? What advice do you have for CPAs in e-commerce, given the need for software to manage inventory and transactions? Discussion around owning the tech stack as a business strategy. What keeps CPAs from making better strategic use of technology in the accounting practices? You wrote somewhere that when you started back in your bookkeeping days and developing cloud accounting software, that you wanted to disrupt the business model. What is the business model specifically that you want to disrupt? And what is it you want to shift it into?  If you were to build your own accounting practice, around your own software stack, what do you think you'd build? And who do you think you'd have as clients? You have held a number of marketing positions inside software companies that provide applications for accounting related applications. What do you think CPAs need to know about marketing? Connect with Blake: Website: https://www.blakeoliver.com/ Episode mentions: 078 - How To Design Better Workflows In Your Business with David Cristello Software mentions: Melio https://www.meliopayments.com/   OneNote https://www.onenote.com/signin?wdorigin=ondc   Jirav https://www.jirav.com/ Free 5-day email course - Better Pricing Strategies for CPAs Get here   Download the ebook “6 Simple Steps to Double Your Revenue” https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/download-double-your-revenue   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options

CPAs and accountants worked crazy hours in 2020. The start of 2021 may be no different.  Many CPAs, out of concern for their clients, logged extra hours for those clients, to understand PPP, EIDL, and other loan programs to help keep their clients’ businesses afloat.  Many CPAs are exhausted. Some are excited. Most are in need of a break, and need to recharge from a tax season with no end.  Usually on this podcast I talk about business strategy for your accounting practice so that you can deliver more value to your clients, be better compensated, and take back your time, so that you can enjoy more of your life. Because True Wealth is discretionary time.  In this episode, I take you on a journey of a different sort.  A journey of favorite places to travel.  Because the time to think about your break - the break you get to take to recharge - is now.  It’s now, before you get swept away by another tax season, that you don’t resurface from until May, if you’re lucky.  The window for you to think about how, when, and where, you’re going to recharge is right. Now.  And to facilitate your dreams… in this episode I share with you some of my personal favorite places, to get you thinking, dreaming, and making plans.  If you want to know what my favorite places are, you’ll have to listen to the episode :) Want to earn more and work less, so you can travel more?  It all starts with pricing.  /////// Free 5-day email course - Better Pricing Strategies for CPAs Get here   Upcoming training:  How Should I Price  __X__ ? Thursday, January 14th, 12pm ET   Free, register here: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/free-stuff/   Download the ebook “6 Simple Steps to Double Your Revenue” https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/download-double-your-revenue   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options //////

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 /////// Free 5-day email course - Better Pricing Strategies for CPAs Get here   Upcoming training:  How Should I Price  __X__ ? Thursday, January 14th, 12pm ET   Free, register here: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/free-stuff/   Download the ebook “6 Simple Steps to Double Your Revenue” https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/download-double-your-revenue   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options  

Create a different 2021. It was a hard year.  I suspect you don't want 2021 to be a recreation of 2020.  But it's easy to get sucked under, and run on autopilot.  It's easy to let your business run you, and dictate your day-to-day.  It's ok (sort of), it happens to most of us.  But if you want 2021 to be really different from 2020, now is the time to think about what you want it to look like, and what choices you will make to create that different reality.  Taking a wild guess that you like spreadsheets, I put some together to get you started, and to actually get you putting pen-to-paper (ha) on your numbers, money, math, and time.  How many clients will you have? And at what prices? What work will you decline?   These are choices you may want to make now, before the next wave of busy washes in. Are my spreadsheets perfect? Could they be more sophisticated? (No, Yes.) Are they better than starting from scratch? (Yes.) Set aside an hour or two, and build out Your. Amazing. 2021.  Would love to hear how it goes, and what your "Holy Heck Yeah" goals are.   HOW TO CREATE YOUR 2021 PLAN & STRATEGY   Watch Video – TEMPLATE - 2021 Financial Goals & Strategy  https://www.loom.com/share/276a996dce144cb08661766c4987cc70   Here is a link to the G. Spreadsheet: https://shethinksbigcoaching.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ebb61d37ca514f74be23c7b03&id=3f3767cff0&e=a60340bd48   *MAKE A COPY* - and customize to your heart's content.   BONUS: consider creating something similarly useful for your top clients. :)   Free 5 day email course:  Better Pricing Strategy for CPAs https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-get-your-pricing-right/    Upcoming training:  HOW DO I PRICE ______ ? January 14th, 12pm ET  https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/free-stuff (scroll down)   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options/  

My guest today is Erica Goode.  Erica 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.  Many CPAs choose hourly billing when they don’t know how long it will take.  This pricing methodology - if it can be called that - leaves your client without a clear price.  While it may seem like the safest option, if the project takes much longer than you anticipated, either your client is left with the high cost of your unanticipated work, or you eat the hours. If you split the difference, you are likely both left with a sour taste.  By simply setting the price at the maximum length of time you might take, you Provide a clear price to your client, so they can make an informed buying decision Force yourself to actually think through how long it might take, to ensure it’s worth it to you Are motivated to be expedient in your work.  Pricing new and one-time projects is difficult. Consider these strategies when setting your price: Set it at the maximum amount of time you think it might realistically take - Scope Creep always happens, and setting the price at the top end of your window gives you margin for the extra follow up communications.  Set it just shy of the maximum, knowing you will work more quickly once the price is set, and give your client a “good deal” Set the price 15% above the maximum, and give your client the best possible service. You could argue this last strategy is also an excellent deal.  When you share your price, pay attention to their reaction.  If it was an immediate Yes, you know there may have been room to go up. If there is a pause, you are likely in the right range. If they say no, recognize they just saved you from either sending a higher-than-desired bill, or eating your hours. In this case, no is not a bad thing.    Getting your pricing right is the single most important change you can make in your business.  If you still bill by the hour, head on over to SheThinksBigCoaching.com and take my free 5 day email course: Better Pricing Strategies for CPAs.  Episodes mentioned: 082 Cashflow Forecasting, Niching, and Raising Your Rates with Emily Sandberg  https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/082   Upcoming training:  TRANSLATE YOUR EXPERTISE INTO CASH Thursday, December 17th, 12pm ET  https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/accountants-anonymous-12-17   Download the ebook “6 Simple Steps to Double Your Revenue” https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/download-double-your-revenue   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options/  

If you have ever had to fire a client, you know how hard it can be. In the end, you know it will be better for you both (or at least, for you), but when it comes time to have the conversation or hit the Send button,  it’s easy to talk yourself out of doing it today.  Letting go of, or getting your clients in the right service at the right price, can be difficult, but it’s necessary to maintain the health and growth of your business.  Most CPAs have more work than they can handle. If you’re going to maintain and grow a healthy business, creating space is a must for YOU, it’s a MUST for your best clients, and it’s an absolute necessity if you’re going to take on better business.  This step of creating space is challenging for each of my clients who goes through it.  But you need to be selective, you have to be more selective, so it’s time to select.   So I’ve pulled together a script for you - that you can download below - to get you started.  Before I give you the script, let’s go over a few key points. These points will help you stay on track as you navigate the conversation.  Give plenty of notice if possible. Either get your letters out now - before the 21st of December - or get them out in the first two weeks of January. So START NOW. If you have a contract, meet the terms of the contract, or find someone who can take them over.  Complete all your outstanding tasks, unless you and the client negotiate a hand-off to another CPA.  I am a big fan of treating people with respect and kindness, and maintaining good relationships. So, operate in good faith to help them make a successful transition.  In terms of the message itself,  Keep your message positive, and keep the focus on you – it’s about you, not about them. Don’t over-explain your reasons – you don’t have to elaborate. Keep your message short, simple, and to-the-point. If you’re finding a new home for a good client, recommend a colleague or two who can take over their account. Make sure you’ve spoken with those colleagues first and that they are truly happy to accept your clients. Your clients might beg you to stay. If they do, be firm. Have a plan with milestones for moving them along, while still being helpful – so that you can maintain a healthy relationship and a clear conscience. If they try to add last minute tasks, set a clear deadlines and scope that will mark completion.  The script I’m about to share is for clients you’ve outgrown. We’re not talking about problem clients. And by problem clients I mean the ones who are chronic late-payers, difficult to deal with, and chew up your time, THOSE, we have to handle a bit differently.  I’ll handle that script in a future episode.  Remember, this is for clients you have outgrown, but who aren’t bad clients.  Finding a new home for your clients is hard. You have relationships with these folks - some, that last decades.  Finding the right words can be tough, so hopefully this script will make it a bit easier.  But remember that change is part of life, and that you are responsible for your life and your business only. And your best clients deserve the best of your attention. Doing this is in the best interest of your best clients.  If anything, you owe it to your best clients to find a new home for your decent clients.  And as long as you make good on your end of the bargain, AND do what’s right that might not necessarily be spelled out,  you will set them and you up for an amicable transition. Wish them well, they will do the same, and carry on growing your business.    Download PDF: Script for clients you’ve outgrown https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/115-pdf-download   Free 5 day email course:  Better Pricing Strategy for CPAs https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-get-your-pricing-right/    Upcoming training:  TRANSLATE YOUR EXPERTISE INTO CASH Thursday, December 17th, 12pm ET  https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/accountants-anonymous-12-17   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options/  

Trap money is money that looks like good money, but in reality, it’s a trap.  Trap Money is important to be able to recognize because it’s one of the factors keeping CPAs under the glass income ceiling and working long hours.  If you can learn to recognize Trap Money for what it is, you’ll be better equipped to say No Thank You at the gates, and then, eventually move your Trap Money income out of your revenue streams. If you can stop accepting Trap Money, it will make your transition to a high-margin CPA firm that much faster, and that much easier.  So what is Trap Money? It’s money that appears to take only 20 minutes to make, and you make 3 or 4 hundred dollars. Typically it’s in the form of individual returns.  It looks like good money, because the thinking goes that if it takes 20 minutes to make $300, that’s an hourly rate of $900, and that’s not shabby.  The problem is, that math doesn’t account for the whole picture.  The math on 20 minutes for a personal return is 18 weeks working 40 hours a week. 18 weeks is 4.5 months. Tax season is only 2.5 months, or 10 weeks.  Now, if you have 3 staff you can push the work to, that’s another situation. That’s 6 weeks per staff member. So that’s doable. If it’s truly 20 minutes per return, which we have established that it’s more like 2 - 3 times that.    But would you rather that your business have:  10 CFO-Advisory clients at $75K  30 clients where you are a Concierge CPA at $25K  50 simple Advisory clients at $15K  250 business returns at $3K   or 2,000 Individual returns at $350 apiece?   A reason that so many CPAs are stuck on the hamster wheel is Trap Money.  Recognize it for what it is, decide WHO you want to have as clients and where you want to focus your talents, and get rid of anything that risks getting you caught in trap money.  If you don’t believe me, let me give you an update from Minnie, my client from last week’s episode. Last April, she was drowning in Trap Money. She was making enough Trap Money - she was making GOOD Trap Money - but the earning of that money had taken control over her life and crowded out time to spend with her new little one.  Once we got into her business, set up consulting packages at $2500, $5K, and $7500, she was able to start buying her time back, and that enabled her to find a new home for about 30 clients.    So watch out for these offerings you have that look like easy money….   If you’re not convinced, Do the math… and add up all the increments of time.    Your next steps to getting to the bigger ticket items is to stop accepting this type of work, take it off your services list, and if people ask for it, recommend some other CPAs who would be happy to have that type of work.  If you think you might have Trap Money you can’t see, and you want me to help you find it, a single 1:1 coaching session with me will surface it.  Getting rid of Trap Money is just one way to get your business to the next level.  Changing how you price is the single fastest change you can make with the largest impact. Episode mentioned: 113 Out of Compliance and into Tax-savvy Stock Option Consulting, with Minnie Lau, CPA https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/113   Free 5 day email course:  Better Pricing Strategy for CPAs https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/subscribe-get-your-pricing-right/    Upcoming training:  TRANSLATE YOUR EXPERTISE INTO CASH Thursday, December 17th, 12pm ET  https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/accountants-anonymous-12-17   Schedule time with Geraldine: https://calendly.com/geraldinecarter/15min   Work with Geraldine: https://shethinksbigcoaching.com/coaching-options/