Successful Accountants’ Blog
How special and different are you from other accountants?
Back in the days when I was a professional speaker (BC -Before COVID-19) I often asked audiences of accountants to look around the room. And then to indicate whether they felt that they were in any way special and different from most of the other accountants in
Short term or long term marketing?
What's more important to you? To spend time on promotional activities that don't seem to cost anything or to get cost-effective results from promoting your services to people who you know are looking for someone like you? Many accountants, bookkeepers and tax advisers spend time on various
How to sack a problem client
Almost every accountant I know will admit to having at least one client they wish they didn't have to deal with any more. Go on. Try it for yourself. If you knew there would be no repercussions and no financial loss, which of your clients would you
How many of these ways have you helped your clients?
With over 700 blog posts here I have revisited many topics and may well have repeated myself at times over the years. Today however I am revisiting a post that I shared just 2 months ago close to the start of the lockdown. At the time I
Generating the business you want without networking
Did you attend networking events before the lockdown? I know loads of accountants don't like the concept. Others do it reluctantly and some actually enjoy it. The same is true for those online networking events that have replaced face to face events during the lockdown. In my
If you are hoping things will return to normal, think again.
Long ago I realised that "Hope is not a strategy". Even if it worked in the past it would be foolish to assume that we can simply 'hope' our way out of the current situation. That goes for me as regards my business activities, for you and
Have you adequately addressed these 21 remote working challenges?
Over recent weeks I have been noting the challenges that I have heard about from accountants and others who have been forced to work from home for the first time. In the enforced rush to do this and with the extra pressure of helping clients struggling with
When do you stop supporting clients that aren’t going to make it?
"When can I stop supporting clients that aren't going to make it?" This was the tough question I was asked last week by an accountant who has many clients whose businesses may not survive the COVID-19 crisis. Like many other accountants she has always been supportive in
“Is it ok to try to win new clients at this time?”
I was asked this question by an accountant who runs their own practice: "Is it ok to try to win new clients at this time?" They had seen other people being criticised online for pitching for work. We've probably all seen the messages containing overt sales pitches.
How can you best help clients commercially during the COVID-19 crisis?
A number of accountants are asking similar questions: "How much work do I need to do for free during the virus crisis?" "Is it ok to charge clients for giving them advice at this difficult time?" "I want to help those clients that need advice, but I
How altruistic will you be during the virus crisis?
I think this is a question with which many of us will need to grapple in the near future. The alternative is to be selfish or to put others above ourselves for longer than our own businesses can sustain. By demonstrating your support in times of distress your
Linkedin – at least do your housekeeping!
I was shocked to realise that it's over two years since I last wrote about Linkedin on this blog. Given its value to accountants I thought I'd offer a quick update. What follows is taken from the start of my talks about using Linkedin to stand out
How can you streamline your accounting services?
There has to be a special reason for me to include an interview on my blog. On this occasion I wanted to follow up on a conversation I had with Phil Dewar Durie after I spoke at a recent conference for an international association of accountants. Something
Your referrals are good (enough) but are you missing something?
Classic. Talking with a partner in a top 50 firm of accountants, I asked how they get most of their new clients. It was no surprise he answered 'referrals'. Many accountants and lawyers, claim that they secure most of their new work through word of mouth referrals.
What skills does a good CFO or Finance Director need?
For as long as I have been writing and speaking about the future I have been stressing that finance professionals need to develop their business skills. Being technically competent and up to date is not enough. That's like having a basic cake mix - without any flavouring,
