"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 the past when the odd
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. And others that include 'special
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 don't want my practice to
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 relationships will no doubt be
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 and win more business. I
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 he said quite excited me
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. This suggests that clients are
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, decoration or colour. It's rarely
'Many commentators seem almost contemptuous when talking about accountants who focus on the provision of compliance services'. That is the first line of a post I wrote on this blog OVER TEN YEARS AGO in June 2009. Back then I, quite justifiably as it transpires, predicted that those commentators were being unduly
Thinking of expanding your service offerings? It doesn't matter whether you want to start providing 'advisory' services, tax advice or any other services. The same rules apply. And if you fail to take these into account you will struggle to make a success of your new 'offering'. If you are going to
Depending upon how pedantic you are, we are at the start of a new decade (the taxing twenties?). In any event, when you consider your plans for the immediate future, it's worth considering how different things will be by 2030. Given the pace of change all around us, we can reasonably expect
Attitudes to work life balance are changing. So are the needs of firms when it comes to offering long-term career prospects. How will this affect your firm and your prospects? Last year I wrote a piece in which I suggested that 'Generation X' accountants (born in the 60s and 70s) are those
With all the annual fuss about new year's resolutions, why does no one suggest checking backwards? It's all very well making promises about what you want to do differently, but how strong is your resolve? I've never been one for doing the same as everyone else, so I've rarely made new year
I have long advised audiences and clients that claiming to have a Unique Sales Proposition (USP) is typically a mistake - as the word 'unique' means 'unlike any other'. Rarely do I ever encounter accountants with genuinely 'unique' offerings for clients. And it will be counter-productive to assert that something about your
Instead of a final post of the year, I offer you instead a reminder of ten of my most popular blog posts (out of the 50 posted, one each Tuesday) in 2019. I;ve included the links in case you missed them originally or want to take another look. In January I explained
There is a popular old adage: If you carry on doing what you’ve always done, you’ll carry on getting what you’ve always got. Its origin is unknown and it is typically attributed to either Henry Ford, Tony Robbins, Susan Jeffers or Jessie Potter. Typically the statement is used to discourage people from
The first mobile phone I had was the size of a brick. That was in the mid 1990s. Within a few years I had a Nokia 5110. It was much smaller and compact. It was the first phone I owned that could send and receive text messages but it only had a
If your firm has yet to invest much in new tech I hope the following list will help you overcome your reluctance. And if you have been investing then maybe you can just reminisce as to what life was like beforehand. Or perhaps things have stalled and you'll recognise why when you
When I consider what the future holds for accountants I find it helpful to look back at predictions made in the recent past. Many other commentators seem to be unaware of the difference between genuinely new innovations and those that are variations on a theme. This is one of the reasons why
For a change, instead of creating a fresh blog post, I thought you'd appreciate a summary of my most popular posts on how to get more referrals to your ideal new clients. 5 ways to get more referrals Are you undermining your credibility by being too modest? Being Known, Liked and Trusted
A recent conversation with cybersecurity expert Francis West prompted me to interview him about the risks of cybercrime affecting accountants in practice. Francis has been involved in the technology sector for over thirty years, for the last 10 years running Westtek Solutions, providing IT support to a range of sectors including finance,
Everyone tells us about the pace of change and how fast it is. But when we step back for a moment, there are three separate issues to consider and the real rate of change for your practice may well be slower than others would have us believe. Too many people seem to
In recent years a number of commentators have suggested that we need to adopt a new mindset. Instead of distinguishing our marketing and sales activities dependent on whether our focus is 'B to B', or 'B to C', they want us to recognise that, today, everything is 'H to H'. The idea
Not all accountants believe all of these fallacies. And some have been part of our psyche for so long we think they must be true. Others are repeated by salespeople and consultants who want you to believe stuff so that you'll buy what they're selling. But a salesman's assertions are not proof.
You're not alone if you're fed up of hearing commentators, software vendors and app developers tell you about your existing clients. I'm not in practice any more and I'm certainly fed up of it - as what they are saying makes no sense. Whatever new developments, new opportunities and changes come about
