here’s what you’re looking for: martin bissett

marketing & sales

stop waiting for business to come to you

hand using key to unlock door

a proactive approach is where many fall short.

by martin bissett
business development on a budget

have you noticed all of those titles in the local bookstore or at the airport offering us the “key” to this and the “key” to that, the “six keys” to one thing, and the “four keys” to another?

more: are you projecting confidence? | five questions to help forecast your firm growth | do you deliver on your website’s promises? | five questions about facing challenges | be clear about your roi proposition | it’s time to prepare the next generation | who are you more committed to, your firm or your clients? | nine checkpoints before every prospect meeting | three questions about conversion | six keys to turning prospects into clients | don’t overlook internal communication | four reasons people struggle with communication | why firm culture matters for partners
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

 

it also seems that every book is a “game-changer” now, to the point where it is difficult to understand what the game is anymore, never mind how to play it.
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marketing & sales

bissett bullet: cash is not the issue

today’s bissett bullet: “there are certain criteria that will always need to be demonstrated for you to become a partner in your firm. the ability to find cash up front for investment, however, is no longer one of those criteria.”

by martin bissett

the path to partnership in the accounting profession is evolving. no longer is it necessarily the case that a lack of available funds is a barrier to realizing your ambition.

a forward-thinking practice will find a way to enable their rising stars to fund the deal. don’t allow a lack of cash to get in the way of your career aspirations. focus instead on who you need to be and hone the foundational skills and behaviors you need to demonstrate in order to be the most outstanding candidate for partnership in your firm.

today’s to-do:

if you aspire to partnership, list those necessary skills and behaviors. demonstrate those you have and ask for support with those you still need to develop. show your commitment to the practice now and be recognized as a candidate for the future.

see more bissett bullets here

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marketing & sales

are you projecting confidence?

woman with ponytail reflected in window

you are your first client. what’s your first impression?

by martin bissett
 business development on a budget

winning your first client is all about understanding why someone would buy from you before you ever speak to them, before you ever meet them, before you ever start the preparation for talking to them.

more: five questions to help forecast your firm growth | four key questions about leadership | showing leadership through customer service | the real math behind the sales pipeline | keep business development going during busy season | walk the commitment walk | two steps toward mastering selling | thirteen ways to show commitment | clients can’t grow without you | seven mistakes in winning new fees | how to develop your communication abilities | five questions for measuring partner potential | five ways to rally your firm to its culture
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

 

this discipline too often goes unexplained by most sales training programs offered to the accounting profession, but ultimately we have to be comfortable with who we are and the value that we offer.
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marketing & sales

bissett bullet: one in, one out

today’s bissett bullet: “you can have as large a pipeline as you like but if you lose your existing clients as quickly as you gain new ones, then no progress is actually made. better to ask, ‘why do clients leave and how can you prevent it?’”

by martin bissett

one reason client loss occurs is that the relationship with the client is not close and a firm doesn’t make it their business to find out what that client really needs before offering services to suit. as the business grows, their needs grow. if you’re close to them, you’ll know what additional support to offer. if you’re not, you give the competitors a chance to move in.

today’s to-do:

look at your grade a clients. where were they in their development when they engaged you and how have their needs changed since? if there is support that you should be giving and are not, it’s time to book a meeting to address that.

see more bissett bullets here

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marketing & sales

five questions to help forecast your firm growth

financial graph on blackboard

where is your next money coming from?

by martin bissett
passport to partnership

if i could give you one tip that would assure that you could predict your consistent practice growth, it would be to look at your calendar.

more: four key questions about leadership | does client perception match your firm’s reality? | firm not thriving? five fixes | five questions for grading prospects | health, wealth, stealth: challenges on the path to partnership | don’t let recurring fees kill your practice | rate your personal purpose | five ways to make selling easier | six keys to getting a proposal accepted | tell the world your worth | four surprising keys to communication | culture can’t be ignored | three questions about your competence | 10 can’t-skip steps for business development
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

 

you need to look at what is on your calendar and to look at today’s date and ask, “where is the money coming from this month?” look at what recurring fees you have, look at the value of those fees and what they bring in. then consider what would happen if any of those fees did not recur. look at what would happen if those fees dropped out of the equation and think about how you would replace that income.
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marketing & sales

bissett bullet: complacency breeds failure

today’s bissett bullet: low client attrition rates are not necessarily a barometer of great service.

by martin bissett

never allow your retention rate to lull you into a false sense of security. in truth, no one changes their accountants unless they need to, and very few feel that need because they are not often educated very well by competing firms as to the compelling reasons for change.

however, your clients are perpetually at risk from the advances of your proactive competitors, so minimize the liability with exceptional service. deliver more of whatever it is that they value the most about you rather than what you think your firm does well.

today’s to-do

ask the next 3 clients you speak to what it is they value the most about the service you offer. find out what exceptional service means to them. it may not be what you expect.

see more bissett bullets here

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marketing & sales

four key questions about leadership

businessman bursting through flames and fireworks

think of it as an upward spiral.

by martin bissett
passport to partnership

unhappy and difficult clients help our firms to improve our client management skills and present opportunities to refine our leadership skills.

more: four key questions about leadership | does client perception match your firm’s reality? | firm not thriving? five fixes | five questions for grading prospects | health, wealth, stealth: challenges on the path to partnership | don’t let recurring fees kill your practice | rate your personal purpose | five ways to make selling easier | six keys to getting a proposal accepted | tell the world your worth
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

 

it is tough for us to build a successful firm without difficult clients or internal personnel issues in order to provide learning experiences for us to build a robust and commercially successful infrastructure.
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marketing & sales

bissett bullet: what’s your story?

today’s bissett bullet: “you need to be able to tell your story in a way that relates to potential future clients, either directly or via your marketing collateral.”

by martin bissett

but what do they want to know? what will convince them that they should work with you and, if the opportunity arose, could you demonstrate that when under pressure?

why is your firm successful? why have your clients chosen you and what major outcomes do you achieve for them?

today’s to-do:

consider the above and write it into just one paragraph. stick to the facts; don’t include cliches such as “big enough to cope, small enough to care.” read this back to yourself until you’ve memorized it and then practice telling your story out loud until it feels natural.

see more bissett bullets here

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marketing & sales

does client perception match your firm’s reality?

black cat statue and white cat statue, nose to nose

don’t know? time to see through their eyes.

by martin bissett
business development on a budget

there used to be an old exercise used in training sessions about customer relations or selling or leadership that went like this. the trainer would ask the group to think about the color green. a few seconds later he would ask them what type of green they were thinking of, and of course there would be many variations of green.

the point is that, as the saying goes, perception is reality. whatever each person perceived as green, that would be the reality for them – but it would be different for each person in the room.
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marketing & sales

bissett bullet: be intentional

today’s bissett bullet: “when you reach retirement and look back on your career, how would you like to be remembered?
as a trusted advisor who helped their clients in times of need perhaps?
as a leader who invested in and developed their people?”

by martin bissett

if you can’t define that, your career will be subject to external factors. you will get that promotion only if it is offered. you’ll get that pay raise only if it is offered.

start with the end in mind. your career goals may evolve over time but know this: whatever you decide, they are unlikely to happen unless you are intentional.

today’s to-do:

decide today what you want your career to be remembered for.

see more bissett bullets here

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marketing & sales

do you deliver on your website’s promises?

man viewing desktop computer screen

hint: undercharging might be to blame.

by martin bissett
business development on a budget

there’s an overall sameness to the majority of accounting firm websites, and typically they make a lot of promises – promises like

  • we’re big enough to cope and small enough to care, or
  • we are proactive, or
  • we’re not just bean counters, or
  • we have your best interests at heart, or
  • your business is our business.

more: showing leadership through customer service | firm not thriving? five fixes | five questions for grading prospects | health, wealth, stealth: challenges on the path to partnership | don’t let recurring fees kill your practice | rate your personal purpose | five ways to make selling easier | six keys to getting a proposal accepted | tell the world your worth | four surprising keys to communication | culture can’t be ignored
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

 

you’ve seen all those, haven’t you? are these or similar promises on your website?
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marketing & sales

bissett bullet: what is your forecast?

today’s bissett bullet: “what if i told you that if you boil it all down, marketing is nothing more than forecasting?”

by martin bissett

imagine you have a vertical and horizontal axis labeled probability and consistency.

if you decide to engage in a marketing activity that has a high probability of success, but your efforts are inconsistent, you’ll see a rollercoaster effect.

if you engage in more general activity with a lower probability of success with inconsistent effort, you’ve guessed it, you’ll see little to no results.

that same general form of marketing activity, executed consistently and frequently, by the sheer law of averages will generate a trickle of inquiries.

high consistency and high-probability marketing will bring an influx of new inquiries that can become fee-paying clients for your firm.

today’s to-do:

plot your current marketing activity. what is the highest probability method for your firm that you can commit to carrying out the most consistently?

see more bissett bullets here

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marketing & sales

bissett bullet: do your homework

today’s bissett bullet: “how often do you sense-check your proposals against previous projects? you have a wealth of information at your disposal. before you present your solutions to a prospective client, do your research.”

by martin bissett

does a precedent exist? how much did you charge clients in the past for the same work and more importantly, did you achieve an acceptable level of profitability as a result? did you allow for everything you delivered or was there a degree of scope creep and in hindsight, did you price that work correctly?

remember to take into account changes in your own circumstance as well as inflation, the benefit of the experience you have gained and any professional development you have subsequently undertaken.

today’s to-do:

check a recent proposal against something similar in the past. how do the fees compare? would you quote differently bearing in mind the above?

see more bissett bullets here

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