the small firm and solo practice

from tax to transformation

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transformation talks: paul mueller, cpa, took a leap of faith when he left a national accounting firm at the apex of his career to start a new firm serving small- and medium-sized businesses.

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center for accounting transformation
center for accounting transformation

transformation talks
with bill penczak
center for accounting transformation

paul mueller was at a crossroads. as a national manager for the tax group of a large firm, he should have felt like leonardo dicaprio, yelling, “i’m the king of the world!” yet, something just wasn’t right.

more: five lead generation mistakes to avoid | five post-tax season growth ideas | five better ways to say no | are you solving your clients’ problems? | five ways to grow: talent new service lines | business development and sales aren’t scary
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today, he is the managing director of his own firm, mueller pye & associates, cpa llc in loveland, colo. his is a story of a late-life career transformation.

takeaways

  • there is life—a really fulfilling one—after a departure from a large national firm into a small firm in rural colorado.
  • in order to effect transformation either as a firm, or as a professional, it’s important to have a support network you can trust and open up to about your challenges
  • while firms do a great job of advising their clients on succession planning, that’s not always the case for themselves.

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maybe price isn’t the problem

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asian woman shopping for clotheswhat else do potential clients know about you?

by sandi leyva
the complete guide to marketing for tax & accounting firms

i hear more accountants grumbling daily about how price-sensitive their prospects and clients have become. and they are right, to a degree. the economy has caused even the rich to count their pennies, and the percentage of people who look at a price tag before they buy has increased over the last five years.

more: when to talk about fees | five tips for virtual team member happiness | five skills that spell success | beyond compliance: what more you can provide  | the biggest seo secret of all: google business listings | five ways to get better clients
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

yet studies show that roughly 54% of buyers are not price-sensitive, and i would be willing to bet even more are selectively price-impervious depending on what they buy: women’s shoes, men’s cars, personal services, jewelry, vacations, cosmetics and hair, to name a few exceptions.

so why are so many accounting clients and prospects price-sensitive?
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when to talk about fees

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senior businessman and another businessman talkingfocus on value first.

by sandi leyva
the complete guide to marketing for tax & accounting firms

how do you talk to a prospect or client about your fee?

some of the answers i have heard are:

  • “it depends.”
  • tell them and get off the phone as fast as possible.
  • “i don’t know.”
  • “what is your budget?”

more: five tips for virtual team member happiness | three thoughts for a quiet morning | the seven-step plan for marketing by spreadsheet | boost your cross-selling in two easy steps | beyond bookkeeping: five value-add service areas | 11 kinds of wealth
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

most accountants spill the beans about their rates way too early in a conversation with a future client.  so when should you talk rates?
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firms report it buys, budgets

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laughing businesswoman talking on the phone in office in front of four monitorscentralized scanning is common, backup appliances less so.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
accounting firm operations and technology survey

the 2021 accounting firm operations and technology survey has turned up interesting findings in how firms are maximizing their use of technology.

more: dell tops in accountant tech | tech vexes 58% of solos | firms on the brink of big spending
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here are some highlights, but note that percentages related to “all firms” are heavily skewed to firms of under 10 employees, which accounted for 66 percent of respondents:

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cloud backup declining

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appliances are considerably behind. but who’s still using tape?

the accounting firm operations and technology survey

backing up to the cloud is in a curious position. it’s the most popular primary system for accounting firms, but it’s on a decline, whether it’s handled by the firm or a vendor.

bar chartcloud backup was chosen by 37.3 percent of respondents to the accounting firm operations and technology survey, down from 42.3 percent.

more: only 19% of firms host email | 52% of firms look outside for it support | firms battle disruptions in communications and workflows | pandemic changed work for 64% | pandemic? what pandemic? | m&a looms large for 30% of firms | today’s top 3 tech problems: security, client onboarding and workflow | today’s top 3 problems: staffing, workflow and tech
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

backup appliances were chosen by 21.3 percent as shown in the chart below.

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five tips for virtual team member happiness

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businesswoman with piggy bankfind ways to challenge them.

by sandi leyva
the complete guide to marketing for tax & accounting firms

it’s not uncommon for even the smallest of businesses to have employees and contractors all over the world. at one point i had an employee in ukraine, two employees in san jose, a virtual admin in orange county, a warehouse team in indiana, a transcriptionist in las vegas, partners in new york, chicago, missouri and atlanta, and a coach in sydney, australia.

more: three thoughts for a quiet morning | take a moment for appreciation | five skills that spell success | the seven-step plan for marketing by spreadsheet | five things clients have taught me
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i moved from san jose, calif., to plano, texas, while my team stayed put. and it didn’t hurt my business one tiny bit. here are five tips to help your virtual team play at their best.
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52% of firms look outside for it support

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“i’ll just handle it myself” is the answer for 28 percent.

the accounting firm operations and technology survey

more than half of accounting firms look outside their walls to solve information technology issues, but that doesn’t mean they all do it the same way.

bar chart

more: pandemic changed work for 64% | pandemic? what pandemic? | m&a looms large for 30% of firms | today’s top 3 tech problems: security, client onboarding and workflow | today’s top 3 problems: staffing, workflow and tech
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

an external consultant is an answer 30.9 percent of the time, for projects or as needed, with a managed service provider taking on the rest. of respondents who handle things on their own, 80 percent are solo practitioners, while full-time it staff or an it department are 60 percent likely at extra-large firms. read more →

firms battle disruptions in communications and workflows

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next up? scheduling and paper.

the accounting firm operations and technology survey

covid-19 and its variants forced a number of challenges upon the accounting profession. accountants are telling us that tops on that list were communication and workflow, at 49.4 and 49.1 percent respectively. even solos felt the burn, at 40.6%, so it wasn’t all internal communication to blame, although large firms of 51-100 felt it most sharply, at 60%.

survey results

top corona problems: communication, workflow, and digitizing paper top the list.

more: pandemic changed work for 64% | pandemic? what pandemic? | m&a looms large for 30% of firms | today’s top 3 tech problems: security, client onboarding and workflow | today’s top 3 problems: staffing, workflow and tech
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

some responses that didn’t hit the top six still were notable. postal mail was called out by 21.9 percent, including 40 percent of solos and 33.3 percent of large firms. solos also reported phone calls and lost income at 24.6 percent. despite most groups saying lost income was a challenge, relatively few put that figure anywhere near the one for paying bills, except extra-large firms noting 11.8 percent difficulty with lost income and 5.9 percent with paying bills.

details by firm size read more →

pandemic changed work for 64%

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extra-large firms had the easiest going.

the accounting firm operations and technology survey

covid-19 threw some in accounting – 3 percent – into turmoil, while 61.4 percent reported that some change was in order.

 

bar chart

 

 

more: pandemic? what pandemic? | m&a looms large for 30% of firms | today’s top 3 tech problems: security, client onboarding and workflow | today’s top 3 problems: staffing, workflow and tech
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

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three thoughts for a quiet morning

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calm balanced businessman sitting outdoors on bench in yoga lotus pose meditating, with office building and blue sky in backgroundtake the time while you have it.

by sandi leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

with busy season over, it’s a good time to take stock of where we stand for the year, plus regroup as needed before the next one is upon us. with so many changes in software, politics, tax laws and global standards, it’s pretty easy to feel a little disorganized.

more: take a moment for appreciation | five skills that spell success | beyond compliance: what more you can provide  | the biggest seo secret of all: google business listings | five ways to get better clients
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

here are three steps to help us take stock of our foundational business goals, re-evaluate our big picture and get us centered as we enter the next quarter.
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