Wouldn’t you like to know what your clients really expect from you? A panel of CEOs told Michael Platt, a management and marketing consultant who works with accounting firms, what they’re looking for in a financial professional. In an article entitled “What CEOs Want from Their CPA Firm: A Perspective from Accounting,” Platt discusses 10 things CEOs want from their accountants, information he received from this panel discussion with this handful of what he calls “A-Level Clients.” Last week we discussed the following five of 10 things these CEOs expect from their accountants:

1. Practice Basic Business Etiquette
2. Customize Your Approach
3. Be Proactive
4. Work as a Tea.
5. Add Value

This week we will share the final five qualities these CEO are looking for:

6. Recognize How Valuable Your Client’s Time Is
This says it all. Your clients recognize that time is money which means every minute you seem to waste appears to them as currency going down the drain. And more than that, thoughtlessly wasting a client’s time is disrespectful and may ultimately chase away your clientele.

7. Understand Your Client and Their Business
Sometimes it’s profitable to specialize in a particular business type: car dealerships, retail stores, restaurants, or hotels. When you do so you become familiar with their language, concerns, and unique needs. While you don’t necessarily have to specialize in order to understand, doing a little research in order to become familiar with your clients’ businesses will go a long way. In doing so you’ll earn loyalty, and perhaps, lifelong clients.

8. Streamline Your Communications
Don’t overwhelm your client with excessive emails and phone calls. They have work to do, and just because you can obsess over their financial data all day long doesn’t mean they want to. Make your correspondence clear and concise. And when working with your staff, ensure that you coordinate your communication efforts so clients do not receive duplicate and redundant information.

9. Share Additional Services
Like most people, your clients are looking for ways to make their lives easier. If you offer complimentary services - like tax preparation, QuickBooks consulting, or business assessments - it behooves you and your client to tell them about it. Don’t be shy. You offer valuable services that can enhance your clients’ businesses. The more you can do for them, the more indispensable you become.

10. Make Their Lives Easier
It’s important for you to be proactive, to anticipate your clients’ needs before they do. This is what elevates you from a common accountant to a valued profit expert. You provide your clients with the information they need to make wise business choices that improve their profitability.

Whether your client rooster is full of CEOs or mom and pop shops, applying these 10 tips like the 10 commandments of accounting will make you a highly favored financial professional. In no time at all you’ll find your elevated standard for customer service enables you to leap ahead of the competition.

Reference
Platt, Michael T. “What CEOs Want from Their CPA Firm: A Perspective from Accounting.” RainToday.com

Wanted: “Customers” or “Clients”? Does it make a difference?

The difference is subtle, however how you define the people you work with can make a difference in the amount of success your Bookkeeping and Accounting Practice enjoys and the income you can earn. In today’s world, there are few technological advantages from one competitor to another. For instance, we all use computers and very sophisticated software programs. So why do some super achievers gain such incredible levels of success over that of others?

It’s all about how you think.

Believe it or not, it’s all about how you think. Most super-successful people approach everyone they deal with in a totally different and more effective way than anyone else. Many people can’t figure out what they’re doing, but I’d like to share it with you.

Take just a minute and think about this. Are the people you work with customers… or clients? Is there a difference? Would you treat a client different than a customer?

Just for starters, let’s see what the Webster’s Dictionary definitions of these two similar words are:

Customer: A person who purchases a commodity or service.

Client: A person who is under the protection of another.

There is a difference, isn’t there? And the difference in meaning is huge! Can you see how this difference could or should relate to how a person who does business with you should be treated?

Our clients are under our protection.

What does “under our protection” mean? In this instance, it means that the recommendations you make for your clients are those that address and fill a need of theirs, not necessarily for the biggest one time gain in commission for yourself. It is your duty as their “protector” to understand and appreciate exactly what your clients need, even if they’re unable to put it into words themselves.

Once you understand what their needs are, your job becomes one of helping them satisfy that need. You become a trusted advisor, who not only helps them achieve what they are looking for but is also there to “protect” their interests as well. This will give them a reason to remain your client for a lifetime.

Jay Abraham offers a great example of this thought process in his book, Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got, “…[A] man who goes to a hardware store to buy a power drill doesn’t really need a drill-he needs [to make] holes.”

“He has a… need [to make] holes. He might think he wants a drill. But it’s your responsibility to determine the real truth and his real need. Your responsibility and opportunity is not just to sell him a drill. You must figure out how to satisfy his…need for holes and make sure the drill he buys from you will solve his problem and give him the exact holes he needs.”

“Or maybe he thinks he wants [to make] holes, but when you find out that he needs to insert rods in these holes, you realize that fasteners would work better than holes. So you sell the client some fasteners. You have truly solved his problem.”

You have now become a trusted friend and advisor.

Yes, you could have made more money by selling him the drill now, but by finding out what his real need was, treating him as a client (rather than a customer), you have taken the first step toward a lifelong relationship with your new client.

We have talked before about viewing our clients as valued friends. This one principle will make a huge difference in every interaction, communication and business transaction that you will ever have with this client.

“I’m such a good salesman; I can sell ice-cubes to Eskimos!”

My father, who owes his own hardware supply business has always said, “There are salesman… and there are peddlers.” A peddler is someone who always tries to make the most out of every sales transaction, regardless of whether or not it is in his “customer’s” best interest. His motivation is to make the biggest sale or earn the biggest commission, even if it’s at the expense of his “customer’s” real needs. He would sell ice-cubes to eskimos. (Do eskimos need ice-cubes?)

“A true “professional” salesman,” he used to say, “Is someone who finds a way to meet the needs of his ‘client’”, even if it means putting off short-term gain in the process. A true professional is after long-term relationships, not short-term gain.

Once you understand how to think about the people you work with, there will be no stopping your Bookkeeping Practice from achieving the success you deserve.

When your clients become your valued friends and you become their trusted advisor, you’ll find yourself in a position to provide the services that you clients really need as well as create an incredible income and lifestyle for yourself. Of course, it doesn’t happen overnight, but it will happen quicker than you think.

Does Universal Accounting have what I “really” need?

If what you need is a greater income, a better lifestyle and the monetary rewards that you deserve, it is . Most accounting programs focus on corporate accounting and analyzation. At Universal Accounting, our curriculum is focused on the needs of small business accounting and bookkeeping.

Small businesses account for 85% of the real opportunity in bookkeeping and accounting. Large, corporations account for less than 15% of the potential market for your services. As you begin your Bookkeeping and Accounting practice, small business is where it’s at.

Whether you want to own your own Bookkeeping and Accounting Practice or find a satisfying and rewarding career in bookkeeping, an education at Universal Accounting is there every step of the way.

But you don’t have to take my word for it. There are thousands of people just like you who have invested in improving their future by purchasing the Professional Bookkeeper Program from Universal Accounting. Simply click on the link below to find how the Professional Bookkeeper Program will help you reach your goals for creating the type of lifestyle that you and your family deserve. You won’t be disappointed.

Click here to find out why the Professional Bookkeeper Program is right for you.

Remind me… what’s a USP?

A USP or Unique Selling Proposition is that special something that sets you apart from the rest of your competition. It might be a super-duper product that nobody else has; Apple’s iPod would be a good example of a product that is a USP. When Apple Computer introduced the iPod, they were the only player on the market. Sure, there were other MP3 players, but not like the iPod. With memory that the others could only dream about and a user interface that was easy to use and install on your computer, the iPod became the product that others have to compare themselves to.

It might be an increased level of service; Burger King used to advertise that you could have your hamburger any way you liked it, no pickle, no lettuce, its okay with us. Have it your way! That was Burger King’s USP.

Don’t be concerned that you aren’t a big company and so can’t come up with a USP. You can… and you should. Maybe you make your accounting service available on the weekend, or early in the morning, or you offer something extra or different that most services don’t offer. That’s a USP.

There are a couple of guidelines for your USP…

A great USP will be:

• Measureable
• Comparable
• Demonstrable
• Quantifiable

To get the most out of your USP, your client will need to be able to measure and compare your Unique Selling Propoisiton to what they are presently doing. If a quantifiable difference can’t be demonstrated to your client, it’s not an effective USP.

To have a USP that will work the hardest for you, it has to be specific. For example, let’s look at Burger King’s old USP. “We’ll make your hamburger any way you want it. Hold the pickle; hold the lettuce, special orders don’t upset us.” Their USP became more than a USP; it became the back-bone to their entire marketing plan.

As you’ve considered your own USP, be measurable, comparable, demonstrable and quantifiable. Remember Burger King. They went beyond “we’ll make it the way you want; they went so far as to say they’ll take of the lettuce the pickle and any kind of special order is okay. Do they meet the above criteria?

How do I make my USP work for me?

Everything you say to your clients needs to reinforce your USP. Every ad, all of your invoices, every direct-mail piece you send out, everything, should have your USP integrated into it. It needs to be a part of every bit of advertising you do. Always.

When you make sales calls on clients and prospective clients, you need to tell them what it is. You should be able to explain your USP in a clear and concise statement. As you meet with clients you should refer to the USP and what the benefits of your USP are to them. The benefits of Burger King’s USP are that you don’t have to eat your hamburger like everyone else. You will enjoy it more because you could have it made the way you like it. It will taste better and you will be happier.

Anyone involved in your business needs to fully understand, embrace and believe in your USP. It’s not enough to know what it is. You’ve all got to embrace and believe it. If your USP is that you are the most meticulous bookkeeper on the planet and that will create fewer errors, but you don’t really believe it, your USP won’t work for your clients or you.

Every time you communicate with a client is time to reinforce the USP.

For example, as you go over the books at month’s end with your clients, you should remind them about the USP and how your USP benefits them. “Mr. Smith, you know that I consider myself to be a really meticulous person, I think you’ll find that this really benefits you because I am completely confident that there are no errors in your financial reports. The information that you are making financial decisions with is correct.”

Remember, if you’re gonna talk the talk, ya gotta walk the walk.

A USP means nothing unless you stand behind it 100%. As a final example, here at Universal Accounting we like to say that we are the only Bookkeeping and Accounting school that will actually prepare you to start your own Bookkeeping service. This is a USP.

We don’t stop there though. We also offer this:

Universal Accounting’s Ironclad 100% Money Back Guarantee

Not only is this USP measurable, comparable, demonstrable and quantifiable… it’s guaranteed. We stand behind it 100%.

Universal Accounting has the tools to help you market your business.

Part of the available curriculum available with the Professional Bookkeeper Program is an in depth course in proven ways to make your Bookkeeping practice healthy and profitable. Small business needs what a qualified Bookkeeper/Accountant has to offer. All you need to do is follow the link below and find out how rewarding and profitable a Professional Bookkeeping and Accounting service can be for you.

Show me how a Bookkeeping and Accounting service could be right for me.

How to Achieve a Win-Win Situation

As a self-employed accountant/bookkeeper you’ll encounter many situations where you must negotiate a favorable outcome for your small business. These may be large or small deals and could occur with suppliers, vendors, clients, and other businesses. In order to be a successful negotiator you must know how to gain a resolution that both parties can benefit from. Achieving a win-win situation. Selling yourself short or taking too much from the negotiating party can be damaging long-term. Here are a few things to remember the next time you find yourself planning a negotiation.

Know what you want
First you must know what you want. The majority of contract disputes and falling out of business relationships is because of one party not clearly defining what they want from the situation. Many negotiations fail in the first place because one or both parties did not determine beforehand what their objectives where. It’s difficult to hit the mark when you’re not even sure what your own target is. Don’t be too vague (“a favorable outcome”) and don’t be too rigid (“X amount or nothing”). Negotiation is all about modifying terms so that both parties can feel satisfied with the deal.

Come to the negotiation with different options
Negotiation requires flexibility. Come to the negotiation with different options in order to illustrate your willingness to achieve a favorable outcome for both of you. Perhaps you’ll be asked to lower your fee in order to get a larger company as a client. Don’t lock yourself into a situation where you’re not getting paid what you’re worth, but recognize that you can agree to a lower fee in the beginning which will increase at a predetermined time. Remember, build within your monthly fees a way you can give a “discount” without you having to work for free.

Leave room to bargain
Be sure that you’ve determined a bottom line, or what you must see happen in order to accomplish your purposes, and then aim high. Seasoned negotiators recognize that they must aim high in order to get what they want. Determine your bottom line and pad it. If your initial offer is your bottom line you’ve left no bargaining room. Ask for more than what you expect to get and realize that the party you’re negotiating with is doing the same thing. But there’s a fine line between insulting the party by asking too much and low-balling yourself by asking too little.

Pick a good time to negotiate
Often timing is everything. Be sure you’ve scheduled your meeting at a favorable time. If the party you’re negotiating with has a crucial meeting just one hour after yours, ask if you can reschedule a time where you won’t be pressured to end the meeting too quickly. Avoid times that are stressful or emotionally-charged. For example, you don’t want to negotiate a deal if you know the company is experiencing crunch-time and will be unable to truly focus on what you’re proposing.

Get to know the party you’re negotiating with
It’s important to not only know what you want but why you want it. You’ll probably be asked to express your objectives and why they are important to you. It’s equally important that you get the same information from the negotiating party. You should know them and understand their motives and objectives. When you know these things, you’ll be able to work a deal that’s favorable for them while being profitable for you. Don’t be afraid of getting into the details of the deal and numbering for the other party all that they would receive in contracting with you for their accounting services.

Don’t be intimidated
Small business owners are often intimidated when they first begin negotiating, especially if it’s with a larger business. You must recognize what you bring to the table. If you can’t articulate how you can benefit the party you’re negotiating with, you won’t be able to stand a firm negotiating ground, and chances are you’ll give in too soon. Stand firm and be willing to walk away if the deal promises to impair your business in the end.

Keep emotions in check
Negotiations are by nature emotionally charged. Often there’s a lot to gain or loose in a negotiation, and meetings can become heated. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing, you must keep emotions in check so you don’t loose control. You also don’t want your emotions to hinder your ability to secure a favorable outcome. Keep in mind to take nothing personal. By asking for a lower monthly fee, the company is not saying you aren’t worth it, but perhaps that is what they hope you will do.

Be patient
Good negotiations can require a series of meetings, phone calls, and email exchanges, so don’t feel pressured to reach an agreement after just one appointment. And sometimes it’s necessary to take a break and evaluate what has already been presented. Don’t feel pressured to end a negotiation too soon; often that means you’re getting the short end of the stick. Holding firm and allowing the negotiation to carry out a bit will demonstrate just how serious you are.

Don’t give away the house to get the welcoming rug. You came into the negotiation process with no deal… the worst that can happen is that you come out of it with no deal. Keep the perspective that is needed to build your business long term and don’t shortchange yourself if what is currently on the table is unacceptable to your profitability.

Negotiations are sometimes a frightening but necessary part of business. Don’t let the fear paralyze you. As long as you take these steps and follow your instincts, you’ll find yourself securing more and more favorable negotiations. Practice makes perfect and you have to start somewhere. Happy Negotiating!

Ready to take the next step in the process you’ve started in the Accounting Profession? Take this opportunity to learn more about the accounting training that will make the difference in your and your loved ones lives. You can make what you have pictured yourself achieving in accounting a reality with the proper training. Take a moment and familiarize how Universal Accounting can help you to achieve your goals!

My kids have one of those miniature basketball hoops we keep in the house. They don’t like to play with me because making baskets is a “no brainer” when you tower above the hoop. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a “no brainer” career, where you tower over success? Oh, wait, you do!

Every business, whether it be an auto shop, a high-level marketing firm, or an art gallery, must perform accounting functions. Not only is it required by law, but good accounting helps a business assess its progress and take steps to become even more profitable. Because of this, good accountants are a priceless commodity, and when they do their job well they become invaluable to the businesses they work for. The accounting profession can be your “no brainer” career, with guaranteed success just as close as a miniature basketball hoop. Lucky you!

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that employment for accountants will increase more than average by 2014. They also state that, “As the economy grows, the number of business establishments will increase, requiring more accountants and auditors to set up books, prepare taxes, and provide management advice. As these businesses grow, the volume and complexity of information developed by accountants and auditors regarding costs, expenditures, and taxes will increase as well.”

Life is good for the freelance accountant.

Catapult Your Practice to Success

Training is important. Not only to you, but to current and potential employers. The Bureau goes on to say, “Voluntary certification can attest to professional competence in a specialized field of accounting and auditing. It also can certify that a recognized level of professional competence has been achieved by accountants and auditors who have acquired some skills on the job, without the formal education or public accounting work experience needed to meet the rigorous standards required to take the CPA examination.”

It takes four years to get an accounting degree at a standard university. And they only train you in corporate accounting, which represents 2% of accounting opportunities out there. What makes up the 98%? Small business, and Universal Accounting Center knows small business accounting; they can train you in less than 60 hours!

The Professional Bookkeeper(PB) Program

Universal Accounting Center’s Professional Bookkeeper Program was originally created by Alf Bostrom when he became frustrated that no course existed to teach a hands-on process of small business accounting.

The course has evolved over the last 25 years into a comprehensive program in the day-to-day bookkeeping of a small business. And our graduates have found that the principles also apply exceptionally well to larger companies. You not only get the theory taught in college, but you are taught by practical examples of real-world companies. From a bakery to a car lot, you will do books for 9 businesses and see how they are similar and how they differ.

And the best part, you can complete the course in 60 hours; if you start today you could finish the program by the end of summer and focus on building your client base this fall!

Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide (PBG) to QuickBooks

In addition to the PB Program, we’re also offering this exclusive training in QuickBooks, the leading accounting software for small businesses. Universal’s PBG training program will teach you QuickBooks quickly, and painlessly. UAC’s Guide to Quickbooks Pro is a self-paced program that enables you to complete the parts that interest you and skip over the parts that don’t. Even if you have used the program for years, the program teaches you shortcuts and methods you may not have known. You will be impressed by the simple flow and completeness of this program. So why wait? In just a number of hours you could be ready to better manage your own finances while adding new services to your own practice and increasing your bottom line.

Don’t wait another day to take advantage of this incredible time for accountants and ensure that your accounting practice towers above the competition! Order this special package today!

When Should I Network

The fundamental recipe for success in networking is to take advantage of every business, sporting and social activity as a base from which to build your network. Some of us are sales-averse, feeling that when we approach someone with the intent of selling something to them that we are pushing something on them that they don’t want. The fact is that if you offer Accounting and Bookkeeping services, you offer something that MOST small business owners want. Most small business owners would rather engage in tasks that help to build their business and increase sales than do their own business books. As you do more sales, you will see that what you offer is a desirable product, one that you need not apologize for offering at a fair price. Before you can sell someone else on your services, you must sell yourself. Once you know that what you offer is a good and desired service, much of your hesitancy to network will disappear.

Become a Good Networker

Here are some tips that may assist you to become an even more successful networker:

Body Language and Facial Expressions

Your body language is critical. It has been said that most communication between two people is non-verbal. We pick up on all kinds of cues, from nervous fidgeting, which often shows a lack of confidence, to folding one’s arms when they are in a guarded or non-receptive mood.

You need to put on a happy face and look people in the eye. Direct eye contact tells others that you are concentrating on them and that they are important to you. There is nothing more transparent that the person who, while engaged in a conversation, is busily scanning the room for a more important contact.

Know Your Client

If you truly want to impress upon a potential client that they are important to you, do your homework on them and their interests. A good example of this principle is Theodore Roosevelt. Guests of President Roosevelt were often astonished at his range of knowledge that spanned everything from raising cattle to politics. How did he do it? The night before he was to meet someone, he would stay up learning what he could about the person, their hobbies and interest, and so on. When we speak of things that we enjoy, we automatically tend to drop our guard and become enthusiastically engaged in the conversation. Someone who shares a hobby or interest of ours will be seen as more of a friend than a business contact. If it is a job that you are interviewing for, be sure to know about the company that you are applying to and a bit about what they produce and even a bit about the history of the company. While it has become a trite phrase, the following is still very true, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

If you know the names of people who will be attending a function but you haven’t met them before, do your homework. It’s not a difficult task to research someone’s background with a little internet surfing with a search engine such as Google or Yahoo. If you know the name of the company that they work for, go to the company’s Web site and do a bit of detective work to see what the company sells or the service that they provide and you may even find the company mission statement on their site, which indicates the direction that management intends for the company.

Be Ready to Sell Yourself … Anytime

Always have your “30 second commercial” or “elevator speech” ready. This is where you prepare a short statement about what service that you provide, which can ideally be presented in 30 seconds. As you network in various informal settings, you will get the opportunity to use it frequently but it must sound natural rather than “canned”. When someone asks what it is that you do, having your elevator speech ready can prevent a lot of awkward silence as you attempt to put into words your value proposition. Make sure that you include a benefit in your statement, telling what service you do for others and why it might be important to them or one of their associates.

You Must Listen to Be Heard

Listening is an acquired talent and it’s one that you will call on in the course of networking. You must not only listen but also, make it abundantly clear that you’re interested in what your contact is actually saying to you. Listening and hearing are VERY different activities. Listening is an active thing, where you are not only storing away what a person says to you, but one in which you are analyzing what they are saying and why. Dr. Sigmund Freud stated that nobody does anything without a reason. The things that potential clients say are triggered by what they are thinking. Listening will also involve analysis of the client’s body language and their tone of voice, among many other non-verbal cues. Store these away as well.

When it comes to listening, we often are focused only superficially on what others are saying. We listen to get enough information to know what we will say next and how to spin it to our advantage. We may view this as a large part of the sales process, but unless we slow down enough to really understand what it is that the other person has for opinions and concerns, we will never know the correct approach to take with them. Also, when we listen attentively, we are showing that what the other person thinks has value to us, that they have value to us.

Your Business Card

Don’t make it difficult to locate your business card at the appropriate moment. You should ensure that you have an adequate supply available in the same position – a shirt or coat pocket or handbag. Brian Tracy, a well-known and successful salesman, teaches that you should have something to hand a contact. When you leave your business card with someone, it gives them a chance to internalize your name and/or the name of the business that you represent. When we give someone our name at the beginning of a conversation, typically they will not even really hear it, much less remember it later. As you hand them your card, normally a contact will take a second to look at the card, and often they will look at it once you part. This gives them a chance to get your name, to see you logo, and you can even put a short sales “tag line” on the card to tell what it is that you do. Ideally, you may have your picture on the card as well so that the contact puts a name with a face. Your business card is an ideal way to be remembered when you leave.

Their Business Card

If you meet a potential client in a setting where you do not know that you will be meeting in advance, such as on a plane, while shopping, etc., it is much to your advantage to ask the other person for their business card. It gives the impression that you are interested in them and what they do, and sets some expectation that you may follow up with them. After the contact with your potential client, jot down a few notes on the back of the business card for later reference. If they mentioned an interest in a sport or hobby, you may be able to reference that in later correspondence to help break the ice by talking about something less formal to start with.

Personal Contact After the Meeting

Don’t forget the follow-up. An email or note indicating how pleased you were to have had the opportunity to meet and chat to a new contact goes a long way towards cementing the relationship into something more long-term. Follow-up shows that you are not only polite, but are truly interested in the contact.

Conclusion

Networking starts with basic conversations. It’s where those conversations lead which determines how successful you are in the gentle art of networking. When you are sold on your own product or service, you can sincerely approach prospective clients from the standpoint of solving a problem for them, even if it was not even a perceived need when you first met. Giving the personal touch to show how important that a contact is will go a long way towards converting casual associates into leads which will result in increased profitability for you.

Module 4 of the Professional Bookkeeper Course teaches marketing strategies to make your Accounting and Bookkeeping Service profitable.

Learn More About What Module 4 of Our Accounting and Bookkeeping Course Teaches About Marketing Your Business

Stay In Touch

To keep existing clients, they need to know that you are there for them. Keeping the lines of communication open with them is absolutely essential to keeping clients happy.

Objectives of communication with clients which email can facilitate include:

• Two-way communication of information needed to accomplish the tasks your clients are paying you for.
• Show your clients you are always there for them when they need you. Demonstrate that not only do your services cost less than if a client had hired their own bookkeeper, but that you are just as available.
• Show your clients that you are on their mind and that their success is important to you.

Your goals in communication with clients facilitate one of two goals. You want to keep the clients you have and find additional paying clients.

Advantages to Email Over Other Ways to Communicate

Email Is Time-Efficient

Phone calls and personal meetings rob you of time. Phone calls often result in spending large amounts of time socializing with clients. While you need to maintain a good rapport with your clients, they will appreciate you staying focused on the things they are paying you for. Their time is precious too.

Personal meetings are probably the worst wasters of time, since you not only have the time spent in the meeting itself, but the commute to and from a client’s place of business.

You can leverage from one email to another. You may find that you get the same questions by many of your clients. Look in your email client’s Sent box and see what you said last time. This will save you time and it ensures that you give consistent, well-researched answers, while keeping research time to a minimum.

You Get Time to Think

When you are face-to-face with a client or on a phone conversation with them, you often do not have the opportunity to take a few minutes to mull over the best answer. You won’t get time to research your answer if you need more information. While you can always tell a client that you will find out, if you use this tactic too often, you run the risk of your clients feeling like you don’t know what you are doing.

With email, you can take your time composing just the right response. If you are in doubt about how it may be received, you can always bounce the email off a friend to see how you can better phrase things.

Email Is Inexpensive

While postal mail costs money for envelopes and postage, if you already have Internet access (and if you don’t, you should), it costs you nothing besides your time.

Rules For Effective Emails

Communicating with clients through e-mail need not be a challenge. The best way to compose effective e-mail messages is to set up a basic format to follow.

Start by handling each of these areas:

The Subject Line

Write clear, specific, and concise subject lines. For example, rather than writing, “We have something we want to tell you about your profit & loss,” which is vague and wordy, write, “Your financials are done!”

Main Body of the Message

The first paragraph should restate the client’s question (if you are writing a reply to a client’s e-mail message).

The Closing

In the closing paragraph, thank the client again, and offer further assistance.

Be Polite

Because there’s no face-to-face contact in an e-mail communication, people tend to be more casual, outspoken, or even rude than they would be in person, or even on the phone. But good netiquette requires the utmost courtesy at all times.

Because a large percentage of communication is non-verbal, it is more easy to be misunderstood when you are not speaking directly to a client. Things like voice inflections and body language are often cues as to a client’s reaction to your statements. With an email, you never know the mood of the client when they read your correspondence, so you must be extra careful in your wordings and how they could be taken.

Formatting

Avoid using capital letters (except to punctuate names or the beginnings of sentences). In e-mail, capitalizing all the letters in a word is tantamount to shouting.

Accounting/Tax Terminology

Minimize accounting jargon. Avoid using financial acronyms and buzzwords unless you are e-mailing a true expert or long time client. Many clients will not understand this terminology, and may end up misunderstanding the message as a result.

Solve Issues the First Time

Resolve issues on the first contact. First-time resolution is just as important with e-mail as it is with traditional telephone interactions. It saves everyone time if you completely fulfill clients’ requests or resolve their problems in the first response.

Attachments

Use attachments only when necessary. E-mail attachments require readers to download the files, which can be annoying (or impossible if a client doesn’t have the appropriate software to open it with). Certain types of attachments may be blocked either by the email client (Outlook, Outlook Express, Thunderbird, etc.) or by the recipient’s internet service provider. Some kinds of files may contain viruses or other ill effects, so they may simply not arrive at their destination.

As silly as it sounds, it is very common to refer to an attachment in the body of an email, and then forget to attach the file you refer to. If you are going to attach a file to an email, it is a good idea to attach the file before composing the letter. Once you begin writing the email message, you can easily get involved in the message and simply forget to attach the file. This, of course, looks very unprofessional and is easily avoidable.

Proofread!

It’s critical to proofread e-mail messages before hitting the “send” button. Also, read sentences for clarity and accuracy, and look for any wording that could be misinterpreted. If your email client doesn’t have a spell checker, you probably want to consider using one that does. Few things look more unprofessional than misspelled words or other typos. If your email client does not support spell checking, consider composing your emails in your word processor and spell-checking with it. Then just copy and paste the text of the email into your email client before sending.

Know When Not To Use Email

When clients write with complex questions or several questions, it may save time if you reply by phone.

If a client expresses a preference to use another method of communication, respect their wishes, even if it takes more time or effort. Keeping existing clients pleased with your work usually takes less time and effort than finding new clients if they become dissatisfied.

Email: Just One Aspect of Running Your Accounting Service

Most accounting courses focus on teaching you the basics: debits and credits, general ledger, and so on. One thing they will never teach you is how to run an accounting service, much less how to make it profitable. That’s what we do, and why Universal Accounting training is so different. Sure, you’ll get the basics, but you will also learn how to find clients and how to sell your services for the highest possible hourly rate. If you want an accounting job making $10 per hour, go to a university for training. If you want to learn how to make $30 to $60 per hour, set your own flexible hours, and be your own boss, you owe it to yourself to click the link below and learn more. Hundreds of our graduates started down the road to personal and financial freedom with that same little mouse click.

Learn Why an Accounting Service Will Best Achieve Your Financial Goals

Attention: E-mail Marketing Increases Profits for Bookkeepers

Three Steps to Make E-mail Work for Your Bookkeeping Practice

Banner ads are not as effective as e-mail. “Internet users are visually discounting the presence of banner ads,” according to Paul Baudisch, president of NetMarque (a marketing agency based in Needham, Massachusetts). In other words, they aren’t looking at them.

Click-through rates (the number of people who actually click on the ad to see what it is selling) are going down too. In a recent survey, people who claimed that they never look at banner ads anymore rose from 38% to 48% in one year.

E-mail is Effective

More and more marketers on the Web are turning to the direct marketing model, sending personalized e-mails to highly targeted lists of prospects. Just like the personal sales letter, personal e-mails are changing the way people market on the Web.

There are three steps to making your e-mail marketing campaign very effective. And there is good news. An effectively run e-mail marketing campaign can be accomplished for a fraction of the cost of direct mail. Let’s take a look at what it takes to save money by contacting your clients and potential clients via e-mail and how that will generate additional income for your bookkeeping business.

Three Steps to Effective E-mail

1. Send the Right Message- For many e-mail marketers, it make sense to soften the sales pitch sent via e-mail. Make your content more informational, with a softer sales message. Many companies find that a newsletter is a very effective tool to reach out to clients and potential clients. By offering valuable information via a free service, (your e-mail newsletter), you can build confidence with your clients and create a natural venue for offering your services.Many marketers find that coupons and promotions sent by e-mail are very effective. These kind of e-mails are usually very well-received. “Nearly one third of respondents to a DoubleClick consumer e-mail study said they’d made an immediate online purchase as a result of receiving an e-mail, and close to one-third said they’d clicked on messages for information and later made an online purchase as a result,” according to Kim T. Gordon, the marketing coach at Entrepreneur.com.
2. Look and Act Like a Pro- The two most important elements that contribute to the “open rate”, (how many people actually open your e-mail), are the “from” and “subject” line. Make it very clear who the e-mail is coming from. Your clients will know if it’s coming from you, a valuable source of information, or not. If they don’t know who it’s coming from, it will more than likely not get opened.In your subject line, make sure that at the very least it will give them an idea of what the e-mail will tell them about. Better still, make your subject line read like an interesting headline that will pull them into the body of the e-mail. If you don’t make it interesting enough to open, nobody reads it.

   Make sure to comply with all CAN SPAM regulations by including your company’s name and physical address in the body of the message as well as an unsubscribe option at the bottom.

   Designing your e-mail doesn’t have to be difficult. You don’t have to go it alone. In fact, if you’re sending out more than 50 e-mails at a time, you should look at some of the marketing services that cater to small businesses. Topica, 1Shopping Cart and Constant Contact to name a few. Many of these companies will allow you to e-mail up to 5,000 names for under $50 per month. The service will maintain and clean your list by removing invalid e-mail addresses of people who choose to unsubscribe.

   Choose an e-mail marketing service that provides design templates for e-newsletters, promotional offers and coupons that are easy to customize. Since only 56% of people online have broadband, it’s essential to design full-color, high impact HTML content or promotions, but still give recipients the option of receiving a text-only version.

   Best of all, most of these services will provide you with the tracking information that helps you determine just how effective you e-mail is. You’ll be able to see how many people open and click on links in your e-mails and track the sales and inquiries that come from them.

3. Build a Better List- If you already have a Web site, you’re part of the way there. By putting a sign-up button or screen on your site, you can collect your own names for mailing. “When companies use their own homegrown lists, online direct marketing works even better,” says Robert W. Bly, author and Internet expert. This advice is consistent with my experience too.Sure, you can rent e-mail addresses, but most e-mail servers treat those names as spam, (the Internet version of junk-mail), and they normally don’t get read. In fact, depending on where you got the list of names and who sends them out, it might not accept your e-mail at all. A homegrown list is the best list.
   
   To help you get the names for your list, offer a promotion of some kind. As a bookkeeper, you might want to offer a book or some other premium to your clients for giving you their personal information.

   If you don’t have a Web site, you can still market via e-mail. You still need to collect names and e-mail addresses to reach out to your current and potential clients. Anytime you get any interest in your service, make sure and collect the name, address and e-mail address. You might even consider a direct mail campaign to get folks e-mail addresses. Make sure and give them a reason (a premium) to sign up with an e-mail address, and you’ll be well on your way to building a powerful list.

   But remember, most people who will respond to your e-mail will expect that you have some kind Web presence. As part of Universal Accounting’s Professional Bookkeeper Program, you’ll have a customizable Web site to get you started with your Web marketing efforts.

Will My E-mail Marketing Really Get Read?

You’re reading this, aren’t you? If you provide the right information to the right people, yes… it will get read. If done properly, e-mail is a very effective tool for marketing to your clients and potential clients. The Professional Bookkeeper Program is full of valuable insight into how to spread your sales and marketing message the most effective way possible.

Learning about the ins-and-outs of small business bookkeeping and accounting is only part of creating a professional bookkeeping business. Your education should also give you the tools you need to build and grow your business too. The Professional Bookkeeper Program is the only program I’m aware of that provides that type of instruction. Click on the link below and find out for yourself how you can create the income and lifestyle that you and your family deserve.

Click Here to Learn How to Pay Yourself What You’re Worth and Build the Lifestyle You Deserve

If Timing Is So Important, When Do I Describe the Fee?

If you talk with ten sales professionals you’ll get ten opinions about when to mention the fee to your prospective client. The advice will vary depending upon the type of product and service, or the expensiveness. In my opinion, there’s only one time to mention your accounting fees: at the end of the presentation.

Here’s the reason: accounting is a professional service requiring trust on the client’s part, and personal knowledge of the client on the accountant’s part. The success of the interview is dependent on both being present. Therefore, mentioning fees before both have been achieved will likely result in fees becoming an excuse for not signing on.

Additionally, accounting is often times misunderstood by small business owners. It’s perceived by the inexperienced entrepreneur as simply a means to the tax return, and not a tool for greater control of their business and improved profitability. Therefore, we need time to educate the prospective client on how our services can solve their problems and help them make more money. Once the client knows we’re on his/her side and are working to make the fee his/her best investment, the fee is simply a formality.

Occasionally you’ll have potential clients prematurely ask you “How much do you charge?” Whenever possible dodge the question by telling the bargain hunter that it will depend upon a number of factors such as how big their company is and what services they want you to perform. If they push harder tell them, “It could be as low as $75 per month, but I need to know more about your business before I answer further” and leave it at that. Of course, if it’s only going to take 30 minutes to do their accounting, then $75 would be fair. Otherwise, it will cost more.

Don’t forget, that you want to state the fee as a fixed retainer fee for the next six months, not an hourly rate. Those of you that are students of ours have the fee calculation form from the learning materials with which to calculate the retainer fee based on number of transactions. If you’re not a graduate of the Universal course then estimate how much time you think it will take, multiply the hours by $45 (or whatever rate you are charging) and give the client that fee.

With the right preparation, the fee will be the best part of the whole presentation.

Module 4 of the Professional Bookkeeping Program teaches how to market yourself and your Accounting and Bookkeeping Business.
Learn More About the Marketing Module of the Professional Bookkeeping Program

Ask for Referrals Without Really Asking

Ask without asking? “Just about every course or book that deals with referrals teaches you one single method… ‘asking’ for referrals.”

David Frey, President of Marketing Best Practices Inc., goes on to say, “…there’s a HUGE problem with this approach. People HATE to ask for referrals. You hate it, I hate it…”

Mr. Frey also says, “Asking for referrals is right up there with asking your friend to come to church with you on Sunday. It’s downright uncomfortable.”

Although many of us might agree with Mr. Frey, he obviously didn’t read the first article in this newsletter. Nevertheless, if you don’t like to ask for referrals, that’s OK. There is a way to ask… without actually asking. Keep reading and I’ll teach you how.

The Automatic Referral

You build the automatic referral right into your workflow.

A system is a process that has a predictable result because it happens the same way every time. The automatic referral needs to be systematic and transactional, not relational. In other words,the referral is created as a part of the transaction, not by your relationship to your client.

It’s easy to build your referral system into your transaction. It could be as easy as a coupon on the back of your statement or invoice. Thank them for the order and at the same time ask for a referral. “I sure appreciate your business. For every client you refer to my office, I’d like to give you a dinner for two at [name of restaurant here].”

Of course you don’t have to use dinner at a restaurant as the reward for a referral. It could be cash, a credit on their next order, anything that might entice them to refer you to a friend. I’ve seen a $5 gift certificate to Chili’s Restaurant bring bank managers out of their offices to sign up new checking accounts. When was the last time you saw a bank manager stop what he was doing to order new checks? These kinds of incentives really work. And if you make it part of the transaction, it’s easy.

How Much Is a New Client Worth?

How much are you willing to spend to get a new paying client? Determine how much they’re worth and how much you’re willing to pay, and come up with some kind of offer that your clients can’t refuse.

To show you what I mean, let’s take a look at some of what we’ve discovered over the years at Universal Accounting. The average bookkeeping client is worth $300 in monthly billing each and every month. Over the course of the next two years, you’ll find that a single customer is worth $7200.

The graph below will show you how valuable each client will become in a very short time.

I think that’s worth a dinner or two for a client who gives you referrals… don’t you? Now, let’s make this even more interesting. Let’s look at this scenario and include doing their taxes along with their bookkeeping.

Over the years we’ve discovered that the average business client who adds tax planning and preparation to bookkeeping services increases that $300 per month to $400 per month. Over the course of the same two years, that client is now worth $9600! At this point, a referral is worth a lot of money to your bookkeeping and tax practice.

Making the referral process a regular part of how you do business, gives your clients an incentive to give you a referral, and you’ll watch the referrals pour in.

“Automatic” Referrals Without Asking… What Could Be Better?

It really does get better. Referrals are only part of creating a successful bookkeeping and tax business. You’ll also learn everything you’ll need to know to do the books for any small business.

There’s never been a better time to become a professional bookkeeper and accountant. You won’t find a better place to begin than with Universal Accounting. Be prepared with all the educational tools you need to learn small business bookkeeping and accounting and all the marketing education you’ll need to have a successful business. Simply click on the link below and learn how to start your successful and profitable practice today.

Show Me How Achievable, Profitable and Easy a Professional Bookkeeping Business Can Be