MoneyThumb stays abreast of changes and advances in accounting in order to keep our Rules of Thumb blog readers informed. As part of that job, we subscribe to several accounting newsletters. In the newsletter we received this week from Accounting Web, we received a free download that we thought accountants who are readers might find invaluable. The free download is a guide courtesy of Sage, one of the largest accounting software systems out there. It is titled From Accountant to Business Partner: 7 Ways You Can Meet, (and Exceed) Client Expectations. Here is the link to download the free guide.
This guide prompted us to discuss what your accounting clients really want from you. Accountants may be surprised at some of the answers below:
What Do Your Accounting Clients Really Want From You?
Aside from wanting their tax returns filed in an efficient and timely manner, what more does your client need? By putting yourself in your client’s shoes, and really get to know them and their businesses, you’ll get to the heart of what it is that they’re looking for when they hire an accountant.
Look beyond the basics and consider the following:
1. Peace of mind
For most accountants, their largest base of clients is small business owners. These business owners are performing a constant juggling act. Nothing is likely to cause them more stress than the financial side of their business. To offer your small business clients and also individuals you handle accounting for peace of mind, one of the most important things you can do is to make sure you are always clear in your communications with them. When an accounting clients know exactly what they need to do, what they need to provide you with and when they need to get it done, the whole process will go much more smoothly. You will then be in a great position to give your client the reassurance they need. By giving them that peace of mind, you’re giving them the time, freedom and confidence to get on with running their business.
2. Clearness on Future Projections
Business owners are constantly looking to the future, and as their accountant, no one is better placed to advise them on long-term planning for their business. Help and support your clients as they deal with the big decisions, whether they involve preparing a tax bill, taking on an additional employee, or planning to reinvest in their company.
3. Your Availability and Accessibility
Increasingly, business owners want to have more control over every aspect of their business, rather than hand everything over to their accountant and forget about it. This includes areas that they outsource to experts. This is where digital accounting software can be a real asset. By storing your clients’ accounts in a cloud-based system, your clients can work with you online, from any device. This is invaluable for giving them, and you, a real-time view of their financial situation, allowing you to offer the most relevant and up-to-date advice.
4. Staying Up-to-Date
More than ever clients will need their accountants to act as a translator when it comes to significant developments in the world of business and finance. Thanks to the internet, they will have a better awareness of upcoming changes, compared to clients 20 years ago. As their accountant, you need to be a reliable source of information, someone who will break down the jargon into something they can understand.
Another way you can help give clients what they need is to handle their bank statements and other financials by using our great PDF financial file converters. Not only will this make your job as an accountant so much easier and save a vast amount of time, your clients will be impressed by your ingenuity and forward-thinking approach to handling their business.
Leave a reply