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Firm Fitness
“Consistent Cardio”
An Effective Profit Improvement Process
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The key to success in achieving a big goal is to take small consistent steps.
CONSISTENCY IS THE KEY
So what are those small consistent steps and what is your action plan
to remain consistent?
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You don’t start out running a marathon; you focus on small gains such as a 5k, 10k, ½ marathon and gradually build to a fitness level that allows you to achieve your goal.
We see many businesses whose first step is to run the marathon; to change too many areas at once. Consequently they do not achieve their goal.
When you introduce too much change at one time, the business can suffer. It often creates stress, staff resistance, falling behind on other work and more.
In many cases, you have you lost the battle before leaving
the starting gate…
Has this ever happened to you?
Case in Point:
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Change Introduces Stress
But it does not have to mean CHAOS…
Can you site some examples of where change introduced chaos into your firm?
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How Can We Prevent Chaos?
With a clearly defined action plan per area of “change” including:
– A clear definition of what we are trying to accomplish – our goal
– An outline of action steps to accomplish the goal
– Written “Action Step” process and procedures
– Task lists and task assignments
– A Timeline
– Checklists to make sure we stay on track
Your strategy MUST consist of small action steps taken over time
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However….
For many of you, the items in the previous slide seem overwhelming.
•How many of you believe that 15 to 30 minutes invested daily can produce a dramatic impact on your firm?
•So what can we accomplish in 15 – 30 minutes a day?
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Industry Challenges
Here are a few of the biggest challenges we face in the
accounting/bookkeeping industry.
•Keeping our firm moving forward with a systemized, cost-effective marketing strategy
•Work/life balance
•Getting work out the door and the need for systemized workflow
•Getting clients to pay on time and implementing a systemized AR policy
•Moving to the Cloud
How many of you have challenges in at least one of these areas? More than one area?
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Let’s Take a Closer Look at
3 HIGH IMPACT
DOABLE
Action Steps per Area
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Marketing 101
If you believe that marketing is complex, expensive and time-consuming and that only creative individuals are good at it, then…
YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND MARKETINGIt is NOT rocket science
The key is to consistently execute a simple plan.
Take a few forward action steps per month, for astounding results at the end of a 12 month process.
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Let’s Talk About Your Marketing Challenges
Most Accountants:
•Do not have a CONSISTENT marketing campaign in place - It is well documented, that the average U.S. Consumer takes 7-9 impressions to make a buying decision.
•Do not have a marketing budget in place
•Do not like sales
•Do not have time to bring on new clients because they are too busy tasking- they are stuck in an income rut related to their time.
•Have difficulty selling accounting services to a cold prospect because they are selling a relationship of trust.
How many of you can relate?
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Do You….
• Have clearly defined goals regarding marketing?
• Have a clearly defined target market?
• Have a marketing strategy in place to attract cold prospects?
• Have a marketing strategy in place to sell more services to current clients and improve client retention?
• Consistently implement your strategy?
• Have a marketing budget in place?
• Track results?
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NEED TO KNOW Marketing Tips
• The lowest response rates are always in the initial phases of any marketing campaign.
• Consistency is EVERYTHING in marketing.
• The more you “throw against the wall” the better. When a prospect has seen your name, message, brand from any number of sources such as signage at your office, email, direct mail, ads, networking groups, website, Chamber of Commerce, Social Media, etc. it will pay off in huge ways.
• In the Accounting/Bookkeeping industry, you need a funnel feeder into your firm.
How do we “hang in there” until the campaign snowballs,
without the breaking the bank?
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With a DOABLE Action Plan
Kim’s KEY Tips to Successful Marketing in your Industry
MONTH ONE
What do you want, who do you want, how do you reach them?
1.Establish Clearly Defined Goals – If you don’t know what you want, you won’t get it!– Add two outsourced bookkeeping clients per month
– Add 2k in additional ongoing revenue
– Add 2 tax clients
– Add 1 business consulting client
– Save a client at risk
2.Identify Target Market and Major Pain Points in the Industry – Contractors – Job Costing
– Lawyers – Trust Accounts
– Manufacturers – Inventory, assembly items, etc.
– Medical – Partnership environments and tax consequences
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Doable Action Plan Continued…
3. Research Best Ways to Reach Target Market– Local Contractor’s Association
– Direct Mail List and Targeted Mailing – (Local business list available through most libraries)
– Trade Association Journals
– Email “Job Costing for Contractors”
– Social Media – Join Contractor Groups
– Etc.
4.Identify Funnel Feeder– QuickBooks Support
– QuickBooks Training
– Chamber or Bank Lunch n Learns
– Etc.
5.Take Advantage of Resources Already Available to you– ProAdvisor Site– Chamber Site– Your Website
QuickBooks Training is a great funnel feeder
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Doable Action Plan Continued…MONTH TWO
1.Create “7 Touches” Timeline– Touch one – Letter – Touch two – Email – Send one week later– Touch three – Email – Send one week following first email– Touch four – Social Media – Try to find company on LinkedIn, FaceBook, etc. and connect– Touch five – Postcard – Send 3 weeks after first letter– Touch six – Email – Send 1 week after postcard lands– Touch seven – Contact Contractor’s Association
2. Create Marketing Message (It is ALWAYS about them, not about you – keep all messages consistent and ALWAYS include pain points) Contractors – Learn to Master QuickBooks
What Contractors NEED TO KNOW
Even the most experienced QuickBooks® users can struggle to track exact costs per job and often end up “guessing” on how to record contractor specific transactions. Not knowing if you are making or losing money
per job, if the financial data in your reports is accurate or lacking an understanding of which reports you should review on a daily basis can be a recipe for disaster. Accounting for those in the construction industry is different and WE CAN HELP!
3.Execute First and Second Touch According to Timeline
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Work/Life Balance
What can I do to get at least part of my life back???
Here is something to think about…
Accountants get bombarded with advice to offer more services
WE ARE CHASING MORE AND MORE CERTIFICATIONS.
ARE WE REALLY MAKING MORE MONEY?
WHAT ABOUT THE 80/20 RULE?
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Technology OverloadEVERY training we attend focuses on technology. We are told to offer more services. We tell our clients offer fewer products and focus on the profitable areas of their business. This is not the accounting industry model today.
•Somehow we need to do business valuations, cost segregation studies, expert witness work, trust services, financial services, business coaching, CFO services, estate planning, income tax preparation, income tax planning, payroll, bookkeeping, and the list goes on.
•We are chasing more expertise but what about more business?
•We are in technology overload. We focus on improving our technology IQ but fail to improve the performance of our business.
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Is Your Income Growing?
Technology may be robbing you of revenue and your life:
• Smart phones, IPads, etc. make us available 24/7
• Technology has blurred the lines between work and off time and in the process we are giving away precious time that we are not even billing for!
• Clients expect us to be available 24/7
• Clients tend to expect not to be billed for “quick questions” that they send by IM, Text or email
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Work/Life Balance
Why is this important?
These underlying issues affect our own personal health as well as our firm health in dramatic ways. If you are working long hours, it means you are not working “smart”.
Is your work/life balanced?
•I find myself spending more and more time on work-related projects. True False
•I often feel I don't have any time for myself -- or for my family and friends. True False
•No matter what I do, it seems that most of my time is scheduled for something. True False
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Work/Life Balance Continued…• Sometimes I feel as though I’ve lost sight of why I chose this job/career and who I am.
True
False
• I can't remember the last time I took a day off to do something fun -- something just for me.
True
False
• I feel stressed out most of the time.
True
False
• I can't even remember the last time I used all my allotted vacation and personal days.
True
False
• I often bring work home with me.
True
False
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Work/Life Balance Continued…• I often feel as though I have no time to catch my breath before moving on to the next crisis or project..
True
False
• I wish I had more time for outside interests
True
False
• I frequently feel exhausted both mentally and physically
True
False
• I do what I do because so many people depend on me.
True
False
• I have missed many of my family’s important events because of work.
True
False
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Work/Life Balance Initial Action Steps
1. Visualize how would you like your life to beWrite down your vision of the perfect work/life balance. Compare this with how your current life. Do you notice any differences? Make a commitment to make one small change each week to help you align your current life with your vision of the perfect life.
2. Identify the biggest roadblocks–I’m a control freak and think I need to do everything myself because no one is better at the task than me.–I am not in control of where each task stands in our office and I run around putting out fires. Not working smart.–I do not have the support staff I need to allow me to work less.
3. Identify 3 small changes you can make this month–Identify one thing you can get off your plate permanently and DO IT! Outsource,
train someone else in your office to do the task, hire a contractor, etc.–Commit to leaving the office every Friday at 3 PM and leave all work at the office.–Commit to adding one “self-care” time per week to your calendar
(i.e. going to the gym, yoga, a walk, fly fishing, massage, etc.)
Awareness is the key
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Getting Work and Back Work Out the Door
For those Struggling with Workflow…
Start with a Workflow Questionnaire
•What prevents you from implementing a workflow system?•Do you have a written policy in place?•Do you have a flowchart?•What happens when source documents are faxed, emailed, mailed, phoned in, etc.•How are tasks currently assigned•How are tasks tracked through your office•When and how is completed work billed•What technology solutions if any, are you using to track tasks in your office•What are the workflow bottlenecks in your firm?
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What Prevents you from Implementing a Workflow System?
• Don’t know where to begin
• Seems overwhelming and I don’t want to introduce chaos in my firm
• I don’t have time
• I don’t know which automated solutions are the best fit for my firm
• I don’t have time to research and learn about what’s out there
• I am worried the cost will be prohibitive
• I don’t have needed staff
• I don’t have partner buy-in
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Step One: Make a List
This is not rocket science. Do not overcomplicate getting workflow organized in your office. Begin with a few simple steps:
•Make a list of the types tasks/documents that come into your office.
•Track how each type of task/document is handled from the day it arrives to completion.
•Once you have analyzed how it is currently done, identify the areas that need to be improved so that each task can be tracked from arrival to departure. Initially it can be as simple as using a spreadsheet.
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Step Two: Track the Work
•Figure out how you are going to track the work. There are a lot of software solutions that will streamline workflow and efficiencies; we recommend you eventually implement one. For now, if you do not already have a software solution in place, go back to basics.
If you think you need to buy a solution for anything to get done,
it will never get done.
•If you are behind now and have work that is not tracked, you cannot buy a software solution that will fix that problem; in fact it could put you further behind. You need to get a handle on your tasks, with or without a software solution.
•Do NOT make this a road block to implementation. Accountants suffer from “perfection paralysis”. It is never going to be perfect, so forward action not perfect action.
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Step Three: Implement
• From this day forward, no work comes into the office without being logged into the system.
• If it is feasible, take an afternoon and commit to logging in all work currently in the office.
• If there is too much work to input in a few hours, have each staff member in the firm commit to a specific amount of time each day (i.e. 30 minutes, etc.) to identify and input work already in the office.
You DESERVE Peace of Mind
Getting a handle on every task in your firm will not only reduce chaos, it will significantly
impact your bottom line.
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Getting Clients to Pay on Time
Accounts Receivable is a significant problem for many in the Accounting Industry.
If you allow work to leave your office without payment, you could be making a very big mistake. Allowing clients to become past due on invoices harms the client
relationship, introduces cash flow issues and decreases profit margins.
So, what are three DOABLE actions steps
you can take this month?
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3 A/R Action Steps to Get Back in Control:
• Create and Implement an A/R policy – (See Sample)
• Decrease Average Time to Payment by 5 days this month
• Set-up automated billing with ACH drafts, Credit Card processing, etc.
Think small action steps don’t make a difference?
Let’s look at a case study
If they could get better at this ONE thing, they would put $38,737.11 of profit
back on the books and into their pockets.
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How this Affects our Case Study
Cost of Carrying Receivables
A/R Amt. Cost % Total Cost
•1-30 Days 14,661
•30-60 Days 9,389 0.0182 170.88
•61-90 Days 9,883 0.092 909.24
•91-120 Days 6,315 0.1774 1,120.28
•120 + Days 31,883 0.2671 8,515.95
72,131 10,716.35
Probability of Collection
A/R Amt. Collectability % Net Realizable
•1-30 Days 14,661 14,661.00
•30-60 Days 9,389 0.899 8,440.71
•61-90 Days 9,883 0.813 8,034.88
•91-120 Days 6,315 0.69 4,357.35
•Over 120 Days 31,883 0.521 16,611.04
•180+ Days 27,286 6,221.27
Totals 72,131 44,110.24 28,020.76 + 10,716.35 = 38,737.11
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Step One: Get an A/R Policy in Place
• Review best practices and use A/R Sample Policy as a guideline (See A/R Module furnished by QBExpress).
• Assign one person the task of completing the first draft and assign a due date.
• Conduct staff meeting for input and to get “buy-in” from staff.
• Finalize and begin implementation the first of the following month.
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Step Two: Automate Billing and Collections
• Setup recurring monthly billing in Accounting Software
• Send letter to clients notifying them of the new billing policies– Invoice and Statements will be emailed beginning the first of next month– ACH or Credit Card drafting options for all payments. Payment will be run 5 days
from date of invoice.– All recurring monthly services will be billed and due in advance of service.
• Assign a due date
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Step Three: Decrease Average Time to Payment
• Catch up all billing that has not gone out the door
Assign task and due date
• Customize sample collection letters and phone script
Confirm timeline for when a client receives notification
• Collection calls and letters to accounts over 45 days
Partners/Owner identify clients to receive a collection call.
Each commit to calling 5 per week.
Friday meetings to review progress!
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Moving to the Cloud Action Steps
1. Identify applications and data to move to the Cloud
2. Identify provider
3. Establish a timeline and order for applications to be moved
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Identify Applications and Data
Do not try to move everything at once if you want to prevent chaos. Create a list of priorities and a timeline that is not overwhelming. If we told you that you have to move everything to the cloud tomorrow, you would never move forward.
Create a list of all applications and data:
1. Accounting Software
2. CRM Software
3. Tax Software
4. Source Documents
5. Etc.
Prioritize the order
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Select a Provider
• Things to Consider
– Virtual Server (we recommend Cloud9)– Shared Server (hosted environment)– SAAS (software as a service such as QBO)
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Establish Timeline
Once you have selected your provider and established the order of items to move, set deadlines and have staff members commit to completing their assigned tasks.
•Break down each task from the provider onboarding document and create a checklist
•Assign each task to a specific person and have them commit to a deadline.Assigned to: ____________________________
Due date: ___/___/____
Assigned to: ____________________________
Due date: ___/___/____
•Schedule periodic meetings to make sure everyone is on point.
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In Conclusion
Your plan for moving your firm forward, MUST incorporate a DOABLE, realistic action plan. What might that look like?
What stands out as the one area in your business that needs the most attention. The one that keeps you up at night. START THERE.
Is it?•Workflow•A/R•Moving to the Cloud•Getting More Clients•Work/Life Balance
Or is it one of the following areas of your business?
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It is critical to establish the order.
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Let’s Look at a Sample CalendarMonth OneWeek One
1.________________________________________________________________________________
2.________________________________________________________________________________
3.________________________________________________________________________________
Week Two
1.________________________________________________________________________________
2.________________________________________________________________________________
3.________________________________________________________________________________
Week Three
1.________________________________________________________________________________
2.________________________________________________________________________________
3.________________________________________________________________________________
Week Four
1.________________________________________________________________________________
2.________________________________________________________________________________
3.________________________________________________________________________________
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The Road to FIRM FITNESS is CLEAR
• Research shows that we can only FOCUS on one to three changes at a time. The trick is to determine the keystone habits that when changed, make other habits easier to change.
• In conclusion, to get your firm fit and/or help you clients do the same, start by focusing on ONE critical area of the business. Pick a KEYSTONE habit to launch and continue to build using a systemized process.
• With a consistent approach of focusing on one area of the business at a time, in the course of a year, best practices will be in place throughout the business.
Thank you for attending.
If you are ready to move your firm to best practices in a DOABLE way, visit the QBExpress Booth for more details on our
“Profit Improvement Process”
