Achieving Accounting Firm Growth Through Advisory Services
Running an accounting firm these days is tough. Margins are tight, competition is fierce, and clients expect more than just tax prep and financial statements. Navigating this landscape requires focused strategies for accounting firm growth. To stand out and boost revenue, smart firms are getting creative with new service offerings.
Today’s clients want real advisory help running their businesses. They need your expertise on cash flow, payroll, HR, IT and more. Becoming a true advisor to your clients earns their trust and loyalty.
Offering new services isn’t always easy, but when executed effectively, it’s a cornerstone in the path to firm growth. By becoming an indispensable advisor, you ensure clients stick around for the long haul. So, let’s dive into how your firm can achieve this goal.
Getting to Know Your Clients
Expanding your services starts with understanding your clients’ worlds. What keeps them up at night? Where do they hope their business will be in five years? What business challenges are the facing? While you can’t expect clients to spell out exactly what additional help they need, building personal relationships can offer you a sense of where your expertise could provide value.
Make it a habit to regularly check in with clients about more than just their financial statements or tax filings. Set up informal feedback sessions to learn about their long-term vision. Send surveys to get insights into their pain points. Make sure to keep communication open through emails and phone calls so that you stay updated on any developments, both good and bad.
When you make the effort to truly get to know your clients as people and business owners, you’ll start seeing opportunities everywhere to expand your offerings. The deeper the relationship, the easier it will be to position your firm as an indispensable partner.
The Engineered Advisory Accelerator Program
Are you ready to expand beyond traditional accounting services and jumpstart your accounting firm growth? Perhaps you can identify the opportunities but don’t have the capacity or the skills to deliver the service. The Engineered Advisory Accelerator Program guides firms on partnering with key resources to implement new advisory offerings, allowing you to become indispensable to clients.
Through the program, you’ll discover proven frameworks for delivering in-demand services from business valuation to cybersecurity consulting. Expert training and implementation resources will help you launch each new capability with confidence.
With the Accelerator, you can transform your firm from a basic accounting and tax practice to a holistic business advisory practice. Key opportunities include:
- Work Opportunity Tax Credits
- R&D Tax Credits
- Cost Segregation Studies
- Cybersecurity Programs
- Property Tax Mitigation Services
- Charitable Strategies for Wealth Preservation
- And more…
You can expect numerous tangible benefits, such as:
- Proven frameworks for new service offerings
- Training materials and implementation resources
- Access to vetted experts across advisory services
- Connections with a community of like-minded advisory focused firms
- Ongoing support in expanding capabilities
- Access to our annual HABU Conference to explore the advisory mindset
Getting the Word Out
Once you’ve expanded your capabilities, it’s time to spread the word. How can you effectively showcase your new advisory offerings?
- Start by thinking like your clients. Address their pain points and frame services around tangible benefits. An R&D tax credit service becomes a way to “boost profits through generous innovation incentives.”
- Share specific success stories to make offerings resonate. For example, highlight a client who increased cash flow by $100K through cost segregation.
- Use multiple touchpoints—email, social media, events, one-on-ones—to educate on services. Weave mentions of your advisory services into existing communications like newsletters or annual meetings.
The goal is to craft messaging that shows, not just tells, how these new offerings provide strategic value. With compelling communication, you’ll have clients eager to tap into your expanded capabilities.
Tracking Impact and Progress
How do you know if your new service offerings are achieving their potential and contributing to accounting firm growth? The key is tracking relevant metrics. Below are some helpful tips and tricks:
- Look at revenue and profitability by service line to gauge financial performance. Client satisfaction surveys and net promoter scores provide insight into perceived value.
- Measure client retention/attrition specifically for those using expanded offerings. Growth in service uptake over time is another indicator of traction.
- Make sure to evaluate both quantitative and qualitative indicators. The numbers only tell part of the story. Regular check-ins with clients will give context to the data.
Expanded Offerings, Expanded Relationships
Offering new services is about more than just bolstering your bottom line. It’s about becoming a trusted strategic advisor— to be the first call your clients make when needs arise. Imagine the relationships you can build as an indispensable partner!
Expanding services is a vital step toward sustained accounting firm growth. If you’re ready to start on this rewarding journey, we’re ready to help. Reach out anytime to discuss your goals and let us know how we can support you in growing your advisory impact.