Focus on Clients’ Profits, Not Yours

Source: Accounting Today

Here are some highlights of what August Aquila believes CPAs should do to be more profitable:

• Find out how to help your clients improve earnings. And find out how they would like you to work with them on it—do they want you to be empathetic or to challenge them? And ask them how they want you to communicate—e-mail? Regular mail?
• Clients fall into the following categories:

  Profitable Clients in a Core Category	Profitable Clients Not in a Core Category
  Non-Profitable Clients in a Core Category	Non-Profitable Clients Not in a Core Category

  Clients in the lower right box should be terminated.

• Find out how much profit each client provides to the firm. Don’t obsess with revenues or realization. Instead measure the net income from each client.
• Incentive compensation should reward results, especially in terms of client satisfaction.
• Partners and staff need training in how to service clients. This includes investigative skills, listening, writing, and dealing with complaints.
• Cross-sell services only when it is in the client’s best interest.

For the complete article, click here and select the article “It Pays to be Client-Focused!” in the July 7, 2008, issue.

From Accounting Today, July 7, 2008, SourceMedia Inc., One State Street Plaza, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10004, 800-221-1809.

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