CPA Firms Sell Knowledge, Not Service

Source: VeraSage Institute 

The following includes excerpts, reproduced with permission, from a blog entry by Tim Williams.

Many firms lament that they have become “order-takers.” But why? Who turned your firm into an order-taker? You did – not your clients. You did it by forgetting what it is you're really selling. You're not selling service. You're selling important business outcomes. 

The firms that understand this invest in better people who can produce a better product. They resist hiring an army of junior people who are good at service, but fail to add the value that clients are ultimately paying for. They realize that the way to deal with demanding clients isn't to give them exactly what they want, but rather to counsel clients on what they really need. You only get treated like a servant if you act like a servant.

The fact is that we shouldn't be regarded as professional service firms, but rather professional knowledge firms. Clients don't just hire us for what we do, but rather what we know. Service is a commodity. Smart thinking is not. Clients can get good service anywhere, but proactive marketing leadership is in short supply.

Think hard about the question of what business you're in. If you're in the service business, you can expect to be treated and paid accordingly. If you believe you're in the knowledge business, then you'd better hire, train, and invest in people accordingly.

There are plenty of smart clients who value and respect what a smart firm can deliver. But respect starts with a firm's self-perception. You will never be accorded more respect than you think you deserve, and you will never be paid more than you think you are worth.

For the complete blog entry, read “Are You Really In The Service Business?”

From VeraSage Institute, October 6, 2013, http://www.verasage.com/index.php/community.