What business are you really in? Plus other insightful practical tips and advice

This is what subscribers to my Success Secrets for accountants get by email every week. Now is a good time for you to register for your own copy >>>>

----

On Monday I had a revelation during a meeting of the Fellows of the Professional Speaking Association. Whilst the conversation was, as you might expect, focused around Speakers, much the same issue is true of Accountants who have yet to establish their practice with all the clients they want.

A decent professional speaker might hope to be on a conference stage 30-40 times a year. So, is their job to be a great speaker or great at sales (to generate the gigs they want each year)?

The real work (taking 90-95% of one's time) is in getting the gigs - at least until you are so famous that work comes to you.

Obviously speakers need to be able to deliver great talks, inspire, motivate and educate the audience but that, of itself, is never enough to have a speaking business.

It's very similar for accountants (and for lots of other service providers).

Being a great accountant is only part of the job. You also need to take seriously the work involved in attracting the type of clients you want, to be able to satisfy them that your style and approach is right for them and that your fees are worth paying.

I call these the essential 4 P skills: Promotion, Pitch, Price, Perform. Many of the challenges I see are where accountants are struggling with one or more of the first 3 of these skills.

It's time

What are the issues, challenges, and opportunities you're currently facing?

Isn't it time we at least had a quick one-off conversation?

You could benefit from:

• Getting a second opinion before you commit to key decisions
• Turning your ambitions into reality
• Boosting your self-confidence
• Overcoming overwhelm and frustration
• Gaining insights, experiences, and tailored advice for your specific needs and practice.

Pick a time that works for both of us now >>>. There'll be no pressure and no obligation. Just helpful, caring and friendly support.

3 practical tips to ponder

Just imagine what it would be like if you could get my input and support on YOUR issues rather than simply reading a few headlines like these from 1-2-1 mentoring conversations with other sole practitioner accountants:

1. Call a PIC: Schedule time for one call a day to speak with a Prospect, Introducer or Client
2. Prequalify: Stop wasting time with anyone and everyone who gets in touch. Target your advertising, marketing, profiles and website to appeal to the type of clients you really want. And ask questions before you commit to much time or to do any work. Prequalify prospects and allow them to qualify themselves out.
3. Learn from Yesterday, prepare for Tomorrow, do what you can Today. There's a great line in the Huey Lewis song 'Jacob's ladder': "All I want from tomorrow is to get it better than today".

14 biz dev mistakes I wish accountants could avoid

A journalist once asked me “What is the worst mistake accountants can make when they are trying to ‘close’ a prospective client?”

Normally I have prepared for the most likely questions I will be asked when I am being interviewed. This one was not on my list as it was not closely related to the main topics we had been discussing. Still, I had to find a reply.

I’ll share what I said in a moment.

Thinking about the issue subsequently I constructed this list of 14 business development related mistakes that are all too easy to make:......

Continue reading…..

Weekly tax tips for general practice accountants

If you've not yet tried the Tax Advice Network's EXCLUSIVE weekly tax tips for general practitioner accountants, it takes just one click.

Each week you'll get one email containing 3 topical, timely and commercial tax tips - written especially for accountants in general practice. They are written in plain English with links to the original source material if you want further details.

Yes please

Tax support for your practice and your clients

Ensure your clients get the in-depth tax advice they need when they face challenges or opportunities that go beyond your comfort level. (That means your PI insurance probably doesn't cover you to give them the tax advice yourself anyway).

There's no charge for using the Tax Advice Network website to instantly find the right tax specialist to help you and your clients. Go try it now.

FindATaxAdviser.online

What's next for you Mark?

1. Maybe a quick complimentary telephone call is all you need? >>>

2. A one-off focused strategy call/zoom? >>>

3. Regular 1-2-1 mentoring zoom calls? >>>

3. Join the Sole Practice Club? >>>

4. Grab my guide to 6 time management secrets for accountants? >>>

Regards

Mark Lee FCA

NED-style Mentor, debunker and speaker

Chair of the Tax Advice Network

---

If you'd like to be assured of seeing this weekly email please let me know here >>>>

I'm Mark and sole practitioner accountants turn to me for strategic insights, advice and support. Membership of The Sole Practice Club gives your priority access and the benefit of learning from other sole practitioners who are different to you but share many of the same issues, challenges and concerns. Others prefer 1-2-1 NED-style mentoring support.

BookMarkLee.co.uk >>>

I also Chair the  Tax Advice Network, the UK’s largest network of independent tax advisers.

If you want to be notified whenever I write fresh posts on Linkedin, please click the 🔔 at the top of my profile here.

-----------