Ever wondered why there are so many different brands of everything? Well, it’s to do with positioning and targeting specific niches with new products.
I have been working with accountants since 2005 and the truth is that marketing and accountancy don’t really mix that well. This is because accountants have annual recurring fees so they know they have work next week, next month and next year. Unfortunately, this makes many firms lazy with their practice development.
Now, rather than work hard to persuade more and more accountants to invest in marketing, I have decided to work closely with fewer firms.
Over the years I have developed some expertise in a number of areas, one that I feel can be used outside of the Accountancy profession is Websites and Internet Marketing. So, this month sees the official launch of StinkySites.
StinkySites is targeting Website Design Cornwall and Website design Devon (because I am based in Falmouth) but being an online business, we can operate anywhere.
Now, the idea is that StinkySites runs a partner programme with proactive/entrepenerial accountants who are not lazy and want to make money on the side of their practice. Traditional accountancy is really a declining business whereas Internet Marketing is growing, this is an opportunbity to reduce risks and increase profits.
First, we do a Website for the practice and get that working. Then, we pay an introducer fee for any clients the accountant recommends and share revenue from the online training programme.
For the really entrepenrial Accountants we can support them setting up their own StinkySites business. They use the Stinky brand and marketing collateral in their town/area.
There is a one-off joining fee of £997 and a monthly licence of £99 a month but we can only have one partner per town/area.
The business model is based on three sources of revenue:
1) Share of design/build costs
2) Share of monthly fees
3) Revenue from Internet Marketing Services supplied direct to clients
This is a non regulated business, all training is provided and recovery rates of up to £75 an hour can be generated.
If you are interested give me a call.
[Here is a guest blog by John Haylock, I am reading his book at the moment, it comes highly recommended]
I've just had my annual check up with Kenny the dentist.
As Kenny poked around inside my mouth I reflected on how much other businesses can learn from dentists - particularly when it comes to managing the varying requirements of customers and organising their workflow to meet those requirements.
Dentists have a rolling cycle of patients who they contact for annual check-ups. Dentists take control of this process. They don't wait for you to call up for an appointment - because they know most people will put it off. So they send out reminder letters and follow up with phone calls if they don't get a response.
Annual check-ups are normally scheduled 3-4 weeks in advance. If forward bookings are a bit low, dentists will either send out more letters or get on the phone to more people. On the other hand if bookings are heavy they will slow down contacting people. Dentists like having a consistent flow of committed appointments for a month or so ahead.
But dentists only fill up 70-80% of their diaries with these annual check-ups. That's because they have two other type of patients who can't be organised so far in advance:
• People with follow-ups to previous appointments
• People with emergencies
Dentists leave space in their diaries for these patients with more urgent requirements. They don't know exactly what is going to happen each day but they do know they have to plan "spare capacity" for these type of patients. Sometimes they may not use all that spare capacity - but there will always be something to do to use that capacity.
Occasionally they may not budget quite enough and have to work late. But usually, they will get it about right. Getting it right is important because if they were not able to see patients quickly in an emergency those patients would suffer and they would lose those patients to other dentists.
Dentists recognise that even though each individual emergency is unknown the appropriate volume of emergencies can be planned for.
This is a very simple system that many other professionals should follow - plan spare capacity for urgent jobs and budget the time required based on previous experience. This is particularly useful if you are in a business where you also have a mix of urgent and non-urgent work. Accountants for example typically have such a mix.
Budgeting spare capacity in this way means that if an urgent job arrives you have ability to do it quickly and you will not have to push other jobs back to make space for the urgent job or ask your team to work longer hours. In these circumstances both your client and your team will be delighted.
If that urgent job doesn't occur it is usually an easy process to then bring another non-urgent job forward to fill the gap. The end result of doing this will be a client for whom you have under-promised and over-delivered.
Planning the appropriate level of spare capacity for genuinely urgent work and then managing that capacity is one of the most important aspects of running a professional services business.
Before I knew it my appointment with Kenny was all over and done in 20 minutes and there was no pain apart from handing over my credit card! But that's another story about how professionals can get paid on the spot - instead of having to send out invoices and getting paid weeks, if not months later. I said there was a lot to learn from dentists.
John Haylock is the author of "Absolute Certainty - how to give your clients exactly what they want". Hard copies can be purchased by emailing john@absolute-certainty.com while the e-book version can be purchased from Amazon UK.
Business Performance Specialist, Author & Professional Speaker
Absolute Certainty Ltd
Phone +64 6 759 8107 or +64 21 531 126
Email john@absolute-certainty.com
Visit our website www.absolute-certainty.com
Here is a little system for creating your elevator pitch:
Start with:
“I help…" and then provide a specific description of your idea client.
Next:
“Who…" then describe a specific problem that clients/prospects say is their biggest concern; use their exact words.
Follow with:
“Get…" and then describe a specific outcome you can help them achieve
End with:
A convenience statement.
The more specific the better. The more emotional the better. The more this uses the client’s words the better and I recommend starting to ask clients what they biggest challenge or frustration is.
If you don't know what this is ask 20 prospects and find out.
An example for me could be:
I help sole-trader accountants who feel they are not valued by their clients win new business at higher prices, without spending a fortune on marketing.
Social Media is here to stay. Don't believe me, watch the video.
If you are not using Social Media effectively you risk being left behind, can you afford that when the competition is increasing faster than ever?
You know that relationships are key to your success. Building, retaining and managing key relationships is vital for all professional service firms, especially Accountants.
LinkedIn is a 21st century rollerdex and it is recognised as "the professional's" Social Media channel - it's not if you should be using it, but how.
For Accountants interested in finding out how they can use LinkedIn within their marketing strategy, we are hosting a Webinar.
Webinar details
This 90-minute lunchtime training Webinar on Wednesday 6th July is going to explain why you need to get onboard now before it's too late.
By attending the Webinar you will understand exactly what to do today to prevent youself and your firm from looking out of date and damaging your brand. And, you will have a step-by-step checklist to implement straight after the Webinar.
The Webinar will cover LinkedIn basics as well as advanced strategies and tactics for lead generation using the Premium edition of LinkedIn.
The presentation will be given by Steve Mills, a former International sportsman and marketing expert. Steve has worked as a Marketing Director for a High Street Accountancy practice so he has a unique perspective.
Price and guarantee
Complete the form below to book your place.
The Webinar starts at 1.00pm and costs £40 plus VAT - attendees get a checklist of actions to ensure they get full value from the event.
The guarantee is simple...if for some reason you don't think the session was worth the money, just let me know and I'll refund you the same day.
Blog posts are like buses sometimes, wait for a while and then two come along at the same time. This one is posted the same day as the GRF is killing the profession.
At the time of writing this I just connected with an Australian Accountant over LinkedIn, he kindly sent me some information about a report by the Law Society of Western Australia.
The report reveals that 21% of the state's lawyers are being bullied. The Equal Opportunities Committee added “billable hour targets diminishes qualities such as innovation and creativity and makes the number of hours billed the key assessment of a lawyer's success. Consequently lawyers are forced to work long hours, alienating them from their family and the community because the number of hours billed is the key assessment of a lawyer's success”.
The committee believes that billable targets are a "tool" for bullying and the issue of depression and psychological distress cannot be properly addressed unless action is taken on the billing model. The report found that 30% are bullied on a weekly basis and 85% say bullying happens verbally.
The report also found that some of those who were bullied went on to attempt suicide, were diagnosed with clinical depression, suffered anxiety attacks and hair loss, hated their jobs and wanted to quit.
Another issue that contributed to mental health problems for young lawyers was the "crippling" lack of control they had over their work. It is reported that some lawyers do not know when they will finish work on a daily basis or if they will have to work the weekend which meant lawyers were forced to miss social events.
I have said that time billing makes most accountants unconsciously unethical from the client’s perspective but what about from the employee's point of view? Could having chargeable hour targets make employers bullies?
It would be great to see a lawyer or an Accountant bring a court case on this. But, if you are a sole-trader with no employees you can make a change. Stop beating yourself up and change your business model. Start charging for results and access/use of your knowledge.