sell accounting firm

Three Changes That Can Make an Accounting Firm More Sellable

On paper, MotiveBase appeared to be a highly attractive business. It served major customers such as McDonald’s, Target, and General Mills. It generated millions of dollars in revenue and produced strong margins.

Yet when founder Ujwal Arkalgud first explored selling the company, potential buyers hesitated.

The problem was not a lack of customers, revenue, or profit. MotiveBase remained too dependent on the people who had built it.

Acquirers do not simply buy a company’s past performance. They need confidence that its sales, service, and revenue will continue after the founders leave.

Rather than accepting a compromised deal, Ujwal and his co-founder stepped away from the market and rebuilt MotiveBase. They focused on three changes that transformed a profitable but founder-dependent service company into a more transferable business.

Those same changes can help accounting firm owners build practices that are easier to grow—and potentially more valuable to a future buyer.

1. Establish a Distinct Market Position

MotiveBase initially looked like another market research firm operating in a crowded industry. Buyers could easily compare it with dozens of alternatives.

Ujwal changed that positioning by building the company around cultural anthropology. MotiveBase’s team members were not presented merely as analysts. They were “anthropologists” who could explain the deeper cultural forces driving consumer behavior.

This was more than clever branding. It reflected a genuine difference in how the company approached its work.

MotiveBase did not simply identify trends. It helped customers understand why those trends were occurring.

Value Builder describes this type of differentiation as “Monopoly Control”: owning a distinct position in the customer’s or buyer’s mind. According to its research, companies with this advantage receive acquisition offers that are 25% higher on average.

Accounting firms can create similar differentiation by becoming known for a particular kind of client, service, or result.

A firm might specialize in tax planning for real estate investors, bookkeeping for construction companies, or advisory services for growing professional firms. Another might become known for helping struggling businesses improve cash flow and profitability.

The goal is not to claim that no competitors exist. It is to give clients a compelling reason to choose the firm beyond price or proximity.

2. Build Predictable, Recurring Revenue

From 2015 through 2018, MotiveBase operated as a project-based service business. It grew to approximately $3.5 million in revenue, with EBITDA margins approaching 80%.

Despite that performance, project-based revenue created uncertainty. Each engagement had an end date, future revenue was harder to predict, and service delivery remained closely connected to the founders.

MotiveBase transitioned to a subscription model with an “all-you-can-eat” value proposition. Customers paid an annual fee for access to the company’s platform and unlimited support from its team.

Instead of discouraging use, the company encouraged customers to get as much value as possible.

Annual contract values eventually grew from approximately $20,000 to more than $220,000 per customer.

The transition was difficult. When MotiveBase shut down its services operation in 2019, annual revenue fell below $1 million. However, the subscription model eventually scaled beyond $7 million while maintaining strong EBITDA margins.

More importantly, its revenue became predictable enough for buyers to evaluate with confidence.

Accounting firms already have several opportunities to create recurring revenue. Monthly bookkeeping, payroll support, tax planning, cash-flow forecasting, controller services, and ongoing business advisory engagements can provide greater stability than isolated projects or once-a-year tax returns.

Recurring revenue does not only make a firm more attractive to a buyer. It can improve cash-flow planning, deepen client relationships, and reduce the pressure to constantly replace completed work.

3. Remove the Founders From the Sales Process

Even after MotiveBase developed a distinct position and recurring revenue, buyers still needed proof that the company could continue attracting customers without its founders leading every sales conversation.

Ujwal and his co-founder documented their sales process. They identified what made their conversations effective and converted those methods into a repeatable system.

The company then hired salespeople who could communicate its value independently instead of acting as intermediaries who still needed the founders to close every deal.

By the time MotiveBase sold, the team handled most sales. The founders participated selectively, but the company no longer relied on them for daily growth.

Many accounting firms face the same obstacle. The owner may be the only person who knows how to explain the firm’s value, evaluate a prospect, recommend a service package, and ask for the engagement.

A more transferable firm documents those decisions. It establishes an ideal client profile, discovery questions, pricing structure, sales presentation, follow-up process, and clear method for recommending services.

The owner’s experience becomes part of the company’s system rather than knowledge that leaves when the owner does.

A Framework for Firm Owners and Advisors

After MotiveBase addressed its founder dependence, it returned to the market. This time, buyers were more comfortable with the company’s future. It attracted multiple offers and was acquired by a private equity-backed buyer for approximately 15 times EBITDA.

Accounting firm owners can apply the same three-part framework:

  • Become known for solving a distinct problem.
  • Develop predictable, recurring client relationships.
  • Create a sales process that does not depend entirely on the founder.

Accounting professionals can also use this framework when advising service-business clients. Revenue and margins may describe current performance, but differentiation, recurring income, and founder independence help determine whether that performance can continue.

By helping clients strengthen those areas, accountants can move beyond reporting what a business earned and help shape what the business may ultimately be worth.

Universal Accounting Center helps accounting professionals develop the technical, advisory, and business-building skills needed to differentiate their services, create recurring revenue, and build firms with lasting value. Call 435-344-2060 to meet with our team and take your next step toward building the premier accounting firm in your area—with these lessons in mind.

accounting certification program

What Is an Accounting Certification Program and Who Is It For?

If you have started researching ways to break into financial work without spending years in a traditional degree program, you have probably come across the term accounting certification program more than once. It sounds straightforward, but the details vary a lot from one provider to another, and not every program is designed for the same kind of student. In this post, we will explain what an accounting certification program typically includes, break down who tends to benefit most from one, and help you figure out whether this path fits where you want your career to go.

What an Accounting Certification Program Actually Covers

An accounting certification program is a focused training path that teaches practical financial skills, usually including bookkeeping fundamentals, financial statement preparation, tax basics, and often software training for platforms small businesses actually use. Unlike a four-year accounting degree, which spends significant time on broad theory and general education requirements, a certification program stays concentrated on the skills you will use immediately in real client or employer work.

Programs differ in scope. Some focus narrowly on one skill area, such as bookkeeping or tax preparation, while others bundle multiple certifications together so you graduate with a broader set of credentials. Choosing between a narrow and a broad program usually comes down to whether you already know exactly what kind of financial work you want to do or whether you want to explore a few paths before specializing.

It also helps to think about how the certification connects to actual client demand. A program that only teaches theory without connecting it to the kind of work small businesses regularly need, such as monthly bookkeeping, payroll support, or tax filing, can leave graduates with knowledge but no clear direction on how to turn it into paid work.

Who Benefits Most From an Accounting Certification Program

Career changers make up a large portion of the people who pursue certification, since it offers a much faster route into financial work than starting a degree from scratch. People already working in adjacent roles, such as office administration or small business operations, also benefit, because they often already understand business basics and just need the technical financial training to formalize those skills.

Small business owners frequently pursue certification too, not necessarily to change careers but to understand their own finances well enough to make better decisions and reduce reliance on outside help. And entrepreneurial-minded students who eventually want to run their own practice often choose certification specifically because it teaches both the technical skills and, in stronger programs, the business-building skills needed to attract and retain clients.

Recent graduates who studied something unrelated in college also turn to certification as a practical bridge into financial work, since it lets them apply skills quickly rather than starting an entirely new multi-year degree after already finishing one.

How Certification Programs Compare to Traditional Accounting School

Traditional accounting school paths, like a bachelor’s degree in accounting, are still the right choice for people planning to become a CPA or pursue corporate accounting roles that specifically require that degree. But for people who want to work with small businesses, freelance clients, or start their own practice, a certification program often gets you to paid, practical work far faster, without the years of general coursework that a full degree requires.

Accounting Certification (1)

This does not mean certification and traditional schooling are mutually exclusive. Some students use certification as a starting point to gain real experience and income while deciding whether to pursue a full degree later, and others find that certification alone gives them everything they need for the career they actually want.

What a Strong Certification Program Should Include

A strong program goes beyond lecture videos and reading assignments. Look for hands-on practice with real transactions, guidance on how to actually find clients or land a job afterward, and a clear explanation of what credential you receive at the end and how it is recognized in the field. Programs that connect you with a community of instructors or fellow students also tend to produce more confident graduates, since financial work often benefits from being able to ask questions when a real-world scenario does not match the textbook exactly.

At Universal Accounting School, the certification programs are built specifically around this practical, client-ready approach, so students finish with skills they can apply immediately rather than theory they still need to figure out how to use. Many programs also emphasize the role of certified bookkeepers within small business operations, since bookkeeping is often the foundation that broader accounting and advisory work is built on.

Deciding If an Accounting Certification Program Is Right for You

The right decision depends on your specific goals rather than any general rule about certification versus a degree. If you want to work with small businesses, offer bookkeeping or tax services, or eventually run your own practice, a well-built certification program usually gets you there faster and at a fraction of the cost of a traditional degree.

If your long-term goal includes something like becoming a CPA or working in corporate accounting at a large company, certification can still be useful as a starting point, but you will likely need to pair it with additional education down the road. The important thing is to be honest with yourself about where you want to end up, since that answer shapes which accounting certification program actually fits your situation instead of just sounding impressive on paper.

Choosing the right program is really about matching the training to your goals rather than picking whichever option sounds the most comprehensive. A focused, practical certification can outperform a broader but shallower program if it teaches you exactly what you need to start working with confidence.

Contact Us

Frequently Asked Questions

Is an accounting certification program the same as a college degree?

No, certification programs are typically shorter and more focused on practical skills, while a college degree covers broader theory and general education requirements over several years.

Most programs can be completed in a few months to about a year, depending on the depth of the curriculum and whether you study full time or part time.

Yes, many programs include business-building guidance alongside technical training, which helps graduates who want to work independently rather than for an employer.

Not necessarily, but many business degree holders still pursue certification because it provides hands-on, practical skills that broader business degrees do not always cover in depth.

Bookkeeping certification usually focuses narrowly on recording and reconciling financial transactions, while a broader accounting certification program may include tax preparation, financial statements, and additional business skills.

No, becoming a CPA requires meeting specific state education and exam requirements. Certification programs can still be a useful starting point but are not a substitute for CPA licensing requirements.

Call Us