For the past few years the economy has felt like a slalom run in an Olympic event. If you’re like most, you’ve felt ill trained to tackle this obstacle course with your savings account intact. For these bad times, most businesses rely on their contingency plans. But do you have a plan that helps you prepare for the good times? In a recent Entrepreneur.com article, author JK Harris shared “9 Ways to Prepare for Growth and Success.” We’ve selected 5 of his tips that we think best apply to our readership:
1. Define growth for your company. First you must establish a target before you can aim for it. The same philosophy applies to success. What does that look like for your company? How many clients will you have? Where will you be located? What area will you serve? Clearly defining what growth means for your company will help you better focus your efforts on accomplishing it.
2. Prepare for the limelight. We know very well that most accountants don’t feel comfortable with lots of attention. The nickname “bean counter” is not synonymous with attention hog. But in order to prepare for success, you must prepare, at times, to be placed in the spotlight. According to Harris, “Successful owners of growing companies are almost always in the spotlight to some degree—maybe not always to the general public but certainly within your industry and with your employees.”
3. Stay close to your customers. Unless you take the time to regularly converse with your clients, you won’t know what they most need from you. Not only that, but the more you communicate, the better your customer service, and the better your customer service, the more satisfied your clients. And, quite frankly, nothing will forecast business longevity like a client roster full of satisfied clients.
4. Take care of your employees. Next to your customers, your employees are your greatest asset. When you’re able to reward their efforts with appropriate recognition, challenging projects and promotional opportunities, you increase employee retention and build a staff of satisfied employees.
5. Focus on your core business. We will always recommend that you enhance your service offerings with complementary services. However, some become far too distracted by this idea and expand their businesses in ways that tax their personal lives and their professional expertise. Make sure that each addition is closely aligned with financial services and doesn’t overburden your growing practice.
Don’t just prepare for success but expect it. And when you set in motion a plan that anticipates more growth, you’re more prepared to take advantage of success when it comes.
Take the First Step
You will be best prepared for success when you increase your hone your skills and increase your service offerings! You do that when you master small-business accounting with the Professional Bookkeeper (PB) program. You will study four modules entitled Accounting Made Easy, Practical Small Business Applications, Advancing Your “Account-ability,” and Building a Successful Accounting Practice. Once you complete the course, which can be done in less than 60 hours, you will have the confidence and know-how to start books from scratch and manage a variety of client accounts.
In addition to accounting, you can learn how to prepare individual and business returns with the Professional Tax Preparer (PTP) program. The four modules in this course include Establishing the Tax Foundation, Becoming the 1040 Expert, Profitable Business Returns, and Building Your Successful Tax Practice. This program will enable you to make additional money during tax season and attract more clients with your diverse service offerings.
Both programs provide the following:
- Practical and extensive training
- Marketing training that will help you effectively promote your new skills
- The opportunity to earn valuable certification as a Professional Bookkeeper and a Professional Tax Preparer
- DVD training materials you can review again and again
- Hands-on instruction that will provide you with experience managing accounts and filing returns
- Flexible training that you can master on your own time and at your own pace
- 6 months of follow-up support provided by knowledgeable financial professionals
- A customized website for your business
- An iron-clad guarantee
Round out your training by becoming a QuickBooks consultant. You probably already know that 85% of small businesses use Intuit’s QuickBooks accounting software. This means that your target market could use a QuickBooks consultant to help them set up their books, use the program more effectively, and/or answer important questions. Not to mention, the Professional Bookkeepers Guide to QuickBooks (PBG) can also save you considerable time and energy managing accounts yourself! And who do you think these new clients will come to for their accounting needs? YOU, of course!
Plan for success today and enroll in these three Universal programs now!ResourceHarris, JK. “9 Ways to Prepare for Growth and Success: The Economy Taught You to Expect the Worst, but Have You Ever Prepared for the Best?” 19 March 2010 Entrepreneur.com
