Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/49996
THE CHANGE AGENT I How 2012 Can be the Year of the Entrepreneur In coaching and speaking, I oſt en have to convince tax and accounting fi rm owners that they are entrepre- neurs. T ey are creators of new things and value-adders. They make the world a better place for their cus- tomers, their families and themselves. This is a high calling, but if it is embraced, it can change lives. Tax and accounting fi rm owners are business owners, and are thus, entrepreneurs. T is is not a feeling you have, but a fact. It doesn't depend on the day you are having. If you are a business owner, then you are a cre- ator. Entrepreneurs create at their core. If I can convince you of this fact, then change can begin to take place. Wrong thinking is the barrier to change. And since I am "T e Change Agent," I have to fi rst address how you think ... and, ultimately, what you believe. What change am I talking about, you might ask? T is year, I want to help you change the way you think about yourself, your customers and the world around you. And I want the result to be a bet er world for your work — a world where you wake up to go to work. I want to convince you that your customers are suff ering from a lack of insight and knowledge. I want to convince you that there are things you are not telling your customers. T ey need you to change their lives with your wisdom. When we pursue these things, then the world will be a bet er place. Now, let me turn to how our entrepreneurial pursuits can be manifested in our profi ts. Jason Blumer, CPA.CITP Jason M. Blumer, CPA.CITP, CFE, is manag- ing shareholder of Blumer & Associates, CPAs, PC. He wears fl ip fl ops and jeans, says "dude" a lot, and often works in coffee shops with headphones blaring the latest Bloomberg podcasts (though he doesn't understand most of it). Jason loves new game-changing cloud technology and plays rock and roll too loud. His daily duties include consulting, process design, blogging, marketing and business development, innovative thinking, coaching, practice management, and acting as a change agent. Jason founded the THRIVEal +CPA Network to enhance and change the tax and accounting profession based on the foundational tenets of Community, Collaboration, Technology and Innovation. The Noble Pursuit of Profi t Is the pursuit of profi t noble? It is! In his paper, "The Soul of Silicon," George Gilder states: "T e moral core of capitalism is the essential altruism of enterprise ... in voluntary capital exchanges, both participants emerge bet er off than they were earlier, or else they would not have willingly made the exchange." T ough oſt en falsely viewed from the viewpoint of "I take, you give," profits created within your enterprise are actually a result of giving a higher value to your customers than they have actually paid you in cash. When you are out- ward-focused on your customer (altruism), your customer will prosper and your profi ts will rise. What do your profi ts then allow you to do? Repeat the process, of course. Hope- fully, in a larger sense, for more cus- tomers. The more you give your customers what they want and need, the higher your profi ts should grow. The higher your profits grow, the greater good you can do for the world. And the cycle repeats itself. But for the professional who does not truly believe they have value, the cycle noted above is a foreign concept. Even now, you may be wondering why you do not see this in your own fi rm. Where are your profi ts? I believe our profession has allowed itself to be relegated to a commodity state. T at is, we are professionals who look the same, act the same and off er the same things to the world. T us, we must charge similar fees. Inadvertently, we have kept our fees down by believing the value we can bring to our cus- tomers is very similar to what our neighbors do. Sadly, this is probably true. But it does not have to be! Let's change our "low-fee" mentality by embracing these entrepreneurial beliefs: B Demonstrate the altruism in your profi t by delivering some serious value to your customers. T is will force you to move beyond only preparing tax returns, accounting, audits and payroll services. These are commodities (though not bad, they are still com- modities). When you move to become a Trusted Business Advisor, a Consultant and a Coach to your customers, then you will be able to change their lives, and changing lives comes with higher prices. Higher prices will suffi ciently diff erentiate you from your neighbors. Warning: You won't be able to do it unless you off er higher value at the same time. C To deliver value to your customers, you need them to believe in you. Do you have customers that do NOT believe in you? They must go! Believers will follow you where you lead. When you separate your cus- tomers' cash from their wallet, then you have performed an intimate ser- vice by get ing them to buy in to your abilities. When they release their cash, they are then suffi ciently vet ed to become believers, not just customers. T e sooner you can separate the cash from the customer, the sooner you will receive the buy-in you need to start changing their lives. None of this intimacy exists when you simply sell commodities. D Do you feel more obligated to that customer who is paying you a high fee? Do you return their call more quickly? You do, because their cash has assisted you in offering better value. You become bet er when your customer has bought in to what you are selling. And the customer has demonstrated they have bought in with their checkbook. If you want to add real value to what you off er your customers, price what you do higher and test the theory to see the results. When your customers pay you a higher price, you will begin to truly appreciate their confi dence in your services. You will become more thankful for them, and you will return that gratitude with amazing service. Talking about profi t is taboo, but it's time to bring it out into the light and let the world know that profit makes us all bet er. Some think profi t equals greed, but greed is the epitome of self-serving individuals, not the altruism of profi t as discussed here. Greed equates to taking and keeping, but entrepreneurs create and give. And we can't give unless we have something to give. We cannot give our time when our profi ts are razor thin. We cannot be innovative when we have to fi nish all of those $200 tax returns. When you run tight margins in your fi rm, pruning your profi t with commodities, it only makes you anxious. Anxious people can NOT be creative people, and your customers need you to be creative to bring real value to their lives. What do your customers need in this New Year that you are not off ering? Entrepreneurs will address these questions with their customers and price the customer sufficiently to bring good to all involved. In 2012, you are an entrepreneur. January 2012 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 21 pr ofession a. l Hould alw ghe i r s h pr sic g a es and gr y o tg o etr v e ae . the a r lue t ome rs t o buy in e arlie r . H i ghe r pr ic es he lp y o ur cus - H i ghe r pr ic es m a k e y o u a bet e r