Step aside New Year resolutions – the beginning of a new financial year is the perfect time to review your business goals or to develop some new ones. As you look over your carefully crafted budgets and business plans, here are some resolutions that you might not have considered, but which could make a big impact in your accounting practice.
1. We will make it easy for prospective clients to find and talk to us
Prospective clients have a lot of choice when it comes to accounting or bookkeeping partners. In light of this, what are you doing to make your business a) easy to find, and b) stand out?
Investing in marketing efforts like blogging will help you reach prospective clients, but there are simple things like keeping your website information up-to-date, clearly stating your services, and adding yourself to directories like Xero’s partner directory that will encourage people to get in touch.
2. We will know what to do if disaster strikes
Rampant cyber scams are a reminder that no organization, large or small, is invulnerable to attack. While a detailed disaster recovery plan might not be necessary, the EOFY is a good opportunity to review your protocol for issues like ransomware viruses, natural disasters, or system break downs.
We wrote about best practice ways to protect your files from ransomware attacks here.
3. We will stop giving away freebies and start charging what we’re worth
Do you feel like you’ve been giving away of lot of freebies – free advice or services – just to be nice? It’s understandable and it can build loyalty with clients, but it ultimately limits your earning potential and devalues what you bring to the table for clients.
Doing some market research into how other accounting practices or bookkeepers are bundling their services and charging for them will give you a better idea how you can do it yourself.
4. We will increase our capabilities by investing in new resources
There’s always more we’d like to do, if only we had the extra time or capabilities. To prepare for the new financial year, why not set a goal to invest in new resources (e.g. new software) or existing ones like staff through professional development. Developing guides and templates to use internally are another great way to free up time.
5. We will understand our business numbers better to help us plan future goals
You will always get better insights into your business once you know the numbers behind it. There are a number of tools out there, like Power BI, Spotlight Reporting or Futrli, that can help you build reports and dashboards so that you can get insights into your business.
6. We will improve how we manage our documents and data
While moving your files and data to the cloud can help you be more organized, it doesn’t prevent information silos from developing (i.e. information being stored in different locations like your inbox that isn’t accessible to others). Having set processes around what gets filed and where, plus having cloud systems that talk to each other means that you’re always working with the right information, and improves governance in your business.
Get started with these 10 commandments for successful filing or our guide to spring clean your file system.
As we approach the end of the financial year, you’ll no doubt be looking at what worked well in the last year and updating your business plans. While not all resolutions are kept (like that very well meant gym membership), the EOFY is still a good time to plan how you will invest your resources in the year ahead.
How are you preparing for the new financial year?
