july2021 - 6

ESSENTIAL STEPS TO TRAN
ADVIS
SERV
NOW THAT THE 2021 tax season has ended, and after you've had
a chance to take a breath, it's important to look ahead to the next
year. Now is the perfect time to make those business transitions
you've been putting off. Like your spring cleaning, it can feel like a
daunting task to make significant changes to your business model.
You could say " my clients wouldn't like a transition " or " my firm
has been operating fine enough, why change, " but that's a surefire
way to leave potential revenue for your firm, and value for your
clients, on the table.
While the concerns above are common,
there are easy steps you can take
to transition your business from a compliance
to a tax planning and advisory
services model, without compromising
your business. You're closer to advisory
than you think - you're likely already
providing this service, and if you follow
the road map below, you can begin to
transition your business model to value
your knowledge and expertise, rather
than your compliance output.
STEP 1:
DEFINE THE PROCESS
The first step in the transition to advisory
services is to develop a process for how
you'll work with clients.
You'll want to consider how often you
ask clients to meet with you. It's crucial
to see your client at least once a year to
plan for the year ahead and discuss any
business plans that could impact financial
advice. Quarterly or semi-annual
6 JULY 2021 ■ www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
meetings are preferred as it allows you
time to check in with your clients on any
new updates they might not readily think
to share. Ultimately, you and your client
can work together to find a cadence that
feels right. In between those meetings,
check-ins via email or phone can also
help in continuing to provide value. Many
tax pros are likely already doing this.
It's also important to outline in
advance what you want to accomplish at
each meeting. For example, getting a clear
picture of their financial goals for the year
at your first meeting or discussing progress
made or important changes in the
business during a mid-year check-in. The
best question to ask of course is, " What
keeps you up at night? " That will help you
uncover the most pressing financial worries
and help you provide the right advice.
Finally, it will be critical to develop a
process for answering those inevitable " I
just have one quick question " emails. As
any tax pro will know, there is no such
thing as a " quick question. " Most questions
require reviewing client information,
tax research, applicability, drafting
communication and more. One question
can easily turn into 30 minutes and then
an hour or more. That is, ultimately,
unbillable work in a non-advisory model.
More importantly, the client might not
be providing the full picture via email,
leading to a potential recommendation
that might not be the best fit. Instead of
doing the research, you can reply with an
ask for a conversation. For example, " I'd
love to answer this question, but first I'd
like to have a 15 to 30 minute call to chat
through the question in more detail, so I
can provide the best recommendation. "
You'll find that many clients are open
and willing to chat.
STEP 2:
TEST THE
TRANSITION
Once you have your system, you can
begin to test it out on some of your
most loyal clients. These clients are
likely to understand the transition and
value you're bringing, and see this as an
enhancement and improvement.
Testing your process will allow you
to see what's working well and what's
not, and give you time to adjust before
rolling your new business model out to
your entire client base. Use this as an
opportunity to get honest feedback and as
a way to update any parts of your process,
test different communications tactics,
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july2021

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