Most everyone enjoys interacting with clients. When newer staff are asked about the one thing they've enjoyed most as they've gained new experiences, it's almost always
Communicating with clients is often much more complex than it appears on the surface. It requires a finesse acquired over years of experience. It's also essential to accountant risk management. The better you communicate, and the more you know about your clients, the easier it is to manage those risks as they come along. Understanding and implementing communication best practices can help in all sorts of ways. They can ensure both effective communication and successful firm risk management. Plus, they can also help grow your bottom-line. That sounds like a winning combination.
Place High Importance on the Client Relationship
Whether the client is an individual or a business, who you deal with are people. And, people like to be appreciated. Sure, some clients are more demanding than others, but they all need a certain level of attention. If you aim to be a trusted business advisor, you must spend time with your clients. Placing
Developing client relationships is something that you should approach from a team perspective. Give your staff a chance to get to know clients. It can make the connection even deeper and more fulfilling for a client if they know more than just one or two individuals at a firm. A significant risk to accounting firms is often other accounting firms. Many firms continuously troll for new clients. You can lower the risk of your clients being wooed by another firm by making sure that client relationships are tight and deep.
Understand the Client's Business
Virtually every aspect of life becomes more complicated as you learn more about it. Watching golf on television, it looks so easy. But when you take your first swing, you find out quickly that even hitting the ball can be a big challenge. So, it is with most everything. That's why it's essential to have a profound understanding of your client's business. Part of managing their risk and yours is understanding the complexities involved. It's also a compliment to the client. The more you know about their business, the more you show your respect for what they've accomplished. You better understand the work they've put in to build their company and the pride they have in what they've done. You can more easily discuss with them how their business works and the risks involved. You understand important terms that may be unique to your client's industry. You can "talk the talk," and communicate more successfully.
Develop Relationships That Will Help Your Clients
As you understand more about how your client's business works, and you've developed a deeper relationship with the client, it's time to take it a step further. Make sure that you're cultivating outside relationships that can be beneficial to your client. Have a base of experts to which you can refer, whether that's inside the firm or out. But, be sure to vet these individuals and businesses effectively. Each time you provide a referral, you're putting your reputation on the line. So, make sure the people you're referring are the best in the business. To be the most successful, make sure the relationships you're developing are high quality and of the kind needed by your clients.
Strive to be the "Go-To Person" for Financial Needs
If you've placed high importance on knowing the client and their business, plus worked hard to develop other relationships that can benefit them, this best practice should be easy. Many clients lean heavily on their accountants and heavier still on those accountants who can help fulfill needs other than just tax and accounting. This ability to be a go-to person is key to a successful practice. It's also imperative for effective accountant risk management. Many times, risks come from not knowing about what's going on with a client's business. If you're the go-to person, then your chance of not being informed goes way down. You're in on the significant developments and can assist the client as they make big decisions. You can help them, either with your expertise or that of a referral partner. Either way, you understand what's transpiring, enabling you to help manage risk, both yours and your client's.
Communicate Throughout the Year
Another way to help manage risk is to communicate with clients throughout the year. If you don't already do it, consider a periodic newsletter. You can cover a lot of ground with a good newsletter. And, you don't have to write it yourself if that's not what you want. There are newsletter services, including from state and national organizations of which you may already be a part. The important thing is to stay in touch, send clients useful information, and keep them thinking about you and your firm. If a particular piece from a newsletter is especially pertinent, it gives you an excellent opportunity to reach out personally. You can let the client know that this topic may be something that they need to know about because of their particular situation. In any event, it's another occasion to communicate during the year.
Stellar communication is an integral part of accountant risk management. Keeping clients up to date on issues that affect them plus staying on top of what's occurring in client businesses is essential. It helps you let clients know how important they are to you and keeps them from even thinking about straying to another firm. You get the opportunity to understand more about your clients, develop deeper relationships, provide essential services, help you and them manage risk, and increase your bottom line. All crucial to a successful, prosperous and well-managed firm.