16 hot topics for tax planning – all billable.
by ed mendlowitz
the practice doctor
it seems all anyone is talking about these days is the new tax act. for over a year i have been posting a tax blog every four weeks on www.bottomlineinc.com. so now there are more than a dozen.
use the titles below to select what you are interested in, and i am sure you will get some valuable information you could use with clients.
the true value in a prenuptial encounter.
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting
prenuptial agreements are essential in many situations, but it is always awkward for one of the blissfully in love parties to bring it up. prenups consider the possible failure of the happiest thing in the two people’s lives.
more: perception becomes reality | call me before you do anything | learning to delegate: slow is faster
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
a client once asked me to accompany his son to a meeting where the terms of a prenuptial agreement were to be worked out to make sure the son’s small ownership of the business could never pass outside of his blood line … or the father’s control while he was alive.
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sometimes looking less than your best is more effective.
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting
is reality what something actually is or what people perceive it to be? jack welch of ge fame once said that reality is “seeing the world as it is rather than as you wish it were.”
more: call me before you do anything | the value in value consulting | the making of a consultant | learning to delegate: slow is faster | a cpa looks back across the generations
sometimes that is not so. and sometimes you can alter reality to make it seem like something else.
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when a good number should be a great one, justify it.
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting
i have always told my clients to call me before they did anything major or new financially to see if there was anything tax-wise that could be done to help them.
more: the value in value consulting | the making of a consultant | learning to delegate: slow is faster | a cpa looks back across the generations
nowadays, there is much less tax maneuvering, but much more from a financial aspect, and it is amazing how accountants can help.
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keep your eyes and ears open.
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting
people can learn new skills and either do nothing further or use it to grow.
more: the making of a consultant | learning to delegate: slow is faster | a cpa looks back across the generations
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
using my experience from consulting for an ice cream shop, i started to think about doing some extras for clients (see “the making of a consultant”). i still had my day job as an accountant and needed to follow the work schedule my boss gave me, but i now knew something and wanted to see how else i could use it.
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sometimes numbers tell stories we don’t know yet.
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting
while i was working full-time early in my accounting career, i was also picking up clients whose accounting i did on the side, also known as moonlighting.
more: learning to delegate: slow is faster | the clients that got away | cross-selling beyond your comfort zone | value pricing in uncharted waters | i am an accountant because of clients like stanley | advising cheapskates | getting bonuses from clients
one of the clients was a franchised ice cream store. i used to go there one night every quarter to record his checkbook transactions into a regular set of accounting books. today, in one form or another, this would be done on a computer with software such as quickbooks, but in those days it was written up in ink by hand.
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eagerness needs tempering.
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting
when i was in high school, i spent a few winter saturdays helping my father and “learning” what a cpa did.
more ed mendlowitz: creating a cross-selling culture | when time-based pricing works | how auditing is like a pirouette | ¿que es bookkeeping? | testifying before congress | underpaying others hurts you, too | my top 10 personal game changers | yes, christopher columbus had an accountant | 10 reasons for my success
his routine was to go to one client twice a month and another once a month and he spent the fourth (or fifth) saturday cleaning up the correspondence in his office.
my work consisted of posting sales to an accounts receivable ledger and rechecking the arithmetic on the client’s handwritten customer invoices.
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why the profession is so great.
by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything
when i became a partner emeritus, it meant that it was time to slow down and work less.
more ed mendlowitz: how many hours should staff work? | is this a rut? | taking over poorly done work | when to offer profit sharing | what’s in a title? | managing partners should drop their book of business | what’s lousy, the client or your approach? | checklist for running a practice | why credentials are worthwhile
i started working only two days a week. i thought i would have more time to pursue many of the things i had always wanted to do but never had the time. since that point, i seem to be busier than i ever was and still have many projects i want to do, but can’t seem to get to.
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18 reasons to trash the timesheet. next, read the case for timesheets.
value-pricing or hourly-billing: which works better and why?
sound off: join the survey, get the answers.
by ed mendlowitz
if you’ve read the “the case for timesheets,” you might think i couldn’t live without timesheets. but i know many firms use their timesheets differently than i do.
but first: the business model of not using timesheets recognizes there is a new way accounting services are being delivered to clients and so we need a new way of managing the accounting firm. this new model is explained and charted excellently in a logically understandable book that i highly recommend which is from success to significance: the radical cpa guide by jody padar.
based on the partners and firms i know, most use timesheets only for billing and determining staff “bonuses,” which are substantially based on “excess” hours, rather than exceptional performance and client service.
working long hours on a client does not equate to effective value transference. because of this, i believe these partners are short-sighted and actually do not understand how to fully run their business. i have used timesheet information as a valuable tool to great success.
however, today i want to trash the timesheet and present my reasons for value-pricing.
the essential management tool. next, read the case for value-pricing.
value-pricing or hourly-billing: which works better and why?
sound off: join the survey, get the answers.
by ed mendlowitz
there is a strong growing movement to do away with timesheets in favor of value pricing. needless to say, i have been following both methods – long before ron baker and his adherents formalized the no-timesheet protocol. because of my experience and discussions, i have had and continue to have with hundreds of accountants a year i have heard many arguments on both sides of the issue. the ones in favor of no timesheets are more passionate but that doesn’t lessen the opinions of those that don’t agree with this. i will be referring to ron baker a lot so i want to mention one of his books that should be read by everyone interested in this debate: implementing value pricing. regardless of how you feel, it would be irresponsible for a firm leader to be unfamiliar with what he suggests.
i have opinions on both sides of these issues, and at various times express them depending on the circumstances. that prompted these two columns: “the case for timesheets” and “the case for value-pricing.“
here i will present the case, the way i see it, for timesheets. in “the case for value-pricing,” i argue for discarding timesheets and using the value-pricing model, or some form of fixed prices, exclusively. i hope you enjoy them and this format. we welcome your comments.
how to elevate your service beyond tax prep.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
what would happen if you set goals at a higher level?
more on marketing: hire a sales person to get leads | following up after tax season | how to meet referral sources | how to sell bundled tax services | 7 questions for succession planning | 15 points to buying or selling a business | offering elder care assurance services | 9 questions to ask about divorce and taxes
the following is restricted to tax return clients only, and can be exceeded by you if you think this goal is too low.
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and 15 types of work to seek.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
if you want leads to get business from large companies for tax services, consider hiring a sales person.
more on marketing: following up after tax season | advertising done right | 8 considerations with new clients | how to conduct business valuations and forensic investigations | how to counsel on retirement planning | what you need to start a financial planning discussion
the sales person should be a “professional” sales person and does not need to be an accountant.
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lay the foundation for work you didn’t have time to do earlier this year.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
if you were paying attention during tax season, you likely picked up on other services your clients might need.
more on marketing: advertising done right | 12 branding tips | structuring partnership and buy-sell agreements | the 64-point business startup checklist | how to offer second opinions | how to offer employment compensation assistance | basic budgeting for clients | guiding heirs | add new revenues with tax prep follow-ups
here is a checklist of 15 possible additional services, plus a form to track your follow-up.
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