1. WHY do you want to work as a freelance bookkeeper?

2. WHAT does a freelance bookkeeping business mean for you?

There are no right or wrong answers here, but without these answers before you begin your business, you could end up frustrated and in a situation that you don’t want.

The reasons for starting a bookkeeping service business vary, but often it is sparked by a short-term situation. It might be that a job or other reliable income source was suddenly lost, or new household expenses arrived (such as a new family member). Regardless of the circumstances, oftentimes the primary motivator is a need for more income quickly.

If that’s the case for you, a word of caution is in order. There is a difference between creating a job for yourself so you can work from home, and starting a business – it’s a BIG difference. Starting a new business with your eyes open will determine whether you get the results you want, or struggle, sometimes for years.

This is not intended to discourage you from the idea of starting a freelance bookkeeping business. Far from it! It’s more about setting yourself up for getting exactly what you want right from the start.

When you think about WHY you want to become a freelance bookkeeper, is it because you simply want to work from home with a flexible schedule, possibly to be more available for your family? Or have you always wanted your own business and like the idea of providing valuable services to a variety of clients? Are thinking about building a team of bookkeepers? Maybe you’d even like to pass the business on to your children, or selling it when you’ve had enough of it.

Your first step is to take some quiet time, 30 minutes or so. Envision in your mind’s eye, vividly with as much detail as you can muster, what you see your life being like running a freelance bookkeeping business of your own.  See yourself actually doing it. What would your daily routine be like? Would you work from home? Would you have a virtual staff? How would it fit into the rest of your life?

Do this type of daydreaming first, before you get down to the “practical” steps of wondering what services you’ll provide or which software programs you should use. Instead, compare that vision, that picture and feeling of what your business will be like, to where you are today. No matter how dramatic the difference between your vision and your life now, it’s just a matter of moving one step at a time from where you are to living your vision. Really.

Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be – Quickly!

Now that you know clearly what your freelance bookkeeping business will look like, it’s time to take practical action to bring it into your life. How? With a basic plan, of course!

Laying the foundation and plan for your business is part research and part learning as you go along. So you will need a measure of flexibility. But always start with the vision of what your business will look like when you have “arrived” at how you want it to be.

Then it’s a matter of finding what will cause the results you are looking for. That is, what expertise do you have now, and what do you still need? Clients will pay you for the value you provide them. So, what value do you have to offer, or what could you develop? Do you have any specialized knowledge, such as is needed in a specific industry? An example might be if you have experience with bookkeeping for a non-profit organization.

You’ll also want to consider a basic budget and how much you will need to charge in order to meet your financial goals. How many hours a week do you want to work? Don’t forget to consider the “overhead” expenses involved, such as insurance, taxes and vacation time.

Finally, you’ll want to have a plan for how you will market your services and attract clients. Just being “ready” to offer bookkeeping services will not automatically attract clients. You need to get the word out to those who are looking for the specific services you have to offer. That’s what a marketing plan will do for you.

We’ve briefly touched on some of the setup work needed before you start looking for your first bookkeeping client as a freelancer. Without proper planning, while you may bring in some income reasonably fast, you won’t end up with the business of your dreams unless you are clear on what you want and how you plan to move in that direction first.

But putting it all together doesn’t have to take a long time or be difficult. In fact, if you’re ready to start your freelance bookkeeping business using the power of the Internet AND you want to know how to snag your first paying bookkeeping client quickly, check out my no-fluff audio book, Virtual Bookkeeping Secrets, and use the included business planning worksheets.

If you’re already running your bookkeeping service business, what do you wish someone had told you before you got started?

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Others who haven’t started their freelance bookkeeping business yet, but are serious about getting their business off the ground are trying to figure out the best way to find new clients too.

How about you?

Do you feel like the person who sent me this email recently…

Would you rather listen to the answer?

If you can identify with the struggle of not being an extrovert, but know that you need to take action to find new clients for your bookkeeping business, you are not alone!

Most accountants / bookkeepers are not outgoing (we tend to be introverts and prefer to associate with numbers more than with people, especially if we need to take the initiative to start the conversation!). Marketing is perceived as a hard hurdle to get over by most of us.

And times have changed, too. Years ago, accountants and bookkeepers just needed a Yellow Pages (phone directory) ad, and maybe a newspaper classified ad every now and then. It was easy. Slap down your money and new clients come to you. And once you get a few good clients, then word of mouth takes over.

Now, that is NOT the most effective way to find new clients.

Today, relationships and reputation are more important than ever, and “old fashioned” advertising is MUCH less effective. So, the idea of contacting new start-ups and soliciting their business may yield a client or two, simply because of timing. You would be approaching them when they are more likely to feel they need help.

Here’s why I don’t think it is necessarily the best way to build a successful business though:

• Start-ups usually do not have much money and are generally price sensitive. Especially if you are very good at what you do and provide high quality service, they will not recognize that value and be more focused on cost. Well-funded start-ups are rare in my experience.

• You should be targeting your clients based on a specialty. You could specialize in helping start-ups, but that really is still too general. You likely are not an expert at all the different types of start-up businesses that may come your way. So, you still would not be able to easily differentiate yourself from other bookkeepers in their eyes. So you’re still a commodity that they want at the lowest possible price. Not good.

• Contacting people by email to offer (sell) your services when they don’t know you and did not ask you to contact them is considered spam and is against the law.

All that being said, you could use “old fashioned” direct (postal) mail to contact new businesses with a letter of introduction. Sending unsolicited promotional postal mail is not against the law. But on average you can expect a 1% response from these kinds of mailings. For best results you would need to contact the people on your list repeatedly, and try to follow up with a phone call.

This is not an easy, quick or inexpensive marketing method.

You can usually get listings of newly incorporated businesses from your State government’s website, and you may also be able to get listings of newly registered business licenses from local City Halls in your area. Some may or may not charge a fee for these listings.

Of course, you may find direct mail marketing effective if you have the time, budget and chutzpah to do it, since fewer businesses are using it now because of the cost (hence the popularity of online advertising). Quite honestly, direct mail marketing may make sense as part of your regular monthly marketing mix, but it certainly should not be your main marketing method. That, of course, is my opinion. (If you’ve had great results finding new clients this way, please let us know about it in the comments section of this article below!)

Personally, I find attracting clients much easier than going out to chase them down. One way to do this (perfect for introverts) is by writing articles for your local paper or chamber of commerce (or online business blogs – and of course, you should do so for your own website so that new prospective client can find you via search engines)

You could also teach free or low-cost classes for small business owners through the Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Development Center or online using telephone conference lines or with webinars. This is a VERY effective way to build visibility, a good reputation and attract high quality clients.

Bottom line: the BEST way to get people talking about your services is to GIVE them value first.

Here are a few ways to do that:

• You could do pro-bono work in return for testimonials and/or letter of recommendation to small business associations (surrounding your specialty)

• Provide helpful information with no strings attached (tax class, small business cash flow tips, one hour free consultation)

• Reward those who send you referrals (Starbucks coffee card, free lunch, if from existing clients, discount on service they use regularly)

• Network face-to-face or online with colleagues (CPAs and fellow bookkeepers) or complementing service providers who are already serving your ideal clients

That is how you get word of mouth going and get the attention of potential clients. Thereafter, it’s just a matter of building a friendly relationship (not hard selling) with the people you meet and/or already know. You’ll be amazed at how easy it is and what great connections you’ll make, along with the opportunities that will open up to bring you new clients!

Using just one method of marketing will not build a thriving bookkeeping practice, but you’ve got to start somewhere. Pick one and run with it!

If you have been considering offering your bookkeeping services online, or you want to find out how to leverage free marketing methods to attract high quality clients, then you’ll want to get your copy of the new Special Report I just released called…

“How to Get Started as a Freelance Virtual Bookkeeper & Market Your Services Online”

Click Here to get your FREE copy.

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What marketing methods have you tried so far?

Let us know what you’ve tried and the results you got by commenting on this article!

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This is an important question!

Yes, SmartVault integrates seamlessly with QuickBooks (and actually got its start as a QuickBooks add-on program), but we must first consider the different functions this program can provide virtual bookkeepers, and whether those functions can be emulated by “cobbling” together one or more other online solutions for similar functionality.

What function(s) do you need that SmartVault does for QuickBooks that can work well with Simply Accounting (or other bookkeeping software popular with your clients) ?

If it is the document management feature of attaching electronic source documents to each transaction, I am not aware of a product that does that for other accounting software programs. But that’s because I am not familiar with how Simply Accounting (or Peachtree or MYOB, etc.) works specifically, since I’m a QuickBooks specialist. But you might want to check with Sage directly (or the maker of whichever software program you are using) to find out if there is an add-on or built-in feature that works similarly for their program for the paper trail / documentation function.

Doing a quick search online, I did find a program called QCDocs which says that it does document management and integrates with both QuickBooks and Simply Accounting, though I’m not sure how much integration is involved. But you might want to look into it if that’s your focus.

On the other hand, if you are looking for a program where you can streamline the functionality of how your clients’ source documents are converted to digital format and sent to you via a convenient and secure inbox along with storage folders and/or backups, there are other SaaS programs that can do much of what SmartVault does. But from a workflow perspective, I have not found another program that does it so seamlessly. If this is your priority, I would still recommend SmartVault over other programs, since this functionality can be completely independent of QuickBooks.

The workflow capabilities and ease of use for both you and your clients is actually what I see as most valuable with SmartVault, far superior to any other programs I’ve found so far.

That being said, if you would like alternatives to consider, DropBox and SugarSync are two document sharing / storage solutions that come to mind. There is also Shoeboxed, which may help your clients go paperless more easily and help you get a jump on the entry of financial information, whether you are using QuickBooks or another program. You just need to design a workflow that will be efficient and convenient for both you and your client to “drop off” information easily and securely.

Technology is moving quickly and we will likely see more solutions appear in the near future. I also see the emergence of SaaS bookkeeping programs (especially suited for small service-based clients) such as Xero and FreshBooks, which help to streamline document management and workflow too.

But as of now, I don’t know of another product that provides the same combination of functions as SmartVault for non-QuickBooks accounting software. However, with a little research and innovation, you can probably find a combination of solutions that will work the way you do, for a reasonable cost.

Part of our role as virtual bookkeepers truly is as a technology consultant! Therefore, we need to continue to keep our eyes open to the new and emerging online software that will help us work efficiently and profitably. This in turn makes us invaluable to our clients. That is a win-win situation worth pursuing.

As online technology charges forward, our services will become much like putting Lego blocks together to build the perfect (customized) bookkeeping system for each client, using online solutions.

We are truly on the front lines here.

If you are new to virtual bookkeeping and would like to learn more about how you can take your bookkeeping services online, OR you would like a complete step-by-step training for how you can use SmartVault with or without QuickBooks as an efficient, paperless workflow solution, I have created a complete training program, which includes a full-length SmartVault tutorial included as a free bonus.

Get the details here when you’re ready to step up to the next level with your freelance bookkeeping business:

• The Insider’s Guide to Your Own Virtual Bookkeeping Business

What online tools have you found helpful to your workflow when working virtually with your clients?

Please leave your comment below!

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In a previous post, we’ve discussed how you can address those concerns for your potential client and move them toward a virtual working arrangement.

But what about YOUR business? If you are running a freelance virtual bookkeeping business, or even if you are running a part-time local bookkeeping service that is connected to the Internet in any way, this is vitally important to your business, too.

Why?

Because if you are using online services and have a website for your business, you do need to pay attention to security. While we’ve said that online tools are actually more secure than using a paper-based system, if you are using the Internet to access financial or other non-public information, there are still risks.

What should you be paying attention to? In a word, access.

• Access to financial information (yours and your clients)
• Access to your website (you do have a website for your business, right?)
• Access to all types of online accounts

Let’s address each of these.

Access to Financial Information

If your clients are paying you electronically, such as with PayPal, you need to make sure that it is not easy for someone to access your account. This means your password. And that is especially important with PayPal, since it is tied to your e-mail address. If you have someone else access your account, you should add a layer of protection by setting up a separate user login that has appropriate permissions. (Yes, you can do that with PayPal)

Of course, this principle applies to your clients too. If you do not need full access to their financial accounts, check to see whether there are security measures that will allow you to only have access to what you need. This is for your protection as well as for your clients.

If you receive or process paper checks, you need to keep the bank account information safe. That means if you are taking any photocopies of financial information, you need to make sure that those files are secure, and when discarded, they are shredded. Scanned copies should also be protected.

Access to Your Website

In this day and age, having a website is a must. It provides your business with credibility and your potential and existing clients an information center to come back to again and again (or it should). In fact, it’s one of your most important marketing and client relationship tools for your business!

Of course, with such a visible piece of property, you are subject to possible vandalism. In the online world that means hacking. This can include both the general defacing of your site, and/or theft of valuable information.

Whether your site is HTML based, or you are using a WordPress site (I recommend the latter), there are some simple actions you can take to protect your site from being hacked (and thus protecting your online image so that clients can find you easily online)

When using WordPress…

• Keep your WordPress software up to date (remember, this doesn’t cost you anything)

• Keep your plug-ins up-to-date

• Choose an admin user name and password that is difficult to guess

• Keep a complete backup of your website so that you can easily restore it in case it gets hacked or accidentally damaged (or you ever need to change hosting accounts)

For all websites…

• Prevent unauthorized access of website files in subdirectories (these are usually image or downloadable documents that you do not want the general public to download and use) by creating a blank HTML page, name it “index.html”, and put it into the directory folder you want to protect. This will hide the file list contained in that folder from public view.

• Make sure your username and password for your hosting account are not easy to guess, and consider changing your password periodically.

• Make a complete backup of your hosting account, including a separate backup of your website. The trick here is to make sure that it is easy to restore (backing up and restoring are two separate operations).

Access to All Online Accounts

All of us have many logins and passwords to keep track of. If you are working virtually, you also likely have  many of your clients’ logins and passwords too. How do you keep them all organized and secured?

What I did for a long time was to keep a spreadsheet on my local hard drive that had all my login addresses, usernames, and passwords. If you use this option, make sure that that document is password-protected on your computer.

You could also do this using an online application, such as Google Docs or SmartSheet where you essentially do the same thing, but it is protected in the clouds. You then only need to remember the single password to access that document.

However, I found the most efficient, convenient, and cost-effective way to do it is to use password management software. I currently use RoboForm, which allows me to have access to all of my logins and passwords synchronized among my computers. It remembers the website addresses and login info, and with the click of the button, it will automatically log me in to each online account. This adds up to huge time savings and is very secure.

Next Steps

So how are you doing in protecting yours and your clients’ business information? If you see room for improvement, take steps now to protect yourself and your clients from accidental negligence.

Are there any other areas where you see more protection is needed? How have you dealt with it? Please share your comments and experiences below.

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Tools I Use for Protection

RoboForm – password management software that is a convenient timesaver and very economical. It also has very helpful features, such as a tool to generate high-security passwords for you. Highly recommended.

Backup Creator – WordPress plug-in that is simple, easy and reliable for backing up AND restoring your entire website.The cloning feature also makes it easy to move your website if you ever want to change hosting accounts. This is the best that I’ve found (and I’ve been looking for quite a long time for a plugin like this one that is so easy to use)

What am I talking about?

It’s what appears to be the #1 problem 95% of all of the new freelance bookkeepers, and even MANY of the seasoned freelance bookkeepers I talk to, face on a regular basis. It’s not what you think.

This problem is insidious because it actually prevents us from taking on new clients and building the business that we so want to have for ourselves and our family. It can cause you to work far too hard without adequate compensation… Repeatedly! In fact, it’s almost like a disease.

But once I saw it clearly after talking one-on-one with several of my students recently, I could see just how debilitating it really is. In fact, I even know what it feels like to battle this obstacle because I suffered from it myself, especially back when I first started. (and it can still crop up once in a while.)

What is this business-wrecking problem?

Is it a lack of credentials to provide bookkeeping services to clients?

Nope.

Is it a lack of experience in working with small business clients? (In some of our more recent blog discussions we’ve had some questions surrounding those who have more than enough academic credentials, but no hands-on experience. This can be a problem, to be sure, but that is not the problem we’re talking about here)

Is it not charging enough for bookkeeping services? (This problem can actually be a symptom of it, but in itself this is not the problem.)

So, what is it already? And more importantly, is it something you’re suffering from too?

Here it is – the #1 problem I see most freelance bookkeepers struggle with that can destroy your business or cause you to struggle for years on end is a lack of self-confidence.

All of us have likely struggle with this at one time or another. That’s natural. But it has become crystal clear that this is THE biggest problem that stops so many freelance bookkeepers from ever reaching their goals. And it’s primarily based on fear of the unknown.

In other words, much of that fear is NOT based on reality. And it’s working against you, often without you even realizing it.

But why is this such a critical problem?

It’s because if you don’t believe in yourself, you will either struggle with your business for years, or never be able to get your business off the ground in the first place, no matter how hard you try.

If you don’t have the confidence to stretch outside of your comfort zone in order to actually DO the marketing that you need to do in order to attract new clients, and demonstrate your expertise, you will never be able to find paying clients who will appreciate the work that you can do for them.

It doesn’t matter how many credentials you have. In fact, I see many freelance bookkeepers going after every possible credential, wasting a ton of time and money, in an effort to feel more confident! In most cases, it doesn’t work if the real issue is on the inside.

Similarly, if you’re battling self-esteem problems, years of experience won’t matter either.

In short, it’s your mindset that tells you that you do or do not have what it takes to start your own business and make it thrive; whether you are “ready” or not. But what your mindset is telling you may not be based on the truth.

And here’s the real kicker: Even if you do stretch yourself to try to find new clients, but your self-confidence is too low, that will come across in your communication. And when that happens, those you talk to won’t put much confidence in you and your abilities either. It’s a vicious self-defeating cycle.

So, now that this monster has been revealed, what can you do if you are struggling with it? How can you banish it?

From my own experience, I’d say it is actually a gradual process. But you have to be willing to deliberately step outside of your comfort zone to do things that scare you a bit. That’s how you do battle and come off victorious.

Sometimes you may need to tell yourself that it’s okay to fail so that you can get some practice and learn how to do better. (We all have to start somewhere, after all) You don’t have to be perfect and know all the answers immediately. This applies to both your marketing and taking on new clients.

I’ve also found that having a specific plan of action to take every day step-by-step will cause you to build up your confidence. All you have to do is work your plan. You also have to be determined to do it no matter what.

These are the steps to take if you’re ready to start winning this battle:

1. Identify whether a lack of self-confidence is holding you back
2. Identify where it is hurting you in your business
3. Choose one action you can take this week to challenge yourself and stretch your comfort zone in that area.
4. Give yourself a deadline and put it on your calendar
5. Take ACTION! (And promise yourself a reward when you succeed in getting it done, regardless of the results)
6. Repeat steps 3 through 5 one or more times per week

By simply facing your fear one step at a time, with a plan, you can build up your confidence, even if it is only with one baby step each week.

Bottom line: it’s all about your mindset. More than anything else, it’s your mindset that determines the success or failure of your business.

In fact, I recently interviewed my own business mentor who has helped me to battle some of my self-confidence demons successfully for branching out in scary territory in my own business. (He is not a freelance bookkeeper, but he has helped me transform my business)

In this interview, he shares how he started with over $25,000 in debt to build a multimillion dollar business, now with zero debt. In his well-known animated, and entertaining way, he also explains why your mindset is so critical. This really is a complete training in how to create your own winning mindset and how to put it into action.

As my gift to you, get free access to this highly valuable recording. I know it will be a huge help to anyone who truly wants to break free from the shackles of low self-confidence and get what you want for yourself and your business faster than you ever dreamed possible.

Click Here to Listen to the Interview

Do you wish you could charge a higher fee for the services you provide and have your clients happily pay you?

If you answered yes to either one of these questions, it’s PEOPLE who will help you get what you want. You cannot get those results without other people!

More specifically, it’s the relationships that you build with people that will cause them to seek you out, value your services and recommend you to their friends and colleagues. Building relationships is how any struggling bookkeeping business can transition from just barely surviving (sometimes for years) into a thriving, growing, and prosperous business.

And the most effective way to build those kinds of relationships is by offering the VALUE that your existing and potential clients really want.  And it needs to be value that they recognize immediately – not what they may, in fact, need, but don’t understand or see as valuable to themselves or their business in some way.

For example, they may truly need their bank accounts reconciled to assure accuracy for their financial records, but that is likely not high on their priority list of the important tasks to manage their business. So if you are touting how you can make sure that their bank account is balanced and reconciled each and every month, you’ll have difficulty attracting new clients, or demonstrate high value to your existing clients. Many small business owners don’t even know why it’s important to reconcile their bank accounts in the first place, so it doesn’t mean anything to them. Thus, it doesn’t seem necessary or important. And certainly not something they want to pay for if they don’t have to.

The same is true if you’re promoting your services using accounting and bookkeeping jargon – accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll liabilities, and so on. Potential clients generally do not actually understand those terms. Those words do not communicate value to them.

In reality, these words represent the functions you know how to handle for your clients. But they don’t communicate the useful value of those functions for your clients, value that your clients would be happy to hire you to provide for them.

So how do you provide VALUE that your clients will understand and readily pay you for?

Forget you are a bookkeeper! Put yourself in their shoes and consider what THEY care about. What do they spend most of their time doing in their business? What do they pay attention to on a daily basis and spend money on?

To answer these questions successfully, you need to get out of your own way and forget about what you want FROM your clients. You need to think about what they want most and how you can help them get it.

Relationships are built on exchanging VALUE. People value and are attracted to those who can help them reach their goals and fill their needs. As bookkeepers we are in a fantastic position to help our clients reach their business goals AND we can thrive in the process.

Learn the art of building relationships with your clients and prospects based on what is valuable to them, and you will not be viewed as “just another bookkeeper.” You will stand out from the crowd as a provider of REAL value. And THAT is what clients are happy to pay for because it means you are helping them get what they want. They will also talk about you to others, sparking the most powerful form of free advertising – word of mouth.

How can you learn to communicate value and build these kinds of relationships?

1. Start asking your clients and other small business owners you meet what they want most in their business that they don’t have right now
2. Pay attention to their answers and consider how the services you provide – and the information provided in financial reports – can be used to help business owners reach their goals
3. Learn how to communicate the true value your services give to business owners in a language that they can easily understand

One of the best ways to learn more about what small business owners want AND stoke the fires of word-of-mouth recommendations is to build strategic alliances with CPAs and Accountants.

If you’d like to learn how to crack the code for building this special kind of referral relationship, join me and fellow CPA networking expert, Val Barshaw, this Wednesday for our live online training, “Freelance Bookkeeper Networking: How to Build Strategic Alliances with CPAs and Accountants”

Click Here for more details

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What does that really mean in practical terms though?

The economy is still a bit choppy, and times are changing. But our prospects are VERY bright, especially for those who are moving more toward working with clients on a virtual basis. That is, working from your own office and communicating primarily through the Internet and telephone.

Here’s why.

In a recent, informal survey conducted by FreshBooks (an up-and-coming simple, online bookkeeping software program for service-based businesses) small businesses are turning to technology to boost productivity and flexibility. With that, there will also be a shortage of technical help. And finally, relationships (including those through social media) will be more important than ever for small business success.

Why are these three points significant?

First, it means more and more small businesses are getting comfortable using the Internet to run their daily operations. They need the efficiency of online technology to trim costs and maximize value. This including handling their financial recordkeeping.

That’s great news for us!

If you have been working with your clients by going to their location, you know how time consuming that is and inefficient. You cannot charge full price for your travel time (if you charge for it at all). There are usually interruptions and distractions while working in your client’s office, and you are not available to your other clients, or worse yet, not free to answer calls adequately for potential new clients who want to contact you.

If you’ve already been working with some clients on a virtual basis, the trend toward more online technology and efficiency, as well as mobile team mindset, is fantastic. This is what many of us have been promoting for years. Until now, clients have often been resistant to using online technology to handle their financial records. But that is changing rapidly. Because of the convenience, speed and cost savings, many more potential clients are open to working on a virtual basis to get their bookkeeping handled.

It’s important to note, however, that as the way we work with our clients changes, nurturing relationships are more important than ever for both getting new clients and for holding onto your existing clients. Open and frequent communication is a must to succeed this year! Therefore, building trust and maintaining a strong, positive connection with each of your clients is going to be super important for your business success.

When working virtually, this may take some extra, proactive effort on your part. But in my own experience, creating opportunities to occasionally meet in person with your clients, whether they are local or cross country, goes a long way toward building rock-solid client loyalty.

SIDE NOTE: If many of your clients are long distance, you should have a recent photo of yourself prominently available on your website. Your clients will look at your picture often when they are not able to meet with you face to face.

But there was one other finding in the FreshBooks survey that reveals a HUGE opportunity for us. If you really want to set yourself apart from the vast majority of other freelance bookkeepers. This is REALLY important to success in a tough economy.

Small businesses are in a pinch because they may have discounted their prices to attract new customers. They will find it difficult to raise their prices, even as the economy improves. That’s because people have come to expect lower prices than before the economy went South.

How is this an opportunity for freelance bookkeepers?

As I’ve often mentioned when talking about marketing your services, you need to know where your clients and potential clients are feeling “pain.” That’s because we all gladly spend money on solutions that relieve pain because that equates to high value for us.

So the question is, if small business owners are feeling pain from tight cash flow, do you have solutions that you can share with them to help relieve that pain? Can you explain to a prospective client how to use his financial reports to identify where he can improve cash flow? If you can, you will definitely get his attention and easily justify the cost of your bookkeeping services.

As an example, showing them how to use their financial reports to identify expenses that can be trimmed, as well as what’s working best on the sales side can have a huge impact on their cash flow very quickly. You just need to spend a few minutes helping your clients understand what their financial reports mean in practical terms. And of course, to have financial reports that provide this kind of information, they need to keep their bookkeeping up to date and accurate!

Do you think your clients will value your services if you show them the information they need to run their business more efficiently and increase cash flow?

You will be worth your weight in gold because rarely do bookkeepers or accountants take the time to REALLY help clients in this way. (And the clients who don’t see the value in this kind of service won’t be “qualified” clients for you – so this works as a filter for finding and keeping high quality clients too!)

This year, 2012, is ripe for showing clients how you can help their business succeed – and you will likely find that your business will grow and prosper like never before as a result!

So do we have reason to be excited about what 2012 has to offer us?

You bet! Not only is the trend toward virtual services accelerating, but you are in the perfect position to provide your current and potential clients exactly what they want and need most.

If you’ve been looking for ways to take your freelance bookkeeping business online, work virtually, and set yourself apart from the competition, you’ll want to check into the audio book, “Virtual Bookkeeping Secrets: 7 Steps to Taking Your Bookkeeping Service Business Online”

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Have you started working with your clients on a virtual basis yet?

Please comment and share your thoughts and experiences below.

“I’d like to know how to address the concern of prospective clients who suspect that they will lose privacy when they outsource their bookkeeping to a back office business service company.  This is ultra important to closely held companies… Will they lose their privacy or are there ways to calm their fears?”

Clients with this concern are assuming that bookkeeping done on-site is more “private” than when it’s done remotely. Privacy is, in reality, more secure when it is done virtually using secure online tools in a paperless environment. But I’ll admit that that does seem counter-intuitive.

Your first hurdle is the client’s perception of what is private. And that really is an opportunity for you to identify whether this is a client that you really want to work with on a long-term basis.

Usually, the reason they *think* their info is safer in their office is because they can see and touch it themselves. They can also see the people who are working with that information. That seems to make sense. But in reality, when using proper online technology, their information is actually much MORE secure when outsourced than when keeping it in-house in the “traditional” paper-based way.

That’s because when appropriate cloud-based applications are used,  their financial information is stored more securely and privately than when it is handled in their office the “old fashioned” way. The biggest privacy risk, in reality, is with the PEOPLE who have access (or could have access) to their financial information, not WHERE those people are working.

Online software (including remote access tools) uses high level security encryption, which is actually safer than how these potential clients are likely handling their info in the office now. Online, only those authorized to see and use the information are allowed access. Security in a typical paper-based office is not so tight.

So how do you “gently enlighten” your potential client?

Ask them if they are comfortable in using online banking. Does that make them nervous? If it does, I’d suggest that this may not be a client you want to engage, unless you are willing to work onsite and and be paid less than your virtual colleagues.

In truth these days, all businesses face privacy risks. But those doing their bookkeeping in the “traditional” way actually are at HIGHER risk (Side Note: If you are handling their financial data, who do you think they will blame first when something goes wrong? Something to consider.)

When attending the Sleeter Conference last month, I learned that a full 33% of businesses experience fraud – usually due to paper checks.

Recently my own business account was subject to fraud. But not because of any online transactions or electronic information handling. It was because of a local vendor who did not protect my data taken from my PHYSICAL business debit card! And today I learned that one of my clients is currently going through the same inconvenience for the same reason with one of his business credit cards.

The reality is, secure online software is actually much safer than physical financial tools.

So, we are left with the last part of our colleague’s question: “…are there ways to calm their fears?”

YES! Use online technology with appropriate security!

When a client recognizes the value of outsourcing their bookkeeping, but needs some reassurance, make it easy on them (and you)!

• Transition them into virtual services one step at a time. The easiest way is with remote services. Their bookkeeping files can remain on their computer and you simply connect remotely to perform the work. (You will need to use digital source documents)
• Use online tools that are secure – don’t email QuickBooks data files or financial source documents. Use a secure file transfer service instead.
• If offering hosted QuickBooks services, use licensed, secure hosting solutions, not your own website hosting account.
• Consider using an online accounting solution by a trusted software company, such as QuickBooks Online for secure, anytime access to your client’s books.

You will need to determine your potential client’s online “tolerance” and choose the level of service that won’t feel “too risky” for them. Most of what they fear is just an illusion. Once they start to see the convenience and the built-in security, they will relax.

Of course, you may also need to accept that not all clients are ready to adopt new technology. When that happens, it raises a big question mark for you.

“Desktop accounting is on the road to becoming obsolete” – Randy Johnston, founder of K2 Enterprises

You need to be clear on WHO your ideal client is. If your outsourced virtual bookkeeping services are not a good fit for a client prospect, be willing to move on. The truth is, everyone is NOT well suited to be your client.

Bottom line – ALWAYS hold fast to the unfailing motto: win-win or no deal. If you do, both you and your clients will prosper!

Recommended Resources

SmartVault – a nearly all-in-one tool for virtual bookkeepers for secure document management and file transfer service that integrates with QuickBooks. You can get a free Lite account to see if it’s right for you.

Insider’s Guide to Your Own Virtual Bookkeeping Business – my comprehensive training course that shows you exactly how to get your own virtual bookkeeping clients in 30 days or less, along with ALL the tools you’ll need for working securely with your clients.

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This very first interview is about 33 minutes. So take a break, grab your favorite beverage, and sit back and get to know fellow bookkeeper Connie Carlson, who transformed her business dream into her reality.

Connie Carlson

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Technology? The economy? Where are we headed in 2012 and beyond?

Little over a week ago I attended one of the bookkeeping industry’s most well-known events – the Sleeter Conference (aka The Sleeter Group Accounting Solutions Conference) and the message throughout most of the training sessions was very clear:

Desktop accounting is on the road to becoming obsolete!

There’s no question about it. More and more businesses are headed online, especially with the rapid development of mobile applications, the power of “smart phones” and how they now can integrate into popular business software – including (but clearly not limited to) QuickBooks.

The accessibility and sharing of electronic data to conduct business–anywhere anytime–is driving the move toward a truly paperless (and mobile) office with (nearly) zero data entry.

Does that scare you? How much of the services you offer consist mainly of data entry?

The future of bookkeepers will be more focused on managing data flow, not data entry.

Another BIG reason businesses are rapidly embracing the move to the clouds is all team members can instantly collaborate in real time without version problems – think about the hassles we so often must wrestle when coordinating backups, accountant’s copy, etc. Problem solved.

Of course, this means as freelance bookkeepers, our role is changing. Those who are paying attention will seize the opportunities that are emerging and start moving  toward becoming a trusted business adviser now, who cannot be replaced by automation!

I’ve seen the opportunities coming for awhile. And it will only grow now as your clients start to upgrade their business technology. And by the way, this is GREAT news since consultants and advisers generally charge higher fees than bookkeepers.

In using multiple applications to run their business, clients will be best served by using a dashboard approach to instantly get a sense of what’s going on within their business. We’ve also seen this trend in the most recent versions of QuickBooks. Intuit realizes clients want tools to USE their financial information to grow more lean, profitable businesses. (Starting with QuickBooks 2009 they created the Company Snapshot feature)

But QuickBooks and even QuickBooks Online Edition had better watch it’s back!

New cloud-based bookkeeping software is also taking root and we need to pay attention. That’s especially so if you focus on small service-based businesses. A few that I’ll be watching and learning more about for my own business are:

- FreshBooks
- Wave Accounting
- Xero

These are FREE online bookkeeping programs (to start) that small businesses can grow with, are easy, and automatically tap into live banking data to nearly eliminate data entry altogether. FreshBooks even ties into QuickBooks.

But the biggest obstacle on the road of transition to the clouds is the human factor – the learning curve is not so easy to climb for everyone.

In truth, not all clients will embrace the new technology quickly. In fact, some people will downright refuse and resist the changes that are already upon us. While the shift to online is gaining rapid momentum, as Doug Sleeter said regarding the slow or non-adopters, “Some of these people just have to die!” (That was my favorite quote! LOL! )

Side Note: If you are one who resists change, don’t despair. There is a sparkle of sunshine here. You can choose to serve the clients who want to keep doing their bookkeeping the way they’ve always done it. But just realize that this market will continue to shrink (and their business profits will likely slip as well). But they will appreciate you for not forcing them to go online.

For those who welcome the online upgrades, you are positioning yourself and your business to prosper going forward! The highest fees will go to those who step up to lead their clients.

A sobering question: Do you serve your clients, or lead them?

Leaders always get paid more. Your clients will look to you to lead their business into the new way of using online technology to grow profitability. (And younger clients are already there waiting for you.)

Your role will be to…

1. Cobble together the technology that works together effectively for your clients
2. Step into the role of business consultant and mentor

In Summary:

• The speed of online technology is increasing rapidly
• Clients will need your help to upgrade their workflow and efficiency (motivated by the desire to increase profitability) using the new (inexpensive) cloud-based tools

What we need to do now:

• Educate ourselves on what’s now available and emerging
• Use the new online products ourselves
• Learn new skills, including how to build dashboards for clients to manage business more profitably
• Move from the role of bookkeeper to indispensable consultant

As a first step, I’ve created a sort of Virtual Bookkeeper boot camp to get up to speed quickly on the basics called, “The Insider’s Guide to Your Own Virtual Bookkeeping Business.” This program will grow and expand as new tools and technology emerge.

We are entering a new online era. We can’t stop where the future is taking us. But we can position ourselves (and our clients) to use the new technology to prosper. It will be a dynamic process.

So, how do you plan to face new online technology and trends during the coming year?

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