If the accountant is the central point of contact for so many things, then why not deliver a broader group of services and be the main relationship manager, the architect and the conductor of your client’s needs?
Why not maintain, or if you have lost or are losing it, reclaim the role of the most trusted adviser? Accountants are the right people with the right level of education, knowledge and expertise to take control of the client advice process and co-create with clients the best possible outcomes.
This does not mean you all of a sudden have to become a financial adviser. It simply means a shift in mindset to progressively, continuously and systematically create more client engagement. It’s what your clients want from you and in fact increasingly expect from you.
A simple high level approach that many accounting firms are taking is to focus on servicing clients that are genuinely seeking “advice” and “multiple services” through the one location or client contact.
By diversifying the breadth of services and extending beyond simply the traditional scope of services an accounting firm would offer, the firm is giving their clients, and their people, more reason to engage on a more frequent basis.
Outside of more engagement with clients through further services, the increased services allow for the ability to build additional revenue streams and an additional asset base for future value.
Regardless of whether you build in wealth management services, finance or other complimentary financial services, the focus on services that build recurring engagement and therefore recurring revenue are ultimately more valuable.
Clients constantly refer back to their accountant so why not give clients an additional reason to do so. Inherently, accountants are acknowledging the opportunity and the challenge that wealth management and accountant licensing presents, but convergence across accounting and wealth management is well and truly upon us. As Bstar’s The 2015 Accountants Research Report shows, transitioning from a compliance to an advice service business model is one of the top three business concerns for accounting firms.
How you deliver additional services, be it through internal resourcing or partnering with external organisations with complimentary skills, it’s very important that you ensure your firm has an equity interest in the success of these additional services rather than simply a referral agreement. You cannot build value if you do not own part of the asset!
Simon Madder is Managing Director and CEO at Prime Financial Group, a strategic investor with 10 accounting firm investments and over 30 wealth management JVs with accounting firms. Prime continues to build quality partnerships with accounting firms and has a deep heritage in accountancy, having been founded by accountants, for accountants. Prime manages over $1.0B in client assets for business owners and family groups.
