Accountants are being increasingly viewed as the go-to trusted advisor to their small business clients. The rapid rise of cloud technology has enabled the automation of laborious tasks, leaving accountants to spend more time developing a deeper connection and understanding of their clients’ businesses.
The foremost area of advisory that is becoming increasingly valuable in today’s accounting landscape is app advisory. App advisory involves understanding the challenges or opportunities that the clients are facing and advising them on the software that will help them run their business more efficiently.
App advisory services are a win-win for both the accountant and the client – continue reading to learn more about the benefits!
Benefits for your practice
Grow your revenue
In general, firms that provide advisory services earn considerably more revenue than firms that only offer compliance work. Given the quickly-growing accounting app ecosystem and the increasing importance of cloud technology for business owners, app advisory in particular is becoming a more in-demand and valuable service.
According to Xero’s 2018 USA Industry Performance Report, app advisory was one of the biggest contributors to advisory revenue for accounting firms in 2017, and is one of the most promising areas for firm revenue growth in 2018. Moreover, practices who provide app advice grow revenue 60% faster.
Future-proof your business
Proactively offering app advice to your clients will provide them with the know-how they need to reap the most benefits from their technology, as well as increase your firm’s longevity as technology continues to evolve. You'll also maintain that human connection, enabling you to demonstrate how much you care about their business and your level of investment in their future.
Strengthen client relationships
Apps are becoming increasingly important for running an efficient small business; however, selecting, implementing, and supporting applications can be a time-consuming and overwhelming task for a busy business owner.
Demonstrating your technology expertise will help them to understand how you can provide greater value in more areas of their business, further positioning yourself as a trusted business partner. The more you can demonstrate your value, the more your clients will rely on your expertise, and the more prosperous your relationship will become for both of you!
Benefits for your clients
Adding app advisory to your service offerings will also benefit your practice – it can help you increase profit, future proof your business, and deepen client relationships.
The right apps will allow your clients to make better decisions, increase profitability, and take their business to the next level. With the right advice, you will be helping them unlock serious growth opportunities and build a strong foundation for success.
Build a foundation for success
Clients who are caught up in the grind of day-to-day operations in their business might not understand the importance of leveraging the right technology from the get-go. By providing your clients with app advice (which can cover app selection, implementation, training, and support), you are helping to lay a foundation of success from day one. Your expertise will ensure that they have the right technology in place to run their business efficiently today, as well as in the future as their business scales.
Unlock growth opportunities
Apps speed up the process of collecting data from your clients and delivering insights based on that data. Offering app advisory to your clients will ensure that they have the tools in place that enable you to gather key financial information and offer advice in real-time.
Whether your client is considering opening a new store, hiring more employees, or investing in brand-new equipment, more relevant data will enable your clients to make better, faster decisions that will unlock growth opportunities for their business.
Getting started
App advisory has the potential to unlock plenty of benefits for both your practice and your clients. Fortunately, getting started with app advisory doesn’t have to be an intimidating task.
We can provide Accountants with the information they need to start offering app advisory services. From explaining how to package this service, to comparing the feature functionality of some of the best Xero add-ons, we can arm you with the tools and information you need to start recommending apps to your clients. Contact us today to get started via a contact form on our website or call 0458 855 957 for a free consultation.
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