“I wish I had believed this sooner.”
The CPA firm Owner, Daniel, said this to me in a tone of voice that was both relieved (it was the key to his goals) and annoyed (at himself for not believing it when I first told him about it).
The thing he had refused to believe is that pricing attracts buyers.
Low pricing attracts buyers who want low prices. They don’t care much about quality or service; all they want is to pay as little as possible.
Higher pricing attracts buyers who want more quality, better service, and more significant impacts to their lives. They understand that the reason a provider is charging more is that they offer more.
The buyer has to discern what specifically a particular provider is offering, that’s proportional to the higher fees, because that’s the buyer’s job. But they know for sure what is not included in the lowest prices.
The call
Daniel told me he thought we should talk because after 6 years in business he felt that his firm was on a hamster wheel. It kept spinning faster and faster and they were running to keep up but going nowhere.
He wanted all their hard work to pay off in actual dollars of revenue.
In the Business Growth Strategic Plan I wrote for him I emphasized. this critical change: We will work to attract clients who want more significant IMPACTs and who understand that they will pay more for them.
To achieve this, we discussed in depth the IMPACTs his associates create for clients. We met several times to answer this question because it is the foundation of pricing.
We created a Great Fit Client profile.
This profile focuses on traits or psychographics of people who would be attracted to the IMPACTs the firm creates. These two lists must be closely aligned in order to make a difference.
But Daniel got hung up on this question:
“For what client profile could his firm create the most significant differences?”
The act of creating a Great Fit Client profile means the firm is excluding a wide swath of people. Daniel wanted to be inclusive, not exclusive.
We agreed to do an experiment with marketing.
The Experiment
Before your eyes glaze over and you stop reading…
by marketing we meant a few changes to the firm’s website, to Daniel’s and his associates’ LinkedIn profiles, and to their verbal introductions at networking events. Nothing costly or difficult. No need to hire anyone else.
For the first half of the trial, we listed services (not IMPACTs) the firm provides. Things like monthly financial statements, bank reconciliation, and optional services like payroll or bookkeeping. These services are offered to all small local companies in any industry.
During the first 8-week trial period, several local companies inquired. The first question they asked was “How much does it cost?” Callers did not want to hear about quality or expertise, only about the fee.
Then they moved into the second 8-week trial period. They made a few strategic changes to their website and search terms, updated their LinkedIn profiles, and began speaking to others about the way they change the lives of their Great Fit Clients.
They received quite a few inquiries, especially from people they had spoken with face to face. The first question these people asked was “How can you change MY life?”
The Difference
That’s when Daniel told me he wished he had believed me sooner!
I was happy that he and this firm experienced the difference marketing makes to the kinds of buyers a company attracts.
The firm is now specializing in creating IMPACTs for local engineering services companies. Daniel said he didn’t realize how many engineering firms there are and how many IMPACTs the right accounting firm can create for them.
If you think a list of your IMPACTs and your Great Fit client profile won’t make a difference to your firm, all I can say is “Game ON!”
Schedule a meeting with me to discuss your current marketing and how you could conduct an experiment to attract clients who want to buy your most significant IMPACTs.
Is it time that you get off the hamster wheel?
