On this week’s Dear Katie, the question comes from a conversation that I had with a colleague of mine. We were discussing how big results can come from small, underrated changes.

If you’ve ever read James Clear’s Atomic Habits, the tiny habit of improving 1% each day has a drastic impact on your life.

With this in mind, you can grow your firm and achieve greater success by making these small, underrated changes that add up over time. 

1. Start Prospecting – Not Waiting for Referrals

Accountants who offer great client service can expect a lot of referrals. And referrals close 69% faster than other forms of marketing. 

Why would you not rely on referrals?

They’re unpredictable and don’t put you in the driver seat when it comes to growing your firm.What’s a better way?

Spend 30 minutes per day prospecting. A few months from now, you’ll be in a great spot. And a year from now, your firm will look entirely different.

Get in front of your clients by:

• Starting conversations online
• Speaking at events
• Joining podcasts (or creating your own)
• Showing up at niche events

Being in more places helps your firm receive the recognition it deserves and adds to your lead pipeline at the same time.

2. Review Leads in Your Pipeline

Your leads help grow your accounting firm. 

When is the last time you went through your pipeline and re-engaged old leads that never converted? 

Follow up with peopl! Writing a simple three-minute email and it may be worth thousands of dollars in the long term.

During the review of your pipeline, also consider what:

• Clients can we upsell?
• Clients can we cross-sell?
• Referral partners should we reach out to?

Once you do this, it’s time to look internally and have those conversations most of us would rather push off.

3. Embrace Difficult Conversations

Most firm owners (let’s be honest – all business owners) avoid certain conversations that could change their businesses overnight.

They avoid them because they’re not easy conversations to have. They look like this:

• “This client isn’t a good fit for us anymore.”
• “Hey, we need to raise our rates.”
• “I need help. It’s time to hire someone.”

Difficult as they may be, these are the conversations that can quickly lead to more revenue, fewer headaches and a better firm overall.

Stop avoiding them and you’ll see how quickly things start to improve.

4. Raise Your Prices, Even When It Feels Uncomfortable

When was the last time you raised your prices? If your expertise has grown, your workload is higher or you’re attracting higher-value clients, it’s time to think about raising your rate.

If you’re worried about taking this step, try this:

• Start by increasing your rates for new clients. This is a great way to test out pricing and see how your new rate is received.
• If you have clients on old pricing, give them 30-60-day notice about the adjustment before raising your rates.
• Remember your value. The right clients won’t leave just because of price increases. They will only leave if they’re not getting value.

Raising your prices can be uncomfortable, but it’s a necessary part of running a business. With each passing year, your expertise and experience grow. You’re delivering more value to clients, and that warrants a rate increase.

And if you’re completely honest with yourself, you would 100% tell your clients to raise their rates. Why not take your own advice? That brings me to the last point.

5. Take Your Own Advice

How often do you give great advice to others, but don’t take it yourself? 

For example:

• You tell friends: “Work shouldn’t consume your life. You need a vacation.”
• You tell other business owners: “You need to delegate, so you can grow.”
• You tell your kids: “It’s going to be okay. Everything will work out.”

But what about you? 

You tell clients to invest in growth, improve their time management and take care of their well-being. Why wouldn’t you do the same things for yourself?

Start catching yourself when you’re giving great advice and not taking it yourself. Make note of it and implement it.

Even if you only implement one piece of advice a week, you’ll see big changes fast.

Maybe this looks like working out a few times a week to boost your energy levels and focus, or maybe it means hiring someone to take on more of your responsibilities and improve your work-life balance. Only you know what is most important, so focus on these areas first.

And, that’s a wrap on this Dear Katie question.

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Now I want to hear from you. Do you have a question? 

Submit it here

Until next time, cheers to your success!

Katie