How much do you charge?

How much do you charge?

One of the most awkward questions to answer as an accountant is how much do you charge? This is awkward because until we start doing your work we don’t know how long it will take, how much work there is involved and how much time we will spend on it. We only find that out when we actually start doing the work for you.

How do we get to the price?

In these circumstances we will normally ask you to send us copies of your bank statements and books so we can take a look ourselves and see what amount of work is involved. We need to see what we need to do first before we give the price to you. We need to see how your books are being kept, if we need to do any work to tidy them up and if there is anything missing. We need your books to be up to date and accurate the price we give you is to get you to that point.

It is easy to underestimate how much work is involved

Typically what we see when we work with a customer is that they will underestimate how much work is involved. I do that when I take my car to the garage. I don’t know how to repair cars or anything for that matter. I assume that every job is easy and I am always a little shocked when I see the price. The cause is a lack of knowledge on my part. When I talk through and see what the garage have done for me I am usually a lot happier. I just want my car fixed.

It is the same with accountants. We have a lot of processes to go through, a lot of things to check. When you start to understand what goes behind all the work we do it is easier to understand our costs.

We charge our services slightly differently to give you the best price possible

We normally use two different pricing process when we give a quote for our services. If we are doing compliance work such as accounts, tax returns, vat returns and self-assessment. We charge these based on the amount time that we think that they will take. The work is very much systemised and we can charge these on the amount of time that they take.  

When we charge for our growth services and business support we charge on the value we add to your business. These are a different type of service to doing accounts. They are based on our experience and understanding we have gained over many years. These are very unique and bespoke services that we are giving you, they cannot be systemised. It is a relationship that you have with the accountant and their understanding of your business that is important in this service.

Our ‘growth’ services are tailored to you and what you need to grow.

 It is the same if you were charging for an important design work. You work is more than your time spent. It is more than that it is your personality and humanity that is in the work. The price you charge has to be different than just the time spent. It is the same with us when we start to give you advisory and growth services. We have to charge this differently.

In such a complex area it is essential to have a system in place that gives consistent results for each new customer that we taken on. We have that.  The underlying thought is to price our services so we can give you a quality service and that we are both happy with the price.

We have a system and process to get the right price for you

We use a software call Practice Ignition. It allows us to separate our services down in to a menu-based system. When we speak to a client about their pricing we can show them the individual services that make up the complete package that we do for them. When you see the services that we do and the cost for that service it is clear what you are paying for.

The benefit that you will see that you are being fairly charged for the services we give to you. You can see what each service is costing and what it is worth to you. It is clear and transparent. You understand the work that goes in to each service and the hard work we are doing for you.

By giving the services as a menu-based pricing system it is possible for you to make changes to your services anytime you want. If you want to add bookkeeping in to your package you can do that. If you want to have monthly call with us, you can add that in to your package and we can start to set that up for you. Having a pricing system like this, means that we can be flexible and keep our focus on what is important, giving a great service to our customers.

When you know the price, you feel confident to ask for help when you need it

When this is clearly laid out for you, you will feel better about asking us for help. When you know that you can ask us for help any time you need it, you will reach out more for our help. When you ask for help you can solve problems easier in your business.

Having this clear pricing system for our customers means a better quality of service that we give and that our clients are more likely to ask for help when they need it. Rather than if they think that they can. It is a system set up for your benefit.

Having a consistent system means we can give you a better service

It is important in this process that we feel fairly rewarded for the work that we do for you. We have to be able to provide our services to you at the standard that you expect, if we are too cheap we can not give you a quality service. I am sure that this is something that everyone in business can relate to. We would not want to be the cheapest accountants out there because we care about our clients. We want to give them a quality service. You get what you pay for.

The main focus of our practice is to help you grow your business and have a better life. These are services that take time to provide. Time to get to know you as a customer and as a person. It is a very personal, unique service that we are giving to you. We need to get to know you and spend time with you. Only at that point can we start to give you advice and help you.

Clear and fair pricing for you

This is a service that we can provide by being the cheapest accountants. It is a service that we provide by charging a fair and clear price for what we do for you as the customer. Having a clear process, system and pricing policy means that both you as the customer and we both win.

You win because you are confident that you call ask us any time for help when you need it. You are getting a quality of service that you need and you are seeing the impacts of the service on your business. You are starting to see your business more clearly and feel confident to grow and invest in your business because of the work that you are doing with us.

Our pricing process means we can focus on what is important – You our customer

We are able to build a better relationship with you because you are clear what we are doing for you and you can add services to that as and when you need them. You can be flexible and agile like that.

We want to work with you and feel that we are being fairly rewarded for our work and that we can get to know you and help you grow your business. Once the price is resolved we can get on with helping you work on your business. Having a systemised way to price and to price fairly and consistently is the first step to do this.

 If you want to ask about our prices and how we can help you grow your business please contact us to see how we can help you and how we can help you understand how our pricing process works.