What is the Right Price?
In the world of marketing, everyone (including us accountants) and clients seems to be obsessed with PRICE. What price will get that client onboard?
Having seen a number of clients over the years fixated on a low price as proof of their superior deal making skills, I have to conclude much of this is just wrong. Here are some observations on accountants and their clients.
Those clients chasing the lowest price always seem to be stuck in a poor place. Static or declining sales, poor profitability, seriously long hours and most important, next to no value in their businesses.
What is the connection between buying supples at the lowest price and a low value business?
When you achieve a low price from your accountant or any service provider, they will be fixated on doing as little as possible in a short a time as possible. Sure, the client will get a set of accounts for Companies House and HMRC and their company and personal tax returns prepared, probably done well and accurately. This might be enough for many.
This principal applies to all businesses, not just the business of accountancy.
THAT IS ALL THEY WILL GET!
WHAT THEY WILL NOT GET IS ANYTHING OF REAL VALUE
The accountant providing a low price will soon be overwhelmed and unable provide any service of value because they have no margin in the work. If your accountant is unresponsive and lacking any input to your business, the answer is here.
A good accountant can help with organising the clients to keep the tax as low as possible, help with reversing poor profitability, aligning the business with the owner’s aspiration, building saleable value etc.
Why would one not want this? The business may a lifestyle operation. However, we all have stuff in life that knocks us sideways and it comes out of the blue. The average lifestyle business can be finished. Achieving high profitability and saleable value must surely be the goal of everyone who has gone into business for themselves.
The connection between a low price and a low value business in the difference between knowing the price of everything and not knowing the value of an alternative.
Unfortunately, this conundrum is a problem faced by nearly all small businesses and many larger ones. However, we can help you define the value of the products or services that you offer your customers in such a way that you can still cover the market price points if you so wish but in a manner that will encourage your customers to consider something more that the bottom price because there is so much more value to be had with another offering. You will even find a fair number of customers that will want your most valuable offering.
Why not get in touch for a discussion on how your business can reap extra profits from exposing the value in its products or services. Please call us on 01438 811771. Ask for Robert.