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Five tips for scaling your practice as your clients payroll needs grow (Sponsored by Ignition)

As a bookkeeper, there’s nothing more exciting than getting that call, email or text from a client, asking you to add another employee to the payroll. It’s really great news, after all. Their business is growing. And you’ve been right there by their side. And they still want you by their side. They’re calling on you to help.

That said, whether you’ve been asked to add someone to the payroll or initiate another type of bookkeeping-related task to support a client’s growth needs, it means one thing: the services you’ve been offering—the “rules of engagement”—are going to change. Among the list of potential upgrades…

• Timesheet tracking
• Advisory
• Payroll scheduling
• Employee Benefits
• Deductions for RRSP
• Government garnishes

…the list could go on and on.

Yet one of the biggest traps bookkeepers fall into is saying “yes” without thinking too much about those service upgrades will cost. They lack a process, the procedures and prescriptive communications addressing what, in the bookkeeping world, we call “scope creep.” Suddenly, they find themselves doing more work for the original price. And this is a situation in which no one, neither bookkeeper nor client, really wins.

If you’ve been in this situation, just know you’re not alone. In particular, payroll is the #1 item that falls out of the original scope of work for bookkeepers today.

Scope creep: In bookkeeping terms, a change of service, an upgrade in services offered.

And now that you know this is a real issue, which commonly plagues even the savviest of bookkeepers in our industry, take heart that we’ve got solutions for you here. Even more exciting, Ignition has teamed up with Wagepoint service templates targeting scope creep.

In the meantime, consider these tips to sharpen your lens around scope creep, or those service upgrades clients will invariably ask you to make.

1. Think like a thought leader.

 You’re bigger than the services you provide in your business. You’re a source of tactical and advisory support for your clients and from that empowered position, you have the ability to really guide your clients in fruitful, profitable ways. Own this. Embrace this empowerment. And then really accept the value you offer, setting (and raising as needed) your prices to match those value-added services.

2. Set your pricing structure.

Make a list of the services you provide. Then consider how you’ll apply costs to those services as they expand exponentially. A basic example is payroll. Lots of people start out in business with just one or two employees. Then it doubles. Then it quadruples. So consider setting up a formalized pricing structure, such as 1-5 employees, 6-10, 11-20, etc. If you need support around this, reach out to your Ignition account manager who can share ideas and tips on how to price in a way that reflects your worth. Don’t just throw together your value-added pricing structure willy nilly. Do your homework. Research industry prices. And keep in mind that if you are not competitive with your pricing and undercharge in the hopes of attracting clients, you risk attracting the wrong kind of clients. Or them perceiving your low pricing equals low quality, in which case, potentially solid clients may pass you by.

3. Address the elephant in the room.

If you don’t, clients will repeatedly take advantage of you and your bookkeeping business. It opens the door wide to endless “change orders” that can compound and get costly, trumping other work you need to do, perhaps even responsibilities tied to your own company growth. Even worse, left unaddressed this oversight can set you up for serious risk. So…

4. Let the tech do the (tough) talkin’.

One of the trickiest aspects of scope creep is having those uncomfortable client conversations around needing to up your prices per the “service upgrades.” But guess what? Through Ignition, you can easily market your prices upfront through customized marketing materials and proposals, plus tap the power of Wagepoint templates, which offer a menu of services with value-added pricing transparently advertised. In addition, Ignition tools and tech facilitate communication through the platform, so you can easily address any personalization or changes that customers request. In short, when you receive a client change order, it’s the tech that’s doing the tricky talkin’ not you, which saves you time and angst. With all that extra time on hand, you can shift your efforts toward more productive activities, like sending congratulatory emails, exploring new avenues of support, and even providing some advisory services.

5. Grow your enthusiasm.

There’s no need to fear scope creep or customers asking for service upgrades, be it payroll or otherwise. Think: fun! With new clients, right from the start, let them know that you’re hoping and expecting their business will grow. Be excited for them. Be positive about their potential. And with current clients, let them know that as soon as the need for additional services arises, you’ll be there to cheer them on, too! In the engagement phase, share with them your expertise around common growth benchmarks and, instead of fearing that growth and all the changes that will come of it, set deliberate growth targets with your clients. In fact, you can even make it like a fun game in which, together, you hit those targets to up your clients’ score. When you celebrate wins, your client wins, you win—it’s most definitely a win-win sort of reward for all!

Scale for growth with a client engagement and payments platform like Ignition.

As your clients' payroll needs grow, your revenue should also grow with them. Ignition makes it easy for professional bookkeepers to streamline their payroll engagements and scale their practice. To learn more, book a demo with one of our product experts.

About the author: Jennie Moore is Ignition’s Partnerships Manager for AMER and owner of Moore Details, Inc., an Ontario-based bookkeeping firm serving clients in Canada and USA.