The already hectic fall tax-filing time can and has become more complicated this year. CPAs are not only working longer hours to help clients meet filing deadlines, but some are making time to assist clients with the fallout from the nation’s financial troubles.

“We are doing a lot of hand-holding these days,” says Steve Morton, founder and managing partner of Greensboro, N.C.-based Morton Wealth Management. “Although looming deadlines can cause this to be a tough balancing act, it is important to be here for our clients. Sometimes they just need you to listen.”

Building Successful Practices

Amazing how turbulent times can bring people together. Today’s troubled times encourages good communication, building relationships and fostering collaboration — the very key ingredients to growing your practice.

Achieving successful growth requires practitioners to recognize and act on these opportunities. Here are five key strategies that you can use to build your practice in both good times and bad.

1. Communicate More Often
   
   “More frequent communication with our clients allows us to respond quickly to new needs,” says Rick Davis, managing partner at S.C.-based CPA firm, Elliot Davis. One of the most important lessons for CPAs to learn from this latest crisis is realizing that they do not have to wait for a crisis to communicate frequently with their clients. In fact, one of the biggest reasons that clients change CPA firms is that they want advisors who will reach out to them on a regular basis.
   
   “We are communicating more often with our clients,” says Stuart Nussbaum, partner with New York-based Weiser LLP. “We are also encouraging them to talk with their banks more often so there will be no surprises.”
2. Vary Your Client Communication
   
   In this fast-paced environment, it’s very important to vary your communication style. Extend a number of options for getting together. Pick up the telephone, make office visits, schedule meals and invite them to coffee. You can also foster relationships by inviting clients to seminars that you are attending or celebrations that your firm is hosting. Utilize technology to stay connected with e-mail, e-newsletters, article links, blog posting and information regarding new services and areas of particular interest. Don’t underestimate the power of hand-written notes in this age of technology. Consider including articles or books that you or members of your firm have written. So mix it up, have fun and let your clients know that you are thinking of them.
   
   “We are holding a special repeat session of our annual Proactive Retirement Day for clients who were unable to attend the event,” remarked Morton. “With so much interest, we felt it was important to make it available to them again.”
3. Understand the Issues
   
   Today, it is more important than ever to understand the real issues facing your clients. Your clients are not only facing issues such as the credit crunch, but may also be concerned about how to make payroll or where to find short-term funding for a production run or new equipment. The only way to truly understand your clients’ issues is to be in touch with them regularly and ask questions that will bring the critical issues to light.
4. Seek to Collaborate
   
   “We have clients who include us on their weekly flash reports so we can help identify trends that need attention,” remarked Nussbaum. Once you have identified areas where you can help your clients, it is time to turn your attention toward collaboration. Find ways to work together. The surviving and thriving CPAs know how to grow their practices by becoming successful in uncovering opportunities and turning them into new engagements. The key is execution.
5. Consider Your Service and Talent Mix
   
   “We continuously evaluate our clients’ needs and recruit or develop new talent to meet those changing needs in markets which continue to grow,” said Davis. “After a recent review, we expanded our litigation support, business valuation and transaction services teams by recruiting and cross-training specialists in those areas.”
   
   Regular meetings with your clients often uncover opportunities for your firm to provide additional services beyond your current capabilities. As your clients’ needs grow, it is important to carefully consider adding those services to your mix. In the interim, identify outside providers who provide these resources. Beware of referring business to firms who might lure your clients away.
   
   “We are building our practice through more emphasis on offering litigation support, restructuring and transaction services,” says Nussbaum. “In addition we are strengthening our knowledge of selected industries so that we can help in dealing with the specific challenges of these industries.”

Conclusion

Reach out to your clients today. Focus on identifying the issues at hand and finding ways to collaborate. Take a tip from Davis who quipped, “during these turbulent times, we must promote the value of our services and seek clients who are looking for advice today and for the future.”

Tracy Crevar Warren, president and founder of The Crevar Group, advises professional services firms striving to grow and maximize performance. Warren was named by Accounting Today as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the accounting industry and is a new Hall of Fame inductee in the Association for Accounting Marketing. She is an author and frequent speaker on various growth, business development, and marketing topics for local, regional, national and international audiences. Warren can be reached at (336) 889-GROW (4769).