Growing your firm’s advisory services: Financial management

One of the growing interests for accountants is expanding
their firm’s services to include financial advisory. The transition from
compliance to consulting makes sense: tax season is just that, a “season,” and
nearly 60
percent of respondents to a Sageworks survey indicated they saw an increase
in total revenue by adding financial services to their accounting practice. If
you have already made this transition or are thinking about it, it is important
to understand your clients’ pain points.

One such pain point is the confusion behind identifying ways
to effectively grow their business through the management of financial
resources. Helping your client plan and implement the ways they acquire and use
financial resources to grow their business can be beneficial to deepening your
professional relationship. Here are three ways you can help your clients
acquire and manage their financial resources:

• One simple and, if well managed, surefire way to introduce
  more capital into the pockets of your clients is a business
  rewards credit card. Whether using a national bank, regional bank,
  community bank or credit union, there are numerous cards that can help your
  client leverage their credit to create capital. Credit cards, whether for
  personal or business use, can add value to businesses because of the rewards
  they offer. Some provide higher rewards for travel, gas, restaurants or online
  purchases, among others.

• Equity, in the first few years of operation, can be
  beneficial in establishing the base of your clients’ operations. Advise clients
  to look for business partners or help connect them with investors in their
  region. Investing personal assets can also be a helpful route to gain working
  capital, however the riskiness of the business should be determined before
  advising this option.

• Loans for small businesses are another avenue that you can
  advise clients to use. Although some banks have largely
  pulled out of <$1MM loans, there are still lenders like Bankers Healthcare Group that provide different
  types of financing to businesses in various healthcare industries. For example, Bankers Healthcare Group offers commercial working capital loans from $20,000 to $500,000 that can be used to increase cash flow, make
  expansions and improvements, perform marketing services or fulfill a number of other needs. They also offer loans for business startups, which have been used to open wellness centers, patent development, ice cream parlors and developmental disability computer software. Lenders like this, and other companies like Funding
  Circle, are great resources to advise your
  clients to use.

The advantage of working capital is obvious to some degree.
Having capital on hand will allow your clients to pursue the opportunities that
will help develop their presence in the market. Whether purchasing equipment
that helps decrease their days in inventory or investing in progressive
technology, working capital can provide your clients opportunities that were at
one time difficult for them to consider.When considering moving into an advisory
role it is helpful to know the benefits of making the transition. One
in four tax professionals offer financial advisory services to their
clients and the number
one reason small business owners switch accountants is because of their
lack of proactive guidance. By adding financial advisory services to your firm you
will remain competitive and mark yourself as a proactive, industry leader.