Too many business owners and SMEs see their accountant as the person who says 'no'. The person who tells them why they can't buy the new piece of equipment, or open a new branch, or take on a new hire, because they don't currently have the liquid cash to do so.
Becoming a go-to adviser is about becoming the person who says 'yes'. The ambitious, expert adviser who looks at their client’s goals and finds ways to make them happen – by linking back to Monitor (our client intelligence tool) and understanding clients’ capital position.
We’ve listed some important ways to reinforce your positive influence as an adviser, and how to highlight the expertise, support and value-add guidance that you bring to the client relationship.
Understanding your clients key goals and ambitions
Getting close to your clients, and building on those all-important working relationships, forms the bedrock of your advisory services. The more familiar you are with your clients as people and owners, and the more you know about their business, the easier it becomes to offer advice.
For example:
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Understand the underlying aims of their business – every company should have a defined objective behind it’s business model. Whether it’s about creating a profitable enterprise, driving innovation in a particular sector, or providing useful services to the local community, it’s vital that you understand this core goal. Only then, can you guide them in the right direction towards this objective.
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Get a handle on the owner’s personal goals – it’s also important to know what the owner wants from their enterprise. Are they looking to build an empire over the next 20 years, or do they want to retire in five years and move to the Bahamas? What income do they need from the business, and what kind of lifestyle do they want to attain? These personal ambitions are inextricably linked to their business goals, so you need to take a holistic approach when giving financial and strategic advice.
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Make sure you’re in the loop with their executive team – as their trusted adviser, you need to have a seat at the top table and be aware of everything that’s going on in the business. Attend their board meetings, talk regularly with the C-suite team and make sure you know their challenges, their problems and their ambitions.
Using Monitor to analyse clients’ financial position
Having a client’s financial numbers at your fingertips is a big advantage for any adviser. At Capitalise, we know the importance of detailed reporting, data analysis and real-time financial numbers – and that’s why we created our Monitor client intelligence software solution.
Monitor allows you to view up-to-date financial information for your entire portfolio of clients, by integrating your Capitalise reporting directly with the client’s online accounting software.
This helps you:
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Anticipate risks and opportunities in your portfolio – so you’re one step ahead and can be proactive about finding the right solutions to any challenges.
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Kick start your client meetings – with in-depth reporting and management information that you can use to update the client and gain oversight of their capital position.
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Provide tips and insights from our Corporate Finance Analysis – so you open up the conversation and provide deeper insights, improving the client’s decision-making.
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Keep track of your clients' bank and credit facilities – giving you the ability to keep a close eye on their credit position and protecting their capital.
Creating a proper funding strategy
Once you know the company’s ambitions, their growth plans and their current financial position, you’re ready to suggest an effective funding strategy for the business.
For a client to achieve any kind of meaningful growth, expansion or innovation, the business will need access to the right routes to funding. This could mean using invoice finance to resolve a short-term cash-flow issue, taking out a secured loan to scale up their development projects or agreeing to a commercial mortgage to buy larger premises. Whatever the business purpose, you can make a real difference by coming up with a strategy that aligns their funding needs to the operational and strategic plans for the business.
To get the client on the road to proper funding:
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Cost out each project and create a budget – the client may well have a strategic plan for the year all mapped out, but do they have the capital that’s needed to fund these plans? Look at each project and work out the funding that’s required, then create a workable budget that the client can track its spending against.
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Work out the total funding that’s required – once you’ve costed each forthcoming project and business objective, you’ll have a good handle on the total amount of finance that’s needed over the course of the year. You can then calculate how much external funding will be needed, once the client’s cash reserves have been taken into account.
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Search the market for the best lenders and products – the final piece in the puzzle is finding the most suitable lenders for the client, and then deciding on the appropriate finance products for their needs. Take a look at the finance options that are available via the Capitalise Marketplace and you’ll see how we’ve streamlined the whole process of searching the market and finding the best deals.
Being a positive driving force behind your clients’ success
When you keep a client’s business properly funded and well capitalised, you aren’t just looking after the finances. What you’re doing is providing them with the fuel to get to their destination, the food to nourish them as they grow and the power that will help them keep the lights on in the business! That’s why a proactive business adviser is such an astounding asset to their clients.
This proactive, forward-looking attitude is something we’re keen to promote, here at Capitalise. It’s an approach that’s the driving force behind our Future Positive Community, and a business outlook that we believe can make a real, tangible difference to the UK’s SMEs.
Find out more about becoming a Capitalise accounting partner and how you can be a positive influence on your clients' destiny – not the blocker who says no.
- Call us on 02036969700
- Email us at support@capitalise.com
