Show Them the Value

The fees you charge have NOTHING to do with supply and demand, and EVERYTHING to do with VALUE.nnThat's right - the fees that you charge directly correlate to the value you provide to your clients. The key is to show them and keep showing them that value. This keeps current clients happy and makes the buying decision for new clients that much easier. nnClient focus on value, we focus on price. Clients want a price they can justify and it is our job (besides providing the bookkeeping services) to EDUCATE them on the VALUE of the results your service delivers. nnIn order to educate your clients on that value, you must first understand what that value is and then, how it is perceived by your client. There are a couple of ways to do this but let's start with pretending you are a customer who is buying a service. What are the questions you ask as you evaluate whether or not you are going to purchase the service? What answers are you looking for? What problem are you looking for this service to solve for you? How will you know they are meeting your expectations? nnIt is essential for you to understand the value you provide first, so that you can then help your client to understand it. Remember, your client isn't purchasing the number of checks that you write on their behalf. They are purchasing the end result - accurate and complete financial records! Of course, this is not the only result that you provide to clients. nnNow let's turn around those questions that we would ask when we are purchasing a service and ask them of ourselves as they apply to your service.nnWhat problems do I and my company help my clients solve? nWhat am I an expert at helping people accomplish? nWhat am I an expert at helping people achieve? What is the end result? nWhat am I an expert at helping people feel? nnYou will want to write down as many answers that come to mind as possible. If you find yourself getting stuck, just pretend you are a customer looking to hire you. Looking at it from a different prospective will help you to think and ask different questions.nnThe next step is to quantify and qualify those answers by asking your clients what matters most to them. Asking your client will either give you confirmation of what you believe is the value you provide and/or you uncover something that is important to your clients that you had not thought of.nnThe important thing is to not accept vague, fluffy answers to these questions. Your objective is to find out how using your service will make a difference in their business. The answers give you the information you need to meet and exceed your clients expectations every time and the confidence in the services you provide.