Pricing

It's not unusual to hear the question "what is the going rate in my area for a bookkeeper?"

This question often saddens and frustrates me. It's especially concerning when I hear justifications for artificial maximum chargeable amounts being geographic area.

I genuinely believe that there is no market rate for bookkeepers.  Some business owners will see huge value in a bookkeeper and others will see little or no value.

When we try to target everyone, the people who see us of value and not, we …

It's circus time! They've come a long way since I was a wee boy.  They really are experts at keeping the audience amused and entertained.  Add in a few daredevil stunts and it'll make you gasp.

The other thing that the circus are experts in is pricing.  See how many of our usual pricing strategies you can see in my recent experience.

Initially they offer free tickets around the community they are visiting.  You can attend at absolutely no cost whatsoever. An amazing lead magnet, I'm sure you'l…

How many times have you procrastinated over your pricing? Maybe you need to increase your prices, or you want to quote a higher initial price but chicken out?

You just know that this client can’t afford to pay your increase.  You haven’t asked them. You don’t need to. You know.

I speak to bookkeepers about this very thing almost on a weekly basis and the story is always the same.  I was there myself not so long ago.

I walked in to meet a new client.  As I sat down in his office to listen to…

As bookkeepers, most of us offer our potential clients a free consultation.  It’s the recognised thing in the industry, but how many of us really get the most from these meetings?  And how many end up doing free work for the client?

How many of you can relate to this story? 

When I started out as a bookkeeper I would go to meet potential clients for their free consultation.  When I got there they would tell me all of their business woes and I would bend over backwards to help them. 

Often I w…

Time is money. Has there ever been a more dangerous or misleading phrase in the history of the world for entrepreneurs?

Time is not money. Time is not a commodity. We can't save time in the bank, or earn time back. We can't horde time in the corner, or under this mattress.

Time is not money, value is money.

If you remember nothing else from this article, remember this: "People buy what you do, not how long it took you to do it."

Think about that.

If it were true that time is money then …

When I talk to bookkeepers about their pricing, something that comes up time and again is raising fees. There is a certain resistance to this by bookkeepers. More often than not when the topic is discussed I hear things like "My clients won't pay any more" or "If I raise my prices they'll leave."

This is one of those times when the fear of doing something is a lot worse than actually doing it.

We often convince ourselves that bad things will happen, so avoid it at all costs. Our clients are al…

With so many bookkeepers scared to make the move from hourly rates to fixed fees I decided to write another short article highlighting the problems of trading your time for money.

While most would accept that charging by the hour seems so simple for the more risk averse bookkeepers, there are also some major flaws with this approach. There is no upside to increasing your efficiency or investing in newer technology. 

The more efficient you become, the longer and harder you’ll need to work to co…

[MM_Member_Decision isMember='false'] This may sound strange, that you need to track time with fixed fees.  I've spend goodness knows how long saying prices of your services should not be an hourly rate, now I'm saying you need to track time?! This resource is only available to members. To read more, login or join now as a free member [/MM_Member_Decision]

[MM_Member_Decision membershipId='1|2|3|4'] This may sound strange, that you need to track time with fixed fees.  I've spend goodness knows h…

[MM_Member_Decision isMember='false'] I recently spoke at the Bookkeepers Conference on pricing and a large part of that was about price anchoring.  If you’re not sure what price anchoring is, let me explain using this famous optical illusion.

This resource is only available to members. To read more, login or join now as a free member [/MM_Member_Decision]

[MM_Member_Decision membershipId='1|2|3|4'] I recently spoke at the Bookkeepers Conference on pricing and a large part of that was about price…

[MM_Member_Decision isMember='false'] The incredible power of ending your price with a 9 is not a new concept.  In fact, it’s been around for more years than any of us can remember.  But does it really influence buying habits? This resource is only available to members. To read more, login or join now as a free member [/MM_Member_Decision]

[MM_Member_Decision membershipId='1|2|3|4'] The incredible power of ending your price with a 9 is not a new concept.  In fact, it’s been around for more years…