The accountant returns to compliance work and the client gets on with running the business. Six months later, another problem appears and the advisory process starts again from scratch.
There is a better way.
At the end of every advisory assignment, agree when you will review the outcome.
This does not require immediately selling the client a substantial monthly advisory package. In fact, that may be precisely the wrong approach for a client who has only just experienced advisory work for the first time.
Instead, create continuity.
Suppose the original assignment was a cash-flow review. Three actions were agreed: improve debt collection, reduce slow-moving stock and arrange additional bank facilities.
Put a date in the diary eight weeks later.
At that meeting, ask three simple questions. What was done? What changed? What needs attention next?
Perhaps debtor days have fallen from 58 to 45. That is a measurable result worth acknowledging.
Perhaps stock has not reduced because the purchasing manager was concerned about shortages. That creates another useful conversation.
Perhaps the additional bank facility is no longer required because cash flow has improved.
The important point is that the accountant is now helping the client manage change rather than merely recommending it.
That is where recurring advisory relationships begin.
After two or three review meetings, it may become obvious that regular contact would benefit the client. At that point you can suggest a quarterly or monthly arrangement with a defined scope and fee.
The client is no longer being asked to buy an unfamiliar advisory service. They have already experienced its value.
There is also a benefit for the practice. Recurring assignments are easier to schedule, resource and price than a succession of unrelated one-off jobs.
So, when you finish your next advisory assignment, do not simply send the report and close the file.
- Agree the actions.
- Set the review date.
- Then make sure the conversation happens.
The simplest route from one-off advice to recurring advisory fees may be nothing more complicated than putting the next meeting in the diary.
