/Pricing/Accounting;/U/Blog;

Lost in Translation

August 14, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Have you ever had a situation where you sent someone a text or an email and the message was completely misunderstood? Ever had a prolonged period of discomfort between you and the recipient as a result?

Because we have dehumanized communications an awful lot gets lost in translation.

When you post, send a text, IM or email you do so without the benefit of direct human interaction. You don’t make eye contact, you don’t hear the tone of voice nor do you see each other’s body language. You lose the ability immediately to note how someone is actually responding to what you’re saying and to clarify in the moment to ensure the message is heard properly.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t take advantage of the efficiency and convenience of technology. It would be pretty hard to run your business without using posts, texts, IMs and emails. I’m also not saying that you cannot be creative in what you write and how you express yourself. (After all, my friends know that I’m the queen of making up words!) What I’m talking about is when you need to convey a message clearly to your clients and customers, your staff, your vendors and your peers.

Here are three simple things you can do to make sure less gets lost in translation:

1. Make your point.

2. Make sure your context is clear.

3. Make your point in language that your recipient will relate to.

Make your point.
Here are some stats I’ve been seeing: On average, business people receive about 90 emails each day and send about 40. If you’re 45-55 you receive and send about 16 texts/IMs per day, If you’re 25-45 you receive and send more than 85 texts/IMs every day. If you’re under 24, that number rises to 128 per day. So get to the point. Considering how much we’re bombarded with digital contacts, you need to make your point clearly and fastly (see how I make up words? Lol!).

Make sure your context is clear.
You have seen how a tweet can be taken out of context and spun into a media frenzy. Take a moment to make sure your recipients know what your context is and keep it crystal clear. Remember that your recipients are human and they’re often in a hurry so they will only scan your message rather than reading it carefully.

Make your point in language that your recipient can relate to.
Think about who you are writing to and make sure you use their language. It’s not about you, it’s about your recipient. When you do this, your odds of being heard and understood go up dramatically.

Take care in what you write… I’m not talking about the 125 character limit, but actual words and phrases carefully selected to convey a message as it is intended to be received. Make your point, give clear context around your message and do your best to say what you mean in a way that it will be received as you intended. Plug in your brain and practice writing quickly and clearly. Oh, and spell things out instead of always shortcutting… KWIM?

5 things social media posts have in common

August 14, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Last night, we had a discussion during our family dinner. The subject of discussion was how social media had turned the world into a global village. A message that could take a lifetime to be delivered would be delivered for you in seconds through Facebook. My sister; Helen, stated how through social media, she was able to reach through thousands of customers in seconds- something that would have been considered impossible in the 15th century.

Sadly, not everyone understands how to appropriate the use of social media when it comes to marketing. I have compiled some keynotes you should consider when posting stuff on social media platforms:

Have empathy
When it comes to brand promotion through the use of social media, you must possess the skill of understanding how others feel about what you are trying to promote. In other words, look through their eyes. If you were in their shoes, what portion of your content would you dislike? Which would you want more explanation for? But don’t just stop there. Go further by meeting their every desire.

Do more of visuals
Don’t bore me with a 1000-word article of how well your product would meet my need. Chill… don’t get me wrong. It is not out of place to be a little bit explanatory about the goods you sell or the services you provide; however, you should ensure you put something that draws the attention of your potential clients. Input pictures alongside your article to create a mental image of what you are trying to communicate across to your customers. 

Use emojis
Come on…we live in the 21st century- an age where people get mood swings by just looking at emojis. If you want to keep your readers in tune with your content or what you are trying to pass across, use the suitable emojis. If a sad person looks through your content and a laughing emoji pops up, it would light up his mood. This way, your click-through rates improve. Surely, emojis will improve your engagement metrics.

Tell them about you.
Nobody wants to fall into the hands of fraudsters. Mentioning a little bit about yourself would let them feel safe. If you wish, pop in some photos of yourself. Your followers would see who is behind the scenes and learn about the person is running the company affairs. Go the extra mile by sharing pictures of your employees- without them; your business wouldn’t have survived.

Drop inspirational quotes.
Running out of ideas on what to post? Well, you can never be out of inspirational quotes. Run a simple google search. If you are a good writer, come up with lovely quotes. Doing this, you would make them feel more comfortable with your credibility. It steers up a feeling of confidence in them in the sense that you do not only care about them because you want to make money, but you do care about them. It’s simple- stronger interpersonal relationship attracts more engagement on your post.

How to run a carbon neutral business

August 14, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Way back in 2015, the
United Nations made a pact to actively reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This
pact is known as the Paris Agreement and is a clear sign that cutting carbon is
a top priority on a global scale.

People, businesses,
corporations, families, governments – we’re all responsible for looking after
our world.

Since the 90s, the
Earth’s surface temperature has risen nearly 1°C because of increased levels of
CO2 in the atmosphere. Although 1°C might not seem like the most alarming
figure, in 2016 scientists predicted that if the earth’s temperature rose any
more than 2°C, the atmospheric balance would be so out of kilter that human
life would become difficult to sustain – we’re already half-way there!

If you’re looking to
start a business, or want to transform your current company into a
carbon-neutral, environmentally conscious operation, now more than ever is the
time to do so. Strike while the iron’s hot, and before the world gets even
hotter…

Coined in the early
1990s, ‘carbon neutral’ refers to a process that doesn’t add to the net
atmospheric increase of harmful emissions (namely CO2). Achieved via a combined
effort of carbon offsetting and the use of renewable, emission-free resources,
carbon neutrality is an environmental step in the right direction that every
business should be taking.

What is a carbon
neutral business?

Requiring more than
popping a few strategic recycling bins about the office – in the hope that your
staff will take the initiative to separate their paper from their plastic –
running a carbon-neutral business entails a whole host of proactive, yet
achievable, steps.

But, before we get
into the nitty gritty, what exactly does running a carbon neutral business
mean?

According to the
Oxford English Dictionary, carbon neutral means: “making or resulting in no net
release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, especially as a result of carbon
offsetting.”

At Startups.co.uk, we
leave no stone unturned! That’s why we asked Will Richardson, founder of
Environmental Management Consultancy Green Element, for his expert advice on
what carbon neutral means in the business world:

“If you are a carbon
neutral company, it means that you as an organisation are not producing any
emissions from a net producing point of view. However, the interpretations of
how this is achieved and calculated can vary.”

Although, going
carbon neutral does entail a bit more than simply waving a magic investment
wand. It’s best to think about how all aspects of your business can reduce its
carbon footprint. Using an environmentally sustainable energy supplier is a
good start, but there are many more steps to take on the path to complete
carbon neutrality.

As far as business is
concerned, think balance. If you put CO2 into the atmosphere, then somewhere
along the line, you’ll have to balance out the emissions by removing the exact
amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as you put into it.

This is simpler than
you might think. The easy way to counteract your carbon emissions is to invest
in an environmental initiative. VEEV, for example, is the first carbon neutral,
alcoholic spirit brand and donates 1% of its sales to Rainforest Preservation
and environmental causes to balance out its carbon footprint. This is known as
carbon offsetting.

Carbon offsetting is
an action that compensates for the carbon dioxide your business emits through
participating in schemes, or funding programmes, that remove the equivalent
amount of CO2 from the atmosphere.

If you’re scratching
your head for ideas on where to invest to offset your carbon footprint, we
recommend looking into tree planting schemes or rainforest preservation as a
good starting point. Or, companies such as EcoAct run a service to help you
find the perfect location for your offsetting investment.

Why should a small business go carbon neutral?

Heightened levels of
CO2 in the atmosphere are bad for the planet for all sorts of reasons, many of
which you will already be aware of. But, did you know:

Each year, 40bn
tonnes of CO2 is released into the atmosphere – averaging out to a whopping 5.5
tonnes per person? Granted, this might just sound like a few abstract facts and
figures, so put it this way: if a day’s worth of CO2 were to form a film over
the surface of the earth, the film would be the thickness of a piece of paper
(70 microns) by the end of the day. After a year, the film would be 31mm thick,
and, after 50 years, the film of CO2 would be the thickness of 1.55m.

As CO2 is a gas, it
floats off into the atmosphere rather than forming a solid ‘film’ as such, but
you get the picture: globally we produce enough CO2 every day to coat our
planet with a layer of what is, essentially, a poisonous gas.

We’re literally
suffocating the planet with our CO2 emissions, so making sure that our impact
is as minimal as possible is everyone’s responsibility, business owner or
otherwise. And, what with World Earth Day just around the corner (falling on the
22nd April, to be exact), there’s never been a better time to ride the eco
business wave.

Aside from the clear
environmental benefits to carbon neutrality, it comes with some pretty awesome
perks as well as reducing the damage inflicted on the planet.

1. Save money

Firstly, taking big steps towards improving your business’ energy
efficiency levels will save money and the planet. Something as small as
implementing a ‘lights off at night’ policy will cut costs and your carbon
footprint. For example, corporate giant P&G have reportedly saved $500m
through implementing energy efficiency measures alone – with more savings
forecast for the future.

Back in 2016, 190 of the Fortune 500
companies made a combined saving of close to $3.7bn. How? Through energy
efficiency initiatives, that’s how. And, being clean and green isn’t just good
for your overheads, it’s great for investment prospects too. Barclays, for
example, have noted that bond portfolios featuring clear goals for
sustainability have shot those with weak environmental targets right out of the
water in the past seven years.

2. Retain and
attract employees

Showing that you’re eager to engage
with environmental issues will help to engage and inspire staff – motivating
your team to pull together in a combined effort to reduce your business’ carbon
footprint. Cycle-to-work schemes, work-from-home days and a robust in-office
environment policy will all help to show to your staff that you’re a business
that cares.

For more information on how to run your
business more sustainably, be sure to check out the Startups’ suite of pages
focussing on green and social business.

Not to mention the fact that if you’re
building your business, you’re probably recruiting. A recent survey shows that
millennials want green jobs, and they want them now.

The Department for Business, Energy and
Industrial, Strategy (BEIS) found that 65% of 16-24 year olds would prefer a
job in the green economy. This equates to around 3.7 million young people who
are looking for, or would be interested in, a job with a clear environmental
focus.

Fresh out of college or university, the
millennial talent pool is awash with desirable skills well suited to the fast
pace and change-driven attitude of any start-up business. So, if you’re looking
to make yourself as attractive as possible to the young millennial
professional, you’d better pull your carbon-neutral socks up.

3. Attract new customers

It’s not just your current staff
that’ll be motivated by your carbon-reduction mission – potential customers and
future talent will also be attracted to a greener policy. In fact, research
suggests that 55% of consumers are willing to pay higher prices for goods from
environmentally conscious companies.

Conscious consumerism is taking off in
a big way and you really don’t want to be left behind, so get ahead of the
curve and reap the financial, moral and social benefits carbon neutrality can
offer.

How does a small business become carbon neutral?

The six simple steps
to carbon neutrality are as follows:

Step 1: Calculate
your carbon footprint
Step 2: Reduce your carbon footprint as much as possible
Step 3: Offset the remaining carbon by investing in a cause or programme that
actively reduces global carbon emissions
Step 5: Gain carbon neutral accreditation
Step 6: Publicise your move to carbon neutrality using social media, your
website and any other marketing means at your disposal

Hungry for more
detail? For the best possible, in-depth advice on how to become carbon neutral,
we also caught up with an expert: Studio Republic’s sustainability officer,
Halina Myers. Here, Myers shares the story of the small marketing agency on a
big environmental mission to carbon neutrality:

What are the first,
most achievable steps to running a carbon neutral business?

“First, it’s
important to get a baseline calculation to work with. It’s really simple to get
your carbon footprint calculated. This will help you to understand your
business’ carbon emissions whilst benchmarking you against other organisations.

“Next, you offset. It’s
a really good opportunity to make a genuine difference in the world, so choose
something meaningful to you and your team.

“However, running a
carbon neutral business is about more than calculating and offsetting your
carbon emissions. You have to have a long term view to reduce the amount of
carbon you produce at source. Last year, for example, Studio Republic produced
3.63 tonnes of CO2 emissions, and has set a target to reduce this to 3 tonnes
of CO2 emissions by the end of 2019.”

Studio Republic
offset five tonnes of CO2 by donating to a Ugandan Borehole Rehabilitation
project, could you tell us a little more about that?

“To offset our carbon
footprint, we wanted to choose a scheme that allowed us to make a positive
social and environmental contribution – sustainability does, after all,
encompass people too.

“We chose the Ugandan
Borehole Rehabilitation project because the positive impacts of this project
are countless. Borehole water is safe and does not need to be boiled, which greatly
reduces the need to gather firewood to purify it. This saves firewood and
prevents the unnecessary release of carbon emissions.

“Also, the borehole
rehabilitation and maintenance in Lango sub-region, Uganda, will be the very
first programme to implement the new Gender Equality methodology from the Gold
Standard.

“We chose to offset
more carbon than we produced because we wanted to make more of a positive
impact. It’s not a necessary step, but if you have the means to do so, we would
highly recommend it.

“Choosing a project
that is meaningful to you, your team and your business is really the key
takeaway from our experience with offsetting. We advise sitting down with your
team to get everyone’s input into choosing what scheme to opt for – your staff
will feel great about it and really feel part of something good.”

From a recruitment
perspective, why do you think millennials are more likely to be drawn to
businesses with strong sustainable promises?

“The statistics show
that 73% millennials are willing to spend more on sustainable products, and
this mentality spreads into recruitment too. Since refocusing our business back
in 2017, online job applications have quadrupled and all of our applicants have
expressed a passion to work with an ethical and sustainable business.

“So much so, that
three quarters of millennials are willing to take a pay cut to work for a
socially responsible company, the same amount consider a company’s social and
environmental commitments when deciding who to work for, and 64% of millennials
won’t take a job if their potential employer doesn’t have strong corporate
social responsibility practices.

“It’s clear
throughout our brand, our business plan and our company mission, that
sustainability is at the heart of everything we do and this has had a massive
impact on our recruitment process.

“We’ve been able to
utilise our sustainability actions as a business tool to bring in new talent,
and generate business: opening up a world of opportunity for us.”

Which businesses are already carbon neutral and who is it suited to?

Spearheading the
carbon neutral business movement are some big names in the business world. The
likes of Google, Neal’s Yard and Avis are all touting the carbon neutral flag –
signposting a strong awareness of the environmental impact they have, with a
view to reducing the impact as much as possible.

Even 007 is getting
up on the carbon neutral hype as James Bond, otherwise known as Daniel Craig,
will be zipping around in Aston Martin’s latest zero emissions vehicle, the
Rapide E, in the next Bond movie (now due for release in 2020).

And – as of March
14th 2019 – new kid on the energy provider block, Bulb, has become completely
carbon neutral. Already supplying, and powered by, 100% green energy – Bulb are
now offsetting the 90% non-renewable gas they supply by supporting ClimateCare.

ClimateCare is a
B-Corp that facilitate carbon reduction projects across the globe, including
the building of solar and wind farms in Asia, as well as developing rainforest
protection schemes in Africa.

On the move to carbon
neutrality, Hayden Wood, Bulb Co-founder and CEO has said:
“We supply 10% green gas to all our members and now we’re offsetting the
remaining 90% by supporting carbon reduction projects across the world.”

With companies both
big and small taking the plunge into carbon neutrality, it’s clear that carbon
neutral is a badge of honour that any business can wear.

But, it’s all very
well and good going to all lengths to become carbon neutral, but how do you let
you let the world know that you’re trying to save it, once you’re a carbon
neutral company?

Ideas for advertising
carbon neutrality:

· Pop it on your website

· Publicise on your social media channels

· PR like crazy – press releases, social announcements… The whole
lot

· Make a media splash – if you’re offsetting your carbon emissions
by supporting another company or programme, include them in your press release
and get them to publicise the move too

FAQs

Is going carbon neutral going to cost the earth?

If your business
continues to pump CO2 into the atmosphere, then yes, the earth will suffer. But
metaphor play aside, the only costs incurred when your business goes carbon
neutral are whatever you have to spend to offset any emissions. Otherwise,
lowering your carbon footprint will have a positive impact on your business’
bank balance.

Saving on energy
costs is the big business budget tip. Other carbon and cost cutting tricks come
in more nuanced forms. For example, if your business has a fleet of vehicles,
vehicle tracking devices are a great way to improve routes, cut travel times,
save on fuel costs and, ultimately, cut down on carbon emissions. Read the
Startups section on business vehicle tracking for more information on how to
cut carbon and costs, even in your company car.

What is a B-Corp?
A certified B Corporation (B-Corp) is a business that overperforms in terms of
positive social and environmental impact. Transparency, accountability and
performance are the three key attributes of a B-Corp and, as a whole, B-Corps
are helping to shoulder the social burdens of 21st century life. This is
including, but not exclusive to, lessening the environmental impact of the
business world.

The likes of
Patagonia, the outdoor travel company, are a certified B-Corp. B-Corps are a
growing group making big waves in the business world as they, in the
corporation’s own words, ‘form a community of leaders and drive a global
movement of people using business as a force for good.’

Overall

In theory, a carbon
neutral company doesn’t produce any carbon emissions. Modern infrastructure,
however, makes it nigh-on impossible to run an operation that doesn’t produce
any carbon at all. So, for those unavoidable carbon emissions, a business can
choose to offset the levels of CO2 it’s responsible for.

Offsetting comes in
the form of investment in other companies, programmes or schemes that have a
carbon negative impact on the planet and actively seek to reduce the levels of
CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere.

There are some big
movers and shakers in the business world taking on the carbon neutral
challenge. Search-engine giant Google is even doing its bit for the planet, and
it’s high time we all did the same. It’s simple: reduce the amount of carbon
you already use, then offset the remainder.

In the words of
Halina Myers: “Carbon neutrality, as with sustainability, gives back countless
benefits to businesses across the board, there’s no reason not to go for it.”

Creating an accounting newsletter that works

August 12, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Email newsletters
are loved by marketers

The first email was
sent in 1971, which makes it ancient technology in the digital world. You might
think messaging services and social media have supplanted it but, in business
at least, email is still the preferred communication channel for up to 80
percent of people. As a result, marketers say it offers the best return on
investment of all digital channels.

And yet we all have a lot of unopened
email newsletters in our inbox. So how do you create an accounting newsletter
that will get read? And can you do it without investing hours of your precious
time creating content?

Why would you send
a newsletter?

Before creating and
distributing an accounting newsletter, you need to be clear about what it will
and won’t achieve. You don’t want to go to the trouble if it’s not going to get
the results you want.

Don’t think, for example, that it
will go viral and get forwarded around town, bringing you a bunch of new leads.
It’s not a lead generation tool. Quite the opposite. You need leads before you
even get started on a newsletter. Newsletters are for nurture – helping you
build relationships with prospects and clients over time.

Warming up
prospects and reminding clients you’re there

As you know,
accounting has a long sales cycle. You don’t win new clients overnight. It’s
really hard for businesses to change accountant, so things move slowly. And new
businesses often don’t hire an accountant until they have to, which may be
around tax time. Either way, your leads will take months to mature into new
business. That’s where newsletters come in. They’re a way of staying on
someone’s radar until they’re ready to make a decision.

Additionally, an accounting
newsletter will also help you reinforce your value to existing clients, to keep
them happy and onboard.

Newsletters don’t
have to be a big production

Perhaps you think an accounting
newsletter would be a great idea, if you didn’t have to write it or design it.
Well, you don’t. You can create plain-text newsletters using mostly borrowed
(or curated) content that’s still valuable to your clients. Here are 11 tips to
help you get good results on a budget.

1. Send it to the
right people

It may be tempting
to buy a list of email addresses to get started, but try to avoid it. Such
lists are often of low quality, with many contacts who haven’t agreed to be on
them. Most of them will be irrelevant to your line of business. There’s no
point sending accounting newsletters to people who don’t need an accountant. If
you go down this route you might also be penalised by your ISP for sending spam
(unwanted) emails.

It will be slower,
but you’re better off building your own database of contacts. Most accountants
are good at collecting business cards, so send those people an email asking if
they’d like to receive your newsletter. Add the ones who opt in to your
database. You’ll be surprised how quickly your audience grows.

You can also invite
people to opt in for your newsletter by including a link on your:

·
website

·
email signatures

·
social media profiles

·
business cards and other marketing collateral

2. Segment your
audience

As with all
communication, people respond better if it’s personalised. That’s tricky when
you’re sending mass communications but try to segment your audience and send
tailored versions of your newsletter.

You don’t want to
create too much work for yourself so keep it simple. Start by creating one list
for leads and another for existing clients. You’ll communicate slightly
different messages with each group, so create different versions of the
newsletter.

After a while, you may get more
sophisticated and split your list into industry categories for example. But
again, don’t over complicate your life or it will become onerous maintaining
different lists and creating many different versions of the newsletter.

3. What’s in it for
them?

Why should people
sign up to receive your accounting newsletter? Giving out their email address
is a risk, so you’ll need to convince them that the reward is worth it.

You’ll probably provide accounting
tips, tax updates, or maybe software advice. If your local laws allow it, you
may even offer spot prizes. Whenever you invite people to subscribe, briefly
explain what sort of content they’ll be getting. Don’t overhype it. Promotional
talk will just come across as pushy.

4. How polished
does it have to be?

Newsletters come in
many forms. In the days of print, they ranged from photocopied letters all the
way up to glossy, full-colour epics. You’ll find the same variation in digital
form. Some companies produce big, well-designed publications that are full of
images, charts and big feature stories, while others send plain-text emails.

There’s a reason why the plain-text
approach hasn’t died, even in the digital age. They work. If the content’s
relevant, well-written and easily readable, then the rest is mostly just window
dressing. In fact a modestly produced text-only email may come across as
genuine, less salesy and more personal. Plus it requires much less work to
produce.

5. How do you
create content?

The most effective
newsletter is the one that people read. You have to make the content
interesting and easy to digest, but you don’t want to spend hours crafting it.
There are agencies that will supply accounting content for you to copy and
paste into your newsletter, but it’s generic.

Your best bet is to
curate content. Find online articles that are relevant to your clients and
write a one-paragraph summary for your newsletter. Include a link to the
original article. Besides a summary, you might like to include a few personal
thoughts on the topic to add some extra value.

Tips for curating
content
Bookmark 10 or 20 of your preferred online publications and check them during
the week. As you find interesting articles, paste the links into your draft
newsletter and write little summaries for each. Before you send it, go through
the accumulated content and weed out the weaker articles, until you’re left
with really strong content.

As a bonus, you can
also post the articles – and your comments – to LinkedIn. That way you’re
building a wider profile as a thought leader at the same time as creating a
newsletter.

You can produce original material too
If you have the time, or there’s a good writer on staff, go ahead and include
original content in your newsletter. The best approach in this instance is to
publish the article on your blog and link to it from the email
newsletter, rather than pasting the whole thing into your email.

6. Writing tips

When communicating
by email, you have a few main priorities:

·
Avoid sounding spammy: Use clear,
descriptive subject lines that tell people what’s in the newsletter. Steer away
from promotional language.

·
Keep it short: People read more slowly off a screen
than off a page. As a result, web writing has become more direct and concise.
That’s what people expect, so don’t waffle.

·
Be warm: Write the newsletter as though all
recipients are old clients. It needs to be conversational and informal. If your
tone is too professional, it’ll come across as sterile.

More tips on the subject
line
Your subject line often determines whether or not someone opens the email.
Savvy marketers often test different subject lines to see which ones resonate
the most with an audience. You don’t have to be that scientific but it’s worth
taking some time over your choice of words.

The subject line
should be short and informative.

·
Don’t waste your words on generic titles like “June newsletter”.

·
Don’t feel like you have to give the newsletter a name. It’s there to
build your brand – not to have a brand of its own.

·
Choose plain language over clever phrases. People are in a literal frame
of mind when looking at email, so jokes and puns can get lost or, even worse,
may cause confusion.

·
Keep your subject line short, so recipients can see the whole thing in their
preview pane.

7. How long do I
make my newsletters?

The question should really be how
short? Try to keep your accounting newsletter to one or maybe two stories. For
starters, it will be quicker for you to produce, which means you’re more likely
to keep publishing. Even more importantly, it will make the newsletter easily
digestible. Subscribers will be more likely to open the email and explore the
content if they know they can do it quickly.

8. Don’t oversell

It might be tempting to try to add a
call to action (CTA) to every newsletter entry, but don’t overdo it. Where
newsletters are concerned, the hard sell gets old very fast. CTAs such as
“Click here to find out how we can help!” are unlikely to work well.
To avoid putting off your clients and prospects, limit the CTAs to rare
occasions.

9. Proofread what
you’ve written

It’s a truism that you spot the typo
in your email just as you hit the ‘Send’ button. So be sure to proofread your
newsletter before sending it – it’s easier to see errors if you read a printed
copy. Send it to a colleague first and have them take a look too. Sometimes a
fresh pair of eyes will spot mistakes that you missed.

10. Have a sensible
schedule

Sending newsletters
every day is a good way to annoy people. Weekly or every two weeks is better.
Monthly could work too, but recipients may lose interest if they come too
infrequently.

Whatever pattern
you choose, try to stick with it. People can be sensitive about email traffic
so maintain a consistent tempo that subscribers get used to. You can always
break the schedule if there’s fresh news that you have to share straight away.

Be realistic
When setting your schedule, it’s important not to be too ambitious. An
accounting newsletter is a slowburn approach to signing new clients so you’ll
have to keep publishing for a long time. Pick a sustainable tempo.

Sending weekly emails may seem like a
great idea when it’s fresh and new but imagine how you’ll feel when the
novelty’s worn off and you’re busy with other things. Start conservatively, by
sending something less often. If you’re getting good feedback or finding it
easy to do, you can always increase the frequency later.

11. Measure the
results

One of the big
reasons why marketers love email is that they can use tools to see:

·
who opens it, and who doesn’t

·
who clicks on the links, and who doesn’t

This sort of data
will help you see if people are engaging with the content. If they’re not, you
can try writing on different topics or using different subject lines to improve
the results.

You can also drill
down to individual contacts and see what content they’re opening and clicking
on. That information will help you when it’s time to have one-to-one
interactions.

Free email marketing tools will give
you data on open rates and click-through rates.

Free email
marketing tools for your accounting newsletter

You can use email marketing services
to help manage lists, send emails, and track how people engage with your
newsletter. There are a number of providers, such as MailChimp,
Campaign Monitor, and Benchmark.
Smaller businesses often get free use of these services, which means you could
potentially send and monitor the performance of your accounting newsletter
without spending anything.

Get started

Everything that
used to be hard about creating an accounting newsletter is easy now. You can
curate the content, forget about design, and send and monitor your emails for
free. Plus email marketing services will give you a lot of free advice on how
to write good emails. They’ll also tell you what sorts of open rates and
clickthrough rates you can expect.

If you want to test
it out this year, start by:

·
researching email marketing services (and see what you can get for free)

·
building a database of recipients

·
thinking about how to segment those lists into sub-groups

·
bookmarking good financial and business publications as sources for
content

And if the results
aren’t great initially, don’t give up. Use analytics tools to try and identify
where you can make improvements.

An accounting newsletter is a good
way to communicate with large numbers of prospects, with relatively little
effort. It’s worth exploring.

How to get new accounting clients

August 12, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

The Wow Company
recently attended a London event for small businesses who didn’t have an
accountant. We spoke to twelve business owners there, and eventually signed
three as new clients.

We’ve always pitched ourselves as a
firm that’s good for young businesses. We want to work for them and we know how
to appeal to them. But Wow is 13 years old now. We’re an established business,
which means we have to continually ensure we relate well to younger
organisations. This was a great reminder of how to win their hearts and minds.

Understanding the
new-business headspace

When thinking about
how to get new accounting clients, it pays to try and understand their mindset.
Most businesses struggle into life as a small one or two person operation.
Their setup is simple and uncluttered, but there’s no budget for hiring help,
so the owners do everything – including bookkeeping. It’s a do-it-yourself
culture.

As the business grows, the owners
come under pressure. There are more transactions happening and more records to
keep. Money flows in and out of the business faster, and they often lose track
of it. You can expect them to be feeling overworked, tired, and anxious.

Owners will be
feeling some pain

As their workload
grows and they slip behind on their bookkeeping, business owners worry that:

·
they’re not meeting their tax and compliance obligations

·
they don’t really know how much money they’re making

·
they’re making decisions about things they don’t fully understand (like
debt)

And they’ll feel
pressure to:

·
work faster to meet growing demand for their goods and services

·
catch up on business admin on their weekends

·
try and fix their work-life balance

This is the state of mind of your
newest accounting client. Be ready to support them through this time.

Make an emotional
connection

Small business
owners can start to feel very lonely during the growing pains. As a result,
owners often feel isolated. The best thing you can do when meeting them for the
first time is show some empathy. Don’t focus on the debits and credits of
accounting. Try instead to give them a sense of comfort and understanding.

Being human isn’t
just a nice thing to do, it’s the right thing to do. It’s also a competitive
advantage. Business owners don’t expect it from an accountant, so it’ll set you
apart. At The Wow Company, we start by asking new accounting clients what keeps
them up at night, or what they wish for their business. They’re business
questions, but they’re framed in an emotional context.

What do they want
from an accountant?

Someone who doesn’t
have an accountant probably doesn’t know what an accountant can do. You’re not
going to educate them overnight so don’t try to. It’ll just overwhelm them.

Business owners in
these early stages aren’t looking for sophisticated services. If you can
address their short-term anxieties, they’ll be interested in talking some more.
Focus on these three things:

1. Figuring out how
the business is doing
As businesses grow and speed up, owners generally lose track of their financial
situation. They may not know if they’re profitable, or how much they can
reinvest in the business. Tell them how you’ll put that information at their
fingertips.

2. Taking away hassle
No one gets into business to do accounting. Build systems that reduce the
business owner’s bookkeeping commitments. For business owners who are
scrambling to do a thousand things at once, there’s no greater gift you can
give them than time.

3. Being their go-to
person
Small business owners have a lot of questions. They probably worry some
of them are naive or stupid. Be the person they feel comfortable asking. As you
find out what they do and don’t know, you’ll be able to educate them. That will
make them more confident in themselves, their business, and in you.

Give them back
their life

It’s the sheer
volume of work that will often compel a business owner to find an accountant.
They’ll be sick of recording and reconciling transactions – or worrying about
their finances. Help them imagine a life where they don’t spend late nights or
weekends:

·
punching data into a spreadsheet

·
preparing and sending invoices

·
wondering if they can afford new equipment, extra staff, or more
inventory

Services that will
hook small businesses

Explain how you’ll
take away the pain. Most new accounting clients won’t understand that modern
accounting tools can automate their:

·
record keeping

·
invoicing

·
cash flow tracking

These three services alone will
relieve their work burden, give them certainty in their financial situation,
and help them understand their business. If you can promise to fix up these
areas of their business in the first couple of months, you’ll be in a strong
position to pick them up as new accounting clients.

Caring for your
clients isn’t just a marketing trick

Once you have a new
accounting client onboard, you need to keep working on the personal
relationship. Empathy is not just a show you put on to win the business.

It helps to have
compassionate people on staff, but there’s more to it than personalities. You
need to make relationship-building part of everyone’s workday. Keep a customer
relationship management system, and ensure everyone on staff buys into it. Use
it to record personal information about your clients, like:

·
why they got into business

·
what they want from the business

·
who their family is

·
what their interests are outside of work

This will ensure you never lose sight
of the personal connection that defined your relationship at the outset.

Young businesses
make great new accounting clients

Young businesses
can be excellent clients because:

·
they’re often entering a growth curve when they become a client

·
you can set up their accounting systems the way you like

·
you can score quick wins by introducing modern accounting tools and
disciplines

It makes sense to go after these new
businesses. Just make sure you understand where they’re coming from, what they
need from you, and how to appeal to them.

Doing it differently, keeping accounting simple

August 8, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Bruce’s business Simple Accounting Services is headquartered in a funky urban corridor, where Wellington’s French cafes cluster. Clients enter the office up the stairs of a former wool store, through one of those cafes, which delivers a stream of flat whites to client meetings.

It’s a far cry from the tiny rural town of Tokomaru, New Zealand, where Bruce went to primary school with 120 other children. “It was a good life for a kid,” Bruce says. “We used to kick a rugby ball around, climb trees, make forts, and help out on the farm.”

Then when Bruce was about 12 years old, his dad moved to a job in town as a computer programmer and Bruce started at Palmerston North Boys High. “It was quite daunting on the first day. We were living by the river and had to ride our bikes all the way through town and through traffic lights. I’d never really seen traffic lights before, so that was a big change.”

Accounting seemed like a good backstop

At high school Bruce played rugby and studied economics, maths, English, science and accounting. He was interested in business and liked money. “My mum’s cousin was an accountant and apparently she was making lots of money, so I started studying accounting, though I wasn’t sure if that’s what I wanted to do.”

Then a local firm that was looking for someone to work for them and asked the accounting teacher who was the best at accounting and computers. “He suggested me,” says Bruce, “which was interesting because I used to wag accounting and physical education classes, and go to work at the garden centre in the afternoons. I thought, well I’ll take the job, and if I don’t like it, then it’ll stand me in good stead for another role. And here I am – it’s just kept going.”

“A lot of my work centred around spreadsheets in the early days and I did some interesting things. Once I got sent to help open up a bar and teach them how to do the till reconciliations, and at the time I wasn’t even legally allowed to be in the bar because I was too young – I was 17!”

In that first job in Palmerston North, New Zealand, Bruce specialised in accounting systems. “I liked the challenges. If someone said, ‘No the software won’t do that,’ I would make it do what we wanted it to. I don’t like being told I can’t do something!”

After about six years, Bruce moved south to a job in Wellington. But when his marriage broke up he decided to move back to Palmerston North, closer to where his ex-wife and two children were now living. “I met Tash, my new wife, at my leaving drinks on the day I was leaving Wellington! So, I ended up only being in Palmerston North for about three months before moving back down.”

Going it alone from a windy garage

Balancing the demands of a big city accounting practice with having his children at the weekends proved exasperating. “I needed time off on Fridays to go and pick up my kids. So I went home to Tash and said ‘Let’s set up our own firm,’ and she said, ‘Let’s do it,’ and so we did – even though I only had one client at the time.”

At first Bruce ran the business from an office in their garage at the top of a hill in Wellington, a city known for its wind. Bruce recounts how the southerly would often come whistling under the roller door and blow his papers off his desk.

That was the start of Simple Accounting Services – a name that reflects the focus of the business. “Our clients are IT contractors, small retail businesses, mums and dads with rental properties, and tradespeople. The bigger Wellington firms I worked for were interested in looking after bigger clients. It felt like there was a gap in the market, so that’s where we went. We try to do good service, fast, and for a good price.”

The ups and downs along the way

Now Simple Accounting is a team of five including Bruce, co-director Peter Reweti, and Tash as business manager.

At one point, after acquiring another accounting firm and their city clients, there were 13 employees. But there were some issues with the different culture and focus of the two firms. Some of the newly acquired clients objected to being with a firm called Simple Accounting because they felt their accounts weren’t simple.

“I don’t think we handled the branding terribly well,” says Bruce. “Things had snowballed, so we pulled it back and we’re trying to focus on keeping things simple again.”

They let the staff numbers decline over time through natural attrition, and now when they recruit new staff, they’re looking for the right attitude. They like to hire people who are willing to adapt and do things differently.

For Bruce, the toughest times are with clients who are struggling. “There’ve been a few tears shed around this table with clients who are seriously in trouble, and sometimes it’s hard to divorce yourself from it.”

“Accounting systems are a speciality of mine so in the early days I picked up a lot of clients with QuickBooks and MYOB, but probably only about one in ten were doing it correctly. Most of the time, it was a complete mess. But fewer and fewer of our clients are on those systems now. And we do all of our end-of-year accounts in Xero, whether or not our clients use it.”

Once, Bruce was advising a lady that she probably needed to liquidate her company, “I realised halfway through that it meant we weren’t going to get paid the money she owed us at the time! There’s been a lot of that in the last few years with the economy.”

On the other side of the coin, the biggest reward for Bruce is in helping clients sort out a shambles or get out of financial trouble.

Be unique, not a copycat

Though it’s been a rocky road, Bruce recommends going out on your own. He’s seen a lot of people set up their own small accounting firms, now that technology has made it so easy.

“My main advice is don’t do what everyone else is doing,” he says. “Don’t just copy what the successful firms have done. Be different.”

Bruce also recommends working for an accountancy firm before setting out on your own. “You need someone to learn the ropes off. It’s a good idea to become a chartered accountant too – it gives you more options.”

Imagining a more relaxed future

Between them, Bruce and Tash have six children aged from 10 to 23. With five of them still at home, family life keeps them busy.

“Our youngest one is playing rugby this year, so we spend a bit of time in the club community,” says Bruce. “I go down for practises and run around with the boys. I keep getting pressured to play for a club team too but my knees are both stuffed.”

“And I like to do a lot of DIY work because I’m sitting down all day at work. I think that comes from my upbringing on the farm – if something needed to be fixed, Dad would fix it himself.”

When it comes to work, Bruce finds there’s still quite a lot of pressure. “It’d be nice to grow the firm a bit and get some more senior people so we could back off a little. Maybe I could just come in for client meetings 20 hours a week and have someone else doing the desk work.

“In 10 years’ time, I could see us having a little lifestyle block somewhere. Tash loves horses, and I can picture myself sitting on a beach. We’ll see where it goes.”

Brand yourself

July 22, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Branding has become a concept relevant to the growth of every company over the years. This has got every company searching for the best marketing agencies to ensure that their branding is top-notch.

However, the issue here is the fact that people have misunderstood a brand to be the logo, the graphics or the website put out there by a company. While these are essential aspects of branding, there are several companies with great logos, graphics and website, yet without the high ROI expected of a company with a great brand. This is because they do not have a great brand; instead just as mentioned earlier, all they have is their great logo, website and graphic. This is to say that these things don’t necessarily depict a great brand; they are only a portion of a great brand which supports branding.

Brands are not set up merely based on how much you can spend on your visuals; they develop over time and are strongly determined by a company’s ethics. In essence, as the reputation of a company gets better, their brand gets better. To build a brand, a strong will to be transparent, authentic and to create an excellent service is highly necessary. These are qualities that are only noticed by users over time; hence, the company in question also needs a hefty dose of patience. However, it pays off when a company has built a reputable brand such that any product they introduce to the market becomes acceptable.

Branding is not an advertisement, but it makes adverts effective. Instead of asking people to buy a product (which is an advertisement), branding tells a narrative. This narrative is usually about the company and what it stands for. This is a clear indication that building a reliable and reputable brand is not about hiring the best marketing agency you can find. While agencies have their role, they can only play a part in branding. Without efforts from the company itself, branding would not be top-notch.

It is time for companies to start branding themselves, as the part the company plays in making itself reputable is about 70% of the job. This is not to say that the other 30% is not essential.

Hence, instead of waiting for marketing agencies to do the work, it is time for companies to start branding themselves.

If you are all out for branding yourself, first off, you have to get your whole team involved. Every single person; from the receptionist at the front desk to your managers has a role to play in reflecting the reputation you want for your brand. Therefore, intimate them on this. Interactions with customers also go a long way, so you have to pay special attention to intimating the people that play a significant role in customer relations on the company’s objective.

In the end, based on the experience each user in your industry wants to have, your ideal customers will locate you and stand by you. However, this is still based on the reputation you create. Each time the public gets to interact with your company, the impression you leave builds a reputation. This implies that your reputation is established by your company’s website, sales and marketing representatives, your website, affiliate marketers, customer service team members, and anyone you have employed to represent your company.

Final Thoughts

Although you cannot dictate what users should think each time they hear about you, you can influence their opinion of you by ensuring that you are not found lacking in any way. Brand yourself and let your potential customers always see you in a positive light.

Dealing with abusive emails

July 22, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

First, what are abusive emails?

Abusive emails are spiteful and thoughtless emails a user may receive from time to time. These emails are typically annoying and getting a whole lot of them is enough to cause someone to have a nasty day. Whether or not you have received this kind of mail, it is wise to learn how to deal with them appropriately. There is nothing wrong in preparing for a future case of such, as you can never be too prepared.
When many people get these emails, they get so pissed that they do not know how to react. They do not know how to deal with them or prevent a recurrence. This article will be focused on how users can deal with cases of abusive emails.

Tip #1: Create a Special Folder

For most email setups, it is usually possible to create a different folder for emails from certain people. Therefore, after taking necessary steps like talking to people, you give your email address about how you don’t enjoy receiving abusive emails; creating a particular folder is a step you can take. It also works for people for whom you have set boundaries, but won’t just act appropriately.

You can set your mail up in a way that those abusive mails from certain people go into that folder. This way, it doesn’t pop in your general inbox and get you feeling some way. When such emails catch you off guard, you may say or do something you wouldn’t ordinarily have said or done. The name of this folder can sort of alert you of the kind of mail you are about to receive. It could be named, “Incoming Abusive Emails—Beware” or something of such sort. You can ask someone you trust enough to look into the emails for you or avoid them altogether. This is a tested and trusted method.

Tip #2: Delete Stuff

Delete everything toxic in the mail and avoid having the person drag you down to his/her level. Start by deleting the name of the sender, so you don’t get super angry, send a mail by mistake or begin to reply immediately. Then, go on to delete all the lies. Right from the first statement, remove all those hurtful things said about you. It could be ranting, misconstrued opinions, half-truths, distorted truths or attacks that are just too personal and hurtful.

You can avoid deleting any actual question asked by the person. It could be something as simple as “when did you drop her off?” Take a deep breath and keep your reply as simple as possible. Let your response be as simple as “I dropped her off at 6:30 p.m”. Reply to any other relevant parts of the mail as well.
As you delete them, also imagine removing them in your mind. This way, you won’t be offended much.

Tip #3: Choose to Show Compassion

Many of the people sending these emails are going through stuff, and it reflects in their attitude towards others in no small extent. Try to look beneath the exterior and see the part of these people that need to be shown, love. By doing this, it would become easier to treat such people with compassion; one that would be seen even in the way you respond to their mails. However, you can only show kindness to such people if you are intentional about it.

The three forms of business activities in accounting

July 21, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Business activities
are essentially activities done in business. Any activity done in business is
directed at one thing—profit making. Therefore “Business activities” is a
general term used in the description of all the economic-related activities in
which a company gets involved in the course of their business.

The three major forms
of business activities are financing, investing and operating. These activities
have to do with the the flow of money. However, the essence of the money will
determine the category under which the money is grouped. It is essential to
understand how to look at every transaction and identify what type of activity
under which every action in business will be grouped. On the overall, these
activities have the ultimate target of creating value for shareholders.

The cash flows that
each of these activities create will be recorded under its own segment of the
annual report in the financial statement called the cash flow statement.

The Three Forms of
Business Activities Explained

Financing Activities

Financing activities are
transactions that have to do with individual customer financing and/or
financing the company. Transactions such as loans, credit transactions, debt
financing, secondary offerings and initial public offerings fall under this
category. Dividends, stock repurchases as well as interest also belong here. In
fact, any business activity that has to do with fundraising or financing will
be found here.

These activities will be
recorded under the section of the Statement of Cash Flows that has to do with
financing activities.

Investing Activities

Investing transactions
are business activities that have to do with the long-term use of cash. These
kinds of activities are not under the usual daily operations of the company and
are used to refer to activities that have to do with investments. These are
business activities capitalized over the space of at least a year. It also
involves the purchase of long-term assets. If it has to do with investing into
something, then it is referred to as “the use of cash” under this category. If
it has to do with dividends from investment or the sale of real estate, then it
is referred to as a source of cash. Generally, purchase of land, property or
equipment of value fall under this category.

Small term investments
would be considered obviously, but any loans made to customers or other
entities would also be considered an investing transaction. Dividends and
interest earned on investments would also qualify under the investing category
for Statement of Cash Flows.

Operating Activities

As the name connotes,
operating activities has to do with the various business practices done by a
company on a daily basis. This involves things ranging from paying for running
costs to paying employees’ salaries. Delivery cost and product cost are also
basic activities to e classified under the operating activities of a company.

It also has to do with all expenditures made
to keep the company running. The sales and income accrued from operations also
fall under the operation section of the paper work.

What is an audit report and what are the types?

July 21, 2019 0 By Xienan Shaw

Following the completion of duty of an auditor within a company, it is only reasonable to give a report. This report is referred to as an audit report; one in which the auditor provides to express his opinion following auditing.

An audit report could be either summarized or lengthy. It may also be in a letter or a statement form. Irrespective of the structure, the auditor addresses the audit report to the shareholders of the company in question. As the shareholders of a company usually hire auditors, they are answerable to the shareholders of the company, and they must safeguard the interest of the shareholders.

A standard audit report should be made up of matters in Section 227 of Companies Act, 1956. While you may be wondering what is in Section 227 of Companies Act, 1956, we have solved the problem in the next section.

Contents of
Audit Report

In line with
Section 227 of Companies Act, 1956, the audit report should have the following:

· If the company is keeping proper books
and records or not.

· If financial explanations are being
received from the company staff or not.

· If the balance sheet gives a fair and
true view or not.

· If the profit and loss account gives a
fair and true view or not.

· If statements from branch auditors
under Sec. 228 are being received properly or not (in a case where the company
has branches)

· If financial statements are being
prepared in line with the requirements of companies act or not.

Types of Audit
Reports

There are two
types of audit reports—clean report (unconditional report) and qualified report
(conditional report). In a case where there are no forms of dis-satisfactory
points, an auditor simply issues a clean report. In a case where there are
dis-satisfactory points, the auditor gives a qualified report.

Here are some
conditions that will make an auditor give a qualified report:

· When the concepts of accounting are not
rightly followed

· When the provision for bad and doubtful
debt is not sufficient

· When the provision for case of
depreciation is not sufficient.

· When the company does not act in line
with the provisions made by the companies’ act.

Sample of Clean
Report

The Share
holders,

XYZ Ltd.,

After having
audited the balance sheet of the above named company as on _________________
and Profit and Loss account of the same for the period ended _________________
and we hereby report the following:

1. The company
is keeping proper books.

2. We received
proper explanations from staff of the company.

3. Financial
statements are prepared in line with the requirements of the companies act.

4. Balance
sheet gives true and fair view.

5. Profit and
Loss account gives true and fair view.

Location:

Date:

(Signature)

Chartered
Accountant

Sample of
Qualified Report

The Share
holders,

XYZ Ltd.,

1. The company
is keeping proper books.

2. We received
proper explanations from staff of the company.

3. Financial
statements are prepared in line with the requirements of the companies act.

4. Balance
sheet gives true and fair view.

5. Profit and
Loss account gives true and fair view.

However, the
above stated report is subject to following conditions:

· The provision for depreciation on the
factory equipment was insufficient.

· Provision made for bad and doubtful
debts was not sufficient.

· Stock was valued at market price which
was above the cost price.

· The factory manager has received an
allowance from the company without the permission of the company’s Central
Government.

Location:

Date:

(Signature)

Chartered
Accountant

Newest posts Older posts

Accounting seemed like a good backstop

Going it alone from a windy garage

The ups and downs along the way

Be unique, not a copycat

Imagining a more relaxed future

The Three Forms of Business Activities Explained

The Three Forms of
Business Activities Explained