Services. What to charge?

Is it just your sales spiel to blame?

I am in the south-east, so all my charges for similar work are higher.

However, I charge more than most competitors for startups, because I encourage them to visit regularly and email me so we get their bookkeeping spot on asap.

Of course there are plenty of prospects who just don't want to pay, and I don't have a good enough sales technique to persuade some of them. That is a work in progress.

On the other hand I don't want to work for nothing, so I have to accept I won't win them all.

So have you thought about how you would describe your ideal client, who will pay more than rock bottom prices, and how to trawl for them marketing wise?

There is no reason why you can't charge the really good quality clients even more than you've shown, but you have to meet them first to do this.

What market are you in?

Yes, I know  . . . the South Yorkshire market! But, are you cheap and cheerful looking to undercut the opposition, or maybe you concentrate on high worth clients only?

Think of it this way, if you were a supermarket or department store which would you be? Aldi, Waitrose . . .  Harrods?

Think of your target market, have products and an infrastructure in place to support it and then price accordingly.

If you mistakenly price low it could prove a burden and slow your progression for years to come.

I wonder what it is about you that makes people think you are Netto (whatever that is)?

You need to be able to spot them quickly rather than giving them too much of your time only to baulk at the fees.

Also, you need to think about how to get more interest from the Morrison crowd directly (website, advertising, literature etc. and indirectly eg. ever wondered what your local Harrods accountant does with the Morrison clients?

I have no qualms in telling prospects that I am not the cheapest accountant around. Taking a cheerful and optimistic view of them and their business at first point of contact can help them understand that paying more can equal excellent value for money and a good investment.  

When I started I made the mistake

of charging 'low' just to get some work - thinking it was better to 'bring in' something rather than nothing at all.  It was then nigh on impossible to increase fees without alienating the clients.

I also made the mistake of charging what I thought the client could afford.

I also made the mistake of charging what I thought the client perceived to be the value of my work (to them).

I also made the mistake of ...................... and so it went.

I didn't get rich, but I didn't go bust!

It's all about confidence

When I first started my practice (and for too long afterwards) I used to lower my voice and look at the floor when quoting fees. I was, in effect, asking the client if the fee was ok!

I am now more confident and quote our fee with confidence. I know we are worth it, and apart from the price sensitive clients (for which £10 would probably be too high) we get no resistance.  :)

as an accountant that used to practiced in Chesterfield..
... I would say they were reasonable, depending on the client records. I could tweak up and down slightly but not much.

Don't price too low

I made the mistake of another contributor and priced too low for some work and agree that it is very difficult then to increase fees.  What I now tend to do is state the full fees and then, depending on how I feel about the client/prospect, offer a discount in the first year, or for some aspects of the work.  This seems to work well because the client is always aware of the full value of the work. 

Just don't commit verbally...
I never commit to a fee verbally. I will have the initial meeting free of Charge and inform them that I will communicate the next steps (engagement letter, MLID etc.) in writing including my fee quote.

If they're going to make flippant comments or compare me to the competition then so be it, but I ain't gonna sit there and listen to it or argue over it.

My aim is that they leave the first meet thinking 'yes, this guy can help me'. Decent success rate so far.

fair

I think your fees are more than reasonable though maybe you can lower the sole trader fees. Remember if your clients want to one of the larger practices on the high street they may for certain services pay double.

I assume you come across sole traders that are not VAT registered and if you are not VAT registered then will provide them a saving so you could leave your sole trader fees as they are.  

Many people can do their own sole trader accounts but not Ltd Company Accounts.  They are also the ones more like to grumble on price as their profit will be lower which is understandable.  

In your pricing there isnt much difference between the sole trader accounts and ltd company accounts which has more elements.

I only charge £200-£250 for Simple Sole trader accounts doesn't take me long to complete.  For the long sole trader accounts I charge around £350.   Probably £100 more for a one director ltd company which is still fair cheaper than most,  I work from home and don't have much overheads.  I just need the work and bring something in rather than nothing and prepared to lower my fees to get the business.

You probably have scope to increase ltd company fees as there is a lot of work involved especially if the accounts are in disarray which I come across time and time again and takes ages to fix.  

I work out an average price then depending on the work involved will increase accordingly.