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Is this live show
Going to be open to those any answers users who don't want to appoint an accountant?
Just thinking we could mention this to those sorts of posters on here when they pop up?
It is if they buy a ticket!
But since we designed most of the Practice Excellence Conference sessions for practitioners, I suspect we won't get too many small business people along on Thursday.
In the meantime, rather than going back over the blight of non-accountants posting queries on AccountingWEB, have you ever considered the possibility that their questions might be a signal that they do need the help of an accountant?
If you look at those posts in that light, they are a good new business opportunity. In which case, advisers don't have too much to lose by leaving a polite reply that offers a morsel of useful advice along with a suggestion that you're available if they want to find out the stuff they really need to know to fix their problem.
Any stats?
Often responses say just that.Often the response to that is extremely hostile. That has a detrimental effect on the forums as people stop responding at all, or even leave the forums entirely. Whilst I can point out previously prolific posters who have severed their ties with here I'm sure you are aware of those who have left. In the meantime, rather than going back over the blight of non-accountants posting queries on AccountingWEB, have you ever considered the possibility that their questions might be a signal that they do need the help of an accountant?
You rolled this out when the situation on the forums was at its worst. Do you have any empirical evidence of this happening? Better still, do you have any statistics of how often this happens as a percentage of non-accountants posting here? Because if out of every 100 non-accountant posters here, 80 get shirty, 19 just stop posting and 1 goes on to find an accountant through posting on here, then you are effectively saying we have to put up with a lot of abuse to get a new client. Not very enticing. If you look at those posts in that light, they are a good new business opportunity. In which case, advisers don't have too much to lose by leaving a polite reply that offers a morsel of useful advice along with a suggestion that you're available if they want to find out the stuff they really need to know to fix their problem.
That's even before considering the odds against a random poster on here even being in my area. Remote working is admittedly possible in the modern age, but most clients still like to meet their accountant in person from time to time. Money Laundering checks are also more difficult with someone you've never met.
Caritas Anchor House
How about looking at this decision and how the charity might have got it wrong and what they could do about it. And whether HMRC might have misunderstood what it should have been considering before issuing a £1m bill.