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AIA

The accounting habits of small business clients confirmed

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22nd Jan 2008
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Recent research has shed light on the relationship small businesses have with their accountant. It reveals a client base this is more ready than ever to vote with its feet, but eager to build close relationships if the service is right.

In a joint survey carried out by the UK200 Group and Clydesdale Bank, 86.8% of respondents said that poor or incorrect advice from their accountant had encouraged them to take their business elsewhere. The second biggest deal-breaker was “a lack of personal touch”, with 65.8% of the vote, followed by high fees, which received 60.5%. Only 9.7% said that their accountants helped them achieve the best possible savings.

As far as attractors are concerned, 84.2% of respondents said that when choosing a new accountant they followed personal recommendations, while 63.2% based their decision on reputation alone. Respondents rated tax planning as the most valued service provided by their accountants.

Despite all this the market remains fairly static. Many of the business owners surveyed said they stuck by the accountants they chose – with 60.5% having stayed with theirs for between 5 and 10 years. However, over half (51.6%) said they wanted to develop better relationships, and switch from an independent financial adviser to an accountant who offered the same services. Around one-third said they would even welcome their accountant filling a role similar to a business partner.

The survey also showed that a majority of respondents are happy to communicate with their accountants online, with 56.8% preferring to exchange and receive documents by email.

How respondents expected their practitioners to communicate digitally without incurring “a lack of personal touch” was not revealed.

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