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Scale-up secrets: An interview with Michael McCullion

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26th Feb 2018
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In part two of our Scale-up secrets series Michael McCullion shares the lessons he learned from founding BI Accountancy. 

McCullion's vision for BI Accountancy was always to focus on cloud accounting and his technology and marketing choices reflect this.

However even with this clear goal there were some unexpected hurdles along the way. Not going it alone for so long was a lesson learned.

Administration issues

What happened when you set up and then grew, in terms of the hidden practicalities?

There was lots of paperwork from the get go. Professional indemnity insurance was a definite. I joined a professional accounting body, so there was paperwork for that too. Then you have the HMRC paperwork and I also listed with some of the accounting directories.

What lessons did you learn?

That the paperwork and set up is really time consuming and once I got clients it would have been stressful to try and do both.

If someone wanted to set up their own business I’d say: “Get your sleep in now! It’s hard to switch off when it’s your own business. You need to find the right balance.”

What is the basic toolkit you need to run a firm?

I could have done with a checklist to follow, if there was one. I was winging it a bit to be honest. Learning on the job at the start.

Hiring staff

Tell us about the first time you hired a staff member. Why did you do it?

My workload became too great and I didn’t want the level of client service to drop as a result.

What was the role?

I needed someone to come in as another accountant and help service the clients.

Where did you look?

I put a job advert on LinkedIn and on Indeed.

Any lessons learned in the hiring process?

Yes. I should have hired someone more quickly.

What was the balance between skillset and mindset?

For me, it’s all about experience and mindset. I wanted someone who could hit the ground running.

Did you use a recruiter?

No, I didn’t and I still don’t now.

Did you follow a vetting process?

We check their social media accounts and we do ask questions during interviews that try and test out their experience listed on their CV.

How have you found the shift to people management?

I did have some people manager experience already. It’s a much bigger job when it’s your company though. I have to do it all, rather than just one team.

Technology

What are the basics needed to start up?

Well when I started I had an iMac, Excel and FreeAgent from the start. I used Digita for my tax returns too.

Was there a point when you needed to make changes to grow or scale?

I managed for a year and a half and then I realised we needed a server. It wasn’t something I could manage so I had IT support to set that up.

What technology do you use now (including mobile, computer hardware and software)?

Now we all use iMacs, iPhones, FreeAgent and Digita too.

Have your priorities for technology changed? If so how?

I wouldn’t say so. My priorities have always been focused on cloud accounting.

Do you have a CRM?

We use CRM Center. It integrates with FreeAgent.

Do clients have the opportunity to pay via your website?

Not through the website. Clients are on ‘Go Cardless’ so it’s a monthly direct debit.

Do you know what discounts are available to you as your client numbers grow?

FreeAgent discounts have always been clear. We know that if we hit a number then the costs will come down for us. Digita has the same principle.

Do you think you’ve had the necessary advice to be tax efficient with hardware purchases?

I’d say, yes, we’ve had advice on being tax efficient. For us we want tech that fits our business model best rather than the most tax efficient though.

Marketing

How did you approach marketing when you first started out?

It was mainly referrals to start with. I went to some networking events but it wasn’t the best way to meet our target audience of freelancers.

How has this approach changed over time?

I’m more trusting of marketing now. To start with it felt like you had to pay out without knowing the gains. We use pay-per-click marketing now and some one-off advertising, such as leaflet drops.

When did you know that you needed to invest time into strategic marketing?

After the first year. I knew that if I wanted to hit my projected target then I’d need a more structured marketing plan. I knew I’d have to reinvest some of the profits into marketing.

How have you marketed to new clients in the last six months? What channels have you used; e.g. email, calls, print, social media etc?

We target them using digital channels, such as pay-per-click or email.

Do you have a blog?

Yes

How have you told existing clients about changes to services and how have they responded?

It’s usually an email first, then if they show an interest we’ll follow up with a call. Face-to-face meetings are pretty rare.

Want to hear more from Michael? Click here to discover more tips and tricks in our latest guide on the scale-up challenge, supported by FreeAgent.

Replies (1)

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Man of Kent
By Kent accountant
04th Mar 2018 19:44

All this talk of scale is mildly interesting, what would be make it very interesting and allow us (the readers) gauge the performance of the subject is to see some stats:

1. Turnover
2. Client numbers
3. Year on year growth
4. Gross/net profit
5. Staff numbers
6. Turnover per staff member
7. Clients per staff member
8. Average fee per client

etc, etc

I appreciate that some of this may be confidential but without some of this type of data the article (and others like it) are all hot air with very little substance.

Thanks (0)