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human touch
istock_Zsolt Biczó

Accountants lose the human touch

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25th Aug 2016
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Accountants have admitted that their over reliance on technology has replaced the need for human interaction with clients, according to a new survey conducted by Bright HR.

Up to 80% of those surveyed confessed to their client relationships suffering due to technology becoming an easier option than meeting clients in person.

When AccountingWEB members recently discussed the regularity of client meetings on Any Answers many theorised the millennial generational shift as being the reason why accountant-client communication now resides in email.

Backing this, i-accounts said: “My colleague visits most of his clients in person at least once a year but I think it's more a generation thing.” Meanwhile, the majority of their communication is over Skype or video calls.

AccountingWEB regular Glennzy still tries to meet his clients face-to-face: “Email and phone calls are fine for basic stuff like getting the standard books correct but you get a lot more achieved in a face-to-face in the advisory stuff I do,” he said. But he too has found millennial clients “only do emails”.

But technology has enabled accountants to reach clients that geographical distances would have previously prevented. “I see all clients that can come round to go through their returns and get them to sign them in front of me. That way they don’t have a return to copy to do it themselves,” Jennifer Adams said. “The ones that are not nearby I go through things on the phone and email and send the return by legal e-sign.”

Daniel Susskind, author of ‘The Future of the Professions’, cited the changing clients’ technology usage and generational shifts as warning to young people entering the profession. “What I would say is, if you’re entering any of the professions wanting to practise it the way your parents or your grandparents did, you’re going to be disappointed,” Susskind told AccountingWEB.  

However, Insightful Accountant publisher Joe Woodward claimed at Sage Summit that this shift “will force the profession to deliver the things computers cannot do” – such as the personal touch.

The Remarkable Practice’s Paul Shrimpling highlighted the importance of the personal touch on his AccountingWEB blog. He offered a real life example in one blog where he chastised his dentist who sacrificed customer care by sending a generated email to “save a few moments of time”. Using this example, Shrimpling questioned: “How many clients are you risking because your default way of communicating is email rather the phone call at key moments of truth in your client relationship?”

But client care is emerging as a trend with our Practice Excellence nominees. Medium practice nominee Raffingers has placed such importance on being accessible and approachable to clients that it has made this into a KPI for its partners. Their partners meet all of their clients three months before their year-ends to complete business reviews, and clients should always be contactable.

This client care dedication mirrors that of previous practice excellence winner Linda Frier, who is always available and holds quarterly business review meetings with clients. The Coalesco founder puts such attention on getting to know her clients that she has dubbed her firm a community

Clients’ appreciation of both of these firms’ personal touches is reflected by their high retention numbers – both in the high 90%.

Commenting on the survey, Shaz Nawaz urged fellow accountants to invest more time in physically meeting clients. “If you take out human interaction, then unfortunately the profession will become a compliance only sector. This will mean the cost of the service will be the driving factor for clients and the profession will suffer as a direct result.”

Echoing this, BrightHR’s chief executive Paul Tooth emphasised the importance of the personal touch in client relationships: “In general, the accountants we spoke to felt client relationships could be better, despite being in constant communication with them and believing this was the most important ingredient in running a successful practice. They must ask themselves if there are other, more important things they should be doing in addition to daily communication."

How do you keep in contact with you clients? Are you going to hold face-to-face meetings or is technology a preference in your client relations?

Replies (24)

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Rudi Jansen
By Rudijansen
26th Aug 2016 15:30

Great points Richard.

I think on the whole accountancy practices focus too much on transactional connections (e.g. you phone me up to discuss my accounts) that they end up neglecting relational transactions (e.g. customer service touches that aren't necessarily related to the work I'm doing).

This can have a massive impact of client retention - especially in an industry with increasing competition.

I recently wrote an article on Linkedin about this exact topic with some tips/ideas on what accountancy practices can do differently.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/seriously-low-hanging-fruit-rudi-jansen-t...

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FT
By FirstTab
27th Aug 2016 14:35

Face to face communications are time wasting, inefficient and clumsy. Both the client and accountant, generally, do not provide considered points.

Thankfully, we are now living an advanced technological age where it is possible to not to have time wasting meeting.

As mention in the thread you provided a link to, accountants are not friends of their clients. I try and make sure that accountant client relationship is not blurred. Once that line is crossed, some clients think you are always available for them, of course without additional fees.

I am available if I am paid for my time outside my engagement. Clients, believe me, do not/will not pay.

Further, I do not have any intentions to create a community. I want to do the work efficiently and be professional. If clients want hand holding on basic of business, then I am not the right accountant for them.

I think it is down to practice owner's personality. I do not have patience for time wasting meetings and chit chat. I do not want to know about my clients holidays and social life.

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Woods Squared
By info.woods-squared.co.uk
27th Aug 2016 21:20

Isn't it down to the preferred communication style for our client?

Why when any other industry innovates and uses technology is that seen as a positive but within our industry it seems always to be an issue.

When you go to the supermarket people have the chance to use the self-checkouts or personal interaction with a cashier.

Apps to book taxis (uber) are now huge but I'm sure people still choose to call their local taxi firm too.

Amazon, Apple, Google and many other firms are seen as thought leaders and all have little or no human interaction.

In my opinion accountants (& other professionals) need to utilise technology to enable their customers to interact with them how they choose.

We've built our business on providing relationship based advice to our clients but we can & do still do that with technology.

Technology (in my opinion) is a huge enabler not a deterrent and definitely not a backward step if used for the benefit of the service to your clients.

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By johnjenkins
29th Aug 2016 11:10

I'm my humble opinion you can't do the job right without interaction. You have to get to know your client's lifestyle etc. otherwise you cannot advise properly.
If business just want number crunchers then that's where they will go.
Your article (if true over all Accountants) just shows that people coming into the profession haven't got a clue what being an Accountant is all about. It's a pity the survey didn't gauge the age of the Accountants who took part. Better still a survey of what age groups think would have produced a far more meaningful result.

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Replying to johnjenkins:
FT
By FirstTab
29th Aug 2016 13:10

Hello John

Like many accountants, I have not met at least half of my clients, since they live well outside my local area.

The sign up process was through exchange of emails and a telephone conversation. Thankfully, increasing number of clients are going this way.

There are many other ways of knowing clients aside of time wasting and environmentally damaging face to face meetings.

There is a shift away now from face to face meetings since clients value their time and like us, they have so many other pressures.

I think you may have a point where there are complex tax issues, meetings would be effective. We do not take on clients with complex tax issues since that is outside my skills set.

I am an oldie John, well middle aged.

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Replying to FirstTab:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 08:50

If that's how you run your business, FirstTab, then fine. You appear to have lost that ability to connect with your clients, acting more as an agent rather than an Accountant.
Of course phone calls and meetings can be an apparent waste of time. Is spending time with your loved ones (but really wanting to get on the golf course) a waste of time? I fully understand that what is important to some may not be important to others, but ours is a profession that needs to keep sight of the personal touch. Accountancy is unlike any other profession and there is something about the feeling of helping and watching your clients grow and become successful.

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Replying to johnjenkins:
FT
By FirstTab
30th Aug 2016 21:48

delete

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Replying to johnjenkins:
FT
By FirstTab
30th Aug 2016 09:44

How do I hold face to face meetings when they are miles away?

Thanks to the net, We have moved on from the days when our clients were local.

Through technology it is possible to keep in touch with clients without seeing their faces in my office.

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Replying to johnjenkins:
FT
By FirstTab
30th Aug 2016 21:50

delete

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Replying to FirstTab:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 10:09

Yep, I think you've made the point, FirstTab.
You've said it all. You are offering a number crunching service and acting as agent to those (I'm not having a pop, merely making observations).

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Replying to johnjenkins:
FT
By FirstTab
30th Aug 2016 12:56

I did not meant to make my point by posting the same comment 3 times. It was early morning.

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Replying to FirstTab:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 13:48

If 09.44 is early morning it is little wonder you don't have any time for meetings.

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James Ashford
By James Ashford
29th Aug 2016 21:46

Great points Richard.

I'm personally a HUGE fan of fully systemising your practice, using the right technology and therefore (if done correctly), automating as much as possible.

However, most practices fail to get this step right and while they 'think' they have a systemised practice, they haven't, and it has many cracks in it. And this prevents them from taking the most important step.

IF they did this properly, what that allows the practice to do, is to take the next step (which is the whole point of systemising in the first place) and that's where they focus on the EXPERIENCE they give to their clients.

Done properly, it should allow them to DEEPEN their relationships, by freeing them up from low level activities so they can spend quality time with their clients where they can MAXIMISE the value they provide them, whether that's face-to-face or online.

When accountants get this wrong, it distances them from their clients as you say, making them REPLACEABLE.

When they get it right, it deepens and strengthens the relationship with their clients, making them an integral part of their client's finance function and therefore making them IRREPLACEABLE.

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Replying to JamesAshford:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 09:04

Nice sales pitch James. Accountants have always changed the way they work when there is a need. When calculators (mechanical) came in a lot of people said "that's it we will lose our brains to these adding machines". Did we? No, of course not.
Don't forget, James, it's those low-level activities that sometimes give the Accountant an insight as to what makes the client tick. Don't throw the baby out with the bath water.

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Replying to johnjenkins:
James Ashford
By James Ashford
30th Aug 2016 14:26

I'm not selling anything John, just sharing the love.

What I mean by low level tasks is chasing clients to reconcile their bank accounts or to submit their expenses.

We can use Receipt Bank for expenses and automation and admin staff to chase clients to get done what we need them to do.

We can use automated proposal tools to produce detailed proposals in seconds and get legally signed off.

We can use videos to send instructions for how to perform certain tasks.

All of these I would consider low-level activities.

High-level for me would be forecasting, tax planning, interpretation of monthly management accounts and really getting to the heart of their business and helping them to grow and move into the future with confidence.

This is where the REAL value comes in.

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Replying to JamesAshford:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 14:59

Your high level is what should come naturally to Accountants. That is the REAL VALUE of being an Accountant.

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Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
30th Aug 2016 10:44

@Firsttab are all of your clients really too far away to meet.

I have remote clients who I deal with via skype etc but realistically about 80% of my clients are within 20 minutes of my office I am located in the middle of 3 cities Newcastle, Durham and Sunderland.

Do you really service clients country wide or are 80% of them London based so you could see them if you had the need.

As I said on the original post I think if you don't ever meet your cleint's it will put a cap on the size of clients you will get. I suspect you keep your fees so tight to win work that there is no room for a meeting, even the smallest job should have enough in it for a 30 minute meeting if needed.

For me we are in the relationship business and its important that you get to know you clients well in order for them to remain sticky to you. The larger on line firms succeed by the volume of work they do and I would think it is difficult for a sole trader to replicate that.

I would feel a bit like a hamster on a wheel just sitting banging out high volume low fee compliance work. For me the variety is what makes my job interesting.

I have an old guy as a tax only client who is a retired musician who likes to meet to meet face to face to discuss his annual tax return. It could be dealt with remotely but he gets comfort from having someone talk him through it. Its not a massive fee but I accommodate him, thats when I noticed a picture of him and Frank Sinatra on his study wall. This guy has lived and had an interesting life.

If I didnt have time to do the odd meeting like that I would have to question what I was in the game for.

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Replying to Glennzy:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 11:25

So Glennzy you're doing it....................................your way.

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Replying to johnjenkins:
FT
By FirstTab
30th Aug 2016 13:00

Agreed.

Glennzy's way is NOT my way.

I do not want to go on justifying the way I work. I don't need to.

Best to move on.

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Replying to FirstTab:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 13:55

perhaps you could join the "rat pack" FirstTab. Then you could say "I've gotta be me".

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Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
30th Aug 2016 11:56

Brilliant John, but "Thats Life" I guess.

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Replying to Glennzy:
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By johnjenkins
30th Aug 2016 12:46

We only need one more for the "rat pack".

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Glenn Martin
By Glenn Martin
30th Aug 2016 14:28

@FT I am not having a go at you its just you post is a bit of a contradiction to the original one this thread is based on.

Then you said you wouldn't meet clients as they would not pay for your time or your fees were too low to have client meetings. Now you are saying they live to far to come and see you which is it?

All people are saying is that each client is different and adopting a struct no meeting policy would stop you getting some clients who require that.

I have a lot of contractor like clients i hardly ever hear from but I am here if need be.

Can I ask you what your client burn rate is?
If its more than 10/15% per year your system has flaws in it.

Offering a no frills service means you are always exposed to someone doing it cheaper and the personal touch is all that makes the difference.

I have no regrets how I work, well too few to mention.

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Worm
By TheLambtonWorm
30th Aug 2016 16:44

The majority of my clients expect a face to face meeting.

I totally agree that it's not essential, but as others have suggested - it makes the client far less likely to leave if you have a good relationship with them.

Things also often crop up in meetings that give you a better picture of the clients life, which can in turn lead to ways of tax planning or structuring the clients affairs etc.

I guess that's the difference between how various accountants work though. I would just consider what I do as a standard accounts service, but I wouldn't dream of just rattling off a set of accounts without then trying to help the client save tax etc.

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