Face-to-face or phone contact is critical, especially in the initial stages of the client relationship. While rolling out a new system for automation, keep everyone on your team involved with the process and make sure they understand the benefits of the software. Make sure that when the deal is closed, your client knows exactly what you can offer. You will also have communication to refer back to in the event that a client expects more. You can gently remind the client of what has been agreed to, and let them know if they want additional services, those are available too at an additional price. Delays prohibit growth because a backlog in onboarding causes internal chaos.

It would be a mistake to complete your accountants’ checklist for new clients without asking about problem-solving. This question can be a great ice-breaker that leads to a more informal discussion of their goals, ideals, and challenges. It also shows your potential client that you care about them and won’t see them as a series of numbers. As their bookkeeper or accountant, you’ll have to bookkeeping onboarding checklist work with their accounting software, payroll schedule, and filing system. If they work with a third-party service, you’ll need to work with their system. Maximize your conversions, acquire new clients, and grow your accounting practice with this process developed by BOSS. Download your free Onboarding a New Client template to personalize and use in your bookkeeping or accounting firm.

Client onboarding questionnaire

With a solution like Typeform, you can have the client upload files to your questions so you don’t need to limit your client’s answers to text. Navigating clients can be tough as well when they don’t want to cooperate, slow down, or don’t respond sincerely.

Spelling out what a client onboarding process should look like is easy enough, but putting it into action can be difficult. Let’s look at some of the common pitfalls that accounting firms fall victim to, which impedes their onboarding process. Your accounting firm has many things they repeatedly do for each client, the first thing being onboarding them. When it comes to onboarding clients, the process, as well as document requirements, can be different for each type of client. It is for that reason; you should create a separate checklist for each service you provide. For instance, have a separate list for tax preparation, virtual CFO services, and monthly accounting clients.

Why are you changing firms?

Plus, you can use Zapier to automatically trigger the message to be sent out the minute they’ve paid your business. You don’t even need to be in the same country to send your https://xero-accounting.net/ clients something meaningful. Once you receive confirmation that the client has paid, signed the proposal, and signed the contract, you can then move on to the next step.

• It’s definitely better to know that upfront for both you and your potential client.
• No matter what, ensure every meeting has a clear agenda shared with the client well in advance.
• If you’ve been in this industry long enough, you’ve probably spent a lot of time reviewing a prospective client’s books, just for them to change their mind when you quote the price.
• Not only do you have to collect all the necessary information, but you also have to ensure that your processes are smooth and efficient.
• Easy-to-use accounting software like Jetpack Workflow can simplify your accounting firm’s operations to a great extent.
• In business, you only have one chance to make a great first impression – and slow is rarely the sentiment you want to convey.
• Bookkeepers are always looking for new clients, and an intake form helps to onboard new clients quickly and efficiently.

This is also the point where you would send clients an intake form to get project details or access to documents. To make this step even easier, include a link to the intake form in your welcome document. Then, you can automate the process of getting a notification any time a client completes your form. Accounting client onboarding differs greatly from one client to next. This means that if you onboard a tax planning client and a CFO services client, the checklist for each of them will be very different.

What are your plans for expansion or contraction of the business?

Many aspects of your onboarding process will be the same from client to client. You’ll need to collect the same type of information and internally delegate similarly on each account.