Stepping up or stepping out

Accountants don’t charge enough (usually!) When I look at the average fees per client in a ‘typical’ accounting firm then, all too often, two things become painfully obvious: 1. We don’t charge enough for the services that we already offer 2. We leave far too much money on the table when it comes to the services that we could/should offer but don’t.  It’s very easy to get sucked in by the social media hype but the reality for smaller firms is an average annual fee per client (even excluding ‘tax return only’ clients) of less than £3,000 ex vat, considerably less in many cases.

I wonder if there are any other trades or professions that are as ‘glass half full or half empty’ as accountancy? I spend much of my time digesting the thoughts of people in and around the world of accountants and bookkeepers. I come across lots about what we are apparently getting wrong, less so about what we get right, and I see the decline of the profession forecast more often than the hopes of a rosy future.  It feels different when I’m out in the field.