Case Study

Cornish practitioner reports immediate £2k to £3k increase in fees due to implementation of just one aspect of Landmark's Practice Development Tool Kit.

Cornish Accounting Solutions Ltd are a Chartered Accountancy practice based in Bodmin, Cornwall who firmly believe in assisting local businesses to grow and to increase their profits. In February 2011 they subscribed to the Practice Development Tool Kit with a view to using the reports available to create a focused approach to working with their clients.

For practitioners who have not yet considered the Tool Kit it provides four interactive reports:

1. Business Record Checker - to assess record keeping and risk of HMRC challenges
2. Business Fitness Assessment - how financially fit are your clients' businesses?
3. Personal Financial Health Checker - how stable is your clients' personal financial position?
4. Profit Chaser - a diagnostic tool that you can use to help clients assess and improve their business profitability.

After installing the first of these report generators, the Business Records Checker, on their website, the practice took a measured yet simple approach to encourage their existing client base (approximately 180 clients) to complete the report. All clients were sent a personal email that explained the risks of the forthcoming HMRC Business Record Check campaign. The email invited clients to complete the report on line. For the few clients that had no access to the internet, a letter was sent in the post with an invitation to complete the Business Record Checker at the practice office.

The reports created by the subsequent use of the Business Record Checker were varied with many clients needing no further follow up as their record keeping was found to be adequate. However a few responses did raise some concerns, which provided an opportunity for Cornish Accounting Solutions to engage in remedial work, looking at ways in which record keeping could be improved. In less than three months over a third of Cornish Accounting's clients have completed a Business Records Check, which has led to a direct increase in practice fees estimated to be between £2,000 and £3,000. All reports were completed independently by the clients.

Paul Miller, Principal of Cornish Accounting Solutions, comments:

'As a busy professional practice we have a duty of care to our clients and always try to convey that philosophy in the work we do for them.

When I subscribed to the Practice Development Tool Kit, I saw an opportunity to protect our clients' interests by the use of features that I believed furthered this process. The Business Record Checker is a simple safety check for a client that clearly explains what is needed to meet HMRC standards and minimise their risk should they be subjected to a visit.

I decided to implement the reports one by one, each time focusing on an individual area. The Business Record Checker was the obvious first step. Now that we have successfully implemented this campaign, and created new fee income in the process, I am looking forward to rolling out the other opportunities that the Tool Kit offers. I intend to use the Profit Chaser next as I believe that this will be the most useful for clients in these trying economic times.

I would have no hesitation in recommending Landmark's Tool Kit. For me the benefits are proving to be a classic win win scenario:

• Clients with adequate records get a 'feel good' confirmation
• Clients with inadequate records can see why they need to shape up
• I have won new work with clients
• At worst I have created £2000 in fees from an investment to date of less than £150
• The Business Record Checker campaign was easy to implement'

 

Paul can be contacted by email: paul@cornishaccounting.com

Summary 'Tool Kit' Page

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Practice Development Tool Kit - terms and conditions

Please provide me with a subscription to your Practice Development Tool Kit. I understand the current price is £37 plus VAT per month. I confirm that I have read and agree to comply with the terms and conditions that apply to the subscription as set out below.

Practice Development Tool Kit - terms and conditions

1. The monthly subscriptions will be invoiced on a quarterly basis. Invoices issued are payable 30 days from invoice date, by direct debit.
2. Monthly subscriptions can be cancelled at any time by emailing your intention to cancel to linda@landmarkpd.co.uk. A minimum 30 days notice period is required. Any subscriptions previously invoiced beyond a cancellation date will be credited and if necessary refunded.
3. If at any time invoices are unpaid beyond our stated 30 day terms we reserve the right to cancel your subscription.
4. Firms who cancel their subscription will no longer have access to the various Tool Kit downloads from our web site. Pages added to their web site to facilitate the Business Fitness, Tax Planning Report Generator, Personal Financial Check List and Business Records Checker will no longer function. Past subscribers will need to make arrangements with their own web site developers to remove the relevant links and pages from their web site.
5. Landmark Regions UK Ltd undertakes to keep the technical content of the web-based questionnaires and reports and associated documentation up to date.
6. Landmark Regions UK Ltd reserves the right to add new facilities to the Tool Kit from time to time and increase subscription rates accordingly. Price increases will impact the first invoice issued after the date of such price increases.