CAS Client Discovery Process

Read Time: 5:00 minutes

✋Welcome to The CAS Cache, a newsletter designed to help accounting firms grow their CAS offerings. Each issue will feature my insights on a topic.

In addition, perspectives from gurus on the topic that I am listening to 👂, reading 📚, or watching 👀 and one thing I am talking 🗣 to my clients about. Please feel free to R&D (rip off and duplicate) the Client Cache.

Disclaimer: Some of the links below support me in writing this newsletter, and some give you a deal too.

The discovery process is key to filtering out 💩clients and maximizing price. However, the level of vetting can vary based on the stage of the journey.

To vet, or not vet prospect clients, that is the question I hope to give you more clarity on in this issue by walking you through my process.

My process starts with a routing form on my site. It asks the following eleven simple questions:

1. Name

2. Email

3. What service are you interested in learning more about?

4. What is your company's website address?

5. What is your estimated annual sales for this year?

6. What industry is your business in?

7. Do you have inventory?

8. How many owner(s)/decision maker(s) will be involved?

9. What is your current accounting system?

10. How did you hear about a2 advisers?

11. What is your monthly budget to grow your business profitably? Our clients invest around $1k/month for coaching services and over $10k/month for CFO services. Our goal is to increase profitability, so we try to make the investment ≈ 3% - 5% of revenue.

👀 Jason Staats crowd-sourced new client intake questions on Twitter 👇

Before moving my firm to a wait, prospects could answer these questions any way they wanted and schedule a call.

Now, they only get a discovery call if they answer the questions a certain way.

The others are referred to my newsletter and a colleague referral form (reply to this email with your ideal client, and I will add you to my referral list).

I would not recommend my process if you want to add more clients. However, I can be pickier since I moved my firm to a waitlist.

For instance, I have a current client that answered "under $1k/month" on the budget question. They would have been rejected today but currently pay $1k/month.

Think of vetting like a dial that can be gradually turned up and down rather than a switch that is either on or off.

Next, ideal clients can book a 45-minute discovery call, for which I have started charging $250. Charging for a discovery call is new to me.

I started doing this because no matter how hard I tried, I still gave away free advice. The call is backed by a guarantee that I will refund the money if the prospect does not find value in the call.

Prospects that book a discovery call with me get an email sent to them with five additional questions and what the next steps would look like.

These questions are designed to get the prospect to start thinking about the big picture of the value they will receive working with me.

During the discovery call, I go over the questions I sent them. Plus, I have additional questions queued up in case I need them, but I let the conversation guide the additional questions.

If I feel the client is a fit, I will present them with my assessment packages.

I currently offer a package for $3k, $5k, and $7.5k. I will change the prices on the fly if I feel the assessment can provide more value.

My current assessment package is in the following image:

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Check out my course by clicking here for more details on my assessment process. The course includes client discovery questions, a pitch deck, tips on performing a client assessment, and templates for an assessment report.

Once the assessment process is complete, I will present a recurring package CFO package along with my recommendations from the assessment.

In some cases, I will recommend a colleague rather than myself. In the last assessment I did, I recommended that the client hire a more sophisticated bookkeeper rather than myself.

I use the assessment process for two main reasons. One, I can hone in on the value I would be providing. The more value I help the client receive, the higher price I can set.

The second benefit. No more client regret. Ever had new client regret? I have. Let me explain.

At one CPA firm, I landed a massive account with a national corporation ("NC") doing CAS. The opportunity potential was millions of dollars. I had little information and a promise to be trained by someone with HQ of the NC.

Months into the engagement, regret set in. My team was putting in a ton of hours, killing margins. My boss was frustrated. The client was frustrated. I was frustrated.

I discovered the systems were antiquated. Changes could not be made because the NC spent millions building them out. Automation opportunities were limited after looking at dozen of tools and speaking with a top-10 accounting firm's automation team.

In hindsight, I wish I had done an assessment. It would have made me realize that the opportunity was not worth it. Unfortunately, I learned the lesson the hard way. Hopefully, you do not have to do the same.

Get building now, even if it is a simple intake form. Or, check out Kellie Parks' Typeform Discovery Form Template by clicking here (use code "CASCACHE" to get 15% off).

I have tweaked the process above numerous times over the years. And I will continue to tweak the process.

Remember, think of vetting like a dial that can be gradually turned up and down rather than a switch that is either on or off.

Choose Your Own Adventure 🚶‍♂️🗺

🙏 Thanks again, Daniel Skipwoth and Tailor Hartman, for your feedback last issue.

Guru Cache 👂📚👀

👂 Summit CPA's podcast on Tips for Selling Virtual CFO Services

📚 Fathom's guide to pre-screening leads

👀 Logan’s vetting question to tax clients

Client Cache 🗣

📈🧠🧘👂According to Atomic Habits by James Clear, goals restrict your happiness. You need to love the process. Tim Ferris dives into this topic with Jerry Seinfeld on his podcast.

Click here to listen to Jerry Seinfeld discuss this topic with Tim Ferris.

Thanks for reading, Luke Templin!

P.S. There are 3 ways I can help you grow your CAS offerings when you are ready:

1. Mini courses on CAS

2. Book a 1-hour CAS consulting call