The biggest pricing mistakes bookkeepers make

[@savannahsuttle2742]

I really love your analogies. They are very easy to understand. I also like how you are able to apply math to real life, and make it conceptual. This is very helpful for encouraging all my independent contractors, not just bookkeepers, specifically. This is super realistic and encouraging.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

I appreciate that, Savannah. Glad to be of help.

[@coltcorbin529]

i guess im asking randomly but does someone know a way to log back into an Instagram account? I stupidly forgot the login password. I would love any help you can offer me!

[@salvatoreizaiah3511]

@Colt Corbin Instablaster ;)

[@dianestone9064]

Very insightful. I took Bookkeeper Business Launch, and was taught this very same concept, that you must always go for clients who appreciate you for your value rather than your fee. Otherwise they are not an ideal client. Thanks for reiterating this fact, it is very encouraging. Love your videos!

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Thank you Diane!

[@Breaking_barriers100]

Thanks for you wonderful feedback. I'm a newly licensed CPA going out on my self-employment journey. You are doing a great service for us newbies..

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Congratulations on your new journey, Bruce. Glad to be of help.

[@goldengriffon]

I like your presentation style. Very clear and to the point. Subscribed!

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Thanks and welcome!

[@morganlipton311]

This is really excellent. I am a stay-at-home mom looking to re-enter the workplace in the virtual bookkeeping arena. With a decade of bookkeeping experience under my belt that was prior to the shift to online banking etc., I’m finding your videos extremely helpful. Thank you.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Hi Morgan. So glad my videos are helping you.

[@Blair.1966]

This is wonderful! I very much appreciate your analogies. Thank you!

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@jamesiphie4572]

Yes, you comments are very helpful to me. Especially on your pricing for bookkeeping services I have been finding it difficult to setup pricing. Because the amount works and Research questions one to go through by time you are done your start asking yourself dose this worth it. After I struggled with it. Have to come up with my own pricing. Like you said what some bookkeepers priced make to say dose all this effort worth. No matter how someone try to Simplified theses a lot times to read and researchers to do. Thanks, I been watching your video’s good Topics.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Thanks for watching. And yes, pricing is challenging and can take up a lot of time until you determine a method that works for you.

[@paulanthony3294]

I had an idea that I was basing pricing from the wrong prospective and that it should be a fixed monthly rate. Thank you so much for clarifying.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

You're welcome, Anthony.

[@natashasequeira5540]

Really love how you simplify things so the concepts are easy to grasp. Would love to get your opinion on other things. Do you do any private work with bookkeepers to help their businesses take off?

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Hi Natasha, I work with bookkeepers in various ways. Take a look at my online academy at 5mbAcademy.com My program, The Virtual Bookkeeper's Roadmap, includes group mentoring and Q&A. I work one-on-one with bookkeepers on Shopify bookkeeping coaching. At some point in the future I will offer one-on-one business coaching for boookkeepers.

[@rickeyhughes7380]

Thank you for your response. I will keep that in mind.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Any time!

[@irfanbrohe1513]

I work as a freelance bookkeeper in Dubai, UAE. The concept of being a freelance bookkeeper is different than US. Normally SME companies do not pay by hour, rather they pay fixed amount on monthly basis. Keeping this point in mind, it's really hard to make perfect pricing strategy. Because some clients have little work and others have alot. Any suggestions for pricing in this scenario?

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Hi Irfan. I'm glad that you are paid a fixed price. You're right, it is more challenging when you provide a fixed price because you're not always sure of the scope of the work. I always do a paid analysis before taking on a client so that I can assess what they need.

[@davidbond4740]

Thank you😊

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

You're welcome 😊

[@bonnierodriguez2491]

Thank you so much, I really needed this video!

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

You are so welcome!

[@rickeyhughes7380]

Hello, Miss Veronica. This is Rickey Hughes again. I have just watched your most recent video about The Biggest Pricing Mistakes Bookkeepers Make. I, myself, have a home based business in Bookkeeping and Accounting, and I think I, myself, have made mistakes in pricing my service as well. I took up a Bookkeeping and Accounting class, and I was taught how to charge clients by transactions. That is what I am considering. I don't trust myself charging clients by the hour, because for example, I don't believe in charging clients for two hours of work, when the work really only takes one hour to do, and I was told I write slow. I hope you understand this situation, and I would like to charge clients by the right amount in my business. I thank you for sharing this video. I think it was so much helpful. If I have any questions concerning this, I will contact you by text. Again, I thank you for your time and consideration, and do look forward to your response. Thank you again, and I hope you will keep up the good work.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Thanks Ricky. The beauty of being a business owner is that you are in control of your business. I started my business charging by number of transactions. However, keep in mind that the point of this video is that clients pay for what they value - it doesn't matter if it takes you one hour or twenty hours.

[@florak1087]

What a great chat Veronica. I am back doing bookkeeping and started my own little admin company. My friend's hubby is my first client (I never knew I would be going back to bookkeeping, which I have not fully done since the 90s) I told this client that I will charge him a third of what his accountant will charge, and also I told him that I want to relearn Quickbooks for myself and any future clients. He has missing inputting expenses, invoices and has put things in the wrong place. I told him I would be slow and I have, for one year, already billed him 50 hours and a minimum charge. (I am very detailed and uploading image or receipts etc) Once I get going and get all the information I need for his books, it will go faster AND after that, once I am caught up I think (hearing what you are saying) that I will charge him a flat fee to reconcile by month. How is that?

[@florak1087]

sorry, remove "for a year".

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Hi Florita. Yes, that sounds fair. By the time you get the books cleaned up, you'll have a really good idea of what it will take to do their monthly books and you'll be able to price it accordingly using a flat fee.

[@videosrus99]

Erm! 01:25 After the learning curve, surely working less hours for the same amount of money is a good thing from the bookkeeper's perspective.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

That model works if you are charging a client a fixed fee. But, it doesn't work if you are charging a client by the hour since becoming more efficient means that you'll work faster and get paid less.

[@danielm.wekesa809]

Thanks for your informative share. I've been pricing my services hourly. What if a Client requests you to do continuous repetitive tasks such as Monthly Bank Reconciliations, how do you calculate your pricing?

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

I don't price my services by the hour. However, one strategy for pricing bank reconciliations is based on the number of bank/credit card accounts and the volume of transactions. For example, you might charge $75 to reconcile one bank account with up to 200 transactions. I hope this helps.

[@danielm.wekesa809]

Yes indeed, much appreciated. Value Pricing is the approach...

[@bill6387]

Excellent video. Great infomration.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Glad it was helpful!

[@concesaceleste3878]

Hello and thanks to you I am starting to work on my books. I appreciate all the knowledge you have shared. Off the subject of this video, I was looking for the do your books for 12 months but the links are not working. I have to work on all of 2019 and would appreciate any working links you may have. Many, many thank yous!

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Hi Concesa. Can you clarify which link you are referring to?

[@thomasverios5519]

Hello, does providing tax preparation services attract more valuable clients? Thank you so much

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

I may be biased since I don't provide tax services. I don't think that adding tax preparation services helps to attract more valuable clients. However, if your ideal client is a premium client who needs business returns prepared, then it may help if you also prepare their business returns. However, keep in mind that adding tax preparation services has several drawbacks: 1) you need training and experience, 2) you need an entire set of workflows, 3) you need to hire qualified people, 4) you need to continually keep up with new tax rules, and 5) taxes by default will take precedence over anything else you do because of the tax deadlines.

[@oliviasambo75]

Great great tips!

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Glad you think so!

[@noorhuda6555]

You are awesome

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Thank you!

[@dynamics9000]

You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don’t make money your goal. Instead, pursue the things you love doing, and then do them so well that people can’t take their eyes off you. --Maya Angelou,..,.,

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Thanks for sharing this great quote.

[@richardlebreton6690]

if you charge by the hour what you end up with is a client with a stopwatch looking over your shoulder.

[@richardlebreton6690]

of course my only (and first) client is by the hour but then they're smallest bill has been $840/week.

[@richardlebreton6690]

they have $50-60k/week a/r and payroll for 90-120 employees

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Absolutely.

[@5MinuteBookkeeping]

Ideally, you would want to move your hourly client to fixed pricing or to at least pay you in advance.

[@richardlebreton6690]

@@5MinuteBookkeeping I invoice them Tues/Wednesdays for the week (T-Th) so there's no risk of not getting paid.