The Virtuous Cycle Of Quality Client Service
“Ask any business owner what they want from their accountant and they’ll tell you, ‘I just wish they’d return my phone calls.’ The industry is setting a low standard for us.”
Those were the words of a founding partner during my October 2012 interview at the accounting firm where I started my career. At first it seemed far-fetched that other professionals would allow such small and simple things to make or break the service experience they provide, but fast forward 6 years and it seems the consumers of accounting services agree with him.
At a networking event in October 2018, with my ear being talked off by a financial advisor eager to sell his services to anyone and everyone there, I back towards a table and sit down. The first conversation eventually ends. Next, I turn around and a woman, who I’ll soon learn is the COO of an ambitious SaaS cyber security startup, greets me:
She asks: “What do you do?”
Me: I explain that I’m at a startup firm that specializes in outsourced accounting & CFO services.
She says: “Our outsourced CFO is always late delivering our monthly financial statements, then he no-shows for the monthly meetings we schedule before reporting results to our board and investors. Is that similar to the type of work you do? We should talk.”
Me: “Yes, we should…”
Although this company enjoyed working with us and complimented us frequently on the quality and timeliness of our service, they developed a new product for government defense contractors which requires a specialized accounting methodology that we didn’t provide.
And thus the client relationship ended approximately 1 year later. Immediately prior to that in January 2020, however, they introduced us to their founder’s 2nd company, which soon became another client of my firm at that time and remains so more than 5 years later.
Fast-forward another 2 ½ years to September 2022, the finance VP, hired subsequent to our involvement, from the first client company cold contacts our firm for help with a new startup public policy SaaS company where he’s just been hired. We had no direct connection with him, but our prior contacts spoke well of us. It started another excellent client relationship that remains ongoing to this day.
In another 2 years, that person exited the client company where he hired us, then began to work directly with senior financial executive users of a financial modeling product provided by his new company. 6 months later, he introduces me to the COO of a personal finance startup tech company.
(Of course, there’s much more to the story of the personal finance startup. It’s too much to add to this long post, but I share it in detail here.)
From one, many. And the family tree branches out farther and farther as we install optimal accounting & finance processes for each new business we’re introduced to.
Our goal is to provide quality, timely, accurate, and friendly service. The results speak for themselves and the benefits ripple out across time and across the people we interact with. I took the philosophy of my first firm’s partner’s words to heart. I’ve adopted the best practices I learned there, left behind what didn’t resonate with me or my clients, and created a new service experience to share with you at The Virtuous Cycle.
We pride ourselves on the results our clients achieve and the positive impact that our service has on their businesses and their lives. Consistent and timely deliverables, quality and accurate work, tax savings and profit-improvement ideas, and a memorable service experience. That’s what’s important to me and what I aim to provide to you.
Care to experience it for yourself? Reach out to learn why our customers keep coming back and keep recommending us to others who they’re responsible for helping. We’ll even give you a free preview of how we can help you succeed.