What are your plans for the new year? Any business goals? New ways of working? Targets? Learning goals? Share them here then we can pull the thread at the end of the year and see how well we did.
My aim is to become more organised and develop better systems. When I started out I didn't have proper systems in place (though I thought I did), now that things are growing more quickly everything is falling apart. I am going to place more emphasis on planning and eveluation of work to make sure we can turn things around as quickly as we need to and can better plan for our quieter and busier times. I want to take another step back from day to day bookkeeping, I don't do a lot, but want to do less this year.
My target is to increase my turnover by 50% this year by pushing add on services.
Will you be looking to employ someone as well with that many or are you looking to do it all yourself?
I
Amanda
Currently have 43 clients but I think will lose a few going forward with businesses closing and people leaving as looking to save money. So think will have about 40 going forward.
Depends the split of what the client needs but think can comfortably manage between 100-150 clients.
Have no intention of employing anyone. As I said to the person I signed up tonight I like the personal touch so the client deals with me and only me. It also good from the fact that I know what is going on with all clients. Providing I keep my practice mangement up to date.
Bit of a salary drop given that I have given up my full time position and once January is by might look at doing a part time job until my own clients pick up.
As said the target is to get 5 new clients a month which I think is doable as in the last 3 months have signed up
Oct 9 clients
Nov 4 clients
Dec 7 clients
So averaging about 7 new clients over the last 3 months.
And given have more time to market myself, and get out and about at networking events etc then can only be of benefit.
As said will get January by as got loads to do before the 31st and then push on from there.
Want to also know about xero and kashflow so I am able to help those looking to deal on the cloud. Which I believe will be the main medium to account over the next 5-10 years.
Regards
Mark
-- Edited by MarkS on Thursday 27th of December 2012 11:46:26 PM
To be more organised and take on more clients and not to become complacent about the ones I have. Continually advertise (which is where I went wrong this year)! When I am quiet have a marketing plan and put it into action.
Just picked up 2 more clients this last 2 weeks and one is quite big so thats a good way to start the new year and guess what...... they are in a mess!
Make sure I ask the correct questions when I take on a new client so to make sure I don't get stitched up, and if any are really bad don't be afraid to tell them to %*#* off, luckily all my bad clients have gone, only one left now that isn't bad, just a pain to go and see every know and then, mind you she always pays so can't be bad!
Hopefully make lots more money!
(Que Bob????) Only joking!
Happy New year to you all and hope everyones businesses do well in the new year.
Will you be looking to employ someone as well with that many or are you looking to do it all yourself?
I am looking to grow mine in 2013, especially now the kids are getting abit older. I sat back abit this year as I had my finger in another pie for a while but now its back to concentrating on growing my business again.
Good luck with being Full-time self employed Mark.
After a few false starts, I'm studying again for the first time in umpteen years. I think I just came here originally to network but many of the people on this very thread have been a fount of knowledge and inspiration. I'm studying level 4 taxation with another illustrious forum member, Frauke Golding, so that's yet another way I have gained from being an active member.
I'll step up efforts to gain another source of steady income but think age (47) counts against me in the employment market. If it means getting a cabby licence, then at least I'll be in good company.
Ok, just going out to watch Neil spinning plates and Zorba dancing.
For once I actually did my own SA early, although I haven't paid it yet!!! Mine was done by mid September which is a record for me, so that's one less thing to worry about. Had to do it for a mortgage, which was good really as it pushed me into doing it.
you'll love QB once you get the hang of it.
Where's Bob, so you can break one of the 'Will nots'!
Hope you have a great year!
-- Edited by Amanda on Tuesday 1st of January 2013 04:20:19 PM
I would like to double my income from clients this year - that is a modest aim, really I should aim for 3 or 4 times! Last year my first year I have got 6 clients, varying from 2 days a month to a Self-Assessment (once a year client), averaging about 1 day month.
Good luck to you all with your aims and thank you for all the help and support I have had from this forum - it is appreciated.
And echoing Amanda's good wishes, a good year to one and all from me as well.
I finished turning the books delivered on Christmas eve into a set of accounts at five to midnight last night meaning that I went into the new year with a clean slate... Well, except for my own self assessment and if ever I did that before the last minute someone at HMRC would have a heart attack so I defer it for their own good.
This year I will not...
- use the word Draconian in the same sentence as ACCA regulation 8 - get wound up by Bob totally ignoring ethical standards - ridicule Sage purely for their awful licensing - State the obvious flaws in the whole concept of cloud software - Simply ignore site posts because they have Sage somewhere in the title - Not treat every thread on the site as a personal chat - Get dragged into another thread about how Birmingham is so much better in every way than Manchester (just seems like a statement of fact to me).
And I will...
- Apply the same advice that I give to clients to my own business. - Learn to use Quickbooks to the same proficiency as I use VT - Write some Macro's to get VT Accounts and Quickbooks to transfer data as quickly and seamlessly as possible - Network more and better - occassionally allow someone else to have the last post in a thread
So, is the book open yet as to how long it takes for me to break the will nots!... I would use hours rather than days as the yardstick to measure by.
More seriously though, wishing everyone and all of their families and clients a happy and prosperous new year,
kindest regards,
Shaun.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Shaun, Did you know that if you remove all the threads where you have the last word, argue with Bob and treat them as personal chats there are 3 left. In these you call ACCA reg 8 draconian, slag sage and state the cloud flaws.
