Perhaps more than any other industry, accounting constantly evolves due to changes in every far-reaching area it touches—from new compliance rules to upgraded fintech feats. These continual shifts and all their added stresses fall squarely on the shoulders of accounting professionals.
One of the most pervasive new pressures on accountants that you may have experienced is clients’ higher demand for consulting and advisory services alongside traditional CAS and tax work. While advisory might be work you welcome, it’s also a new expectation on top of the expertise and resources you and your staff are accustomed to providing.
Advancements and their drawbacks
Many factors have contributed to this new accounting landscape. The ability to use automation and AI/machine learning in accounting have added arguably the most definitive outlines to the latest shape of the industry. As with any change, though, these advancements present their own unique challenges in addition to their opportunities.
Rather than many manual hours spent preparing a tax return or creating forecasts from disparate data sources, for example, accountants can apply automation and machine learning to complete this work in a fraction of the time. But, this time savings often leads clients to minimize the value of accounting work. Firms now find they’re expected to fill this newfound “effort gap” with services that prove their worth as their clients’ trusted advisor.
The chain of demand for CAS
Business owners themselves face intense change and complexity in their own industries. Beyond AP/AR, bookkeeping, and payroll, they now look to their accountants for financial planning and risk management advice—not to mention actionable insights and analysis, growth goals, tech leadership, and overarching business strategy.
Accountants can take up this mantle as their clients’ reliable strategic advisor and partner, if their firms have the time and resources available. For many firms, that “if” depends on having enough staff to keep up with clients’ day-to-day tasks and ever-evolving financial needs. Now more than ever, firms need a scalable solution to meet demand.
Powering firms’ and their clients’ prosperity
At QuickBooks, we acknowledge and respect accountants’ relationships with their clients, and through our work we want to help these engagements thrive. We believe QuickBooks Live can help your firm get more done, freeing up more time for the strategic conversations your clients are craving.
Firms can turn to QuickBooks Live Expert Assisted* for support and extra assistance for clients in areas including:
- initial setup* and troubleshooting
- basic bookkeeping guidance
- QuickBooks product coaching
- workflow setup
As your client learns the most efficient ways to reap the benefits of QuickBooks, your firm regains time to focus on the big picture. This reclaimed time allows firms to meet clients’ advisory needs without overextending precious resources.
More about QuickBooks Live Expert Assisted
QuickBooks Live Expert Assisted lets you delegate repetitive tasks to Quickbooks-certified bookkeeping experts. They can answer a client’s questions using video, phone, and screen-share, without ever touching their books. In addition, you’ll always be in the know on each client’s calls with our experts. You’ll have access to automated call summaries, which show your client’s questions and how your QuickBooks Live expert responded. So you get scalable, expert-assisted support that aligns with your firm’s advisory offerings—without sacrificing client control. Your team can then focus on consulting and high-value advisory services, without increasing overhead.
Call summaries provide visibility on your client’s questions and how your QuickBooks Live expert responded.
QuickBooks Live Expert Assisted is designed to provide accountants with newfound flexibility, helping them manage routine work in order to prioritize client strategy. With it, your firm can count on partnership, support, and reliability where you need it most. Delegating support services to QuickBooks allows your firm to be a brighter lighthouse for your clients in a seascape of financial complexities and demands. You’ll be right there to deliver valuable insights and guidance that can help them survive—and thrive.
Learn more about QuickBooks Live.
*Important product information
QuickBooks Live Expert Assisted: This is a monthly subscription service offering your clients guidance on how to manage their books and requires an active QuickBooks Online subscription. You maintain full ownership and control of your client’s books. When your client requests a session with an expert, the expert can provide guidance on topics including product setup, bookkeeping automation, categorization, financial reports and dashboards, reconciliation, and workflow creation and management; and answer specific questions related to their books and business. Tax resource support is limited to common tax questions related to regulations, deadlines, deductions, business entity and business payment options. Some basic bookkeeping services may not be included and will be determined by the expert. The expert will provide help based on the information you or your client provides. These services may be subject to change at Intuit’s sole discretion.
QuickBooks Live Guided Setup: The QuickBooks Live Guided Setup is a one-time virtual session with a Live Expert. It’s available to new QuickBooks Online subscribers who are within the first 30 days of their subscription. The QuickBooks Live Guided Setup service includes: providing the customer with instructions on how to set up a chart of accounts; customized invoices and setup reminders; connecting bank accounts and credit cards. The QuickBooks Live Guided Setup does not include Payroll setup or additional services. Your bookkeeper will only guide the process of setting up a QuickBooks Online account. Service subject to availability and capacity and your ability to provide timely information and/or access.
