{"id":1002,"date":"2017-01-10T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-01-10T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/advisory-services-how-accountants-and-bookkeepers-can-stay-relevant-to-their-clients-and-remain-competitive-in-a-changing-world\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T05:31:45","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T10:31:45","slug":"advisory-services-how-accountants-and-bookkeepers-can-stay-relevant-to-their-clients-and-remain-competitive-in-a-changing-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/advisory-services-how-accountants-and-bookkeepers-can-stay-relevant-to-their-clients-and-remain-competitive-in-a-changing-world\/","title":{"rendered":"How accountants and bookkeepers can stay relevant in a changing world"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAccountants<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tHow accountants and bookkeepers can stay relevant in a changing world\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Ashley\t\t\t\tAshley Thompson<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Life for accountants and bookkeepers is changing: Your clients want to be continuously plugged in to their businesses so they can make better, more proactive decisions. That affects you because, with that new deluge of information, your clients want you to help them make sense of all that data. In short, your clients expect a more consultative level of service from their accountant. Are you prepared to help your clients navigate the ins and outs of running their businesses? Put another way, are you embracing the advisory services<\/em> that your clients expect from you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s no secret that new technologies like artificial intelligence, cloud-based technology, and blockchain, among others, are disrupting traditional accounting services. The accountant\u2019s and bookkeeper\u2019s core products\u2014including collating and analyzing information\u2014are under assault. Businesses want advice on what to do next, and they\u2019ll seek out accountants and bookkeepers who can offer actionable, proactive services that add value to their businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re talking about offering your clients advisory services<\/em>, which is a term you\u2019ve probably heard and read about quite a bit lately. Yet, despite its ubiquity, it\u2019s rare to find a concise definition of advisory services or a list of the kinds of services it entails. Whether you\u2019re an advisory services neophyte or you\u2019re already well immersed in this new paradigm, what follows is a practical definition of advisory services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The definition<\/strong>: Advisory services are consulting solutions in which an accounting professional or business consultant develops findings, conclusions, and recommendations that he or she presents to clients for consideration and decision making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do advisory services mean to your clients? It means they\u2019ll be getting services that include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

–Interpreting financial performance
\n–Monitoring performance as it happens
\n–Fixing financial problems before they even start
\n–Formulating proactive business plans
\n–Providing accountability to goal achievement<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a good idea for accountants and bookkeepers to think of the services listed above (and others like them) as the new \u201ccore\u201d services you offer. Doing so will make your practice more competitive and relevant to your clients; moreover, your clients will get peace of mind that someone is looking out for their business so they can focus their efforts on their customers and doing what it is they do best\u2014running their business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might be thinking, however, that just because accountants and bookkeepers are talking a lot about advisory services these days, how do we know that\u2019s what clients actually want? Well, let\u2019s consider why small-to-medium businesses switch accountants and bookkeepers. According to research like that done by The Sleeter Group<\/a>, the top reason businesses leave their accountants is that their \u201cformer CPA didn\u2019t give proactive advice, only reactive service.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The same Sleeter Group study shows that, when asked a question that calls for an affirmative answer\u2014\u201cWhat types of services would you like to receive from your CPA?\u201d\u2014 small-to-medium businesses clearly desire what we think of as advisory services: the top four services sought are business planning; business strategy; creating dashboards to monitor client business; and business analytics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clearly, the services small-to-medium businesses want today don\u2019t fit the traditional mold of core services that accountants and bookkeepers have provided in years past. Although the findings outlined above may be surprising, or even concerning, it\u2019s important to remember that with change comes opportunity. It\u2019s up to you whether you\u2019ll be on the growth side of change as these trends intensify.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Grow your practice with Sage accountant software<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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CPAs and accountants can trust Sage\u2019s tools and resources to grow their accounting firms and better serve clients.<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLearn more<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Browse more topics from this article<\/h3>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t
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