Welcome to Elite Financial Firm Success Stories!

We are excited to start sharing our success stories on our blog. We hope you enjoy them. So let’s get started with our first client success story.

In May of 2017, we started working with a client that originally had a full time bookkeeper on-site and on their payroll. Unfortunately, their bookkeeper became ill and would be unable to return to work. The client came across our information and reached out to us.

They were on a limited budget and had no backup for their previous bookkeeper. They needed help quickly and they wanted someone to do the bookkeeping at their location.

Luckily we were able to put together a plan for them that not only allowed us to provide someone to do their bookkeeping on-site but we saved them a significant amount of money in the process.

Let’s check out the breakdown for the cost savings and the value added for our client.

• Elite Financial Firm was able to provide bookkeeping services at the clients location as requested. (Please note that on-site bookkeeping is only available to local clientele).
• We were able to provide the client with an outstanding associate that has an exceptional background in Accounting & Bookkeeping. The associate was able to make an immediate positive impact on the clients situation.
• Elite Financial Firm was able to reduce their bookkeeping to 1 day (8 hours) per week. (They previously had a full time bookkeeper that came in 5 days (40 hours) per week).
• This client now has a backup in the event that one of our associates is not available. We have multiple associates trained on the clients specific processes and procedures.

• Cost Savings – Annual Bookkeeping Services – $ 34,800.00. Healthcare – $ 10,000.00. Unemployment Insurance and Payroll Tax (Social Security and Medicare) Savings – $2,800.00

That is an annual cost savings for our client of $ 47,600.00. For a small business, that is big money!

We recently spoke with the client to get an update. The client expressed great relief and gratitude for our exceptional services. The client thanked us immensely and said that they would have never thought that they could have afforded this type of partnership.

Not only could they afford top notch service, Elite Financial Firm was able to reduce their costs.

The new cost savings allowed the owner to take a much needed vacation!! Our client can also rest easy and enjoy his much needed time away because he can trust that Elite Financial Firm will keep his financials running while he is away.

We hope to share many more of these stories as we continue to grow with our clients and partners.

If you are looking for accounting and bookkeeping services, then give us a call at 844-512-7467.

**Disclaimer – we have intentionally left out the clients information as to protect their privacy.

In working with Franchisors and Franchisees, we have observed an alarming trend that prompts the question…..Do you know the health of your business?

We have noticed that when a business decides to franchise, they are leaving out a critical part when building the operational support area of their franchise structure.

The franchisor attempts to cover several areas that include: legal, real estate support, lending assistance, payroll & HR but they are forgetting the main ingredient to running any business.

Accounting & Bookkeeping

If you do not have accounting and bookkeeping in your operational support, then you are putting the business at risk and hindering your ability to have visibility to the health of your business.

Simply stated Accounting & Bookkeeping = Health of your business or franchise.

There are many franchisors that leave it up to the franchisee to “figure it out”. I have heard this response on numerous occasions and I always ask why they leave this critical component out. Most respond with “we don’t have a vendor or preferred partner that offers these services”. Franchise owners seem to think that building a relationship with an accounting & bookkeeping  partner may be lengthy, cumbersome and risky.

Let’s address these 3 myths:  lengthy, cumbersome and risky.

• Lengthy – Franchisor’s feel that the process to find the “right” accounting & bookkeeping firm could be a lengthy process that may in some way hold up their ability to bring their franchise to market quickly. This is myth #1.
  • Yes, it takes time to find and interview potential vendors/partners but not any longer than it takes to build any other vendor/partner relationship. You can always ask business colleagues or friends with businesses for referrals and start there.

• Cumbersome – Franchisor’s think that the process will be cumbersome because they don’t have the knowledge base to know if the products offered by the vendor/partner will meet their franchisees needs. This is myth #2.
  • If the franchisor takes a step back, they absolutely know the answer to this question. After all, they usually own the exact same business and therefore have an intimate understanding of what is needed to help the franchisee.
  • Another way to address it is to include your franchisee in the process. One of our franchise owners had a mandatory conference call between corporate and the franchisees. He polled the franchisees and asked them if an accounting and bookkeeping service would be useful and  how much they would be willing to pay per month for these services. The overwhelming response was YES, they needed the service!  The pricing feedback they gave the franchisor gave the corporate office an opportunity to have custom packages built around the pricing structure that the franchisees could afford. This was a very successful strategy for the franchisor.

• Risky– Some franchise owners shared concern that picking an accounting & bookkeeping firm could be risky for the corporate office. What if something happened and the vendor/partner made an error? Could corporate be held responsible since they recommended or mandated the vendor/partner? This is myth #3.
  • First, in order to avoid potential issues, we suggest that you do NOT mandate a vendor/partner unless there is some type of legal agreement in place protecting the corporate office from such backlash. We also suggest that you choose a reputable accounting & bookkeeping firm that maintains E&O insurance (professional liability insurance) to protect  the clients from any type of errors that could occur.
  • It is far more risky to allow your franchisees to ignore their accounting & bookkeeping needs because they are swamped with trying to keep the day to day business running. We encourage you to help them as much as possible to avoid potential pitfalls that could occur from neglecting the financial health of their business.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself as the franchisor:

1. Did you give them all of the tools they needed to be successful?
2. Did you try to cover all of the areas where they will need support?
3. Is your franchise truly turn key? meaning  you have ALL of the bases covered.
4. Do you offer benchmarking so that the franchisee can see their performance and growth?
5. Does your franchisee have visibility to their profit & loss and income statements on a regular basis?
6. Will your franchisees refer other potential owners to you because of the exceptional operational support they receive?

There are many items that are left unanswered without the appropriate accounting & bookkeeping support. Here are some additional tips to consider.

• The right firm should be offering general bookkeeping functions.
• The right firm should be monitoring the health of the business for the franchisee by reviewing the profit & Loss and income statements on a regular basis (preferably monthly). They should then be notifying the franchisee of things that look out of place like higher expenses in specific areas, decreased revenue or other areas of concern.
• The right firm should offer benchmarking between locations.
• The right firm should have professional liability insurance.
• The right firm should be pro-active instead of reactive. Offering solutions to potential issues before they occur.
• To sum it all up, the right firm should be an active partner for your franchisee’s business.

Overall, the success of your franchisee’s will be a direct reflection of the franchisor.

So I ask one last time…. Do you know the health of your franchise or business?

If the answer is no, then it’s time to make a change. Let’s move in a positive direction and get you on the right track!

Elite Financial Firm is here to help! We can discuss your needs and setup custom packages that will be beneficial to the franchisee and the franchisor.

You can contact us or give us a call at 844-512-7467

Oh how we love this question!

I must admit that I get this question along with several others on a regular basis and our company, Elite Financial Firm spends a significant amount of time trying to understand and combat the thinking behind it.

So let’s dive in…..

What have we learned when speaking to potential clients and partners regarding why they think their accountant or bookkeeper should be local?

There are actually several factors. Here are some of the questions they ask.

1. How can we do business successfully if you are not local?
2. How can we accomplish daily tasks if you are not sitting in our office?
3. How do I get documents to you?
4. How secure is my data?

Let’s explore the answers to theses common questions.

• How can we do business successfully if you are not local?
  • This one is pretty simple. Technology! Elite Financial Firm uses QuickBooks online, which is cloud based. The online version also includes an app that is highly efficient! More to come on the app later…..Imagine the possibilities that exist when you have the opportunity to collaborate with highly skilled teams instead of being limited to local talent only.

• How can we accomplish daily tasks if you are not sitting in our office?
  • Again….another point for Technology! The thought of someone having to sit in a clients office is a very “old school” way of thinking. Technology has changed in such a way that allows clients a more innovative and creative way of doing business. Our goal is to provide our partners and clients with a virtual environment that fosters collaboration. We do that by presenting webinars, keeping in touch via email, automation, providing them with cloud based tools and by simply picking up the phone to check in on them. While we may not be sitting right next to our clients, we provide them with multiple avenues to reach us so that they always know that we are there for them.

• How do I get documents to you?
  • Keeping with the theme…….Technology! As I mentioned earlier, QuickBooks provides an app that allows clients to simply take a picture with their phone of receipts and documents.  Elite Financial Firm clients upload this data using the app and we are able to immediately see the information. Upon receipt of the uploaded data, we move forward with processing it accordingly. Our clients are always amazed at how simple the process is!

• How secure is my data?
  • Technology is on a winning streak! With our accounting software, QuickBooks Online, everything is encrypted with bank level 256 bit encryption! They also provide automatic backups of your data, not just 1, not even 2 but 3 backups in 3 separate places. In addition, because your data isn’t stored on your computer or server, you can continue to work if either of those sources are compromised. Overall, QuickBooks is all about ensuring your data is not only secure but that it is protected. What a great disaster recovery plan! You can checkout more details about QuickBooks security here.

In conclusion, it comes down to a mindset that feeds the thought process of                       

“we have always done it that way”.

Success comes in many shapes and sizes but one thing will always hold true.

The Same Old Thinking = The Same Old Results!

We encourage you to think outside the box and learn more about how virtual accounting & bookkeeping services with Elite Financial Firm can take your business or franchise to the next level!

Innovative, Creative & Forward thinking will not flourish in a complacent mind.

If you are ready to make a positive change for your business, then Elite Financial Firm can definitely help. The process of moving to a virtual environment will be straightforward and simple.

We have highly qualified associates with innovative solutions to help guide you through the financial maze of running your business.

When it comes to financials, we have you covered!

Give us a call at 844-512-7467 or contact us online at Elite Financial Firm