Setting Client Expectations And Managing Boundaries
What is the best way to watch a fly fishing tournament?
Live stream!
I have written previously that my husband, Jeff, has a few organizational quirks, such as not embracing naming conventions, but he excels at setting expectations and enforcing boundaries.
He has a fly fishing guiding company, Calmwaters Fly Fishing, which is committed to the preservation of fish for generations to come, so they are a catch-and-release guiding company and use barbless hooks on their flies.
He gets many inquiries from anglers who would like to keep their fish, and he always says no to these requests
Always…
He also decided to stop offering corporate events and drift boat days.
The boat guides were long, arduous days
Wrangling a herd of his corporate customers’ customers grew old
Getting waivers signed, managing food preferences and making sure everyone was in line with catch-and-release was complicated as communications had to be handled by his corporate customers
It took too many of his guides off other days as the ratio of guides to anglers is higher with corporate events
He needed to have much more equipment to accommodate the groups (4 - 6 pairs of waders in each size, for example), and the acquiring and upkeep of the equipment was costly and space-hogging
The cost of insurance for these services was becoming prohibitive
It’s hard to say no!
His guiding company was closed on and off during Covid (Ontario, Canada, was locked down especially hard) and was really only getting back up again last summer and fully rolling this summer. So turning away customers is a tough nut. A lot of people are itching to get back out on the rivers with guides, too, so he feels bad he can’t accommodate them. But he has moved along with his boundaries around service offerings and what to expect on the river nonetheless.
He manages all this in a number of ways.
His website is very clear about the catch-and-release policy
With not just the policy statement but also a quick why
It is stated on his site in a number of places
He lists his services very clearly on his website
He has a “what to bring” note on his site stating what Calmwaters supplies and what the angler needs to bring
He has a pre-guide day email, text and/or phone call setting the expectations of the day and re-iterating his boundaries call re-iterating his boundaries
He talks about fish preservation on his social media and in any filming he does
Fish is all about the pics, it seems, so he is Mr. Instagram (social media 101 - know your audience, and go where they hang out)
There are lessons to be learned from Jeff’s setting expectations and managing his boundaries.
You have to know what they are
You have to document them
You have to enforce them
Many accounting professionals are lousy at this.
We know there is a shortage of us, so we want to help everyone. We don’t want to turn away clients because letting go of revenue sucks. We offer way too many services in our firms, so they become unmanageable and often unprofitable.
We haven’t nailed down and documented who our 5-Star Clients are, so setting up how to manage our working relationship with them is messy and hard to record - let alone communicate and implement.
My advice here is to start small.
I’m not even going to harass you about crafting your 5-Star Client. But I am going to suggest you pick just one or two things you should either stop doing with your clients or stop letting your clients do to you. They can be services to dismiss, ways clients are communicating and sharing with you, hours you are working…
And here is a little freebie download to get you started, my “Managing Client Expectations Worksheet”.
Featured Template
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Featured Template ~~~
The 5 Star Client Worksheet is a framework for creating a profile of your ideal client.
Map out who you want to work with, what work you want to do, and where you want to do it from - so that you can spend your days in a business you love.
Do you really want to spend your day with clients who don't fit?
Who don't value you?
Who don't pay you enough?
Who you don't get along with?
And how about the drudgery of doing tasks and work you loathe?
Take the time to identify the type of work you like to do, and the traits and characteristics of the businesses, tech, and people you want to work with. This will make your business infinitely more enjoyable... and profitable.
Created by accounting professionals, the 5 Star Client Profile worksheet helps you dig deep to profile businesses, tech, and people you want to work with. To make your business infinitely more enjoyable... and profitable.
What you get:
This worksheet is provided as a Google Form to help guide you through the process of identifying important aspects of what makes a 5 Star Client.
If you've ever tried to do this yourself, you'll know that it can be hard to get clarity when we are so deep in the weeds of our own businesses. This worksheet will challenge you to really question the type of work you want to do and who you want to do it with. It will present ideas you may not have even thought of, and will ask you to question all the things you think you should be doing.
Building the business you love takes intention, and it begins with identifying your 5 Star Client Profile. Watch the short video overview of this worksheet here.
Monday, August 28 - Wednesday, August 30th
Discount code for the $649 deal for registration (current registration is $799) - SPKR649BTG
The Unique CPA’s 3rd annual conference is set to make history this year with its highly anticipated first-ever in-person gathering.
I am stoked to be on the Advisory Panel and part of a talk there.
Take advantage of an exceptional opportunity to experience three days of meaningful discussion and interaction in our nation’s charming Windy City, Chicago, Illinois. This is your chance to link arms with colleagues from diverse backgrounds and come together for a common purpose – to learn, network, bridge generational gaps, prioritize health, and find success! You don’t want to miss the ultimate collaborative conference – see you in Chicago!
I will be on a panel on Wednesday the 30th, 3:00 - 4:00 pm, with some very cool cats - Blake Oliver, Jason Staats, and Kenji “KK” Kuramoto - Accounting in the Age of AI: Unraveling the Future Landscape and Possibilities.
Sociable
- said in your head in a loud sing-songy voice
#TaxTwitter had it’s first retreat, and I was FOMO’g hard! Follow along and consider joining in next year.
Struggling with app overwhelm, workflow issues, best practices for systems and using apps to their fullest? Join us in the Facebook group The Workflow Wateringhole to collaborate with acct’g pros and app partners.
Simply yours, Kellie :-}
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