How can accountancy practices offer more services & increase revenue?

A growing number of accountancy practices are aware of a need to offer clients a new way to handle their finances as they outgrow existing software.

iplicit was created to fill a large gap in the market between entry-level accounting systems and the expensive, enterprise-level packages which are a step too far for many growing organisations.

That makes iplicit particularly well suited to the mid-market enterprises who are an increasingly important client base for many accountancy practices.

The advantages apply to a traditional accountant-client relationship, but also to the outsourcing of an organisation’s finance functions to a trusted accountancy practice.

What sort of clients can iplicit help?

Some of the most ambitious and fastest-expanding organisations in the business landscape are those which have outgrown entry-level software such as QuickBooks or Xero, or are struggling with “on-premise” finance solutions which are no longer up to the job.

They need more sophisticated software which can handle the complex requirements of a growing organisation – but they are not necessarily the right customers for expensive, enterprise level systems such as Sage Intacct, Microsoft Dynamics or NetSuite. 

There are some key signs that iplicit might be the right solution:

• The client is part of a group, so their consolidated reporting requirements are more complex than the entry-level system can handle.
• The client is looking for more meaningful, real-time data from their system across a range of analysis codes.
• The client is keen to save staff time by automating month-end tasks such as accruals, prepayments, and revenue recognition.
• The client is a charity or non-profit organisation, which needs to handle reporting requirements such as SORP (Statement of Recommended Practice) and SOFA (Statement of Financial Activities).
• Managing the digital landscape has become trickier as different applications have been stitched together to create the required solution.
  
  

The key benefits of iplicit for the client

Thousands of users have saved many hours of staff time and benefited from better data about their organisations’ performance thanks to iplicit’s software.

• iplicit offers a “one system” environment, pulling together information from a group of entities when required. So consolidated reporting, intercompany eliminations and multi-currency reporting are easily handled and turned into clear balance sheets and profit margins.
• The software includes complete and comprehensive project costing and job costing throughout the system, along with unlimited analysis codes, rather than the limited number of tracking categories provided in entry-level products.  
• This allows the user to “slice and dice” data in a host of ways in real time, rather than by manipulating their data in spreadsheets.
• Implementation is rapid – an average of 16 billable days, compared with 50-100 days for the enterprise-level systems.
• Licence fees are affordable and compare very favourably with those high-end solutions as well.

How iplicit can help when finance functions are outsourced

Outsourcing an organisation’s finance function is an increasingly attractive option for client and accountant alike.

Traditionally, most outsourcing arrangements have been built around entry-level systems like QuickBooks and Xero, and there have been a lot of accountancy firms competing to offer those solutions to SMEs.

But some of the most attractive opportunities for outsourced arrangements involve the mid-market businesses who are better catered for by iplicit’s product. For clients of this size, the outsourced finance function can work in collaboration with their practice’s other offerings, such as audit, tax and corporate finance expertise. 

And at a time when accountancy staff are hard to find and recruit, the time-saving features of iplicit can make the practice’s operation more efficient too – allowing the firm to service the same number of clients with a smaller team, or more clients with the same headcount. 

How accountancy practices work with iplicit

iplicit works with accounting practices in three main ways through its accountancy partnership programme.

• A referral scheme: An accounting partner suggests a client who has not previously spoken to iplicit but might benefit from its system. 
• An implementation partnership: Similar to the referral scheme, except that the accountancy practice is involved in some or all of the implementation. This presents an opportunity for accountancy firms who may have already built a team that implements Xero or QuickBooks and a selection of other apps, but find it challenging to build a team to implement products like NetSuite or Dynamics for their clients. iplicit is also looking to outsource some of its own implementations to a selection of accountancy practices, allowing them to forge new relationships with mid-market organisations.
• An outsourced offering: This means iplicit becoming the go-to mid-market product for an outsourcing department, enabling the accountancy practice to build a whole service offering around its software and creating a promising area for growth with mid-market businesses and groups of companies.

Find out more about iplicit’s offering for accountancy practices during our on-demand webinar devoted to the topic.

Ready to explore iplicit in more detail?

Use the button below to request your demo and our Partner Manager, Matt Lewns, will be touch via email to arrange a time and date that suits you.