Golden Practices

Don't Make it Hard to Call You!

Warning: brief but hearty rant ahead!

Please, for Pete's sake, add your phone number to your email signature! 

Need I say more??

Okay, I will... Your clients will appreciate it. Your vendors will appreciate it. Even your mother will appreciate it. If you have an email signature and your phone number is not in it, you need to step into the 21st century and add it.

And if you communicate with people outside of your state, you really, really should add your timezone! If you communicate with people outside of your country, use GMT.

{stepping gingerly off of soap box}

Team VeraSage

Left to right (front) Dan Morris of CA, Paul O'Byrne of UK, Ed Kless of TX. (middle) Ron Baker of CA, Michelle Golden of MO, Yan Zhu of New Zealand, Chris Marston of MA, Paul Kennedy of UK. (back) Daryl Golemb of CA, Brendon Harrex of New Zealand, Peter Byers of New Zealand, Tim McKey of LA. Not pictured: Justin Barnett, Tim Williams and Scott Abbott.

An historic event, almost all the Founders and Fellows of VeraSage gathered together last weekend in Las Vegas to discuss the think tank, progress of our quest, and future purpose of our organization. More details soon (at Verasage.com).

Using Blogs for Internal Communication and Collaboration

Time for a "best of" post! So many great blogs out there, so much good info to read.

Here's an excerpt from a can't miss post, How to Use Blogs in the Workplace, from Rod Boothby of Innovation Creators:

Do you know how to use blogs within your organization to help you get work done?

There are plenty of blogs out there that can tell you how to use blogs as a PR and marketing tool to communicate with your clients. But, when people actually think about getting work done within the organization, not a lot has been written.

IMHO, Boothby is THE authority on leveraging blog techology for internal infrastructure so pour over every word.

When you're done absorbing this excellent information, check out his Whitepapers, particularly the one on Turning Knowledge Workers into Innovation Creators (pdf).

St Louis Bloggers

My favorite two-city working-mom and delightful blogger, Marijean Jaggers has announced a St Louis blogger drink-fest gathering. 

• Friday, Oct. 26,
• 6pm-9pm
• Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Ave. (at Manchester) Maplewood, Mo.

Marijean writes the uplifting, smart and hysterical STL Working Mom and also Where Do You Stand, a newish blog by Standing Partnership, a St Louis PR firm for whom she works (from Charlottesville, VA...long story, read her blog...). Many of you will remember Marijean from her thoroughly enjoyable shopping column for the Post.

First of all, I can't wait to meet Marijean in person. But I'm also looking forward to meeting others who know and admire her.

Also, it's high time for our previous St. Louis bloggin' fools to reconnect in person. So, Mary Ann Richmond, Scott Ginsberg, Dennis Kennedy, George Lenard, Evan Schaeffer, Matt Homann, Randy Holloway...what say you?

And, I hope Bionic Beauty (local shopping/beauty tip queen) will come, too. I think you and Marijean will get a long great!

Anybody else?

Matt Homann on Fixed Pricing in Advance

Matt Homann on why he, as a lawyer, moved to fixed pricing. This is from an interview for his profile in ABA Law Practice Magazine

LPM:  How did you come by your understanding that a better way to practice law was to stop flogging hours?

MH: If necessity is the mother of invention, my inability to keep great timesheets was at least one of the motivating factors in my looking for a different economic model for my practice.

I also realized that I could never recoup any investment I made in becoming a more efficient lawyer unless I raised my rate or charged for the work I did differently.

Raising my rate was out of the question because as a young lawyer in a small community, my hourly rate was in essence capped by the amounts the other lawyers were charging in my town. Instead, I decided that if I were able to charge a flat fee for the work I did, then any benefit of becoming more efficient at delivering it had a direct impact on my bottom line.

Another unexpected benefit was that I could charge more for the work and that clients—happy to know the price of the work up front—were more eager to pay.

Gary Boomer on Pricing for Value

I've got to hand it to Gary. He wrote a brief but meaty article that appears in the Oct 8 Accounting Today (on-line at WebCPA "Pricing for Value") about intellectual capital and firms innovating to price on value captured for clients, and not efforts.

In his article, Gary writes: 

People create intellectual capital, yet many firms allow that intellectual capital to leave when people leave. They don't even account properly (from an economic sense) for intellectual capital - they expense it. They should take the time to package, name and differentiate unique processes. Much of what firms "give away" is what the client really values.

He's so right.

Gary goes on to list several steps to take to start thinking and operating in this newer, better way. Numerous firms really are doing it. Others who are thinking about it wonder, "how."

Select a "value champion" for your firm...This person should communicate frequently with clients and determine their perceptions. More importantly, she should understand each client's dangers, opportunities and strengths...By doing so, it is easier to provide services that clients perceive as valuable. (Many of these have less risk and greater margins than compliance services.)

Assign an intellectual capital task force. This team should inventory intellectual capital, then document, name and package it so that the firm can train to unique processes and price on value, rather than hours multiplied by dollars.

Reach outside the firm for help. Don't continue to let old paradigms limit value and profitability. Even though people mean well, it is what they don't know they don't know that costs them - and limits their growth and value. Get coaching, read and educate yourself.

Define the profile of your firm's ideal clients and filter out those who do not fit it. The plans, people, processes, technology and pricing that got you to this level will not enable you to transform into the emerging industry.

Embrace a training/learning culture. In such a culture, everyone learns and everyone teaches. It is a two-way street. Thorough training encompasses much more than technical continuing professional education - it also includes soft skills, as well as technology.

My friend and fellow VeraSage Fellow, Tim McKey (from Baton Rouge, LA) says, "I'd rather sleep under a bridge than go back to billing by the hour." If that doesn't convey how much of an improvement value pricing is, I don't know what will.

Gary says, above: "Reach outside the firm for help."

On Monday, Oct 22, in Las Vegas, meet and hear from Tim McKey and many others who have taken the path Gary describes (including me).  If you really are curious about "how" you need to be in Las Vegas.

At least 7 or 8 VeraSage Fellows (from Accounting & Law) and several employees of these Fellows' firms will be there. The night before and the evening of the 22nd, many of us will be hanging out at a Rio lounge to talk with attendees.

It's a rare opportunity to have a whole bunch of "converts" in one place. Do come! And pick our brains.

Spend the day at the Rio with VeraSage. Seriously, it's only $129 (just to cover room & A/V costs...not to make $$). (Rio room nights Sun and Mon are about $100.)

Go here to sign up:  https://www.onlineregistrationcenter.com/register.asp?m=187&c=53

Gary, I hope you'll come, too!

Smiles Sell

I've been poking around the web looking at lots of biography photos lately and I'm astounded at how many people select portraits of themselves with no "teeth" showing or without any hint of smile.

Looking at pictures of people I know -- professionals in accounting, law, financial advisory services, etc -- and seeing them stone faced leaves me cold. I can only imagine how someone who's never met them might feel.

It's a tough world out there. We all want to work with people who add a little brightness to our day.

Smiling, even a little, in your bio picture suggests you're a positive person who might be enjoyable to do business with.

If you think I'm nuts, consider babies and dogs. When you smile genuinely at them, babies light up...they beam back at you, gurgling and laughing. And (most) dogs will wag their tails and approach you. Guess what? Same thing happens with grown-ups!

Why not up your chances of business people approaching you, too, by exhibiting a nice, friendly smile.