Whether or not you choose to hire an accountant for your small business is a personal choice. Some business owners use online software or an in-house staff accountant, while others choose to outsource the work to someone external. Technology now even allows accountants to serve as virtual CFOs, providing high-level advice alongside accounting software. Whichever path you are on, if you do decide to move forward with hiring outside help, choosing the right accountant is one of the most important decisions you will ever have to make for your business.
With so much at stake and an overwhelming amount of information to sort through, what is the best way to start your search? Based on trends in the industry, along with the changing demands of consumers in recent years, the most effective way to find an accountant for your small business is to start looking at reviews.
Why are reviews the most important factor when looking for an accountant?
Reviews have become a normal (and necessary) part of daily life for the average consumer. When you go to make any purchase -- especially the most important ones with a high price tag -- you probably check the reviews on various sites. You, like most people, trust the words of your fellow consumers more than you trust what a company is telling you about their own product.
While some may say the first thing business owners should do when hiring an accountant is to look at listings of Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) or Enrolled Agents (EAs - specific to tax) in their area, we strongly believe that some of the most important insight a potential client needs to know about an accountant can be found in their reviews online. Prospective clients trust online reviews because they want transparency from local businesses, no matter if those reviews come from from other business owners, neighbors, friends, or on social media sites like Facebook and Nextdoor.
Want to know if past clients would recommend them? Check the reviews. Curious about the types and sizes of businesses they've worked with in the past? See who's reviewing them. Looking for information on their communication style and how they utilize technology? Reviews.
When consumers want to know what it is actually like to work with a certain accounting professional, there is no better way to see the full picture than through reviews, background screenings, and seeing if the pro has high topic authority (i.e. social proof). Current clients provide insight about how it is to work with a professional far better than any advertisement.
According to a 2018 survey by BrightLocal, most consumers read an average of 10 online reviews before they feel able to trust a local business, and 86% of people read online reviews for businesses at least occasionally. So, if you are like the average consumer, looking at reviews for an accountant is a great way to get a feel for whether or not they would be a good fit for your business. Plus, with how much is at stake in an accountant/business owner relationship, you can rest assured that if an accounting pro does a really great job (or a really terrible job), someone will probably have left a review for you to read. Reviews mean that consumers are in control of how they interact with brands more than ever before. If the information is there, why wouldn't you take advantage of it?
What about the other considerations when hiring an accountant?
The great thing about reviews is that you can find almost any information you need within the body of reviews people write. Plus, review pages for accountants should list their certifications (e.g. CPA, EA, etc.), location, firm affiliation, any industries they specialize in, and maybe even a background check. For an example of a public listing where you can see everything in one place, check out the CountingWorks profile of one of our Top 50 professionals of 2018, Rudolph Isaacs, CPA. As you can see, the “thumbs up” over his profile photo indicates that he is a verified professional, so he has been vetted and background checked by the CountingWorks team. If you scroll down, you can also see the glowing reviews he has received, his areas of expertise, services offered, location, contact information, and even links to his blog and social media profiles so you can check if he has high topic authority (spoiler alert: he does).
When hiring an accountant, the factors to consider will vary widely based on your business needs, but the relevance of reviews will remain the same. Every accountant who is keeping up with the trends in the industry (i.e. building up their reviews) should have plenty of evaluations for you to find your facts from, so make sure you take advantage of the information.
If you have already gotten to the point where a decision has been made to hire an accountant, bookkeeper, or virtual CFO, then diving into reviews is the perfect way to find a professional that is the right fit for your business. If you are looking for help from a cloud accounting expert, use our CountingWorks search engine to get started on finding the perfect professional today.
About Lauren Detweiler
I am equal parts marketer, traveler, and writer, and I've been doing all three for as long as I can remember. I have spent most of my time since graduating university traveling and working remotely in Africa and Europe. My passion lies in conveying the right messaging to the right people, and being a part of the CountingWorks and TaxBuzz team means I get to do that not only for our company, but for clients across the country as well.
