One Accountant surveys his top clients before buying an App
One question that firms frequently ask is “Will my clients want an App”? And that’s fair, after all you have coped well enough this long without one.
So why change that now?
During one such conversation with a forward-thinking partner of a small accountancy firm he suggested he would survey his clients. Before agreeing to purchase an App he wanted to share his idea with his clients and take the time out to consider what they wanted and thought about the idea.
So off his own back, Mark took a few moments to pen an email and he sent his idea out to over 100 of his clients.
What happened next amazed Mark!
Within a few hours of sending the email, more than 20 of Mark’s clients had responded. The entire exercise actually helped his clients feel involved and part of the decision making process. But was their feedback positive? Did they really want to have an App from their accountants?
Here are their comments
“I think this is indeed a VERY good idea!!!”
“I can honestly say, I would use all of the suggested app features.”
“I can’t think of anything else that it could involve, really! But yes, yes, YES! GREAT IDEA – DO IT!”
“This actually sounds quite useful! Love the idea of the receipt photos and date reminders; I’m so bad with remembering to keep receipts. Would it be free though? I know a lot of people don’t like buying apps…”
“I think it would be a good idea :)”
“It would make me more likely to keep records as I go”
“Yes, would deffo use it.. text alerts for key dates, tax tables, and the receipt uses.. all in all a great idea”
“That sounds amazing! I would definitely download it and probably use about half of what it could offer, as not all of it applies to me.”
“Great idea Mark. And all of the features sound useful especially anything that helps with calculations and payments. Maybe the app could include some easy way to pay for your services too? Just a thought.”
“Regarding your survey on the phone app I think it’s a great idea, especially the idea for linking receipts straight to the company – I look forward to it becoming a reality!”
“You could also have downloadable yearly spreadsheet templates and a function connected to your money saving pay monthly fee options.”
“Sounds good Mark. Would probably use all of it. Exciting times!”
“I like the idea a lot. I’d probably use the photo receipt management, reminder of key dates and the blog most.”
“Everything about this sounds brilliant. That’s all I really have to offer haha!”
“I think it sounds like a great idea! Good thinking! I’d probably use features 1,2,5,6,7 Feature 3 sounds brilliant but a little too fiddly/technical for me. Some kind of alert with the app that notifies users when a new tip/news was added could be useful. Just a thought!
“Speaking as a Blackberry user, I imagine the thing you’ll notice immediately is that if it is limited to the iPhone, you’ll lose a few of your target audience! (Having said that I imagine we’ll be iPhone users before too long as Blackberry are going out of the non-commercial business.)”
“The photographing of receipts is a brilliant idea. Mileage is fine too. I suppose the other thing which would help is a checklist of things which can and can’t be claimed – so if you’re out and about or away touring as I often am, you have it on your phone. Also, touring and the many hours spent in airports can be an ideal time to get admin like accounts done, so the more information I can carry at my finger tips, the better.”
“Is it feasible to have a collator of your income etc so you can do it as you go along – like the receipts?”
“Hello, I would definitely use the app! All of it!”
“Maybe there can be a special Jamie alarm that shouts at him each day reminding him to do his receipts instead of giving me carrier bags of screwed up paper!”
“I would use every feature on this App. One additional feature, if I could add one would be a way to include instant currency exchange (i.e. converts restaurant bill instantly from zloty to sterling upon entry using the exchange rate of the day)”
“You could also have downloadable yearly spreadsheet templates and a function connected to your money saving pay monthly fee options.”
“On the whole, I broadly think it is a terrific idea and I would use it. (If it is as easy to use as the Occado app, then I’ll use it all the time!) The only thing I would say is that it might be best “test driven” by someone, such as myself, who has very limited knowledge of ‘tax speak’ – so that you would find out how user friendly it is. If it is in any way difficult to use, it will have been a waste of your time and investment as I’d sooner stick to what I know than run the risk wasting my time with an app I mightn’t be able to retrieve information from. Last thing: make sure there is a back up so that if your phone is lost/stolen/posted by a toddler/thrown down a loo you have access to the information.”
“What I would find more useful would be a quarterly newsletter with simple explanations of changes in financial law, tips on best short term savings funds etc, the best ISA, etc….a bit of a Mark Carr version of Martin Lewis!”
The result?
Mark purchased his App. What’s more our App Techies (Appies) have taken some of Mark’s customers’ comments to incorporate into future Apps.
Categories: Accountants, Android, Apps, iPhone, Sales