rod burkert

Turn the practice you have into the practice you want!

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Are we Sisyphus? Let’s break out of the rut.

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We’ve moved on from Lajitas, TX … greetings from Palm Springs, CA where we will be waiting out the second half of winter.

Last week’s conversation was about getting our message out using multiple mediums. Our message is simple: how we deliver value to the people we serve. The medium is not as simple because different people prefer to get their messages different ways – text, video, or voice. So to have the widest possible reach our message must span multiple formats.

On to this week. In Greek mythology, Sisyphus was a king who fell out of favor with the gods. Zeus condemned Sisyphus to push a boulder up a steep hill, only to have it roll back when nearing the top, till eternity. What does this have to do with our BVFLS world?

And if you’re new here, welcome aboard. This is what we do!

A sincere “Thank you” to the people who purchased my 2019 BVFLS Practice Development Marketing Plan. It was my debut digital product and y’all made it a big hit. And, in part, it inspired this post.

Here is one depiction of Sisyphus.

Today, the Sisyphus tale is seen as a metaphor for an individual’s persistent struggle against an absurdity of life. In our BVFLS world, I believe that absurdity is our 1:1 client service business model.

One-to-One Business Model

For the most part, our traditional client service model is 1:1, 1-and-done. That means those last year clients must be replaced this year to maintain the “old” revenue status quo. But to grow, we must add more new clients than the number that dropped off. Then that many more clients need to be replaced the following year to maintain the “new” revenue status quo.

But it is more than just finding new clients. Because even if we are good at attracting leads and converting them into new clients, we have to deliver the work … each year … every year … into perpetuity (or eternity).

We trade our time for client dollars. And since there are only so many hours in a day, we can only serve so many clients in a year. This model does not scale. We are pushing the boulder up a hill. We are Sisyphus.

Here’s where you say, “Fine, Rod, what is the alternative?”

The alternative is something I’ve written about before – a 1:many or 1:masses business model.

One-to-Many Business Model

Imagine creating a course or webinar series (based on work we’ve done in the past or valuation issues we are researching now) that is taught multiple times a year for an industry or trade association – and we get paid to present it. Once the course is prepared it only needs occasional updates, each requiring much less time than the original prep work. But our presenter fee stays the same (or, gasp, increases).

Or maybe it’s a quarterly value improvement mastermind program we lead for business owners in our practice area or industry niche. Every quarter requires fresh content, but we can charge whatever the market will bear. (Some mastermind groups charge $25k or more per head).

Both examples are scalable: little or no incremental work is required for one more attendee. Both examples can generate leads to make filling our 1:1 funnel easier.

One-to-Masses Business Model

This model involves using our intellectual property to create apps, books, checklists, courses, newsletter, templates, or webinars that, perhaps, hundreds of players in our respective niches are interested in and will want to buy.

The most successful and wealthy entrepreneurs in the world are the ones who create and sell intellectual capital. ~ Dan Sullivan, founder of Strategic Coach®

It starts with being known for what we know. Then leveraging that knowledge, educating our niche, and selling a product/service multiple times and charging per order (like my 2019 marketing plan) – which makes this work scalable. It also is the difference between being an expert or a service provider.

The best exemplar of this model in our industry is Jim Hitchner with his newsletter, toolkits, and webinar series.

So what

1:1 is the epitome of working harder (pushing the boulder up the hill).
1:many and 1:masses is the epitome of working smarter.

Do you want to break out of this rut?

I think every practice should strive for some mix of 1:1, 1:many, and 1:masses work. For example, the 1:1 work gives us credibility to do the 1:many and 1:masses work. Again, look at Jim Hitchner.

But I think most of us will always operate in the 1:1 world (our comfort zone) because we tell ourselves we’re too busy serving that world to think about the potential of the other worlds. Even though there is greater leverage in the 1:many and 1:masses models. Even though we complain that our 1:1 fees are being squeezed by [add your reason here].

I don’t know about you, but I want to change.
And as we head into a new year, it’s the perfect time for change.

If you want to scale your business model … if you want an alternative to pushing the boulder up the hill … email me. If there is enough traction, I would like to form a small community of people interested in exchanging ideas, sharing knowledge, and creating something different.

In real life

My 2019 marketing plan was my first attempt at a 1:many digital product.
It took me a few hours to create, design, and market.
And then the work was done.
There was no incremental work required for a new order.
And the orders came in.

I am going to do more of this 1:many work in 2019.
How about you?
Are you in?
Email me.

Cheers!

 

 

 

Action Items

– If something resonates and you want to reach out directly, email me.

– If you think we share common interests, connect with me on LinkedIn.

– If you like my blog, please recommend it to a colleague.

– If you want a sense of how well your practice is working for you, take this Practice Self Assessment.

Your message IS the mediums

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There are only 3 days left to get your 2019 BVFLS Practice Development Marketing Plan … availability ends Friday at 6pm PT.

I like the concept, and it reads like this is you and from the heart.
Michael Gregory | Michael Gregory Consulting

So if you read my first newsletter of 2019, you know my theme – or overarching goal – for this year is impact. It’s the first time I’ve ever had a theme. How is this for impact?!

Hey, what’s up everyone! I’m Rod Burkert. And welcome to my Practice Development Corner, the place where business valuation professionals like you come to learn how to turn the practice they have into the practice they want.

I didn’t need to shave my head. I wasn’t going bald. It wasn’t a double-dog dare. And I didn’t lose a bet. It was a bucket list thing. And definitely something outside of my comfort zone.

But I like it … more than I thought I would. It’s given me a new perspective in my personal life – a different energy level and a greater inclination for trying new things – that has spilled over into my professional life. And from this, my 2019 theme of impact emerged.

Now I am not suggesting you should shave your head. But is there something you want to do? How about doing more to reach your audience?

Because now more than ever, we need to be more omnipresent to – and with – our leads, prospects, clients, and referral sources in the channels where they consume content … particularly in the form of video and voice. Here’s why.

Mary Meeker, of Kleiner Perkins venture capital firm fame, publishes an annual report on internet trends. In her 2018 report, she researched the various ways people spend their time online. The result? The average person spends almost 6 hours online every day.

However, a study by the US Department of Labor Statistics says the average person spends only 19 minutes reading every day – and that is reading of all types.

Think about that: 6 hours online, but only 19 minutes reading.

So if you are relying on things like JUST text to reach your audience, you are unlikely to capture their attention. But you won’t capture their attention with JUST videos or JUST podcasts either. Because it’s never just one medium that will reach your audience … it’s exploiting multiple mediums consistently.

The good news is that your content doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be good enough to get your audience to spend their time consuming your message regardless of its form. It should also be educational AND entertaining … because that is what captures YOUR attention.

So, will you jump into video or voice in 2019? If you don’t see other people in our profession doing this, that’s more of a reason to amp things up now and deliver ridiculous amounts of value to your audience … a natural outcome of YOUR intention to create impact this year. Remember, things are only uncomfortable before you do them.

That’s it for this episode. How can I help you move in this direction? Let me know by taking just a few seconds to like, comment on, or share this video. Thanks for watching!

Cheers!

 

 

 

Action Items

– If something resonates and you want to reach out directly, email me.

– If you think we share common interests, connect with me on LinkedIn.

– If you like my blog, please recommend it to a colleague.

– If you want to get a sense of how well your practice is working for you, get a Practice Self Assessment.

For 2019, set an IMPACT goal, not an INCOME goal

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Ahhh … the smell of a New Year … 365 days of nothing but possibilities in front of us. I don’t know about you, but I’ve found the way I start a new year profoundly influences the way I’ll end it … so I am approaching 2019 with a mindset of abundance and gratitude. My first practice is to replace “I have to” with “I get to” in my personal and professional lives.

I hope our last two conversations – here and here – have alerted you to the budding opportunities that voice-controlled devices like Amazon’s Echo can have on your BVFLS practice. If you don’t believe you have the time to look into this or the technical chops to take advantage of it, consider hiring a virtual assistant who can do the legwork.

On to this week. Speaking of the possibilities of a new year, the goal setting process is upon us. In the past, my focus has been primarily on topline revenue. But something shifted for me this year, and I am realizing that impact is a better measure of success than income.

If you’re new here, welcome aboard. This is what we do!
And there is a freebie if you read through to the end … because … abundance and gratitude.

There are 10 days left to get your 2019 BVFLS Practice Development Marketing Plan.

Who’s it for?
It’s for those who don’t have a plan.
It’s for those who say they have a plan “up here” (pointing to head).
It’s for those who have a plan, but haven’t been able to consistently execute on it.

“I need this. Your marketing plan will help me get up in the morning and not have to wonder, ‘What should I do today?’ I’ll still ask the question, but I now have answers.”
– Pete Rivera, ASA

The last day to get your plan is Friday, January 11th.

My theme for this year is impact

I spent a good part of last week working on my 2019 goals … something I always do. But this time around I asked myself two questions when I came up with potential goals for 2019:

#1 – Why do I want this goal?
#2 – What feeling do I hope to get by achieving it?

This Q&A led me to my theme (or overarching goal) for 2019: impact.

And the reason I am fixating on impact is because I believe it will lead me to do fewer things extraordinarily well for a select audience – rather than doing more things unexceptionally average for a large crowd – and still reach the income level I am looking for.

What is impact?

As it relates to what I want to do, I want to change lives by providing ridiculous amounts of value to my audience.

To make that happen, here are three things I will focus on mono-maniacally over the next 12 months:

1st, I will be a thought leader in my niche, not a thought follower.
Because I will never rise higher than the perception I have of myself.

2nd, I will trust my instinct over what our profession says is possible or proper.
Because I can’t – and won’t – please everyone.

3rd, I will serve my ideal clients without compromising my product or pricing.
Because I know the people I like helping, the work I like doing, and the pricing mistakes I must avoid.

[Note: When you subscribed to this newsletter, you received a File Autopsy toolkit that was designed to help you discover those things. You can download it again here if you don’t remember getting it, forgot you had it, or can’t find it.]

There are role models in our profession who exhibit this kind of impact-behavior.
Why can’t I – or you – be one of them?
Because it’s not who we think we are that hold us back; it’s who we think we’re not.

So what

So what if impact was your theme for 2019?
What would impact look like to you if you were your client?
How could you provide ridiculous amounts of value to your audience?
What is no one else in your space doing?

I think impact is personal. So I hesitate to suggest what will work in your practice. But here are five ideas that pack impact and could make your 2019 a better year than 2018:

#1 –  If you don’t have a space, that may be the place to start.
Stop being a generalist. Be the expert. Own your niche.

#2 – Create a sanitized portfolio of your work that you can share.
Prospects want to know your perspective and that you’ve solved their problem before.

#3 – Institute a better vetting process that ensures you and your prospect are a good fit.
You can’t work with everyone, nor do you want to.

#4 – Only price with options.
Give your prospects the luxury of asking, “How do I want to work with you?”

#5 – Call your clients every Friday to give them an update on their project?
If you paid all that money for a valuation, you would want to know, too.

At the end of the day, you want to get so damn good at what you do that you can’t be ignored – and have impact. This will allow you to magnetically attract your ideal customer (and repel those who are not) AND let you charge a premium fee that still wins the business.

In real life

Do you set aside “partner retreat” time to work on your practice each year? I’m talking 1-2 days of serious reflection time away from the office. Time devoted to (re)imagining the practice you want and then coming up with the strategies and tactics to get you there.

“But Rod, I have clients who are chasing me.”
Yes, you do. And as they say in the airplane instructions, put your own mask on first.
Because in order to take care of others, you have to take care of yourself first.

If you have set your goals for 2019 (good for you!), you may want to revisit them.
If you are still in the goal setting process, you may want to review what you have so far.

Reading that can help

No reading per se. But perhaps watching Simon Sinek’s What is your why? will lead you to discover your version of impact.

And if you are interested in the template I use for my annual review and planning process, you can download it here. It’s my way of starting the year by providing readers like you with a ridiculous amount of value.

Cheers!

 

 

 

Action Items

– If something resonates and you want to reach out directly, email me.

– If you think we share common interests, connect with me on LinkedIn.

– If you like my blog, please recommend it to a colleague.

– If you want to get a sense of how well your practice is working for you, get a Practice Self Assessment.

 

More BVFLS opportunities courtesy of Alexa

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Post-Xmas greetings from Lajitas, TX. We’ve been here for six weeks so far … no snow, lots of sunshine, and most days in the mid-60s to low 70s.

Some of you found last week’s Alexa-find-me-a-business-valuation-expert conversation a little disconcerting, i.e., more technology to master. But we are using the very same technology at home already. The difference is that now we are the product being searched for, not the customer doing the searching!

On to this week. Next generation search is just one new opportunity presented by voice-controlled devices like Amazon’s Echo. Below are two more Alexa opportunities to consider for your practice. And if you don’t see others doing it in our staid industry, that’s even more of a reason to jump in now. They call it being ahead of the curve for a reason.

January 6, 2016 UPDATE: Amazon is reporting it has sold over 100 million Alexa devices.

And if you’re new to the blog, welcome aboard. This is what we do!

So you didn’t find a 2019 BVLS Practice Development Marketing Plan tucked under your tree or stuffed in your stocking?

Pshaw! Well, you can still download your copy in time to start the New Year with, well, a plan. It’s turnkey, and it will take the guesswork out of what to do, why to do it, how to do it, and when to do it. What more could you ask for?!

It is a fact that we are moving beyond computer keyboards and text. As I noted last week, PC sales are declining, except for the 2-in-1 laptops that fold into tablets and hybrids like Surface and iPads tablets with keyboards.

At the same time, voice-controlled devices like Amazon’s Echo, Apple’s HomePod, Google Home, and Facebook’s Portal are becoming more common. As they move into the office, that has implications – practice development and practice management implications – if we take to the time to think about it.

With a little research, here are two ways I found how Alexa could help us.

#1: Practice Development
Spread the word about what we do

Want a fresh new way to distribute information to your leads, prospects, clients, and referral sources? Consider an Alexa Flash Briefing to deliver pre-recorded audio content on a daily or weekly basis.

When you set up a flash briefing, it becomes available to Echo owners in the Alexa Skills store. After installing it as a skill, they can say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing” to listen. A briefing can be up to 10 minutes long. Think of it as a micro-podcast.

We can create a flash briefing to offer things like our niche’s industry news, valuation insights and tips, case law updates, etc. Market research firm Futuresource Consulting recently reported that 32% of smart speaker owners use the devices for news updates. Some of those people probably need experts like us.

Why I think this is important: People are reading less and less. That means it’s getting harder to build Authority using text-only “messaging.” At the same time, I see reluctance on the part of BVFLS practitioners to put together a podcast, much less getting in front of a camera to record YouTube videos. For the introverts among us, an Alexa Flash Briefing may be the Goldilocks’ “just right” alternative.

#2: Practice Management
Deliver a valuation report

Ripped from the (NACVA QuickRead) headlines:

Valuations that Literally Speak with Your Clients

“What if your valuation reports could have a two-way conversation with your clients? How would that improve the usability of your work product? Could it increase the value of your firm’s intellectual capital?”

The article’s author demonstrates how Alexa can deliver a calculation report to a client. You can listen to an audio recording between Alexa and the author posing as a fictitious business owner to see how it works (and sounds).

All of this is powered by Alexa Voice AI. And you’ll see/hear some the benefits to valuation practitioners and clients that can’t be achieved using our more traditional written reports. More specifically, it is a slick alternative for liberating the content of a valuation report that is otherwise barely read to a harried business owner or attorney.

Further into the article, the author shows how Alexa can be used in another valuation-related skill, delivering training to staff.

Why I think this is important: I love shows like (the original) Star Trek. I was amazed at how then-current special effects showed me what everyday life would be like in the future. Our future is just around the corner. Soon (likely sooner than we think) our younger colleagues will look back on how we prepared today’s reports and say, “God bless their hearts.”

So what

It certainly is a brave new world. And these applications are still evolving. You might ask, “Who/what/where is the audience for this?” Dunno. But if you wait to find the answers, your audience will belong to someone who didn’t.

In real life

You might think that these applications are kind of nerdy and will only appeal to a small patch of techy valuation practitioners and clients. Caveat emptor … the geeks shall inherit the earth.

Reading that can help

Don’t have a voice-controlled device yet: Here’s How to Choose Between the Amazon Echo, Google Home and Apple HomePod.

For the step-by-step actions to get a flash briefing done: How to Set Up an Alexa Flash Briefing: A Guide for Marketers.

To hear a valuation report: Valuations that Literally Speak with Your Clients.

Cheers!

 

 

 

Action Items

– If something resonates and you want to reach out directly, email me.

– If you think we share common interests, connect with me on LinkedIn.

– If you like my blog, please recommend it to a colleague.

– If you want to get a sense of how well your practice is working for you, get a Practice Self Assessment.

Alexa, find me a business valuation expert

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Hey! Have you grabbed your copy of my 2019 BVLS Practice Development Marketing Plan? If you are looking for something with a ton of moving parts, this isn’t it. But if you are looking for a way to structure the few simple things you already know you should be doing, this plan is what you’ll want.

Here’s what a BVer wrote to me last week: I need this. Your marketing plan will help me get up in the morning and not have to wonder, “What should I do today?” I’ll still ask the question, but I now have answers.

“Alexa, find an older, handsome guy who writes only about BVFLS practice development. Oh yeah, he should live in an RV, too.” THAT – is an example of a long-tail keyword search that will soon be possible because of smart devices like Amazon’s Echo. You probably have one in your home. Now, they are showing up in the office. Have you thought how this could affect your practice?

Hey, what’s up everyone! I’m Rod Burkert. And welcome to my Practice Development Corner, the place where business valuation professionals like you come to learn how to turn the practice they have into the practice they want.

A recent article in Forbes.com cited a digital industry marketing source that estimates by 2020 50% of all search requests will be conducted by voice. 50% – holy cow! And 2020 – that’s almost next year! This is due to devices like the Amazon Echo, Google Home, and Facebook’s Portal.

So, have you thought about the impact these devices will have on your practice? Particularly your practice development, since that is what I talk about? Well there’s the example I made in my introduction for you to consider for you to consider:

How will people search for you in the not too distant future?

Right now we use keywords. Keywords are ideas and topics that people strive to be identified with, like “purchase price allocation” or “forensic accountant.” They are the short words and phrases people type into search engines to find experts like us when they don’t already know us – if they did, they would just call or email us directly.

Keywords are important to our practices because we want to come up in search engines when people search for the keywords that are relevant to our services. To stand a chance of being near the top of the results, we include our keywords in our websites and other online content we produce.

But we are progressing beyond computer keyboards and text. In general, PC and laptop sales are declining. As a result, we are moving away from how traditional search is performed.

And because of voice-controlled systems, keywords are evolving, too. From short words and phrases to whole sentences … or what the search industry calls “long-tail keywords.” So … “Alexa, find me a business valuation expert in Chicago who specializes in 409A work for startups” is not that far off.

Look, these next-generation devices are spreading in the business world because their novelty is wearing off in the home front. That means the distance between someone needing our services and us is getting shorter and smarter. If you want to be found in the near future, the time to plan for next generation search is now.

By the way … that older handsome guy who writes only about BVFLS practice development and lives in an RV? That’s me. No need to search.

That’s it for this episode. What do you think? Let me know by taking just a few seconds to like, comment on, or share this video. Thanks for watching!

Cheers!

 

 

 

Action Items

– If something resonates and you want to reach out directly, email me.

– If you think we share common interests, connect with me on LinkedIn.

– If you like my blog, please recommend it to a colleague.

– If you want to get a sense of how well your practice is working for you, get a Practice Self Assessment.