Can Payroll Be a Boost in Profit for Your Firm?

Every firm wants to gain more clients to grow and improve profit margins. Most firms consider growth as providing the same services but to more clients. For those firms, having 20 clients this year and 40 clients next year is an easy metric to measure their success.

But there are some problems with thinking about growth this way that you may have experienced in your firm as you have tried to grow. Here’s your chance to learn more about what’s wrong with measuring your firm’s growth only by client numbers and how offering payroll can be a better solution.

The Challenge

Measuring success by clients is a basic way to measure success. Certainly, your client pool is important. Without your clients, your firm doesn’t exist. But, by only focusing on your clients, you’re potentially setting your firm up for failure.

Here are two of the biggest reasons only focusing on client numbers can hurt your firm.

1.   There’s a Limited Market of Clients

Many firms are trying to magically squeeze out “just one more client” from bone-dry markets with nothing else to give. In these markets, client acquisition becomes a cut-throat war between firms. If you win the war, it often comes at the cost of your profit margin because you have to make many negotiations and deals to make your firm the best offer. 

In a competitive market, getting even one new client is no small feat, but what price did you have to pay to get those clients?

2.   Clients Are Not Equal

Your clients are different, providing your firm with different profit margins. When you only measure by your number of clients, you erase that vital detail of the different value each client brings to your firm. A smaller client, who only needs a minimum amount of support, is not the same as a million-dollar contract who gets the white glove treatment.

The Solution

Rather than trying to grow your client base to improve profitability - what would happen if you grew the services your firm provides and created an additional revenue stream?  

By offering more services, your firm can improve its profit margin and grow by getting more from your existing client base.

By switching to offering more services, you shift how your firm grows. Rather than fighting against other firms or making awkward cold calls to potential clients, you get to reach out to clients you already know and who have an established relationship with your firm. Instead of feeling like you have to scratch and claw your way to gain the smallest growth, growth comes through building on and expanding the relationships you already have.

By offering more services, your firm will stand apart from the crowd because you offer more comprehensive services, giving you a competitive advantage.

Add Payroll Services to Your Firm

When managed correctly, payroll services can impact your bottom line by becoming the most profitable service you offer.

In addition to the expected tax and compliance requirements you would help your clients with, the biggest benefit of offering payroll services is its consistent income source. For most clients, payroll must be processed at least twice a month. That is a consistent, stable, and, most importantly, easily managed process that provides your firm with a recurring source of revenue.

Offering payroll services also deepens your relationship with your customers. Clients who use your payroll services will have a better connection with your firm, improving client retention.

Choose IRIS Payroll Solutions

IRIS helps your firm grow by meeting your firm where you are and giving you the solutions you need to grow.

1. Fully Managed Payroll Solutions

If you don’t want to add one more thing to your plate but still want to offer payroll services, IRIS’s fully managed payroll solutions are perfect for your firm.

IRIS’s fully managed payroll solutions involve outsourcing the entire payroll process. A third-party provider handles all aspects of payroll, including tax filings, compliance, and managing employee data. At the same time your firm can still experience all of the benefits of offering payroll services. This solution is best for firms that want to experience the benefits of offering payroll services but have limited resources or want to focus on core business activities. Learn more about IRIS Payroll Managed Services Solutions.

2. Payroll Software Solutions

Payroll software from IRIS gives you professional-grade tools and applications to manage your clients' payroll yourself. With a payroll software solution, your practice is in the driver’s seat when it comes to payroll management. Any additional revenue you earn from clients choosing to use your payroll services directly impacts your firm’s profitability.

Our software platforms have been designed from the ground up to provide accountants with the resources they need to create a high-performance payroll practice. In providing unprecedented automation and processing speed while giving you access to automation tools, our software makes it easy to do more with less work. We also have a solution for businesses that want to offer payroll and HR services.

Start Growing Your Firm Today

Our team is waiting to help grow your firm. Contact us today to learn more about IRIS’s payroll solutions and how they can help make your firm more profitable.