Why Most Accountants Fail to Scale (And How to Fix It) w/ Lahari Neelapareddy

In this episode of Building the Premier Accounting firm, host Roger Knecht discusses building a premier accounting firm with guest Lahari Neelapareddy, founder of Tax Hero and LN Accounting Advisors. They cover Lahari’s journey from public accounting to specializing in e-commerce and consumer packaged goods, emphasizing the value of niche marketing and advisory services over traditional compliance work. Lahari shares insights on sustainable growth, avoiding burnout, and the importance of continuous learning for accounting professionals.

In This Episode:

00:00 Introduction and Guest Spotlight
01:43 From CPA to Entrepreneur
03:13 Starting an Accounting Firm
07:14 Small Business Accounting Challenges
08:52 Evolving Service Offerings and Specialization
12:33 Niche Marketing and Tax Hero
17:32 CFO and Advisory Services
20:24 Defining CFO Advisory Value
26:15 Client Relationships and Pricing
29:58 Lessons Learned: Sustainability Over Growth
33:23 Closing Thoughts and Resources

Key Takeaways:

• Specialize in a niche industry to enhance marketing and scalability, as Lahari did with e-commerce and CPG brands.

• Prioritize value-added services like CFO and advisory over compliance work to increase client retention and pricing.

• Define clear service packages and scope of work to manage client expectations and minimize scope creep.

• Focus on sustainable growth, emphasizing efficiency and maintaining passion to avoid burnout, rather than solely chasing rapid revenue.

• Continuously Learn through podcasts, mastermind groups, and peer interactions to stay updated and avoid reinventing processes.

Featured Quotes:

• “I didn’t think I would start an accounting firm. Because when I thought of people that owned accounting firm, I only thought tax, right? Like people that are CPAs that do tax returns at their desk. And the image is like very boring is the image that most people get, right?” - Lahari Neelapareddy.

• “I wanted to add value to my clients. I think that was always there. And the second thing was like, I wanted like a good work culture that I think is maybe still lacking in big four and the public accounting world, but definitely was lacking in the time that I was there.” - Lahari Neelapareddy.

• “Sustainability over growth sometimes, right? Because growth will come automatically, but you need to make sure that you don’t lose that passion and that you’re sustaining it.” - Lahari Neelapareddy.

Conclusion:

Thank you for joining us for another episode of Building the Premier Accounting Firm with Roger Knecht. For more information on how you can establish your own accounting firm and take control of your time and income, call 435-344-2060 or schedule an appointment to connect with Roger’s team here.

Sponsors:

Universal Accounting Center

• Helping accounting professionals confidently and competently offer quality accounting services to get paid what they are worth.

 

Offers:

I’d love to offer two resources to your audience. First, a free discovery call—whether you’re an e-commerce business wanting to simplify sales tax or an accountant interested in partnering with us, you can book a time with me at https://taxhero.net/contact/#demo

Second, you can download our up-to-date Economic Nexus Chart, a quick guide to understanding sales tax nexus across the US, at https://taxhero.net/blog/economic-nexus/#download

For more information related to Lahari consider the following:

TaxHero: https://taxhero.net/, and LN Accounting: https://www.lnaccountingadvisor.com/

Get a FREE copy of these books all accounting professionals should use to work on their business and become profitable.  These are a must-have addition to every accountant’s library to provide quality CFO & Advisory services as a Profit & Growth Expert today:

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Learn what it is you can do to become an author, leveraging your expertise to market your services effectively and get the clients you deserve.  This is a webinar you don’t want to miss.  Learn from Mike Capuzzi what a Shook is and how you can use it to position yourself as the Premier Accounting Firm in your area.  This is a must-see presentation so get ready to take some great notes.

 

In addition to becoming an author, see what you can do to follow the Turnkey Business plan for accounting professionals.  After more than 40 years we’ve identified the best practices of successful accountants and this is a presentation we are happy to share.  Check it out and see what you can do to be in business for yourself but not by yourself with Universal Accounting Center.   It’s here you can become a:

 

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Next, join a group of like-minded professionals within the accounting community.  Stay up-to-date on current topics and trends and see what you can do to also give back, participating in relevant conversations as they relate to offering quality accounting services and building your bookkeeping, accounting & tax business.

 

• The Accounting & Bookkeeping Tips Facebook Group

• The Universal Accounting Fanpage

• Topical Newsletters:

• Universal Accounting Success

• The Universal Newsletter

 

Lastly, get your Business Score to see what you can do to work ON your business and have the Premier Accounting Firm. Join over 70,000 business owners and get your score on the 8 Factors That Drive Your Company’s Value.

 

For Additional FREE Resources for accounting professionals, check out this collection HERE!

 

Be sure to join us for GrowCon, the LIVE event for accounting professionals to work ON their business. This is a conference you don’t want to miss.

 

Remember this, Accounting Success IS Universal.

Listen to our next episode and be sure to subscribe.

 

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For more information on how you can apply these principles to start and build your accounting, bookkeeping & tax business please visit us at www.universalaccountingschool.com or call us at 8012653777