Accountants – Have you got a grip on your data?

Data is a valuable resource. The information held about you online by websites, brands and organisations is vast.

With the right data, you can target the best prospects, identify trends and build a clearer picture of your marketplace.

However, in many cases, accounting firms simply aren’t harnessing the valuable data they possess, in part because it is often spread across various data silos.

By this, I mean that they have data on various platforms and documents that is incapable of interacting with other platforms.

As an example, a firm might have some existing excel databases sitting in their server containing vital information, another data set within their practice management software, other lists stuck in MailChimp and yet more client data stored in the cloud within their online accounting software.

All of these are valuable sources of data, but they often can’t reciprocate easily with one another or as a collective without human intervention.

This is inefficient, insecure and closes the door on a host of opportunities that could come from having a singular, integrated system that mines data from various sources and pulls it together, analyses it and allows it to be used in various ways.

Often this comes from a historic evolution of technology within firms. As practices purchase new platforms they add or even replicate data over time.

Then another platform is added and this process starts again. It is maddening to see, but also entirely understandable given the deluge of work many practices face.

Nevertheless, by failing to get a grip on data silos firms simply aren’t taking full advantage of the platforms they have invested in, and could, in some cases, be putting client data at risk of being lost or misused.

You might be saying that there isn’t a singular solution, this is the way things have always been, but the reality is a well-integrated CRM, such as our own, can do much more than just help with client management, onboarding and marketing.

With the automation we possess within FibreCRM a lot can be achieved to help firms win more leads, spot cross-selling opportunities, increase their revenue, save time and alleviate stress.

I know this sounds like a sales pitch, but the reality is that we are on the side of the accountancy profession and want to deliver a solution that could genuinely improve a number of essential functions within firms.