Are you a specialist or a generalist accountant? Should You Stick or Switch?

Most general practitioner accountants I talk with (and I talk with a lot of them) are, obviously, generalists rather than specialists.
They typically started out as general practitioners and often stay that way as their client base has always been quite disparate.

Many accountants who develop a  specialisation do so only because they originally trained in firms that encouraged them to specialise – often quite early in their career.

Perhaps the most common specialism is ‘tax’ – which is actually a pretty wide subject in it’s own right.

What’s wrong with being a generalist?
Absolutely nothing at all. Some of the happiest and most successful accountants I know are generalists. Most of the accountants I have supported and mentored have been generalists. As are all of the members of my Sole Practice Club.

Mind you, some of the saddest and least successful accountants I see online are also generalists.

What does being a specialist mean?
It means you have some specialist expertise, experience or area of focus. This can mean lots of things. It doesn’t have to mean that you only do one thing though.

Here’s just a few of the specialisms that are practiced by accountants I know:

• UK Tax advice
• French tax advice
• Probate
• Inheritance tax
• Capital gains tax
• R&D tax credits
• Salon based businesses
• Restaurants
• Contractors
• Charities
• Franchises
• Medical practitioners
• Funded tech start-ups
• Older entrepreneurs

And so the list goes on.

Why specialise?
The starting point is that it becomes easier to attract more clients. This is because it is easier for people to recognise when to choose you or to recommend you, as against any other more generalist accountant.

Having a clear specialism also makes it easier to attract PR. In simple terms accountants who are known for a specialism stand out from the other accountants they and others might previously have seen as their competition.

When you try to be all things to all people you end up being seen to be the same as everyone else. You are ‘just another accountant’. This is something I work hard to help accountants avoid – even if they choose to remain generalists. And again, I want to stress, there is NOTHING wrong with being a generalist.

If you seek new clients though you may want to consider why should anyone recommend or refer clients to YOU as distinct from the accountant down the street? Why should anyone who meets you remember you as distinct from the other accountants they have met or might meet in the future?

For most general practitioners the answer comes down to their personal qualities, the way they present themselves, their confidence, their empathy and how they evidence their relevant expertise.

Having a clear focus or niche also helps your ranking on search engines. The key point here is to rank highly for what prospective clients are searching for.

Being number one for ‘Accountants in London’ is a tough ask. Being number one for ‘accountant for taxi drivers in London’ is easier. And easier still when referencing more specific local areas than a huge city like ‘London’.

Does it matter?
Don’t misunderstand me. As I have tried to make clear I see nothing wrong in being a generalist and serving a wide range of client types.
I know many hundreds, possibly thousands, of accountants who do just this. Some even secure a continuing stream of new client introductions through referrals from existing clients. Proof, if it were needed, that this model works as well as it ever did.

Equally though I can see that the fastest growing firms, the ones able to charge premium fees and the ones winning more new clients faster than others, and the ones who run a ‘wait-list’ are typically specialising to one degree or another.

Where the specialism is a niche market sector it needs to be specific. Not something generic such as SMEs or even ‘owner managed businesses’. These aren’t real niches because everyone ‘specialises’ in them and also because they are insufficiently specific. Claiming them as a specialism ‘ticks’ the box in theory but has little impact in real life.

I would also stress that claiming to ‘specialise’ in a long list of business types (that match your current client list) doesn’t fool anyone. You simply come across as the same as the next firm that also claims to specialise in a similar list of client types.

How many client types can one accountant reasonably ‘specialise’ in serving anyway? 3? 7? 20?

Cloud bookkeeping software
I used to doubt the validity of accountants suggesting that their choice of cloud bookkeeping software was a genuine specialism. But I have, on a number of occasions, been asked if I could recommend an accountant who is an expert in dealing with the bookkeeping software that a business already uses.

Beyond this though, your choice of bookkeeping software does NOT really matter to business start-ups or to those businesses who have yet to migrate into the cloud.

Yes, you may be able to explain how clients benefit from your choice of bookkeeping software. But few prospects and referrers are really fussed about how you do your stuff. They just want confidence that you do it well and that you do it in a way that suits them. (I appreciate the benefits of cloud over traditional bookkeeping, but that’s as far as it goes for me).

What about my ‘other’ clients?
I often hear accountants claim that they cannot start referencing a specialism or niche as they do not want to risk alienating clients who do not fit. My advice is always the same. You don’t need to worry about them.

Nowhere have I ever suggested that you move exclusively into a niche or specialist area. Even specialists have some clients who do not ‘fit’. As long as those clients are being well served they don’t care either. Indeed, unless you tell them they may not even become aware of your newly promoted specialism. Treat them as individuals and only tell them on a ‘need to know’ basis.

Conclusion

Whether you choose to remain a generalist or carve out a specialism, the key is to play to your strengths and ensure you’re memorable for the right reasons. The most successful accountants aren’t necessarily specialists – they’re the ones who stand out and serve their clients best.