Good Neighbor Podcast: Fort Collins
Bringing together local businesses and neighbors of Fort Collins. Good Neighbor Podcast hosted by Nick George helps residents discover and connect with your local business owners in and around Fort Collins, Colorado.
Is your business serving the residents of Fort Collins? Then, we need to talk! Visit gnpFortCollins.com to schedule your free interview.
Good Neighbor Podcast: Fort Collins
E77: Your Business Deserves the Personal Touch
Navigating the financial landscape of a small business requires expertise, guidance, and above all – a personal touch. That's exactly what Mona Frayer of Frayer Associates CPA PC delivers to her clients in Fort Collins, where she's built a thriving accounting practice since 1995.
What separates successful businesses from those that fail? According to Mona, it's understanding your numbers through regular financial review. As part of the elite 1% of businesses that survived since 1995, she's witnessed firsthand how monthly accounting services transform decision-making and growth potential. Her firm provides comprehensive services including corporate and individual tax preparation, payroll processing, financial statement creation, and even workman's comp audits – but with an approach that prioritizes client education and relationship-building.
Mona challenges several persistent myths in accounting, particularly the notion that DIY bookkeeping saves money. She explains how entrepreneurs who attempt to master QuickBooks themselves often lose revenue by shifting focus from their core business, miss valuable tax deductions, and operate without crucial financial insights. One client remarked that just 2-3 hours of work in their field would more than cover Mona's accounting fees – while eliminating frustration and potentially costly mistakes. This philosophy of "you do what you do best, and I'll do what I do best" embodies the partnership approach that has made Frayer Associates successful for over two decades.
Perhaps most refreshing is Mona's insistence on meeting clients face-to-face and maintaining open communication. In an industry where many firms push clients toward apps and automated services, Frayer Associates answers every call and responds within 24 hours – a simple practice that has attracted numerous clients frustrated by impersonal experiences elsewhere. Ready to experience accounting services that actually help your business grow? Reach out to Frayer Associates today and discover the difference a relationship-based approach can make for your bottom line.
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Nick George.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a CPA PC firm that's in Fort Collins and comes well-recommended, has 20 years of experience and comes well-recommended, has 20 years of experience? Well, I'm here with Mana Freyer Mana Freyer, excuse me of Freyer Associates CPA PC. Mana, how's it going?
Speaker 3:It's going good, Nick. How are you doing?
Speaker 2:Excellent.
Speaker 3:Tell us all about your firm. Well, we have been here since 1995, march of 1995. And one thing I'm really proud of is that all the businesses that started in 1995, only 1% is still in business and we're a part of the 1%, so I'm very happy about that. We do anything from like if you have to have an audit, um done for workman's comp, we do full payroll, we do full financials and explain them to you. So the best thing for your business is to have monthly financials so that you can watch your money and and see how you're spending it and how your business is growing, um growing, and what's growing your business and what's harming your business. We also do all kinds of tax returns. We do corporate tax returns, we do individual tax returns, nonprofit tax returns, sales tax returns, all trust, estates, gift, I think that's it.
Speaker 2:I miss the personal touch. I've been using one of the big brick and mortars for the past couple of years and they want me to go through an app now. It's so impersonal, it's such a pain in the butt and I want the old personal touch that I grew up seeing in my family between my dad and his tax person. So an accounting person, so that sounds nice. How did you get into the business?
Speaker 3:When I was having my daughter, they wanted me to. I was a radiologic technologist and they wanted me to take call at night and I said, well, I have a baby, and my husband at the time I said he works nights so I can't be bringing a baby in to do, you know, x-rays, and so they wouldn't budge on that. So I went back to school and I found something that was a nine to five job and something I was interested in. So here I am.
Speaker 2:I have a similar story. I've got a baby at home. That changed my career the same way. What are some myths or misconceptions in your industry?
Speaker 3:Well, one of the myths are you know people that get into business, they think that you know they're going to save money by not having an account and that is totally counterintuitive to wanting what it's called the IRS calls a going concern, meaning that you started your business and you want to grow and you want to develop your business. You know. So not having financials done is counterintuitive because now you're putting it off to the end, you're missing expenses that now you're paying income on, paying income taxes on. You don't know whether you can pay yourself even a salary or not. So you get at the end of the year you have all this income and now you owe a lot of taxes because you, you know all of the, all of this information. Like the client I just had in, just walked out the door 15 minutes ago, I I did all of her financials. We would be able to figure out how much she can pay herself every month in his payroll, how much she needs to set aside for her expenses in case something should happen. You know, and all because we do her financials monthly. You know it's a huge management tool that you know people think, well, I'm saving money or I'll do it in QuickBooks.
Speaker 3:The other myth is is I can do in QuickBooks, everybody can do it, quickbooks, you know.
Speaker 3:First of all, how much money are you not making in your business because you're spending all this time in QuickBooks trying to think first of all, figure out QuickBooks, figure out an accounting system, figure out if you put it in or out like, and if you transfer it over from a bank or from a loan, what's going to transfer over.
Speaker 3:You know all of these things, whereas the one person that actually I talked to just the other day, he said you know what Mana. He says what you charge to do monthly financials and keep all of my accounting up to date so I can see. He said it would take me two or three hours to do a job, he said, and pay for more than pay for you and it's going to take me two or three or four hours every month just to put this information and be frustrated because I don't know what I'm doing, you know. So I tell people go do what you do best and I'll do what I do best and I'll help you what I'm doing. So I tell people go do what you do best and I'll do what I do best and I'll help you.
Speaker 2:I get that. Who are your target customers, Mona?
Speaker 3:I like small businesses and I like people who want to know who their CPA is. Because I've had people say, well, I'm just going to send you my stuff and you can do my taxes and send it back, and I go, well, I'm just going to send you my stuff and you can do my taxes and send it back, and I go no, I won't do that. I need to at least sit down and meet with you. I have tons of questions. There's things that you're going to say, well, just do this, this or this, and then I'm going to find out down the road that, oh no, there's also this, this and this and this, and now we've got to amend back this and this and this, you know. So, no, I want to sit down, I want to talk to you, I want you to know me, I want you to be able to ask me questions and I want to be able to get the answers from you so that we can prepare accurate financials or accurate tax returns the first time.
Speaker 2:Are you word of mouth or how are you trying to attract your customers right now?
Speaker 3:you word of mouth, or how are you trying to attract your customers? Right now? A lot of it is word of mouth. I have, you know, referrals come in from people or people that a lot, a lot. This is bad to say, but so many accountants don't answer the phone and we have somebody here every day to answer the phone, whether it's me or, like my assistant is here or my front office, you know, but today they're out doing things, so it's me, but you know, which is fine, so I get to talk to people. But just by answering the phone we've gotten several really nice clients and they say, well, everybody tells us to leave a message and then we don't hear back from them. You, we're good about answering returning phone calls within 24 hours. We're good about getting back to you an email and when you send us things, we'll say, well, we can't finish this because this is what we need, and we're good about communicating with them.
Speaker 2:You are good at communicating. Have you ever thought about doing your own podcast?
Speaker 3:No, I've had people ask me that before, but you know, and you know my boyfriend would like me to do, but you know I have never actually done one what do you do outside of work for fun?
Speaker 3:I am very involved in my church, the the Vineyard Church of the Rockies, and so I'll do like mission trips or I'll do you know things at the church that needs to be done. I do a lot of that and you know I usually go for hikes with my friends. Especially if we can get up in the mountains, that is the best. I go looking for mushroom hunting with my daughter, just things like that If I can be outside, and every noon I like to go for a walk to get me outside.
Speaker 2:Mana. How can our listeners learn more about Frayer and Associates CPA PC online?
Speaker 3:Well, we do have a website, but we do have an email. It's info at frayerandassociatescom, and they can email us and we'll get back and say hey, listen, let's have a conversation, you know. Or let's set up a time for you to come in and this is what you need to bring in. Or they can just call. Our number has been the same since 1994. And that is At 970-419-30.
Speaker 2:Well, Mana, I really appreciate you being on the show and we wish you and Frayer and Associates CPAPC the very best moving forward.
Speaker 3:Oh, thank you. It's nice talking with you, Nick.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnpfortCollinscom. That's GNPfortCollinscom, or call 970-438-0825.