How I Onboard New Bookkeeping Clients Step by Step

In this video, I break down my exact bookkeeping client onboarding process from the first sales call all the way to getting paid and starting the bookkeeping work. If you are a bookkeeper, accountant, or aspiring business owner, this video will help you create a smoother onboarding system, improve client communication, and look more professional from day one.

I cover:
• My bookkeeping client onboarding workflow
• Questions I ask during sales consultations
• How I send bookkeeping quotes and proposals
• My follow up process for potential clients
• QuickBooks Online onboarding tips
• How to collect bank statements and documents
• Why I never start bookkeeping work before payment
• Systems that help bookkeeping businesses scale

A strong onboarding process can improve client retention, reduce confusion, and help your bookkeeping business grow faster.

If you enjoy bookkeeping, accounting, finance, tax strategy, and entrepreneurship content, subscribe for more videos every week.

#Bookkeeping #Bookkeeper #QuickBooksOnline #Accounting #SmallBusiness #BookkeepingBusiness #Entrepreneur #Finance #QuickBooks #TaxStrategy

*Learn more about my investment fund targeting 8% to 12% fixed returns*
https://www.zipcapitalfund.com/

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

How to onboard bookkeeping clients. My name is Zach Pascarello. I started my bookkeeping business seven years ago, grew it to 80 bookkeeping clients. Let me tell you exactly how I onboard bookkeeping clients. It all starts with the sales consultation. First step. I know it can be kind of awkward, uncomfortable, especially if you're brand new. Here's my number one tip: let them do the talking. During a sales consultation, it's your first time ever meeting with this person, first time ever talking to this person, you don't know them, they don't know you, kind of awkward. Let them do the talking. Start the conversation. Hey John, how's it going? Is now still a good time to talk? All right, great. Why don't you tell me a little bit about your business? That's it. That's all you have to say. Don't overthink it. Don't overcomplicate it. And don't over-talk. Let them do the talking. We are here to solve their problems. We are here to free up their time and reduce their stress. So listen to them talk, let them do the talking. Take notes. You want to make sure you are in your office at your computer, ready to take notes. I don't like to take sales consultations when I'm on the road or traveling or in another building or anywhere else or with my kids or at the gym, anywhere except for my office, because I want to be able to focus and concentrate and take notes. So let them do the talking, take notes. You want to listen to what they're struggling with. Obviously, they're talking to a bookkeeper during a sales consultation because they need help with their bookkeeping. Something about their finances, accounting, taxes, bookkeeping. Something is not good right now. And so you have to actively listen and try to figure out what they're struggling with. Let them do the talking. And then once they do the talking, now you can explain what you do. I do three things. I'm a bookkeeper. I start by recording your transactions in QuickBooks Online. And then I reconcile your accounts. So I'll need your bank statements and credit card statements every month. And then finally, I'll be sending you updated, accurate, monthly financial reports, profit and loss every month. So I record transactions, reconcile accounts, and generate financial reports. Usually, hopefully, they'll respond and say, Oh my goodness, that's perfect. That's exactly what I need. Golden. We've got a good opportunity here to work together. Now, let them do the talking, explain what you do. This is all during the sales consultation. Next, ask them questions. You mind if I ask you a few questions just so I can better understand exactly what you have going on. First, what's the name of your business? How many bank accounts do you have? Take notes, write these things down. Who do you bank with? Okay. Wells Fargo, Chase, got it. Credit cards. American Express, Capital One. Okay, you got two credit cards, two bank accounts. Perfect. Do you currently have QuickBooks Online? Yes. Great. No? Okay. Are you open to getting QuickBooks Online? Because I work exclusively through QuickBooks Online. So I don't work for QuickBooks. I am I work for my own business, but I manage your QuickBooks Online. So if you want to work with me as your bookkeeper, you will need to get QuickBooks Online. Payroll. Do you have employees? Okay, you have employees. Who's running your payroll? Your CPA is running your payroll? Perfect. ADP running your payroll? Perfect. You got your office manager running payroll? Perfect. I do not do payroll. Just want to be clear, honest, transparent, upfront. I do bookkeeping. I don't do payroll. Taxes. Do you already have a CPA? Do you already have a tax accountant? Who's doing your taxes? Okay, great. Yep, I've heard of them. Yep, great tax, great tax firm, great accounting firm. Nobody's doing your taxes. Okay, just letting you know, I'm just I just do bookkeeping, I don't do taxes. So I have a CPA who I could refer you over to. You can partner with my CPA, or you can go out and find your own CPA. Doesn't matter, but I can coordinate directly with your CPA, your tax accountant, to help you get your taxes done. But I just do the bookkeeping, I don't file taxes. What about loans? Do you have any loans? Vehicle loans, office building loans, real estate loans, SBA loans, lines of credit. Do you have any loans? Okay, you got one loan with the SBA and you got one vehicle loan with your local bank. Okay, great. I'm taking notes this whole process. So by the end of this conversation, I should know the name of their business, how many bank accounts they have, how many credit cards they have, how many loan accounts they have. That's all going to be very important during the quoting process. Couple other questions that you might not have thought about. Who is who was doing your bookkeeping before? Was it you? Was it nobody? Was it your spouse? Was it your friend? Was it your office manager? Was it a bookkeeper? Now, very important question. Here's where we're looking for red flags. Why did they leave? Why did your previous bookkeeper leave? And just let them do the talking. Hopefully they're honest and hopefully they give away some insider information. When do you want me to get started? This is so important, especially halfway through the year, halfway through 2026. If you're having a sales consultation, when do you want me to get started? Let them answer. Don't provide any recommendations, don't provide any suggestions. Just let them answer that question. If they want to, if they say right away, then you can kind of pry a little bit and you can say, okay, when do you want me to actually do your bookkeeping? Are your 2025 taxes filed? Are you all up to date through the current month of your bookkeeping? And you just want me to start the first of next month or the first of this month or the first of last quarter or the first of this year? Specifically, which day do you want me to start bookkeeping? Because whichever day I start bookkeeping, I'm not going to record any transactions that occurred before that day. Very, very important distinction. If I start January 1st or June 1st or May 1st, that's fine. Doesn't matter what day I start, but just know that that means if I start January 1st, 2026, I am not doing any bookkeeping for any 2025 transactions. If I'm starting May 1st, 2026, that's fine, but I'm not recording any transactions from before May 1st, 2026. So just be very clear with that. And if they say, oh, well, there was a little bit of bookkeeping done the first five months of the year, but you're probably gonna have to go in and clean up. Okay, that's fine. No problem. I can start January 1st. Sounds it sounds like you probably want me to start January 1st. Very important question. I would spend a lot of time making sure you really narrow down when do you want me to get started? And then finally, the golden question what's your budget? Don't forget to ask that question. One of two things are gonna happen. Either they're gonna say, I have no idea, I want you to tell me that, or they're gonna say, a number. And if they give you a number, that's amazing. That is a very incredible opportunity to get some really, really valuable information. If they tell you my budget's $2,000, we've got a lot to work with. If they tell me my budget is $100, another great opportunity, let them know. Unfortunately, my minimum is actually $300. So unless your budget is at least $300, we might not be able to work together. Next steps. Okay, so once you have the sales consultation, you ask your questions, you answer their questions, you hear what they have to say about their business, you explain your business. Next steps email or a QuickBooks invitation in order to give you a quote. Oh, I forgot to mention. If they ask you how much does it cost, I always say I can't give you an exact price because the price all depends on the size and complexity of your business. I've got some clients who pay $300 per month. I've got some clients who pay $3,000 per month. You're probably going to be somewhere in that range. What I can tell you right now, my average client pays $500 per month. However, you still could be less than that. You also could be more than that. In order to give you an exact quote, all I need to see, next steps, all I need to see is your three most recent bank statements, or I need to be invited to your QuickBooks account. Are you sitting in front of a computer right now? Yes? Okay, perfect. Do you want to log into QuickBooks right now and I will walk you through how to invite me to your QuickBooks? Or you don't have QuickBooks, that's fine. What's your email address? Okay, let me let me write down your email address. All I need are your three most recent bank statements. Okay, so your email address is zak at bookkeeping.com. Okay, I'm gonna send you a really quick email here. Bookkeeping quote. Hey, Mr. Client, please send me your three most recent bank statements and credit card statements. Boom, I just sent the email. Could you actually check your email inbox? I just want to make sure that I spelled your email correctly. Could you check real quick just to make sure you got my email? You got it? Okay, great. So we already mentioned your bank statement, your bank accounts, and your credit card accounts. So you've got the the Wells Fargo and the Chase bank account. So I need to see your three most recent Wells Fargo bank statements, your Chase bank statements, your three most recent American Express credit card statements, and your three most recent Capital One credit card statements. So three most recent would be April, March, and February. Since it's May right now, April, March, February. As soon as you send me your three most recent bank statements and credit card statements, or as soon as you invite me to your QuickBooks, I can give you an exact quote. I can tell you exactly how much it's going to cost. Those are the next steps. Do it on the phone. Do not end the phone conversation without getting next steps, without sending the email or getting the QuickBooks invitation and confirm that they received your email. It'll take you 30 seconds to send the email. That's why you want to make sure you are focused in your office, in front of your computer, ready to go. Okay, now as soon as you get those next steps, email them a quote as soon as possible. As soon as you get the requested information, send them a quote. Why not? What else are you doing? You're sitting in front of your computer. If I'm I could be in the middle of a cleanup project, and if I get a prospective client response with requested information, that is top priority. Immediately, I will stop what I'm doing. I will look at the new client because how often do we get a chance to onboard a new client? Maybe once a month, maybe two or three times a month. Take it, take it high priority, do it immediately. It takes 10 minutes. Stop what you're doing, respond to their quote because they might have another sales consultation with another bookkeeper tomorrow. If I can get them a quote today, right now, they are more likely to cancel that sales consultation tomorrow and just go with me. Wow. Zach was the first to respond to my Facebook message. He was the first to give me a quote. He's already going above and beyond, very quick to communicate, very efficient process. Let's just go with him. I try to win over these clients during the quoting process, during the onboarding process, by just showing them how effectively and efficiently I communicate and operate. So email them a quote as soon as you get the requested information. The quoting process, pretty straightforward. Three most recent bank statements and credit card statements, three most recent months, add up all the transactions, divide that by three. That's your average number of monthly transactions. So April, March, February, add them all up. Let's just call it 500 transactions per month. And then multiply that number by three. And I'm looking at bank statements and credit card statements. And then multiply that number by three. That's my monthly quote. That's how much I'm going to charge them. Usually it falls in between that $500 to $1,000 range. If it's significantly more, do a little bit of a deep dive, do a little bit of an analysis, do some research, figure out are there a ton of repeated transactions that maybe seem like you could you could narrow down that quote a little bit and maybe not charge $2,000, maybe get it closer to $1,500 or $1,200. But usually 99% of the time, that $3 per transaction has pretty much been a pretty spot on quote. But keep in mind, the initial quote, the initial client agreement, I don't lock people into a 12-month contract. So that's good for both parties. If they want to terminate the contract after three months, they can. Me personally, I hate getting locked into long-term contracts. So if they want to terminate, they can. If I want to increase my prices, I can. If I severely underquoted, or if they left out a bank statement, or if they left out a credit card account that I didn't know about, or they just added all these extra steps, and now their bookkeeping is much more complicated. I am never afraid to increase their price. So I try to quickly give them a quote. That's what everybody wants. They want to quickly see a quote. So add up all their transactions, average number of monthly transactions, multiply by $3 per transaction. Now, unless they want class tracking or project tracking, in that case, I'll charge $4 per transaction. And then finally, little golden secret, magic secret. Look to see how much they were paying their bookkeeper before. That way you get a good idea. If you ask them what their budget is, they don't give you an answer. And you look to see, oh, they were paying their previous bookkeeper $1,200 per month. They would probably be okay with paying me at least $1,200 per month, if not more, because chances are they left their old bookkeeper for a reason. Chances are their old bookkeeper wasn't doing a good job, so they fired them, and now they're looking for a better bookkeeper. So yeah, I might be a little bit more expensive because I'm a better bookkeeper than who you fired before. Okay, so that's the quoting process. Now, what happens if they don't respond? Unfortunately, it does happen. Follow up 48 hours after your sales consultation if they don't respond. Follow up with a phone call. I always call first because you can always send an email second. So call them if they don't answer, leave a voicemail if you want or not, and then email them or text them or whatever your preferred method of communication is. Follow up 48 hours if they don't respond, and then again seven days later if they don't respond. And then follow up every 30 days forever until they respond. I have actually got some bookkeeping clients five, six, seven months later after our sales consultation because I just continued to follow up 30 days forever until they responded. Keep track of interested clients who don't sign up yet. This is very important. Super simple Google Sheet, Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, interested clients who have not signed up yet. First name, last name, email address, date that we last spoke, and some notes. Hey, this guy's a real estate investor. He's got five companies, he's got 20 rentals, and we spoke on May 26th, and he needs help with bookkeeping, but he hasn't responded yet. Add him to your tracker and then follow up every 30 days forever until they respond. Either they say, Hey, not interested, no problem. Take him off my list. Yes, I am interested. Okay, let's go through the whole onboarding process and let's get you onboarded. Real quick, I do want to mention, hopefully, these videos are helpful. I'm making these videos just to help you start and grow your own bookkeeping business. So hopefully, this insider information on how to onboard bookkeeping clients is helpful. One thing I did want to mention real quick, check out the link down below. I have an investment fund. It's called Zip Capital, and I lend money to Pennsylvania real estate investors who are flipping houses. So I do all the underwriting, I make sure the property is a good investment. I qualify the borrower, make sure the borrower is creditworthy and good to lend to. And I charge my borrowers 12% annual interest. Now, you don't have to be a real estate investor to get involved. You can invest into zip capital. So you can invest $100,000 into zip capital if you're an accredited investor, and then I will give you 9% fixed annual returns. And so I'll take your $100,000, pay you 9% per year, and then take that same $100,000 and lend it out to a real estate investor and charge them 12% interest per year. So I make the difference on that money. So if you're interested, if you want to join Zip Capital, if you qualify as an accredited investor, then check out the link down below. Check out my website. I love the chat. Even if you don't qualify as an accredited investor, I'd still just love the chat and just see what your goals are and see what you're planning on for the next couple years. And if you do qualify as an accredited investor, then you could invest into Zip Capital immediately. And who knows, it could be a good option for you. I'm targeting 8% up to 12%, depending on how much you invest, 8% up to 12% fixed returns to my investors. So check out the link down below. The website is zipcapitalfund.com. Would love to chat with you if you're interested. Okay, a couple more things. What happens when they accept? This is good news. So all you need is send them a client agreement and sign them up for QuickBooks if they don't have it already. So I use Pandadoc to electronically deliver my client agreements. And so all they have to do is just sign the client agreement. And I have one actually on my website for download, but it costs money. Honestly, if you just want, you could probably go to some website and probably find a free template or even use ChatGPT, or you could pay for an attorney to check your client agreement for you. Just get a client agreement. Doesn't matter where you get it, just get one and make sure you have them sign it in the beginning. I didn't do it for the first couple clients because I was brand new and I didn't know any better. Just get one. It makes you look more legitimate as a bookkeeper and it also protects you and it just helps you to be up front and straightforward with your communication and your process. So I use Panda Doc to electronically deliver and electronically sign my documents. So client agreement, very important. And then QuickBooks Online. If they don't already have QuickBooks, you can sign them up for QuickBooks yourself. Like on your QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor account, you can add clients. And then they'll get an email with instructions on how to finish signing up. And then once you get the QuickBooks account, connect their bank accounts to the QuickBooks bank feed and then send them an invoice. Don't get started until they pay. Even if it's a big cleanup project, I still recommend at least 50% of the invoice paid up front. Maybe even 100%. Try for 100%. If they push back, then maybe say, okay, 50% up front, 50% later. And if it's a month, if it's just monthly, then of course you've got to pay for May before I do May bookkeeping. So let them know. Send them an email. Hey, here's the invoice. Just so you know, I cannot get started until this invoice is paid. Don't start until they pay. Non-negotiable. Do not start until they pay because there are people who will go through the entire process, sign the client agreement, get started, and then never pay your invoice. So protect yourself. And then get relevant bank statements, get the credit card statements. You're gonna need them anyway, so you might as well get them early in the beginning, whenever you're onboarding, and then start recording transactions. Start asking questions. Do this early and often. Ask questions early. I would probably try to ask questions the same day. As soon as they pay my invoice, I'm going into QuickBooks, spend an hour, look at their bank feed, look at their trial balance, look at their previous year's tax returns, look at how they recording transactions before, start recording some transactions, and then start asking questions early and often. That's it for the video, everybody. Hopefully, this helps you onboard your next bookkeeping client. Thank you all so much for watching these videos. Stay tuned, subscribe to my channel because I'm trying to make these videos every week to hopefully help you start and grow your own bookkeeping business. God bless you all. Have a great week.