Bookkeeping Client

Onboarding Checklist
A bookkeeper's guide to standardizing the
onboarding process for new clients
Table of Contents
Why is it important to standardize your client onboarding process? ...................................................... 03

Before onboarding ........................................................................................................................................ 04

Understand your business model and establish your services .................................................................. 04
For quick access to the checklist,
Define your ideal client ................................................................................................................................ 05 click here!
Standardize your accounting technology stack .......................................................................................... 05

Who should be involved in the onboarding process? ............................................................................... 06 VIEW CHECKLIST

What’s the ideal onboarding time frame? ................................................................................................... 06

Client onboarding process & checklist ...................................................................................................... 07

Receive contract & send welcome email ................................................................................................... 08
Gather client information ............................................................................................................................. 09
Set up project & apps ................................................................................................................................. 11
Client kickoff meeting .................................................................................................................................. 12
Send a welcome package .......................................................................................................................... 13
Transition to bookkeeping team ................................................................................................................. 14

Standardize & evaluate ................................................................................................................................. 15

Appendices .................................................................................................................................................... 16
Appendix A: Using Zapier to Automate Your Onboarding .......................................................................... 17
Appendix B: List of Requested Client Information ...................................................................................... 19
Appendix C: Firm "Cheat Sheet" Template .................................................................................................. 22

Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................................... 23

02
Why is it important to standardize your
client onboarding process?
Onboarding – the process of familiarizing a new client with Or, to offer a summary by Lincoln Murphy (author of Cus-
your firm’s products or services – is a critical part of your tomer Success: How Innovative Companies are Reducing
client experience. It is the fundamental phase in which your Churn and Growing Recurring Revenue): “Proper onboarding
firm sets expectations for how you and your client will work to- isn't done to prevent churn; it's done to ensure the customer
gether to achieve their business goals. An incredible on- achieves their desired outcome. Retention comes from that.”
boarding process will help you and your client “start off on
the right foot” and set the standard for the rest of your client’s However, many firms delay or fail to see the need to stan-
experiences working with you and your firm. dardize their new client onboarding process. Although every
firm operates differently – and should, depending on your
Onboarding isn’t exclusive to new clients, as you will also on- size, goals, the types of clients you serve, and so on – stan-
board existing clients when your firm introduces a new ser- dardizing your onboarding process should be a priority as it
vice, process, and/or tool. However, onboarding is one of the will provide the structure from which you can measure perfor-
most important stages when bringing on a new client as it mance. The ability to measure will allow your firm to increase
builds the foundation of your relationship. efficiency and effectively scale.

Kicking off your client relationship with an incredible on- This checklist will provide you with a high-level framework
boarding experience can yield massive returns for your ac- which you can use to standardize your firm’s onboarding pro-
counting or bookkeeping practice. Onboarding your clients cess for your new bookkeeping clients.
properly will lead to increased client retention, which increas-
es profitability. In financial services, research shows that a
5% increase in customer retention produces more than a
25% increase in profit.

03
Before onboarding
In order to standardize your onboarding process in a way tablish the maximum number of accounts or transactions that
that will achieve optimal results, it’s important to get a few are included (if applicable) and whether or not class, loca-
things in place at your firm first. Making these core business tion, and job tracking are included.
decisions will help streamline your onboarding process and
ultimately provide a better experience for your clients. More- Once you have clearly defined the service delivery expecta-
over, they’ll help you avoid having to completely re-engineer tion, you can document for your staff exactly how the work
your onboarding process later on – establishing the following should be performed, as well as create a fixed price for the
items will at least put your firm on the right path, from which service.
you can iterate as your firm scales and you optimize your on-
boarding process. The following resources will help you to define your services
and introduce a fixed pricing structure at your firm:

Understand your business model and Best Practice: Writing Service Descriptions
establish your services. This guide includes a recommended framework for
writing service descriptions, as well as provides
This might sound simple, but before you bring on new clients, some ideas for how you can structure your services.
it’s critical to define the level of service you provide for each
of your firm’s products and services. Specify the frequency,
location (i.e., whether it’s completed on-site or off-site), the How to Successfully Build & Implement a Fixed
exact deliverables related to each service, and the maximum Fee Pricing Plan at Your Practice
work provided, if applicable.
Watch this webinar recording for a step-by-step
guide on how to introduce a fixed pricing structure at
For monthly bookkeeping, for example, it could be helpful to
your firm.
include whether or not transactions will be recorded, the
bank feed will be matched, accounts reconciled, and the
period closed. Does it include a monthly Controller Call? Es-

04
 Before onboarding (cont’d)
Define your ideal client. Sample Bookkeeping Technology Stack
Clearly defining the types of clients your firm wants to work Contract Management &
with (and, just as importantly, the types of clients your firm Automated Practice AR
does not want to work with) will also help when standardizing
your onboarding process. Making the decision to only work Workflow Management
with clients who share similar business needs and processes
will not only make standardization of your onboarding pro-
cess easier – it will also make your onboarding process more Accounting Software

effective.
Client Interaction

Learn from a Pro: How to Pick the Right Clients

to Grow Your Firm Internal Communication
In this webinar recording, Jennifer Moore of Moore
Details Bookkeeping shares her strategy for how to
define your firm’s ideal client. Document Collection

Bill Pay
World Class Strategies for Picking the Right
Clients
This webinar features advice from accountants and Cloud Storage
bookkeepers who've worked with challenging cli-
ents, created and tested successful discovery pro-
cesses and are nailing client management. Expense Management

Workflow Automation
Standardize your accounting
technology stack. Time Tracking

Best-in-class firms usually operate using a standardized

technology “stack” of cloud accounting applications that Regional Payroll
help to automate every corner of their workflow (see an exam-
ple to the right). The accounting and bookkeeping applica- USA Canada
tions you use should be seen as an extension of your busi-
ness – your onboarding process will be more effective if your
team doesn’t have to learn a new set of tools every time a new

05
Australia Australia
client comes on board.
Who should be involved in the onboarding
process?
Some firms have a dedicated onboarding team or individual What’s the ideal onboarding time
dedicated to client onboarding (e.g., an Onboarding Manag-
er or Onboarding Specialist). This role acts as the main point frame?
of communication during the transition from sales to the ac-
counting/bookkeeping team (i.e., after the client has signed a It is often cited that clients are most likely to churn within the
proposal, and before the firm begins any compliance and ad- first 90 days of starting a new product or service. As such,
visory work). best practice would dictate that your client should be fully on-
boarded before they hit the 90-day mark with your firm.
At a high-level, their key responsibilities usually include:
However, many best-in-class firms focus on making their on-
Setting timelines and expectations for the onboarding process boarding process task-based, as opposed to time-
line-based. Of course, the onboarding process shouldn’t
Gathering the necessary client information (e.g., bank details) drag on, but there also shouldn’t be pressure to rush
Assisting the client with app account setup and training through it.

Transitioning the client over to their dedicated accounting/- In our checklist, we provide a suggested timeline for each
bookkeeping team task based on best practices; however, it's up to your firm
and your clients to decide on an onboarding timeline that
If your firm doesn’t have any plans on the horizon to establish works for both of you.
an onboarding function, it’s critical to at least dedicate some-
one as the main point of contact to ensure the onboarding ex-
perience is enjoyable for the client.

06
 Start here

Receive contract & send

welcome email
Client onboarding
process & checklist Gather client information

The 6 stages of onboarding

This onboarding checklist will take you through each of Set up project & apps
these stages, outlining what must be achieved at each
stage, best practices for how it should be accomplished,
and a list of suggested tasks required in order to move on to
the next stage.

Source: A Guide to Client Onboarding: 7 Steps to Happier Clients & Less Churn
by Practice Ignition Client kickoff meeting

Send a welcome package

Transition to
bookkeeping team

07
 Checklist
Receive contract &
send welcome email 1 Task Owner Start
Dependent on
previous task?

Receive and file signed Sales End of proposal .

contract/engagement letter from client process
(note: filing contract not required when
As soon as your client has signed their proposal/engagement using Practice Ignition)
letter, it’s off to the races! Have a set process in place for
what happens immediately after a client signs on with your Admin <1 business day after Yes
firm, and who is responsible for making it happen. Streamline Inform your team about the new client receiving signed contract
internal communication as much as possible – announce key
details to your entire firm, and start a Slack channel (or anoth- Assign internal team to your new client Admin . .
er communication channel) for the client’s dedicated team. (Onboarding Specialist, Bookkeeping
Team)
When sending your “welcome” email, ensure your client’s
action items are clearly laid out. Also, it should be noted that Send welcome email to your client & Onboarding Within 2 business days Yes
some clients will prefer other channels of communication schedule implementation call. Include: after receiving signed
contract
(such as Slack). Decide on the preferred method of commu-
A warm welcome on behalf of your team . . .
nication at this stage, then stick to it moving forward.
Introduction to onboarding specialist(s) . . .

PRO TIP: Calendly link to schedule kickoff call . . .

Automate using Zapier. Zapier is a handy tool that
allows users to integrate various web applications to Request for information (Client . . .
automate tasks. For example, you can integrate Zapier Onboarding Questionnaire)
with Practice Ignition to automatically inform your team
about a new client in Slack, assign an onboarding task
in Aero Workflow, and send a “welcome” email – all im- Other: . . .

mediately after a proposal has been accepted. Follow client on social media (Twitter, Marketing / Within 3 business days after No
Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn) Admin receiving signed contract
See Appendix A: Using Zapier to Automate Your
Onboarding. Add client to email newsletter Marketing / Within 3 business days after No
Admin receiving signed contract

Add client start date/birthday as a recurring Admin Within 3 business days after No
annual event in your calendar receiving signed contract

08
 Checklist
Dependent on
Task Owner Start previous task?

Gather client Set up and send an onboarding

questionnaire to your client (this can be
automated using Practice Ignition & Zapier)
Onboarding 10-15 business days
before kickoff meeting
Yes

information 2
Ask for:

Business information (address, phone . . .

number, etc.)
Gathering client information is perhaps the most important
part of your onboarding process. Missing information will hold Main point of contact (name, email) . . .

up other onboarding processes and cause frustration for the

client if you’re bombarding their inbox with requests. Bank details & read-only bank access . . .

The key to gathering client information is streamlining the pro- User names & email addresses (for app . . .
cess as much as possible. The method through which you setup & permission level - will vary by
gather client information is important. Many best-in-class app)
firms use tools such as Google Forms or Typeform to collect
everything they need at once. Aim to gather information in a Metrics for success . . .
way that is convenient for the client, easy to track, and, of
course, secure.
Other items to request (depending on Onboarding 10-15 business days Yes
Request your client information In your welcome email (or, as client): before kickoff meeting

a follow up email to your initial welcome email – whatever

Consent forms . . .
works best for your firm). Be sure to ask for all the information
you need in order to set up their app accounts, etc.
Incorporation documents . . .

See Appendix B - List of Requested Client Information.

Payroll information . . .

PRO TIP:
Don’t ask for the same piece of information twice. For a comprehensive list of items to request from new clients, please see:
For example, if you can find the address of the firm on Appendix B - List of Requested Client Information.
a document or form, don’t ask them to include it sepa-
rately. This will save your client time (and avoid the
frustration that inevitably occurs from doing the same
thing twice).

09
PRO TIP:
Collect billing information during the proposal pro-
cess. Firms are often uncertain as to the best time to
ask for billing information. If a client is willing to provide
payment information (e.g., a pre-authorized debit
agreement) during the proposal process, it’s a good
sign that they’ll be an ideal client. However, some firms
might be unsure about this, and may be worried that
their client won’t accept their proposal because you’re
asking for payment information upfront. It’s worth
noting the following statistics from Practice Ignition in
2017:

In Australia: 76,669 proposals were sent through

Practice Ignition, of which 48,474 proposals asked for
automatic payments and payment information upfront.
2
Of those 48,474 proposals, 93% were accepted by
the clients. 16,420 of the 48,474 had the payment
fields as a required field (meaning the client could not
accept the proposal without entering their information).
This achieved a 91.5% acceptance rate.

In North America: these numbers were very similar,

with an average acceptance rate of 91% between
Canada and the USA, and a 90% average accep-
tance rate for proposals.

10
 Checklist
Dependent on
Task Owner Start previous task?

Set up onboarding job in your workflow Onboarding 10-15 business days Yes
management tool which includes the before kickoff meeting
following steps (note: can be automated
with Zapier)

Set up project Set up recurring services to perform for

your client at the proper frequency in
Onboarding 10-15 business days
before kickoff meeting
Yes

your workflow management tool

& apps Book client kickoff meeting (in-person or Onboarding 10-15 business days No
virtual) before kickoff meeting

Your client kickoff meeting (stage 4) will cover a number of ad-

Onboarding & 10-15 business days No
ministrative onboarding tasks that are more efficiently com- Meet internally - discuss: Bookkeeping before kickoff meeting
pleted alongside the client (e.g., showing them how to upload
receipts). However, it will help to streamline this client kickoff Scope of project . . .
meeting if you’re able to set up your onboarding workflow proj-
ect and the recurring services that you will perform for your cli-

3
Timelines and expectations . . .
ents (using a tool such as Aero Workflow), as well as any of
their cloud bookkeeping app accounts prior to the kickoff Scheduling and workflow . . .
meeting.

For new monthly bookkeeping clients, this will likely include Use client information to set up as many Onboarding 5-10 business days Yes
systems as possible before client kickoff before kickoff meeting
their accounting system, as well as tools for automating:
meeting (as applicable):

Document collection & management Accounting system (QuickBooks Online, . . .

Xero)
Bill pay
. . .
Cloud storage Client interaction (Client Hub)

Expense management Document collection & management . . .

(Hubdoc)
Time tracking
Bill pay (Bill.com, Plooto) . . .
Payroll
Reporting Cloud storage (Box, Dropbox, Google . . .
Drive, ShareFile, SmartVault)

Expense management (Expensify) . . .

Time tracking (TSheets) . . .

Payroll (Gusto, Wagepoint, ADP) . . .

Reporting (Futrli, Fathom, Spotlight

Reporting)
. . .

11
 Checklist
Dependent on
Task Owner Start previous task?

Client kickoff Preparing for the kickoff meeting: Onboarding 5-10 business days before Yes
kickoff meeting

Send an agenda in advance – agenda . 3-5 business days before .

meeting should include introduction time, what

must be accomplished (see below), and
any outstanding information/items
kickoff meeting

required from the client.

Your kickoff meeting/call is also hugely important to your Ensure your workspace is clean . Day of kickoff meeting .
working relationship with your client as it will be the first time whether meeting in person or virtually. If
you’re truly collaborating with them. Kickoff calls can be chal- meeting virtually, ensure your webcam is
working and your appearance is
lenging because a lot of “boring” administrative work must be camera-ready – first impressions matter!
accomplished – it’s important to ensure that even these types
of tasks are engaging for your client. It helps to add context as Turn off all notifications and distractions . Day of kickoff meeting .
to why you’re using the process/tool(s) you’re showing them
(e.g., it will help them save time, improve accuracy, etc.).
During kickoff meeting: Onboarding During kickoff meeting Yes
What happens before and after your kickoff meeting is just as
important as the meeting itself. It’s critical to communicate Make clients feel welcome and excited . . .
with your client what is going to happen during the kickoff, as (especially when executing
well as clearly outlining what outstanding items they need to administrative tasks)

do after. Set timelines and expectations . . .

Note: Prior to this stage (depending on the client and the type
of work you’re doing for them), it might be necessary for key
stakeholders (e.g., partners and/or the bookkeeper leading
4 Onboard client to apps

Keep a list of any outstanding to-do

items
.

.
.

.
.

the project) to meet to agree upon timelines and KPIs.

Follow up after kickoff meeting - include: Onboarding < 1 business day after .
kickoff meeting
Summary of what has been set up . . .
PRO TIP:
Aim to keep kickoff calls under 1 hour. As men- List of any outstanding to-do items and . . .
tioned, kickoff meetings are usually dominated by ad- next steps

ministrative tasks. Optimize the structure of your kick- Calendly link to book meeting with . . .
off meetings so you use your client’s valuable time bookkeeping team
wisely.

After kickoff meeting - internal tasks: Onboarding < 5 business days after .
kickoff meeting
Add users to apps . . .

Take care of any outstanding setup tasks . . .

12
based on new client information
Send a welcome
package
Sending a welcome package to your clients will enhance their Checklist
experience and show that you’re invested in your relationship
with them. In addition to providing important information about Task Owner Start
Dependent on
previous task?
your firm (e.g., a “cheat sheet” that includes contact informa-
tion about your firm – this can be sent as part of your client
kickoff follow up, or separately), your welcome package Assemble/order & send welcome package - Onboarding/ 5-7 days after kickoff No
include: Admin meeting
serves to warmly welcome your client as part of your team.
A firm "cheat sheet" that includes contact . . .
Sending a standard swag package and/or handwritten card is
information (via email)
a great idea. Or, to go above and beyond, be thoughtful and
personalize, if possible. Consider the following: A personalized "welcome" video from . . .
your team (via email; optional)

What are the clients’ interests as a company? (E.g., Swag, gifts, and/or a handwritten card . . .
(be creative!)
are they a local brewery, or are they a health food
store?)

Should it be a one-off gift, or a recurring monthly

subscription?

What would really enhance your client’s experience

and show them that you appreciate their business?
5
See Appendix C - Firm “Cheat Sheet” Template.

13
 Checklist
Dependent on
Task Owner Start previous task?

Set up initial meeting with bookkeeping Onboarding/ 1-3 business days after Yes

Transition to book- team Bookkeeping all onboarding tasks are

complete

keeping team Host internal transition meeting - during the

meeting:
Onboarding/
Bookkeeping
3-5 business days after
all onboarding tasks are
complete
Yes

Set aside time for outstanding Q&A . . .

about apps & onboarding
The final stage of the onboarding process – transitioning the
client to their dedicated bookkeeper/bookkeeping team –
Discuss any timelines and next steps to . . .
occurs when: close out onboarding

You have gathered all of the necessary information Discuss timelines and next steps for . . .
from the client monthly bookkeeping process

All of the client’s apps/accounts have been set up

Follow up with client after transition Bookkeeping < 1 business day after Yes
meeting - include: transition meeting
The client has received training/information on
how to work with the apps List of any outstanding tasks & action . . .
items
Your internal team has everything they need to
Summary of next steps . . .
begin advisory services!
Calendly link to book recurring meeting . . .
Once your onboarding process is standardized, most of the with dedicated member of their assigned
tasks listed above will occur leading up to and during the client bookkeeping team
kickoff meeting. Of course, every client is different – the key is
to have a set process in place for what happens after a client
completes onboarding, and who is responsible for guiding the Begin monthly bookkeeping! Bookkeeping As soon as transition to Yes
Bookkeeping Team is

6
transition to monthly bookkeeping (similar to the handoff from completed
sales to onboarding).

Let the monthly bookkeeping begin!

14
 Standardize & evaluate
Standardizing your onboarding process doesn’t mean “set it
and forget it” – rather, part of your standardization process
requires constantly evaluating any inefficiencies in the pro-
cess and fixing them. For example, maybe you need to
gather more information from the client upfront. Or, maybe
you need to split your kickoff meeting into two shorter ses-
sions, instead of one long one.

The best way to figure out how the process can be improved
is to ask your clients directly. Use a Net Promoter Score
(NPS) tool such as Promoter.io or Delighted to collect and
evaluate this feedback.

A great client experience starts with amazing onboarding.

Standardize and improve this process to experience the ben-
efits that unfold from strong client relationships.

To view the checklist in Google Sheets, click below.

VIEW CHECKLIST

15
Appendices
Appendix A - Using Zapier to Automate Your Onboarding

Appendix B - List of Requested Client Information

Appendix C - Firm “Cheat Sheet” Template

Appendix A
Using Zapier to Automate Your Onboarding (and So Much More!)
By Tom Maxwell, Head of Customer Success at Practice Ignition

Every single step detailed out in our Bookkeeping Client On- apps. Some exciting recent additions to their platform include Drinking our own Zapier’s champagne
boarding Checklist is critical for determining the success or awesome accountant-specific apps like Practice Ignition and
failure of your relationship with your customer. But we are the Aero Workflow (still in beta as of publication of this article). Zapier is a hyper-critical part of our daily workflow at Practice
first to admit, there’s a lot to do. Not only that, there’s also a Ignition. Currently, our usage looks like this:
lot you need to get right each and every time you onboard
a new client.
How does Zapier work?
So, how do you streamline this process even further without
A “Zap” (i.e., a blueprint for a task that you wish to automate)
skipping steps or causing inconsistencies?
starts with a “Trigger”. This means that something happens in
an app that you’re using – this could be that you receive a new
email in Gmail, or create a new invoice in QuickBooks, or an
Enter Zapier. event is added to your Google Calendar. When that Trigger
occurs, Zapier sends an “Action” instruction to an app to do
Heather Satterley, a 20-year veteran certified tax agent, a something in another app. To break this down: that’s 34 different Zaps (many of which
Quickbooks ProAdvisor since 1999, and official Intuit Trainer, are multi-step, meaning they trigger actions into several apps
also happens to be a wizard at Zapier. In her blog, Zapi- In Heather’s (and our) opinion, the most important benefit of at once) and approximately 8,000 different tasks per week
er....What’s all the buzz about?, Heather provides a neat using Zapier is consistency. A good process requires that it’s (note that the monthly usage resets three weeks from the time
overview of Zapier: done well every single time. Unfortunately, humans aren’t of the screenshot). Zapier’s research suggest that each task
perfect and so it’s easy to miss items or skip steps. With a helps a person save an average of 60 seconds. What does
well set-up Zapier workflow, you’ll never have to worry about this mean for Practice Ignition in terms of time saved?
inconsistencies in your workflow again!
So, what is Zapier? 133 hours per week.
Zapier is a web-based application designed for non-techies This is astonishing! Zapier equates to three full-time employ-
that allows you to create automated workflows between other ees for us. For Practice Ignition, Zapier provides us a mini-
web-based apps that you probably already use, like Gmail, mum savings of $150,000 per year.
Trello, QuickBooks, Xero and over 1,000 other supported

17
Example Zaps to automate your However, you may want to send a specific email based on More ideas to automate your
the services included in your proposal. For example, if you
onboarding are performing an accounting system conversion, perhaps onboarding:
you need to send more instructions to help this process get
Let’s revisit some examples of the items in the onboarding started quickly. This is where you can rely on Zapier to make
checklist and see how you could use Zapier to automate spe- it happen. You can use the Practice Ignition trigger “ser- Task Apps used Template
cific steps: vice accepted by client” to then trigger a Gmail, Office 365,
or even an email by Zapier action to send immediately (or Set up a cloud Box/Google When a Practice Ignition
even two days later, if you like!). storage folder Drive and proposal is accepted,
Inform your team about the new client: for your client Practice automatically create a
Ignition folder in Box or Google
Drive.
Nothing is more exciting than bringing a new client into your
business. You should celebrate that with your team! Slack is Set up onboarding job in your workflow
a great place to do that. management tool. Automatically Printfection, When a Practice
send a gift to Gmail/Office Ignition proposal is
your client 365, and accepted,
How does this Zap work? Effective onboarding means taking action quickly and con- Practice automatically create a
sistently. Aero Workflow is a fantastic place to ensure the Ignition new link in
Notify your team the moment you win new business – this work gets done. Through Zapier, you can automatically Printfection, and send
Practice Ignition-Slack integration template will automatical- as an email via Gmail
create an onboarding task in Aero Workflow immediately or Office 365.
ly post a message to Slack when a new proposal is accept- after a Practice Ignition proposal is accepted. The fine folks
ed in Practice Ignition. Now you can celebrate, or just get at Aero Workflow have written a detailed description of how
straight to work. to create this workflow! Automatically MailChimp and When proposals are
add your client Practice accepted in Practice
to your Ignition Ignition, the recipient
monthly will automatically be
Send a welcome email to your client & schedule newsletter added as a subscriber
an implementation call. The possibilities with Zapier are email list to your MailChimp list.
endless!
With Practice Ignition, you may not even need Zapier to com-
plete this task! Practice Ignition sends an automatic email The beauty of Zapier is that there are over 1,000 apps you
to the client as soon as they accept their agreement. You can integrate, meaning there are millions of Zap possibilities
have complete control over what to include, such as: to automate your workflow, even beyond client onboarding.
Automating the monotonous day-to-day tasks can easily
A warm welcome on behalf of your team result in going home at a reasonable hour or bringing on even
more clients. The key to utilizing Zapier is changing your
An introduction to onboarding specialist(s) (if this is con- mindset and allowing the technology to do the heavy lifting
sistent; if this changes, then you’ll need to intro them sep- for you.
arately in a call)

A Calendly link to schedule kickoff call If you feel like this is overwhelming or you’re not too sure
where the world of Zapier can take your workflow, never fear!
A request for information via a client onboarding question- Heather Satterley, the aforementioned Zapier expert, is here

18
naire for you. You can book a consulting session with Heather
right here.
Appendix B
List of Requested Client Information
Streamline the process of requesting client information as much as possible. Set up a Client
Onboarding Questionnaire (using a tool such as Google Forms or Typeform) to collect
everything you need at once.

Business info Items to collect Articles of Incorporation or

Request the following business information from your client In your Client Onboarding Questionnaire, include fields to
Organization
(or, if you’ve already been provided with this information, collect the following information and/or enable your clients to
have your client confirm these details). upload digital copies of the documents (Google Forms and
Typeform both enable the ability for respondents to upload
Item Additional Info
files).
Item Additional Info FEIN Federal Employer Identification Number

Legal Business Terms of Service/Consent & Billing S-Corp Letter Federal S-Corporation acceptance letter (if
Name applicable)

DBA Name Item Additional Info

State ID Nos State registration confirmation letters with all
IDs
Consent Forms Has the client accepted your firm’s terms
Primary Contact of service?
Name
Most recent Most recent corporate tax return or Schedule
tax returns C, including full Fixed Asset listing and
Auto-Pay Form Did the client complete firm's auto-pay Depreciation schedules
Primary Contact
form for recurring fixed fees, as per
Email
proposal?

Adjusted TB Most recent corporate tax return or Adjusted

Website Trial Balance supporting most recent corporate
tax return or Schedule C (if available)

Most recent Most recent audited, reviewed or compiled

19
financial financial statements (if available)
statements
Company Information Tax Information Bank Reconciliation

Item Additional Info Item Additional Info Item Additional Info

Company Federal and Prior year

organization State/Province December bank
chart Tax ID Numbers reconciliations
and statements

Company Prior year

business plan quarterly and Current year-to-
year-end date bank
payroll tax reconciliations
Current returns and statements
company budget
& forecast (if
available) Current year PY Year Bank Prior year December credit card, loan, and
quarterly payroll Recs any other Balance Sheet reconciliations
tax returns (if and statements
Current KPIs List of Critical Success Factors and Key applicable)
Performance Indicators currently measured
on an ongoing basis Current year Current year credit card, loan, and any
Prior year and statements and other Balance Sheet reconciliations and
year-to-date bank recs statements
BOD Minutes Most recent company Board of Directors sales tax returns
meeting minutes (if available) (if applicable)

Prior year Forms

1096 and
1099-Misc
Bank Information

Vendor Item Additional Info

1099-Misc
eligibility status
Bank access The client should grant read-only access
Recent tax Copies of any recent income, payroll, sales
correspondence and/or other tax correspondence (including
any letters regarding new rates, etc.) Bank account Routing & bank account number for bill pay
and routing
numbers

Chart of Chart of Accounts, if a custom one exists

Accounts

List of all bank

and credit card
accounts

20
Other
Request access
Item Additional Info Item Additional Info
If a client already has some software and programs in use,
request access by having your client add your firm (or the
NAICS code 6 Digits NAICS code - Use for KPIs and List of List of employee(s) who submit expense
LivePlan. Get it here if the client doesn't reimbursable reports for reimbursement (name, email, dedicated representative from your firm) as a user. If pass-
know it. employees approver) - include max reimbursable words need to be shared, ensure you have a security policy
expense amount and time frame in place for collecting and protecting this type of sensitive in-
Depreciation &
formation (e.g., use a tool such as LastPass or Dashlane).
amortization HSA & 401(k)
schedules payroll
contribution
plan details & Item Additional Info
Inventory detail Detail of inventory for prior year end (if remittance
available/applicable) instructions
Existing general E.g., QuickBooks, Xero
ledger /
Company If the company pays health insurance for List of List of all subcontractors with billing terms accounting
insurance any employee(s), a schedule of employees, subcontractors summarized and with copies of agreements software
information type of coverage (single, family, etc.), total (if available)
cost of coverage for the year, amount paid
by the company for each employee, hours Existing payroll E.g., Gusto, Wagepoint, ADP
worked in current year for each employee All W-9s W-9s for subcontractors system

Copies of all Copies of all insurance policies in force, Voided Company Check (to set up online Existing bill pay
Voided Check E.g., Bill.com, Plooto
company including summary page with policy accounts payable system) system
insurance coverage dates and any financing plans in
policies place for the policies
Current financial Any financial reports (generated from
reports (Balance QuickBooks, Excel or any other source) and Existing cloud E.g., Box, Dropbox, Google Drive,
Loan info Loan agreements and payment / sheet & P&L) other management reports currently storage Sharefile, SmartVault
amortization schedules generated on an ongoing basis solution

Sales tax Customer sales tax exemption certificates Custom report Existing E.g., Expensify
certificates (if applicable) samples to expense
replicate management
tool
Company
retirement plan Logo file Company Logo in jpg or png for using on
documents forms, etc. Existing
reporting
system
List of Complete list of all company employees List of List of employee commission rates (if
employees & with salary and benefit details and copies employee applicable)
rates of employment agreements (if applicable) commission
as well scheduled date of next pay rates
increase (if applicable)

21
Appendix C
Bookkeeping Firm “Cheat Sheet”

Firm information
Function Name of Tool Login URL

Firm Name
Accounting Software

Main Contact
Client Interaction

Email Address Communication

Ext.
Phone Number Document Collection

Calendly Bill Pay

Firm Address Cloud Storage

Expense Management

Time Tracking

Payroll

22
Acknowledgements
On behalf of Aero Workflow, Practice Ignition, and Hubdoc, we’d like to
extend a special thank you to the following individuals who helped us put this
document together:

Chris Frame, LiveCA

Cristina Garza, Accountingprose & Accountingprose Accelerator
Judie McCarthy, Think Leader & Client Hub
Laura Redmond, Redmond Accounting Inc. & Aero Workflow

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