Plan B Business
Professional Services

Stop chasing 1040s.
Start commanding advisory fees.

We work with accounting and CPA firms doing $500K-$5M in annual revenue who want to escape the seasonal tax-prep race. Our 12-month engagement migrates clients to year-round advisory retainers, 3x average client value, and gives partners their summers back.

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Industry Reality

7 patterns we see in >70% of accounting & cpa firms

85%
frequency

70%+ revenue concentrated in Q1 tax season

Root cause: Firm runs as a tax prep shop, not an advisory practice. Slow 9 months, manic 3 months.

What we do: Productized advisory packages (Tax + Bookkeeping + Quarterly Planning + Annual CFO Review). Move 30-40% of clients to monthly retainers within 12 months.

80%
frequency

Pricing hasn't been updated since 2019

Root cause: Partner fear of losing long-term clients. Combined with inflation, real revenue has declined 15-20%.

What we do: Annual 5-7% rate increase baked into engagement letters. Justified through documented added value (advisory time, tax planning, business strategy).

85%
frequency

All clients pay similar fees regardless of complexity

Root cause: No client segmentation. Small one-1040 client and complex S-corp client both pay ~$1,000/year.

What we do: Client tiering: Standard ($800/year basic), Premium ($3,000/year with quarterly reviews), Strategic ($8,000+/year with CFO services). Migrate top 20% of clients to higher tiers.

75%
frequency

Junior accountant burnout in Q1

Root cause: All-hands-on-deck January-April. 80-hour weeks. Turnover after tax season.

What we do: Year-round bookkeeping retainers smooth workload. Hire seasonal Q1 contractors instead of overloading staff. Q1 bonuses tied to retention.

90%
frequency

No proactive advisory - reactive to client requests only

Root cause: Compliance mindset. Clients call when they need something. No outbound advisory.

What we do: Quarterly business review meetings with every Premium-tier client. Proactive tax planning, business strategy, financial dashboard.

70%
frequency

Slow technology adoption (still using 2015-era tools)

Root cause: Partners resist new software. Firm runs on QuickBooks Desktop + email.

What we do: Modernize stack: cloud accounting (QBO/Xero), client portal (Karbon/TaxDome), workflow management, e-signature. Required, not optional.

65%
frequency

No partner-track or career path for staff

Root cause: Make-partner-or-leave culture. No 'forever associate' or 'principal' track.

What we do: Create 3 career tracks: Partner-track (5-7 year path), Senior Manager (long-term non-equity), Director/Principal (industry expert).

Benchmarks

The numbers we hit

KPIMarket avgPlan B targetAfter 12 mo
% revenue from monthly retainers10-25%60%+40-65%
Average client value (annual)$1,500-$3,000$5,000-$15,000$4K-$12K
% revenue in Q1 (tax season)60-75%<35%30-45%
Partner billable hours (weekly)50-60<3532-45
Junior accountant retention (3-year)40%75%+60-80%
Client retention (annual)80-90%95%+90-96%
Revenue per partner$250K-$400K$600K+$450K-$700K
Engagement Model

What working with us looks like

  1. 01

    Month 1: Client + financial audit

    We pull every client's profitability (revenue minus actual time spent), every service line's margin, your Q1-vs-rest-of-year revenue mix. We identify the 20% of clients ready for premium tier.

  2. 02

    Months 2-3: Advisory tier structure + client conversion

    Build the 3-tier service structure. Roll out to top 30 clients first. Migration script: 'We're upgrading our service model - here's what's new and what you'll get.'

  3. 03

    Months 4-6: Operations modernization

    Cloud accounting migration complete. Client portal live. Workflow management deployed. Partner billable hours start dropping.

  4. 04

    Months 7-12: Compounding + freedom

    Q1 is no longer a death march. 50-60% of revenue is recurring. Partners take real vacations. We move to quarterly cadence.

Common questions from accounting & cpa firms owners

What size firm is this for?−
Sweet spot: $500K-$5M revenue with 3-15 staff. Below $500K, you're still building the firm. Above $5M, you need full-time COO.
Our clients won't pay more. We tried.+
Common belief. Test it: take your top 10 clients by value, call each one for a 30-minute 'review meeting,' and present them a clear $3,000-$8,000/year value-package with monthly check-ins. 6-7 out of 10 will say yes. The other 3-4 weren't right-fit for advisory anyway.
We do both tax and audit. Does that change anything?+
Audit firms have different economics (regulated, lower margins, higher staff utilization). We work with both. The advisory-conversion model applies to tax practice. Audit practice we treat differently - help you optimize partner leverage, scope creep management, and audit tech adoption.
What about CAS (Client Advisory Services)?+
CAS is exactly where we play. Many of our engagements help firms build true CAS practice from a foundation of bookkeeping + tax. CAS done right = $50K-$200K/year per client. That's the prize.
Will you help with hiring?+
Yes. Hiring and retention are typically the #2 issue (after pricing). We help with job descriptions, comp structure, interview process, and onboarding. We don't recruit for you, but we help you build the system.
Who actually does the work?+
Ligal Frish and Eitan Eshtemaker. Co-founders. Not associates.
What's the fee?+
Diagnostic: $1,500. Advisor: $3,500/month (most firms). Partner: $8,500+/month (multi-partner firms or M&A prep).
What if we want to sell the firm?+
Part of our Partner-tier engagement. CPA firms are valued at 1.0-1.3x revenue typically. The work we do (recurring revenue, client diversification, documented processes, technology adoption) can push valuation to 1.5-1.8x. Plan 24-36 months ahead.

Stop being a tax shop. Build an advisory practice.

30-minute strategy call. We'll diagnose your top 2 levers and tell you if we're a fit. No pitch. No pressure.

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