We recently reported on how AccountancyManager customers have been responding to the lockdown. As we expected there was a direct correlation between the challenges they’re facing, the features of AM that are helping and the spikes we’d spotted in AccountancyManager usage.
One challenge was not being able to meet clients in person or get documentation and signatures from them. We saw a 20% increase in portal sign-ups over March and April and it was rated third ‘most useful AM feature’ (after bulk emails and tasks).
“Had an interesting chat with one of our customers this morning, they are using their time to get all of their clients portal registered seeing as they won’t be seeing them face to face for a while.”
– Rachel Blacklock, AM Support
Share docs, get signatures and give your clients more control
Getting your clients portal registered is simple, and you can invite multiple clients at once. Once they’re in, your clients can access any documents you share with them, add their e-signature and directly fill in any online forms (created by you). They can update their details in AccountancyManager directly, removing the middle-person (you). No more printed checklists, temperamental Word docs or time spent deciphering dodgy handwriting.
“We’re getting more clients signed up to the portal so they can upload documents and we can still do their accounts/tax returns without too much disruption.”
– Caroline Dinsmore, CP Accountancy Ltd
When your client completes forms, uploads or signs a document in their portal, you’ll get a notification in AM – so you don’t need to spend any additional time trawling through your inbox. A list of deadlines for the services you provide is also available within the portal, so clients can check without having to ask you.
GDPR compliant
If a document includes your clients’ name, address and phone number, it’s subject to GDPR. An email can pass through several servers as it is sent and received – without encryption, other parties can intercept the email. The client portal is fully GDPR compliant, allowing your clients to exchange their personal documents and information securely, and allowing you to breathe easy.
Bells and whistles
Your clients can use the portal as their own CRM to manage their business. They can create a task list to stay organised, keep track of their time by logging the work they’ve completed, and use this information to create and send invoices. They can invoice their clients and tell their accountant (you) about it, all in one place.
FAQs
I’m already using something else
You can cut the extra subscription and just use AM. Taking advantage of the client portal also means you can utilise all the AM functionality. Plus, there’s no additional cost for the client portal.
How will clients find their documents?
When your client logs in they’ll see a header called ‘Documents’. From here, there’s a dropdown menu with each of their associated client files listed – so there’s no confusion about what document belongs to which company or person.
How can I make registering clients easy?
There are two simple ways to register your clients. You can use our bulk email feature to invite them all at once, but if you’re registering a lot of clients and they have questions, you might find yourself quickly inundated with calls. Instead, you could contact them in small batches – the process is still very fast, and you can handle any questions as they come in.
Looking for more information for your clients? Rachel, AccountancyManager’s Support Team Lead, has put together the best bits of the client portal from your clients’ perspective – a handy factsheet for you to share.
