Sharonda Added $36k In Revenue In Just 4 Months & Now Has Great Work-Life Balance

Bill (0:00 – 0:10): Hey there, I’m Bill with Booming Bookkeeping Business, and I’m here with one of my successful students, Sharonda.

Bill (0:10 – 0:27): Now, Sharonda has been in the program for about four months. Prior, she had about $1,500 in monthly revenue, bookkeeping revenue, and in just four months, she’s grown that to $4,500 a month.

Bill (0:27 – 0:30): So, Sharonda, thanks for being here.

Sharonda (0:30 – 0:32): Thank you for having me.

Bill (0:32 – 0:36): Tell me a little bit about yourself and your business.

Sharonda (0:36 – 1:09): I started in accounting back in high school, doing it manually, so it’s definitely come a long way. But I started S&R Business Solutions, and it’s kind of a one-stop shop for business owners. Anything dealing with business, I received my MBA, and then I went back and got a master’s in accounting and finance.

Sharonda (1:09 – 1:38): And I didn’t go the CPA route because I wanted a return on my investment. I decided to just do small business bookkeeping by way of actually working in the field, whether in corporate or small businesses, I found to be more valuable, or I felt more valuable in the small business arena, and definitely realized the pain points of the businesses working there professionally.

Sharonda (1:38 – 1:55): So, that was my way of also kind of meeting their business owners, assisting them with their process, and establishing a relationship and rapport with them in the process, and just giving back to the community.

Bill (1:55 – 1:58): So, you’re really passionate about helping small business owners succeed, then?

Sharonda (1:58 – 1:59): I am, yes.

Bill (1:59 – 2:19): Yeah. I always say anybody who’s interested in creating a bookkeeping business, that’s kind of one of the prerequisites, is that you’ve got to really enjoy the work, and you’ve got to enjoy wanting to help small businesses.

Bill (2:19 – 2:23): So, tell me a little bit about kind of the problems you were having with your business prior to joining the program.

Sharonda (2:23 – 2:54): Well, prior to, I definitely wasn’t considered myself a salesperson, so that was kind of like my cringing point. And so, maybe I need to hire somebody to do that part of it. And besides that, I think it was pricing. What would be the best way to utilize the pricing as far as, and not undervalue my services?

Sharonda (2:54 – 3:10): So, that was the biggest thing for me. And once I saw your advertisement, I believe it might have been Facebook or Instagram, and kind of looked at your profile, I think we met briefly, and I kind of asked, is there any way I could just get the calculator?

Sharonda (3:10 – 3:36): You know, that was the biggest part to me, was the marketing and the calculator, and they proved to be very valuable to the business. And it kind of made it more efficient for me that I didn’t have to think about it so much in the pricing, you know, because you see a variance of, you know, people want to be by the hour or, you know, this and that, or the transaction.

Sharonda (3:36 – 3:45): So, you know, receiving that information definitely made it seamless for me, and I was able to focus more on the relationship aspect of it.

Bill (3:45 – 3:53): Would it be fair to say that prior to the program that your reluctance to pursue like the marketing was kind of holding you back in terms of growth?

Sharonda (3:53 – 3:54): Definitely, yeah.

Bill (3:54 – 4:00): What made you choose booming bookkeeping business as opposed to other options?

Sharonda (4:00 – 4:20): Originally, I tried to reinvent the wheel and just do everything on my own. And those two aspects that were hindering my progress, I, you know, really did it based on that. And of course, you’re kind of personable as well, you know. So, you know, I’m like, okay, you know…

Sharonda (4:20 – 4:43): And I like that you explained your background, that you didn’t come from that background, but going and seeing, I think it was a gym or something that you went. Yeah, I was the general manager of a gym of all places. Yeah. And so, okay, you know, that makes sense, you know.

Sharonda (4:43 – 5:01): And to bring it all together, I just wanted to have a program that could dig right into what I needed. And the way it was laid out, I could pick and choose what was relevant to me at the time. And then I could go back and do those other things and brush up some of those other skills needed.

Bill (5:01 – 5:48): What would you say about the program made it so effective? Well, I think it was user-friendly for one, and just open and honest about what to do. So, I mean, to have it so user-friendly that anyone could actually come in and utilize the program. I mean, like yourself, you started out as a gym member, you know, gym. So, yeah. So, I mean, and you’ve grown this, you know, business. So, yeah, I think it was very valuable.

Bill (5:48 – 6:04): Anybody can do it as long as you do two things. The first is you’ve got to just follow the program. It’s there. It works. It’s not rocket science. It’s not magic. It’s just what works.

Bill (6:04 – 6:12): And then number two, you got to reach out. You got to find somebody who you like working with and reach out when you need help. And that’s, sort of, what we do.

Sharonda (6:12 – 6:25): Yeah. I definitely love the platform to where you can ask questions and the whole community responds. And yeah. So, it’s each one teach one. Even after the process of getting in, you know, it’s developed a community within our own group as well.

Bill (6:25 – 6:49): That’s right. And people tend to, when I look at their program and see, you know, all the transactions and everything, I’m thinking, oh, that might be too much originally. But now it’s like, I’m going for it. So, it also brought in a lot more confidence as well with pricing the value of the services that we provide.

Bill (6:49 – 7:49): Now, let’s talk a little bit about results. We talked a little bit about them earlier, but tell me the outcome of the program, kind of where you’re at now, where it’s helped you be. Oh, well, I’m busy. My first goal was to get to a level of paying my bills. And I’m almost there, you know. Not quite, but, you know, I have, you know, grown in that aspect to where I have no doubt that it’ll definitely exceed it. You know, to the point that I will need to find some staff in the near future, if possible, with the growth. So, I don’t want to stagnate it. I want to keep continuing forward. So, that’s my goal.

Bill (7:49 – 8:09): So, you came into the program you were already doing in your business about $1,500, and now four months later, you’re at $4,500. I mean, that’s pretty good.

Bill (8:09 – 8:25): I mean, that’s tacking on an additional $3,000 of revenue in four months. That’s pretty darn good. I mean, that’s $3,000, that’s what $9,000 a year if you do the same thing in the next four months. So, that’s not bad.

Sharonda (8:25 – 8:40): You know, getting in that program, I didn’t even expect all the calls that were coming. And it also allows you to be a little choicey, you know.

Bill (8:40 – 8:56): Yeah, you know, and that’s when you have your marketing dialed in, you have the ability now not to live and die with every prospect. You know, you can be picky and choosy. And that’s really where you grow a really big business.

Bill (8:56 – 9:17): And you’re still not slaving away, you know, even 40 hours a week, because, you know, you’re really able to maximize your margins on each client. So, tell me a little bit about how your life has changed as a result of, you know, increasing revenue.

Sharonda (9:17 – 9:51): Time has been a rare commodity. The holiday season, I definitely didn’t anticipate it to, you know, go that route. But, you know, through COVID and those things, it has definitely sustained some financial aspects and to, you know, stay in safety, you know, you can manage it from home. But yeah, it definitely has changed my time schedule and definitely have to, you know, streamline some things and make sure I’m staying efficient and, you know, not spinning my wheels on certain other things that need to be done.

Sharonda (9:51 – 10:16): So, I had to kind of push the marketing to the side for a minute because, you know, traffic was flowing. And once I was able to get them onboarded and everything kind of managed from a monthly standpoint, then I was able to kind of go back to the marketing aspect and expound on it and add more into what, you know, where I left off.

Bill (10:16 – 10:18): So, you’ve gotten a lot of flexibility out of it.

Sharonda (10:18 – 10:19): Absolutely.

Bill (10:19 – 10:35): Cool. Yeah. I mean, you know, for me, flexibility, once you get to a certain level of revenue now, the freedom of being flexible and having a flexible schedule becomes just as important.

Sharonda (10:35 – 10:56): Correct. What would you say to someone who’s thinking about starting a bookkeeping business? Well, I would definitely say take the chance. You don’t have to be, you know, in the background in that field and think that, you know, this is a prerequisite to be in the program. It really lays out the foundation for anyone to succeed.

Sharonda (10:56 – 11:18): And I think just to be able to educate and inspire business owners, it helps build the community. It builds rapport and, you know, stand for something. So, I think that it’s a good thing to be a part of and go for it.

Bill (11:18 – 11:35): Definitely go for it. I tell everybody, even if they say, you know, even if the program might not be right for them, I say, look, if you’re passionate about it, if you love it, find a way to make it happen. Because it really is great, you know, money, schedule, freedom, those types of things.

Sharonda (11:35 – 11:48): And then just doing fulfilling work, like you’re talking about being an asset to your community. I definitely need the freedom to be able to enjoy life and have that work-life balance. And this program definitely contributed to that.

Bill (11:48 – 12:02): Perfect. Well, you know, I love seeing your success. I love seeing you grow. You know, it’s a pleasure working with you. And so, keep it up. Keep us posted.

Sharonda (12:02 – 12:05): Thank you so much.

Bill (12:05 – 12:07): Thank you so much, Sharonda. Have a great weekend.