How Dext helped Avail CPA transform its bookkeeping business

Canadian professional services firm Avail CPA provides accounting, bookkeeping and advisory services in Southern Alberta and British Columbia. The firm's first expansion into cloud technology came in 2018 when it acquired a virtual accounting practice. Avail's subsequent adoption of Dext proved transformative, particularly for its bookkeeping business.

We recently spoke to the Avail team to learn how Dext has contributed to the firm's growth strategy, helping it take bookkeeping from a "business as usual" activity to a distinct service line.

About Avail CPA

Founded in 1933, Avail CPA is Southern Alberta's largest independent business advisory and accounting firm. The firm has over 150 team members serving its six communities. This figure includes 20 team members dedicated to the firm's bookkeeping practice.

To learn more about the role Dext has played in the Avail's growth, we spoke to:

• Chelsey Deitz, Manager of Avail's Bookkeeping and Online Accounting division. Chelsey has been at Avail for 10 years and is based at the firm's Lethbridge headquarters.
• Connie Robertson, Accounting Technician. Connie first worked for Avail in its earlier days, prior to its adoption of Dext. Now in her second tenure at the firm, Connie is based at its Milk River office and works closely with Dext and other digital solutions.
• Ryan Doram, Accounting Technician. Part of the bookkeeping team, Ryan has been with Avail for 18 months and is based at the firm's headquarters in Lethbridge.

The opportunity

Before Avail CPA started using Dext, bookkeeping at the firm looked very different. While some quarterly activity took place, the majority of bookkeeping was performed annually – and all on desktop. This meant that the firm's bookkeepers were living from one high-pressure tax deadline to the next. According to the team, they were "drowning until the last minute" to complete their clients' bookkeeping prior to each deadline.

This annual approach also meant a lot of waiting around for clients to turn in their paperwork. With many clients in agricultural industries, receiving shoeboxes full of receipts was common. When digital records were available, they were usually submitted on floppy disks. Not only did this mean a lot of manual work for Avail's bookkeeping team, it also meant none of that work could start until those receipts and floppy disks had been dropped off. This made scheduling very difficult and created a lot of uncertainty about workloads in the run-up to those important deadlines.

With bookkeeping merely positioned as part of the firm's year-end activities, there was no marketing activity to promote it as a service. Most clients came to the firm via word of mouth. In those days, bookkeeping was framed simply as a mechanism for completing clients' taxes. As the team put it, it was a "means to an end".

Things started to change in 2018 when Avail acquired a virtual accounting firm that made great use of digital tools. Together with strong buy-in to the cloud from senior management and enthusiasm from some clients, the firm was ready for change and wanted to introduce a cloud-based bookkeeping tool.

The solution

The introduction of Dext at Avail CPA was met with positivity from the team. Chelsey recalls how the firm's partners expressed excitement about the software when they saw its functionality and ease of use for clients. They were confident they could help clients understand the benefits of the software quickly and encourage them to use it.

Particularly appealing to Avail's team members was the prospect of dealing with fewer shoeboxes while using Dext.

"If you still get a shoebox of receipts, you should turn to Dext" - Chelsey Deitz, Manager at Avail CPA Bookkeeping and Online Accounting Division

For team members whose clients weren't quite ready to ditch the shoebox of receipts yet, Dext still proved useful. The contents of that shoebox could still be scanned and uploaded into a single PDF while each line item was individually categorized using the software's Smart Split feature. So whether team members were dealing with tech enthusiasts, new adopters or clients who weren't quite ready for change, they were able to realize Dext's powerful benefits very quickly.

As Avail's partners predicted, clients were also impressed with Dext, particularly with how easy it could make the once-onerous task of keeping on top of their paperwork. Connie explains that describing the benefits of Dext in relatable terms often proved an effective tactic with clients. "We'd say: 'Now you're not digging through that mess of receipts on the dash of your truck each time your accountant asks you for details about a transaction'. They appreciated how everything is archived in one place", she recalls.

Connie describes an early success story with one such client with particular clarity. She and a colleague set up a rancher – one of their most conservative clients – on the software. After basic training, the client was not only impressed with Dext's ability to handle multiple receipt uploads, but began to trust the software. The client now takes her phone everywhere with her – from the farm to the feed and seed store – and records all her transactions in real time.

The impact

It's no exaggeration to say that Dext has had a transformative impact on Avail's bookkeeping businesses. "We used to have a much smaller team. The growth has been crazy since we adopted online processes'', shares Chelsey. Reflecting on her return to the firm after a career break, Connie explains that Dext has changed her role for the better, without too steep a learning curve.

"I really do get excited about Dext. My friends tease me a little bit for constantly telling them how amazing Dext is", she laughs.

Perhaps unsurprisingly for a firm with a presence in agricultural communities like Taber, Vauxhall, Milk River, and Fort Macleod, the team still gets envelopes full of receipts from time to time, but now most clients are on Dext – and those receipts can be scanned efficiently.

The Avail team are big fans of Dext's other features too. They use the software to archive paperwork and record mileage, amongst other benefits. Dext's payment method extraction functionality and supplier rules are also between their favorite capabilities.

The bookkeeping team reports greater flexibility, improved work-life balance and better capacity for anticipating and managing workloads now that they have a digital tool to help them work more effectively with clients. Productivity has also improved.

“We can do twice the amount of work in the same amount of time with Dext. It has allowed us to grow.” - Chelsey Deitz, Manager at Avail CPA Bookkeeping and Online Accounting Division

Since introducing Dext, Avail has achieved its goal of offering bookkeeping as a distinct service line. Team members credit Dext with their ability to sell the firm's bookkeeping services. The software allows them to demonstrate the value to clients instantly.

"When you show clients the simplicity of Dext, they're wowed" - Ryan Doram, Accounting Technician at Avail CPA

The firm has expanded its bookkeeping service even further by offering consulting to larger clients who perform their bookkeeping in-house. The Avail team helps to transition those clients onto Dext, providing training and support for implementation.

This shift has enabled Avail to operate far more strategically. "We used to turn down work based on capacity and paper volume", Connie explains. For Avail's partners, Dext is far more than a tool to drive efficiency. Built into the firm's fixed pricing, it's seen as a feature of its revenue model.

Moving forward

So what does the future hold for Avail CPA? The firm is in the process of creating niche teams for each of its core tech stacks. These teams will play a pivotal role in driving the adoption of Dext and Avail's other core tech tools across the organization.

The Avail bookkeeping team also plans to start exploring more of Dext's integrations to give clients who use either Xero or Quickbooks an even more streamlined process. Finally, the firm plans to develop its processes for using Dext so it can broaden its client base further and then work with more clients in the not-for-profit sector.

Find out how Dext can help your firm transform its bookkeeping business and drive strategic growth. Book a Demo