01 · The Challenge
Because Kelli serves clients in construction, trades, and real estate, many prefer in-person interactions. She operates out of a private office in a co-working space to accommodate clients who drop off receipts and documents. Running the firm solo means every hour spent on administrative tasks is an hour not available for client work.
“I no longer have to think about billing. It is completely off my plate, and I honestly forget until I see money hit my bank account.”
Kelli Moss, Owner, Moss Business Solutions LLC
Before Anchor, creating a proposal for a new client was a multi-step, multi-hour process. Kelli built each one in Microsoft Word, converted it to a PDF in Adobe, and then customized it manually for each prospect. Files were frequently lost, which meant starting over from scratch. The finished product rarely looked the way she wanted.
"I was formatting it as best I could in Word and then turning it into Adobe and then I was trying to customize it to each client. And I would always lose the file. So it was like recreating it every time. And it just looked very unprofessional."
A single proposal could consume five or more hours. That time cost compounded across every new client engagement.
On the billing side, the process was entirely manual. Kelli relied on QuickBooks to set up recurring transactions, but in the day-to-day pace of running a solo firm, it was easy to fall behind. She would forget to create the initial invoice, forget to mark it as recurring, and then have to catch up days later. Billing was something she had to remember to do rather than something that happened automatically.
Tiered proposals were not a realistic option under this setup. Without a structured system, presenting three clear service packages to different client segments required too much manual effort to be practical.
“It was just so hectic that I would forget. So it would be days, and then I'd forget to make the initial invoice to send it to them, and then to make it recurring”
Kelli Moss, Owner, Moss Business Solutions LLC
02 · The SolutionWhy Anchor
Kelli was active in accounting industry groups and communities online, which is where she first heard about Anchor. The platform generated significant attention when it launched, and she saw consistent positive feedback from peers. Pricing was also a factor. Anchor's model, which charges on payment processing rather than a per-seat monthly subscription, fit her solo practice economics.
"It was huge news when it came out and it was priced right. That is what drew me to you. It was not per seat, hundreds of dollars per month. It was just the processing fee, which I am good with."
Before committing, Kelli did her homework. She read reviews across the industry, attended a demo, and talked with peers who were already using the platform. She does not adopt new tools quickly, so by the time she signed on, she had confidence in what she was getting.
She also evaluated at least one alternative, testing it with one or two new clients while keeping existing clients in Anchor. The comparison reinforced her decision. The competing tool was more text-heavy and felt less suited to her busy clients, who needed something clean and fast to review. Anchor stayed.
Implementation
Because Kelli came to Anchor early, she was able to set up her workflows from the beginning rather than migrating a large existing client base at once. She organized her services into tiered packages aligned to her two primary client segments: real estate investors and commercial landlords, each with specialized terminology, and a separate track for general bookkeeping clients.
Each segment has three package tiers, ranging from basic bookkeeping to bookkeeping with tax services included. Setting up a new proposal now means selecting the right package, updating the cost, and sending. The service details are already in place.
For larger clients, Anchor handles the full billing workflow. For a small number of simpler, lower-volume clients, she continues to use QuickBooks, keeping the arrangement proportional to each relationship.
03 · The ResultsDirect Savings
The most immediate change was in proposal creation. What previously took five or more hours now takes under 30 minutes, based on Kelli's own assessment. That time was spent reformatting documents in Word, converting them in Adobe, customizing each version manually, and frequently rebuilding lost files from scratch. None of that remains.
“The amount of energy and worry and time it takes off your plate is worth every bit of it.”
Kelli Moss, Owner, Moss Business Solutions LLC
Billing has shifted from a task she had to remember and manage to a process that runs on its own. Manual billing work has dropped from 100% to approximately 10%, the remainder being occasional custom adjustments, based on the firm's own estimate. Annual price increases, which previously would have required individual invoice updates or client conversations, now happen automatically on the renewal date.
The experience of running billing has changed at a practical level. Kelli checks in daily to see whether a proposal has been viewed or is awaiting action, but she is not managing payments or chasing outstanding invoices. When issues arise, they are on the client or bank side, not the platform.
"I no longer have to think about billing. It is completely off my plate and I honestly forget until I see money hit my bank account."
The time reclaimed from proposals and billing administration goes directly into bringing on new clients. Faster turnaround on proposals means Kelli can respond to prospects quickly and take on more engagements without adding to her workload. The capacity that billing used to consume now supports growth.
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