NEW Effective Pricing Features over 2021

Mark Wickersham • December 21, 2021

Over the course of 2021, we've added LOADS of exciting new features to Effective Pricing, some of which came from your own great ideas and suggestions.

 

Here are all the new features added to Effective Pricing over 2021 in case you missed any:



Updates to Proposals


Effective Pricing had some updates which went live at the end of January 2021 relating to proposals. Here is a quick summary of the main changes:


Expanding the list of pages


In the top left you could only see 3 of your proposal pages at a time which made it cumbersome managing page ordering with lots of pages. There is now a new icon allowing you to expand or contract the list of proposal pages.


Simplified the standard tables you can insert into your quotes


We removed some of the headings from the standard pricing tables you can embed in your proposals. For example, the “Questions” heading on the table where you show your client how they answered the scope and preference questions.


We felt it was a redundant heading, and if you really want that heading (or a different one) you can add it into a text box immediately prior to the table.

Other changes to the pricing tables include better spacing of rows, particularly when a table straddles two pages, and on the “Package” table the text now runs further across the page.

 


Adding images and background images


When inserting an image into your proposal it would often look very different when you previewed the final proposal. This has been significantly improved.

 


Other small styling changes


For example, better spacing of text when using multiple columns.


New Keywords and Organisation



There have also been updates to keywords and organisation in Effective Pricing thanks to user requests.

There are 15 new {{Keywords}} you can insert into your proposals. These consist of a set of 3 for each of the available 5 packages. They are:


  • Package name, e.g. {{NAME – SUPER}}
  • Package price before Behaviour Reward, e.g. {{PRICE – SUPER}}}
  • Package price after Behaviour Reward, e.g. {{FINAL PRICE – SUPER}}

This gives you the ability to insert prices for your packages in a written description as well as a standard table of prices.


These keywords are part of the System keywords. 


Of course, you also can create your own Company, Client and Quote keywords. In the proposal creation area, we have now organised these 4 types of keywords, together with the 15 new “Package” keywords into headings with arrows to expand the list.

This will make it easier to navigate the keywords.

 


Client Keywords


Client Keywords are words you connect to a specific client. This may be their marital status, birthday, favourite colour, and so on. These are words that you would like to pull through to your proposals quickly.


Create a new keyword in the Keyword Manager and set the Type as ‘Client’.


You will see this new Keyword option appear next to your client details in Settings, Clients and Quotes. When you click ‘Add Client’ or if you are editing the details of a current client and click ‘View/Edit’ next to that client’s name, it will open up a box for you to add their details.


In that box is a secondary tab called Keywords:

In this tab, you can add any Keywords that you have already set up in your Keyword Manager.

 


Quote Keywords


Quote Keywords are words you connect to a specific quote. For example, this could be their Year-End.


Create a new Keyword in your Keyword Manager and set the Type as ‘Quote’.


You will see this new Keyword option appear when you start a new quote or edit an existing quote. The very first page where you add the details of the quote now has an option to also add any relevant Keywords:


Company Keywords


Company Keywords are words that you connect to your own company. For example, this might be your website address, location or phone number.


Create a new Keyword in your Keyword Manager and set the Type as ‘Company’.


You will see the new Keyword option when you head to Settings, then My Profile. There is a new tab for Keywords where you can add any details about your company that will be useful to pull through quickly to your proposals:


Including tooltips and descriptions within proposals


When you create Behaviour Rewards you can add a tooltip, i.e. a description that appears in a box when you hover your mouse over an information symbol.


When you create Enhancements, you can create a description that appears on the screen under the feature.


Now, for both Behaviour Rewards and Enhancements, for each feature, you can choose to add a description and you can choose whether that description is a tooltip rather than on the screen by default.


This gives you more control of what information the client sees as you offer them Behaviour Rewards and Enhancements.


When you create your proposals, you have pricing tables for each of Behaviour Rewards and Enhancements. Before, these tables would show each feature regardless of whether the client selected them. Now, for each of Behaviour Rewards and Enhancements you have 4 options:


  • You can show all the features and how the client responded (yes or no)
  • You can show all the features, together with the description, and how the client responded (yes or no)
  • You can show only the features the client selected
  • You can show only the features, together with the description, the client selected

 


Automatic time out 


One of the security features built into Effective Pricing is the automatic time out. This means, if you leave your computer unattended for a period of time you will automatically be logged out.


However, at 30 minutes this was too short. This has now been increased to 120 minutes. This means you could have a meeting with a client, log into the software before the meeting and you should now be logged in still when you get to the moment you want to go through the price.

 


Integration with QBO and Xero


One of the big updates this year was the ability to integrate with QBO and Xero.


You can now integrate Effective Pricing with your QBO or Xero account. Once you have done this, whenever you have created a quote and payment plan, finalised the quote and produced a proposal you can push the quote to your QBO or Xero account where it will set up your invoices, with an invoice created for each payment (for example, if you create a quote for monthly bookkeeping, it will automatically create an invoice for each of the 12 months).

 


Client Versions


This is a big feature. You can now set up and manage versions of the software for your clients. This might be something you do as part of a price consulting service.

 


Gamification 


You will now be able to track your progress within the Effective Pricing tool to measure how good you are at using your software to price your clients. The best users will have the best scores! 


On your dashboard you will now see a new badge – everyone starts out as an Apprentice.


When you earn enough points you will level up to the next stage.

 

How do you earn points?


There are several things you can do to earn new points…


  • Creating a New Pricing Model and Making it Live
  • Each Completed Quote
  • Each Completed Proposal
  • When You Get a Great Result
  • When You Submit a Pricing Success Metric


The more you use Effective Pricing to price your clients, the more confident you will become with pricing – and you’ll get higher prices too.


Have some fun earning your points and working your way through the ranks. I look forward to seeing you become a Master user!


More Date Formats


In the Localisation section of your Theme and Design settings, you can now also change the date format to a range of different options. The format you choose will be carried across into your quotes, and throughout your software, the date will display how you choose. 


You can see an example of the chosen format in the example box just below the date formatting:

You can also alter this formatting in the Proposal Builder section:


Additional Behaviour Rewards


In December 2021, we added the ability to add new Behaviour Rewards as you go through a quote with a client.

When you offer a client a Behaviour Reward, in addition to the standard items you have set in your pricing model you can also add additional rewards specific for the current quote. You will now see this “Add Reward” button:

Better Quote Management


Need to see a list of all clients where the quote has not yet been finalised?


There is now a brand-new quotes screen that allows you to search and sort all your quotes, such as all Draft quotes.

Why Giving One Price Is Always the Wrong Price

By gabi • June 13, 2025
“When you give one price, it’s always the wrong price.” — Teresa Slack It’s a common scenario. A prospective client asks for a quote. You review their details, estimate the work involved, and deliver a single price. Their reaction? They hesitate. They ask for a discount. Or worse—they ghost you completely. The issue isn’t that your price was too high or too low. The real problem? You gave them only one option. Why One Price Doesn’t Work A single price turns your service into a yes-or-no decision. You’re putting pressure on the client to either accept or reject your offer—without the context of value or flexibility. Even if you believe your price is fair, your client may not be ready to commit without understanding what they're really paying for. Plus, you’re locking yourself into a number that may not reflect the complexity, needs, or expectations of the client. The outcome? You either: Undercharge (and resent it later), or Overcharge (and lose the deal) Neither serves you or the client. What Clients Really Want: Control and Clarity In today’s world, clients expect transparency. They want to know: What they're getting Why it costs what it does What options are available They want to feel in control of the buying process. When Teresa Slack shifted to letting clients "build their own package" through Effective Pricing, everything changed. Clients began engaging with the process, asking better questions, and ultimately choosing higher-value packages themselves. The Power of Presenting Options Instead of giving a single number, offer clients a structured choice: Entry Level Full Service Premium Experience Or even better, let them dynamically adjust their selection based on scope. When clients see the value behind each service line, they make better-informed decisions. You move from price being a sticking point to it being a reflection of value. Teresa shared how one client increased their monthly fee by 204% after going through this process. Why? Because he realised everything that was on offer—and valued it. How to Present Pricing the Right Way Here’s how you shift from pricing resistance to pricing confidence: Scope Before You Quote Start with a discovery session or diagnostic review. Uncover: Volume and complexity of work Pain points and priorities Desired outcomes Use Interactive Pricing Tools Forget spreadsheets and static quotes. Use tools like Effective Pricing to: Show real-time price changes based on scope Let clients see what’s included Build transparency into every quote Let Clients Shape Their Package Allow toggling options on or off. If the full package is too expensive, don’t discount—adjust the scope. “We don’t discount. We remove services.” — Teresa Slack From Negotiation to Collaboration This approach changes the nature of the sales conversation: Old way: "Can you do it for less?" New way: "What if we removed reporting or payroll support to reduce the price?" You’re no longer justifying your fee. You’re collaborating with the client to find the right fit. That builds trust. That wins work. Conclusion: Stop Pricing in Absolutes If you’re still offering one quote per client, you’re missing a huge opportunity to: Position your value clearly Increase your average fee Build better client relationships The right price is the one the client chooses—because it reflects what they truly care about. Try Effective Pricing Want to see how flexible, transparent pricing can transform your firm? 🎯 Book a free demo of Effective Pricing and discover how to: Price confidently Scope accurately Convert more clients → Try it now and give your clients a choice they’ll actually value

The Biggest Mistake Firms Make When Switching to Value Pricing (and How to Avoid It)

By gabi • June 6, 2025
Think you’ve moved away from hourly billing and embraced value pricing? You might not have. For many bookkeeping and accounting firms, pricing remains the Achilles' heel. Despite good intentions, most who "switch" to value pricing actually end up using fixed pricing—and they don't even realise it. On the surface, it feels like progress. But under the hood, it's often just the same problem dressed differently. In this article, we’ll explore the most common misstep firms make when transitioning their pricing models, why it matters, and how to make a true shift to value pricing that increases revenue, improves client relationships, and restores profitability.

She Was Losing Money on Every Client—Until One Pricing Change Turned Everything Around

By gabi • May 30, 2025
"There were times we couldn’t make payroll. We pulled money from our personal investments just to pay staff." That’s how bad things had become for Teresa Slack, co-founder of Financly Bookkeeping Solutions. On the surface, her business looked like a success. It had a growing client base, a team of skilled staff, and years of momentum behind it. But underneath, the numbers told a different story: they were barely breaking even, despite all the hard work. The culprit? Outdated, ineffective pricing. Meet Teresa and Financly Based in Ontario, Canada, Financly is a virtual bookkeeping firm specialising in e-commerce businesses, particularly those selling on Shopify and Amazon. With a team of 10 working remotely across Canada and Europe, Teresa and her sister Connie built a thriving niche-focused firm. But as the business grew, so too did the pressure. In the early days, they charged hourly rates as low as $18, later increasing to $35. Eventually, they transitioned to fixed pricing, offering packages at $200, $300, and $400 per month. But even that wasn’t enough. The business couldn’t sustain the team they had built. "We were paying our staff more than what the clients paid us," Teresa recalled. Overworked, Underpaid, and Out of Options Despite having more than 100 tax clients and 50 consulting clients, Teresa and Connie weren’t paying themselves. They were burning out, fast. "It was incredibly stressful because we knew we needed to do things differently, but we didn’t have any money." Then came a pivotal moment: a conference in Toronto where they first heard Mark Wickersham speak about value pricing. The Lightbulb Moment They joined the Value Pricing Academy and soon learned they had been confusing fixed pricing with value pricing. The difference? With fixed pricing, every client pays the same. With value pricing, every client pays according to the unique scope of their needs. They began trying to build their own pricing models in Excel, but it was clunky and time-consuming. That’s when they discovered Effective Pricing . "You cannot do value pricing easily without this amazing tool," Teresa said. Putting It to the Test Teresa used Effective Pricing for the first time with a new client. She was nervous. "My heart was pounding. My mouth was dry. I didn’t know how it would go." But the result was astonishing. The client loved the process. They appreciated the transparency, the ability to select what services they wanted, and how the pricing adjusted dynamically based on scope. The outcome? A 204% increase in pricing. Reinventing the Sales Process Since then, Teresa has redesigned her entire sales approach. She now begins with a paid diagnostic review to uncover scope and pain points. Only after that does she present pricing using Effective Pricing. This two-step method means clients see the value before seeing the price. And Teresa can tailor each pricing conversation with precision. "When you give one price, it’s always the wrong price. Clients either ask for a discount or say no. Now, if a client thinks the package is too much, we remove services. We don’t discount." The Transformation: Financly 2.0 Financly is now thriving. The business is profitable. Staff are paid well and enjoy benefits. Teresa and Connie now take a salary. The firm is approaching $1 million in annual turnover. And clients? They now pay what they’re truly worth. "We have clients paying $4,000 a month for bookkeeping," Teresa said. "Ten years ago, I couldn’t have imagined that." Hidden Wins The benefits didn’t stop at pricing. Miscommunication has plummeted. Clients now see exactly what is and isn’t included. Upsells are natural. Clients return months later to add more services they saw during onboarding. Client fit has improved. Teresa now works only with clients who respect and value her work. Teresa’s Advice to Bookkeepers and Accountants "If you’re struggling, working long hours, and undercharging, make the leap to value pricing. The shift will let you attract better clients, do better work, and actually enjoy your business again." Ready to Make the Shift? Explore how Effective Pricing can transform your practice, just like it did for Teresa Slack. → Learn more and sign up for Effective Pricing today.