Freedom In Numbers – 3 years in business – our story

You have to start somewhere…

Freedom in Numbers was an idea concocted in the cellar office of our house. I was on maternity leave back in 2017 and was weighing up my options.

Juggling childcare and a full-time job, I wasn’t sure if returning to employment was the right option, even if it may have been the easier choice.

At this point, I had over 13 years’ experience in the accounting industry and didn’t want this to go to waste. So, I decided to start doing freelance work via various portals, gaining a few clients, and really enjoyed the flexibility.

I wanted to turn the freelance work into a viable business, as I could see that the industry was changing. I was speaking to business owners that were bogged down in the day-to-day, and just getting overwhelmed by keeping everything up to date. Because of this, they had no idea of how well, or just how badly their business was performing.

With the introduction of digital accounting solutions, I knew that there was plenty that I could do to help these business owners. There was an opportunity to take control of my income by helping other businesses – and Freedom in Numbers was born.

In the meantime, Simon was working as a lorry driver doing long, unsocial hours. As I got busier, we decided Simon should retrain as a marketer, join Freedom in Numbers, and help to grow the brand. He officially joined the business in 2019.

We put our heads together and thought about where we wanted the business to go. What kind of business should we build?

From the start, it was to operate fully online and give great customer service. As I already had plenty of experience using Xero, it was a no-brainer for us to become a fully Xero accounting practice.

Fast forward 3 years and Freedom in Numbers has moved out from the cold cellar office, and into a new one near Meadowhall. The team has also grown, with 3 new and amazing accountants now working alongside us.

 

Our commitment to customer service

When Freedom in Numbers began, we aimed to give customers the best possible experience. It’s fair to say that generally, the bookkeeping and accounting industry doesn’t have the best record in this department.

Our client experience is always evolving, and we’ll never stop trying to improve it. By constantly communicating and being proactive, we’re freeing clients up from the admin work they all hate, supporting their businesses and helping them grow.

We gained recognition for this in 2019 when Freedom in Numbers was shortlisted in the Barnsley and Rotherham Business Awards for Excellence in Customer Service. Although we didn’t win the award, just to be nominated was a huge win in our eyes. Maybe next time?

Awards are all well and good, but how do we objectively measure it and keep ourselves accountable?

We monitor our Net Promoter Score (known as NPS) to make sure our clients are happy with the service they receive.

In 2019, our score was 92 out of 100 and in 2020, it was 88 out of 100. Just so you know, anything over 0 is good, over 50 is considered excellent, and over 80 is considered world-class!

We mentioned the industry’s reputation above. In 2018, Xero conducted a study of average NPS scores among bookkeepers and accountants for small businesses. Shockingly, the average score came out at -3!

We’re all about changing that for the better. Our target for 2021 is to get as close to 100 as possible, with our fabulous team on board.

For us, customer service must be at the forefront of all business, and we’ve even written a blog about how you can make great customer experience a priority in your business too!

 

Looking to the future.

We’re so excited about the future. Hopefully, we’re on the other side of this terrible pandemic, and 2020 has taught us that businesses need and want great partnerships to help each other grow.

For a more detailed insight into our plans, have a look at the blog we wrote in June 2020 on what’s next for Freedom in Numbers.

There are so many ways for us to support our economy, but let’s all use the experience of 2020 to build a better economy.

One built on great customer service!

 

GET IN TOUCH –  0114 400 0053