“If you want loyalty get a dog. If you want loyalty and attention, get a smart dog.”
-Grant Fairly

Of all the questions we get, the most often asked may be “Why is there a dog in the logo?” We love this question and love answering it.

Besides being the founder of Smart Accounting Solutions, the CEO Charles Watson also trains field trial retrievers. His dog, Preacher, comes to the office almost every day. It is not uncommon to see our furry four legged ambassador strolling the hallways checking on employees and welcoming clients. He is an extremely loveable guy, and clients developed a very strong association between the dog and the firm’s identity. It became obvious from a branding standpoint that he should be the mascot.

But there are reasons that go beyond putting a majestic face on a business card. After years of working with fortune 500 companies and training dogs, Charles noticed there were striking similarities in business relationships and canine relationships. In many regards interactions between clients, coworkers or business owners are very similar with how canines might interact with each other in a pack. Embracing some of these dog like qualities lead us to develop a firm that is based on what we call a “Canine Culture”.

Here are a few ways our canine qualities inspire us to be a better breed of accounting firm.

Be Different

There is something close to 340 breeds of dog in the world today. Each is distinct and different in its own way. Some, like bloodhounds have better noses. Others, like our mascot, are better at retrieving. What makes them unique is why people are drawn to a particular breed. It’s the best fit for their needs. Diversity is a good thing. The same is true in business. Consumers search out business whose unique offering is the best fit for their needs.

At Smart we believe our focus on training and educating our clients makes us a unique breed of accounting firm. We see ourselves as the leader in the pack among other accounting firms. And we want to help our clients do the same. We want to help them determine why they are unique so they can unleash their true potential.

Get Trained

Every dog has an instinct deep down to do what it was breed to do. But in order for the dog to be the best version of its true self, it needs training. The same is true of business owners. We have all heard the statistics. 80% of all business that startup will not make it 2 years. And of the ones that do make it, only 20% of those will make it past 5 years. At Smart we feel the proper training can break that trend.

Many business owners have the natural ability to do the technical work of the business. They may be great at making pizza or building houses. But they struggle with some of the business management functions like handling cash flow, employee related issues or controlling inventory. We train our clients so that their business can be the best version possible. The training unleashes the businesses true potential.

Stay Smart

A dogs energy can seem endless at times. It is usually the human that tires of throwing the tennis ball before their 4 legged companion. But maintaining that same intensity and motivation for a business can be tough. For various reason many business lose their motivation and enthusiasm for their business.

To increase motivation in a dog all it needs is the proper feedback on how to do the thing it likes more often. Most business owners simply lack the proper feedback. Not having accurate and timely information leads to bad decisions. This leads to doubt and loss of motivation. We help remove the doubt and restore enthusiasm in our client’s business. Put in the right perspective, our financials and analysis have the same effect as the tennis ball does for the dog. Our clients get excited to what new accomplishments can be unleashed in the future.