Mitchell Bookkeeping
How a 5-person bookkeeping firm automated client onboarding and saved 12 hours per week.
The Challenge
Sarah Mitchell's bookkeeping firm was spending 3+ hours per new client on manual onboarding — collecting documents, setting up accounts, and sending welcome materials. With 4-6 new clients per month, her team was drowning in repetitive setup work.
The Solution
We implemented an automated client intake system using smart forms connected to their practice management software, along with AI-generated welcome packages and automated document collection sequences.
"Charles helped us automate our entire client onboarding process. What used to take 3 hours now takes 20 minutes. My team finally has time to focus on actual bookkeeping instead of paperwork."
The Challenge
Mitchell Bookkeeping is a 5-person firm serving small businesses in the Portland area. When Sarah came to me, her biggest pain point was clear: client onboarding was eating her team alive.
Every new client meant:
- 30+ minutes of intake calls collecting basic information
- Manual data entry into their practice management software
- Creating accounts in QuickBooks and their document portal
- Sending welcome packets, engagement letters, and document checklists
- Following up 2-3 times to collect missing documents
Total time per client: 3+ hours. With 4-6 new clients per month, that’s 12-18 hours of pure admin work — nearly an entire employee’s week.
The Solution
After our strategy session, we identified three high-impact automations:
1. Smart Intake Forms
We replaced phone intake with intelligent online forms that:
- Collect all necessary client information upfront
- Auto-populate their practice management software
- Trigger the right workflow based on business type
2. Automated Welcome Sequence
An AI-generated welcome package system that:
- Creates personalized welcome emails based on business type
- Sends engagement letters for e-signature
- Delivers customized document checklists
- Schedules the kickoff call automatically
3. Document Collection Automation
An automated follow-up system that:
- Sends document request reminders on schedule
- Tracks what’s been received and what’s outstanding
- Escalates to a team member only when human attention is needed
The Results
Within the first month:
- Onboarding time dropped from 3 hours to 25 minutes per client (85% reduction)
- 12 hours per week recovered across the team
- Client satisfaction scores jumped from 4.2 to 4.9 out of 5
- Zero clients lost during the transition to the new system
Sarah’s team now uses the recovered time for higher-value work: financial analysis, advisory services, and proactive client communication.
The Investment
- Strategy Session: $500
- Implementation: $2,200
- Monthly tools: ~$150/month
- Total first-year cost: ~$4,500
- First-year savings: ~$28,000 (in recovered team time)
- ROI: Positive in 3 weeks
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