Lisa Clennell

Who is Lisa and why did she need my help?

Lisa runs Your Happy Customer, a customer-focused marketing agency. She advises companies – large and small – on how to build real customer relationships for more business, increased profit and happier customers. The way Lisa approaches marketing has always struck a chord with me, I’ve always concentrated on looking after my existing customers, knowing that happy customers spread the word far better than any online marketing campaign!

This mindset is missing in much of the accountancy industry, with many firms taking on clients and just moving them through on an annual conveyor belt without trying to establish meaningful relationships with them. I, on the other hand, like to educate and support my clients throughout the year – I’m not just on the other end of a phone at tax return time. In some ways I’m more of a business adviser than an accountant.

Lisa needed accountancy support thanks to a scary letter from HMRC about a fine for a missed tax return. It’s one of those moments you dread as a small business owner and Lisa knew she needed professional help to resolve the situation.

Where I came into the picture

Lisa and I originally met at a Trafford Women in Business networking event. I love meeting with other like-minded business owners, working around their young kids like I am, and networks like this have proved really important for my business. (So much so that I’ve set up my own, the Organised Entrepreneurs Club, which all my clients are automatically welcomed into when we start working together.)

When Lisa stood up to pitch her business that day at the networking event, I felt really aligned to her way of working. I also loved the fact that when her childcare hadn’t worked out, instead of cancelling, she’d just brought her daughter with her – she was happily colouring in while her mum was networking! So, when Lisa emailed a few weeks later to say she’d had this letter from HMRC we set up a chat and agreed to support each other mutually – me doing her accounting and Lisa helping me with some marketing for my own business.

The steps I took

As soon as Lisa was onboard as a CBC client, I got her onto my HMRC agent list. This meant I could speak to HMRC on her behalf and get to the bottom of what had happened. It turned out that Lisa had registered her business in March but didn’t start trading until April or May – into the next tax year. So HMRC had been expecting a tax return covering any income from the previous tax year but there wasn’t any so Lisa hadn’t submitted one. I cleared it up with them: they were satisfied with the explanation and wiped the fines from her account. And Lisa’s been a client ever since.

“She solved a tax issue like magic and has already sorted next year’s tax return (6 months in advance!).”

Once we’d sorted the HMRC issue, I got Lisa onto FreeAgent, the accounting software I support all my clients with. More recently, she’s also been to one of my Profit First workshops and now uses that approach for her business. I’m a huge fan of the Profit First system and it can help people in a range of ways. For Lisa, because she runs Your Happy Customer alongside an employed role, her tax return has two incomes on it. When we started working together, she was just leaving everything she made through Your Happy Customer in her bank account and worrying that at some point she’d be hit with a big tax bill.

Where that left Lisa

Getting her tax returns sorted, becoming more organised and getting more visibility on her finances with FreeAgent and adopting Profit First have transformed the way Lisa approaches her finances and business. She now pays herself properly, has a clear idea of her upcoming tax bill and has a dedicated pot of money for operating expenses. What this actually means is that Lisa has more money to spend on herself, letting her enjoy life a bit more, and she’s also investing more in her business. I love that I can help women in business get themselves to a position like this!

“I’m a small business – new to it all and juggling home and children. Caroline has been so patient and understanding and just taken me through everything step by step.”

Where working with me has helped Lisa shift her outlook on her business finances, our time together has also helped me with a mindset shift of my own. The first few (pre-pandemic) meetings we had, we met for coffee. The first time, we both had our youngest children with us – the girls played, and we talked about work; and the second time our school’s boiler broke so I had both kids with me.

Now there’s no question that it’s been much more enjoyable getting together recently when the kids have been at school, enjoying a peaceful walk or an adults-only coffee, but these early experiences were valuable as they showed me that it was ok for me to be working around my kids rather than trying to pretend they didn’t exist. The flexibility of running my own business in a way that worked for my family was a big factor for setting up CBC in the first place and seeing the proof that I could give Lisa great support even with my kids in tow was an important boost.

Our relationship today

Lisa and I continue to support each other in our businesses. I do her tax return and help her with FreeAgent when needed but it goes far beyond that. She regularly asks my opinion on different courses she’s looking at and other investment she wants to make in her business, and we recently talked about what she should charge for a workshop she was asked to deliver. Anything even vaguely related to finance and Lisa knows she can come to me with questions – that’s what I’m here for.

And I’m also still Lisa’s first port of call when HMRC come knocking! When her husband had a letter through about a high-income child benefit tax charge, she came straight to me. (If you receive child benefit and your earnings go above £50k you have to pay some of the benefit back. If this is something that might impact you I’ve created a helpful guide.) This is one of the many ridiculous processes HMRC have set up that keep me in a job – requiring employed people to register themselves and file tax returns to calculate for themselves how much to repay. But instead of worrying about it and getting in a panic, the moment that letter came through Lisa knew to just ask me to get it sorted!

“I massively appreciate Caroline’s help and can’t recommend her highly enough!”

Find out more about Lisa!

If you run a business and you’re looking to connect with your customers in a more meaningful way, please, please check Lisa’s website out. You can also find her on Instagram and Facebook