I have been a member of the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program since 2004 and I love it. I’ll confess—I didn’t join it for several years. I was hesitant to spend the money and I didn’t think it I needed it. Boy was I wrong! I wish I would have joined sooner but I didn’t realize all of the benefits that were part of it.
I often hear people ask, “Should I join the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program?” or “What are the Benefits of the ProAdvisor Program?” or “Is the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program really worth it?” I hope this article will h
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There are many benefits of the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program, but the following are a few of the key benefits:
Software:ProAdvisors receive more than $3,000 worth of software and services, including:
- QuickBooks Accountant Plus 2011 –– includes subscriptions to Connected Services:
- QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions Accountant 11.0 (single user) with
- QuickBooks Enterprise Advanced Inventory
- QuickBooks Online Plus and QuickBooks Online Essentials
Tech Support: ProAdvisor members get a dedicated tech support number. Plus, if you call during normal business hours (6 am to 6 pm Pacific time) you get U.S. based tech support. There is online chat support which is very efficient if you have quick questions and it is faster than calling tech support. I really like the ProAdvisor tech support and being able to contact someone when I have a QuickBooks question or need help with a client problem or issue.
Training and Certification: As a member of the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program, you can become a Certified ProAdvisor at no additional cost (it is all included in your membership fee – there is no additional testing fees or anything). There are training courses, webinars and PDFs and many of the courses are eligible for CPE if you need it (also free). You can earn the following certifications:
- QuickBooks Certification
- QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions Certification
- QuickBooks Point of Sale (POS) Certification
- QuickBooks Advanced Certification (must be certified for most recent 3 consecutive years to be eligible — 2009, 2010 and 2011)
Benefits of Certification: Once you earn the QuickBooks Certification, then you will be listed on the Find-a-ProAdvisor referral website. This is a GREAT source of leads and potential clients. I get a lot of calls from people who have found me from the Find-a-ProAdvisor website. The Find-a-ProAdvisor website gets an average of 40,000 hits per month from people looking for QuickBooks help from a Certified ProAdvisor. Other benefits of getting certified include:
- Your ProAdvisor profile can now appear at the top of search engine results (like Google) when prospective clients search for QuickBooks help in your area
- Use the official Certified ProAdvisor logo to promote your practice (include the logo on your website, business cards, etc.)
- Improve your ranking on the Find-a-ProAdvisor website by adding client ratings
and a picture on your profile (and make sure to fill out your profile completely) - Help your ranking on the Find-a-ProAdvisor website by getting certified in the current year and earning additional certifications (QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions Certification and QuickBooks Point of Sale Certification)
Discounts: ProAdvisors get discounts on products and services such as:
- Intuit QuickBooks Payroll Enhanced for Accountants — process payroll for up to 50 clients with live or after-the-fact payroll, client-ready payroll reports and more for only $175.
- Intuit Merchant Services for QuickBooks — accept credit cards from clients. (One-year subscription of credit card service for $69/year).
- Intuit Statement Writer ($99 each; Intuit Statement Writer requires its own individual copy of QuickBooks Accountant 2011).
As you can see, there are many benefits to joining the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program and it is a GREAT investment! You can get all the details on the ProAdvisor website.
NOTE: If you are starting or growing your business, check out my new book How to Start a Home-Based Bookkeeping Business or Successful QuickBooks Consulting