Guidance and Knowledge for Value Investors
It is essential to have both timely delivery of service with accurate performance in order to claim great service. Without both, the provider can not claim ‘great service’.
The closest definition of Goodwill is devotion. Customers become devoted due to the way the small business treated them. It was worth paying a little more or going out of your way to go to the business that treated you well. How does a business generate goodwill? What is it worth?
Service related businesses require a different format than the traditional profit and loss statement AKA the income statement. The traditional profit and loss focuses on sales of products and a corresponding cost of goods sold section to help the reader evaluate the gross margin. But in service, the owner needs a profit and loss statement formatted to key in on overall productivity and costs of that productivity.
In the world of accounting, we stand on two principles; timely and accurate information for the client. Without either, the client can’t make good decisions. As accountants our job is to record economic transactions and report this information in a financial format. For the client it is imperative that the information is provided in a reasonable period of time after the activity.