MwM Member Spotlight: Tom Wells & Wells Virtual Bookkeeping - Ep 227

This episode is a member spotlight interview from my Marketing with Meller membership and learning community.Tom Wells is the Chief Connector at Wells Virtual Bookkeeping, a women-owned, family-run virtual bookkeeping firm based just outside Kansas City. Tom spent 42 years in healthcare (radiology tech, radiation oncology, heart cath lab, and 22 years as a department director) before leaving corporate life in January 2024 to join his wife Sharon full-time. Sharon founded the business seven-plus years ago on 30-plus years in accounting experience, starting with a few hours of cleanup work for a local remodeler and growing it into a practice that now serves businesses from New York City to Southern California. Tom handles business development; Sharon does the books; their son Alex rounds out the team with a math degree and a sharp eye for process improvement. Since Tom joined, they've more than doubled their clientele.Tom shared how Wells Virtual Bookkeeping helps service-based businesses get financial clarity and their time back: from brand-new businesses they set up from scratch, to owners who've been white-knuckling it in spreadsheets, to established companies managing close to $30M in revenue. We covered what they do (bookkeeping, bank reconciliation, invoicing, accounts payable and receivable, payroll) and what they don't (taxes, though they have strong CPA relationships for that handoff). Tom also walked through a LinkedIn strategy pivot that quietly changed his business: he stopped targeting business owners directly and started building relationships with CPAs and fractional CFOs instead, and shifted from posting every day to spending that time commenting strategically on others' posts. The result? A post he thought was going nowhere hit 20,000 impressions.In Q&A, Elaine Belson asked about the most common problem they find when onboarding new clients (hint: "are your books current?" means something very different to every business owner, and usually the honest answer is no, which is where the dental hygienist analogy comes in). Liz M. Lopez asked the succession question many prospects are probably thinking but won't say out loud. And Lori Vajda asked about Tom's LinkedIn strategy for reaching ideal clients, and his answer genuinely surprised her.00:00 Episode Preview 01:42 Member Spotlight Format 03:10 Meet Tom Wells 04:10 Tom's Role: Chief Connector 04:20 42 Years in Healthcare: Tom's Background 05:20 Sharon Wells and the Origin of Wells Virtual Bookkeeping 06:30 The Decision to Go All-In 07:00 LinkedIn, Referrals, and Growing a Virtual Client Base 08:00 Son Alex Joins the Team 08:40 What They Do (and Don't Do) 09:10 QuickBooks Online and Sharon's Intuit Relationship 10:30 AP/AR Explained 11:10 Listening First: Tom on Leadership and Communication 12:40 A Tribute to Tom's Dad 13:00 Who Is a Good Fit? 13:40 The Roofer Story: When Bookkeeping Becomes a Family Issue 14:20 Larger Clients and How They Decide What to Take On 15:00 The Niche Question (and Their Answer) 15:40 Level 60: Age, Wisdom, and Business Priorities 16:20 Expense Management and Tax Strategy 17:10 Working with CPAs and Fractional CFOs 17:50 Audience Q&A Setup 18:00 Elaine Belson: What's the Most Common Problem You Find? 19:00 The Dental Flossing Analogy 19:30 Liz Lopez: Succession Plan and Longevity 21:10 Level 60 Revisited 21:40 Lori Vajda: How Do You Use LinkedIn to Reach Ideal Clients? 22:20 The Pivot: Targeting CPAs and Referral Partners Instead of Business Owners 24:00 Posting vs. Commenting: Tom's LinkedIn Strategy Shift 25:50 The 20,000-Impression Post He Thought Sucked 26:30 Reposting and What the LinkedIn Experts Are Actually Doing 27:30 Brenda's LinkedIn Advice: Post Once a Week, Comment Strategically 28:20 LLC vs. S Corp: Does It Matter? 28:50 The "I Have a Friend" Story: When Bookkeeping Goes Sideways 29:40 How to Work with Tom 30:30 Final Thoughts: Five Kids, Six Grandkids, and Working from HawaiiConnect with Tom on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomwells-wvb/Visit Wells Virtual Bookkeeping: https://www.wellsvirtualbookkeeping.com/Shout out to Elaine Belson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elainebelsonlcsw/ Shout out to Liz M. Lopez: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizmlopez/Shout out to Lori Vajda: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorivajda/ Support the show**************************************My name is Brenda Meller. I'm a LinkedIn coach, consultant, speaker, and author. My company is Meller Marketing and I help business professionals get a bigger slice of the LinkedIn pie.  Visit mellermarketing.com Let's connect on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/brendameller (click MORE to invite me to connect and mention you listened to my podcast)