Can you value price and still on-charge software? In this Rechargly webinar recap, value pricing expert Mark Wickersham shares practical insights on when to bundle or itemise software costs, how to communicate them to clients, and how to maintain pricing consistency. Learn how firms can recover rising software costs without undermining their value pricing approach.

Alex Millar
Co-founder & CEO
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Software disbursements

Can You Value Price and Still Oncharge Software? Here Is What the Experts Say

Accounting and bookkeeping firms are facing a tricky challenge. Software subscription costs are rising, and most firms can no longer afford to absorb them without hurting margins. But if you are using value pricing, does passing on those software costs undermine your approach?

At Rechargly, we recently hosted a webinar with value pricing expert Mark Wickersham to explore this exact question.

In this blog, we share key takeaways from that conversation, including practical ways to handle software costs without losing sight of value pricing principles.

Yes, you can value price and still on-charge software. The key is doing it thoughtfully.

This blog is based on a recent webinar. If you'd rather watch, here's the recording.

What is value pricing? And how is it different from fixed or cost-plus?

Mark Wickersham defines value pricing simply. It's when you set prices based on the value or outcomes your client receives. It's not based on your costs, time, or profit margin.

Fixed pricing and cost-plus pricing are often confused with value pricing. In many cases, fixed pricing is just a different version of cost-plus. The firm guesses how many hours something will take, adds a margin, and presents it as a fixed fee.

Mark explained, "Value pricing is where we price based on the value to the customer, the outcome." Costs and hours shouldn't come into it at all.

This matters when we start thinking about software. The goal is to price the service based on outcomes for the client. But that doesn't mean we should ignore the costs of software entirely, especially when they're rising each year.

Why software costs create tension in value pricing

Software vendors are increasing prices regularly. This includes core accounting tools like Xero, QuickBooks, and Sage.

Many firms have bundled software into their pricing in the past. But if you don't know which clients are paying for what, or you're not on-charging at all, you're now likely losing margin.

Mark highlighted that bundling works well when costs are stable. But software is different. Prices change often, and absorbing those changes can erode profits over time.

That's why this issue is becoming more urgent. Firms want to honour their value pricing approach, but they also need to recover rising software costs in a fair and transparent way.

Bundling vs. itemising software: when to do each

The question of bundling or itemising software charges came up frequently in the webinar. Here's what Mark recommended, alongside insights from Rechargly's work with firms across the industry.

Bundling works well when:

  • The software is integral to your service
  • The cost is stable or predictable
  • You want to offer clients simplicity and convenience

Mark gave the example of incorporating a company. He would bundle the formation agent fee into his package because it was a small, fixed cost that supported the overall outcome. Clients valued the convenience of getting everything handled together.

Itemising works better when:

  • The software price is volatile or frequently increases
  • The client chooses their own plan level
  • Transparency is important to the relationship

From what we see at Rechargly, many firms currently don't know which clients they're charging for which software. This creates risk and inconsistency. Automating software on-charging and having a clear view of client-level software usage and charges is essential.

Mark summed it up well: bundling can make sense when the price is controlled and the software is part of a package. But for software with fluctuating costs, or where the client might want to see the breakdown, itemising is often a better choice.

Can You Value Price and Still Oncharge Software? Here Is What the Experts Say

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Communicating software charges to clients

The way you communicate software charges matters even more than whether you bundle or itemise them. This was one of the strongest messages from both Mark and Rechargly.

Mark demonstrated this with an example using Xero. When presenting pricing options to a client, he shows them the value of moving to the preferred tech stack. He explains what benefits the software provides and how it makes the service better or more efficient for the client.

Then, if the client chooses to adopt that stack, they see a price reduction in the overall package because the work becomes easier for the firm to deliver. The software cost may still appear as a separate line, but it's framed in terms of client value.

The lesson is clear. Clients are happy to pay for software if they understand how it helps them and how it supports the outcomes they want.

Here are a few simple tips that came out of the session:

  • Always explain the benefits, not just the cost
  • Show how software helps deliver better results or more efficiency
  • Be transparent about what's included and what's billed separately

If you can do that consistently, clients will be far less likely to push back on software charges.

Improving pricing consistency and transparency

Consistency is critical. If some clients pay for software and others don't, or if prices are handled differently by different team members, you risk undermining trust.

Mark's demo of Effective Pricing showed how firms can use tools to enforce consistency. By building software fees into your pricing templates and proposals, you can ensure they're handled the same way for every client.

Rechargly sees many firms still trying to manage software on-charging in spreadsheets, which creates all sorts of problems. It's easy to miss charges or forget to update pricing when vendors change their fees.

Automating this process ensures every client is charged correctly and consistently, and that your firm isn't losing margin on software costs you're already paying.

Practical steps to take from the webinar

If you want to put this advice into practice, here are a few actions Mark and Rechargly recommend:

  1. Audit how you currently handle software costs
  2. Define a clear policy on bundling vs. itemising
  3. Communicate this policy transparently to clients
  4. Use a pricing tool to enforce consistency (Mark uses Effective Pricing)
  5. Automate software on-charging with a platform like Rechargly
  6. Continuously review your approach and adjust as needed

Mark also reminded firms that value pricing is a journey. You don't have to get it perfect from day one. Start by introducing simple packages and improving how you communicate value. Over time, refine your process and use tools to support you.

How to get this right in your firm

Value pricing and on-charging software are absolutely compatible, as long as you're intentional about how you do it.

The key is to put client outcomes first, communicate value clearly, and manage software charges in a transparent and consistent way.

As Mark said in the webinar, pricing is the most important thing to get right in your firm. Handling software costs properly is one part of that.

At Rechargly, we help firms automate and streamline this process, so you can focus on delivering great value to your clients. If you want to learn more, we'd love to show you how.

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Alex Millar
Co-founder & CEO

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