Members: Donna Wood CPA/PFS, CFP® and Sue Smith, CPA
HGBA Members since: 2008
Phone: 703-753-8222
Email: info@woodsmithassociates.com
Web: WoodSmithAssociates.com
Address: PO Box 250, Haymarket, VA 20168
Company Background
Why start your own company?
Donna Wood and Sue Smith met while working on a church project in the spring of 2004, a Habitat for Humanity home near Warrenton. In August 2004, Donna and Sue started talking about joining forces to provide total financial services to our joint clients, covering financial planning, investment advisory, taxes and consulting. We formed Wood Smith Associates, our CPA firm, at that time. In 2006, Wood Smith Advisors, an independent Registered Investment Advisor firm was started in order to provide our clients with financial planning and wealth management services. For regulatory and compliance reasons, it makes sense to keep our CPA firm and Registered Investment Advisor firm separate, however we are joint owners of both firms.
How does your business serve the Haymarket-Gainesville community?
Our CPA firm provides tax planning and preparation, small business advisory services to many individuals and small businesses in and around the Haymarket-Gainesville area, while the Registered Investment Advisor firm helps many clients with financial planning, wealth management, and special issues that arise relating to financial, estate, and tax planning. We refer our clients to other professionals in the area as well, according to their needs.
Business Experience
What are some of the greatest moments you have experienced in your business?
(Sue)We pride ourselves on educating our clients so they can make informed decisions regarding their tax and financial planning issues. It gives us a lot of satisfaction to know that our client understands the issues and their choices; then we work together to choose the most advantageous position for them.
(Donna)When working with a client on a financial planning annual update, I've seen the satisfaction they experience when they've taken care of planning issues and have been able to "check" them off their list of concerns. As they get closer to their goals and see the fruits of their planning, it's very satisfying for me to have been able to help them over several years and life changes.
What are the top 4 business tips you can offer other business owners & professionals?
1. Return phone calls/emails within 24 hours.
2. Listen more than you speak. Make sure you address your client's questions, not what you think they should be asking. Be honest with your clients. If you've made a mistake, own up to it and move on.
3. Good Customer relationships are the best avenues to good referrals Get involved in your community; make a difference.
4. Since a good deal of financial planning is about retirement, make sure you also have a succession plan in place. It can be a challenge to find good candidates to groom to take over when a partner or key employee wants to retire. Allow a few years to go through the process.
For Fun
Donna:
What has been the best gift ever received?
I would say the best gift I’ve ever received is the time to spend with special people in my life, and, my butterfly bush!
If you could have a superpower, what would it be, and why?
It would be to know how to solve a critical problem in this world that will address peoples’ suffering, like access to clean drinking water and food.
If you could be famous, what would you want to be known for?
If I wanted to be famous, I would want to be known for somehow combining dogs and golf, my two most enjoyable pursuits! Maybe training dogs to locate lost golf balls?
What is your favorite take-out food?
My favorite takeout food is actually anything my husband makes – he’s such a good cook, nobody else comes close!
Sue:
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?
Somewhere in the country with a small patch of land for a garden, and a simple country house
If you could have a superpower, what would it be, and why?
Touch people and heal them.
If you could be famous, what would you want to be known for?
A famous jockey
What is your favorite take-out food?
Chinese shrimp & vegetables
If you would like to be in the monthly Spotlight, please click here to and complete the profile questionnare. Email it to info@hgba.biz. We are also drawing business cards
at each meeting to line up the next spotlight member. We look forward to hearing from you. |
Sue and Donna
Walk to Empower on the Mall in DC,
Mother's Day 2010
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