(Unrelated side note:Change of Planssounds like it would be a great song title about lost love, doesn’t it? But this blog has nothing to do with songs or love—just popped into my head.)
If you’ve been following along with Sam’s List, you know “change of plans” is something we’ve said more than a few times. And today’s change is… well, a big one.
For the past few months, we’ve been going back and forth on everything: our business model, revenue strategies, who our real customers are—literally all of it. Then one day, I was scrolling through LinkedIn, and I saw this girl post about building a marketplace for retreats. So naturally, I thought, “Hey! I’m building a marketplace too! Let’s chat!” And guess what? She responded, and a few days later, we were on a call, geeking out about our respective platforms.
Funny thing is, I’ve never really said Sam’s List is a marketplace, you know? Sure, I’ve typed it out before, but I never really felt it—until now. After that conversation, I stumbled on a podcast where a Stanford professor casually drops some solid nuggets about marketplaces:
“Most marketplaces don’t start as marketplaces. They realize it later once they’ve been building.”
👋 Hello, that’s me! So here we are—realizing we’re more than we thought.
The Big Shift: From Hand-Holding to Self-Service (and Back Again)
We’ve been running Sam’s List as a high-touch, white-glove service. You take our quiz, we match you to an accountant, and personally introduce you. Seems fancy, right?
Well, here’s the thing: A lot of users don’t opt into being hand-matched, and that’s been a hugeahamoment for us. Instead, they reach out to accountants directly after taking the quiz. (As they should, that’s why we have contact buttons!)
And guess what happens next? Some accountants never get back to them. I know, frustrating! I want to scream, “If you’d just let me match you, this wouldn’t happen!”
So, I had to take a hard look at what’s going wrong. We thought the white-glove approach would be a big selling point, but it turns out users aren’t biting. They’re either wary we’ll spam them (we won’t) or they think it’s just another email collection scheme (it’s not). The reality is, when you opt into hand-matching, I personally review your submission, find the best accountant, introduce you, and follow up to make sure you’re taken care of. No strings, just service.
Is Sam’s List Even Working?
If you’ve ever built something from scratch, you know this moment—the existential question:Is this even working?
For Sam’s List, we started with the goal of providing a personalized, white-glove service to help people find accountants. But our results have been a mixed bag.
For example, I introduced Sam’s wife, Sara, to three accountants after she took the quiz. She had already reached out to a few on her own from the quiz results, but one of them didn’t respond. And it just so happened to be one that she and Sam weresuperinterested in meeting based on their Sam’s List profile.
When I sent her my matches, she was confused. It was a lightbulb moment: I realized we hadn’t made it clear that my hand-matched intros might be different from the quiz results.
Lessons Learned:
Lesson #1:I need to make it crystal clear that opting into being hand-matched guarantees a 100% response from the accountants I introduce. No more ghosting!
Lesson #2:The matches you get from me might be different from your quiz matches, but that’s a good thing! I’m personally selecting the best fit, not just relying on algorithmic matches.
Sam and Sara ended up going with one of the accountants I introduced them to, by the way. So, warm introductions work!
What’s Next for Sam’s List?
This realization has forced us to reimagine how Sam’s List works. We’re a marketplace—so we need to start acting like one. That means moving beyond just charging vendors for leads. We’re thinking more transaction-based, like Airbnb or Uber, and charging based on that outreach.
Our platform is designed to remove the friction between people searching for accountants and the accountants themselves, making the process smoother, saving time, and enhancing the overall experience.
“Removing the friction” — S/O Stanford professor for that line.
But that’s not all. We’re also redesigning the entire site. The retro look is on its way out (finally!), and we’re rethinking the user experience from top to bottom. Expect the vendor experience to evolve too.
So, where does that leave us? In about a month, the site—and the way we operate—will look very different. We’re making sure the benefits of the quiz versus the self-search option are clear. And yes, hand-matching will still be a big part of it. But it’ll be clearer, more streamlined, and—dare I say it—more fun!
I’m confident these changes will make Sam’s List work even better. We’re not just offering accounting services—we’re making the process easier and more personalized than ever before.
Sam’s Listwillwork. I know it.
And if you’re a business owner looking for a new accountant, bookkeeper, or fractional CFO, give me a shout. I’d love to introduce you.
— Kimi :)
