How Beach Accountants improved signing workflows with FuseSign

Beach Accountants is a Northeast accountancy firm with a team of 10 supporting around 500–600 clients. The firm runs a largely digital practice, with documents sent for signature every day across accounts, tax returns and compliance workflows.

We spoke with Managing Director Gavin Spencer about why Beach Accountants moved from DocuSign to FuseSign, how the team uses it day to day, and why visibility, control and accounting-specific support matter in a modern practice.

Can you tell us a bit about Beach Accountants and how signing fits into your day-to-day work?

We’re a very digital firm, but we still like to keep the human side of things. All our documents are signed electronically, and we took on FuseSign as our main signing solution about a year ago.

For us, it’s about making sure clients are compliant, but also making sure we’re protected. We want documents signed before submissions so there’s a clear record if anything comes back later.

Each accountant looks after their own pool of clients, so sending documents for signing is part of the day-to-day workflow.

What were you using before FuseSign?

We were using DocuSign.

The product itself worked, but it was becoming expensive, and it didn’t really feel like it was built for the accounting industry.

Communication felt limited, with few people available to check in with or have conversations with. The system did not integrate with accounting software, and it required a lot of manual input. You had to type in contacts, email addresses, and messages each time, and when you’re sending documents regularly, that time really adds up.

The other thing was the lack of connection with accounting software. It was purely an electronic signature tool, rather than something designed around the way an accounting practice works.

What made FuseSign feel like a better fit for an accounting practice?

The control and visibility.

With FuseSign, documents are categorised, and you have a process you can manage. Everyone has their own login, but centrally, you can still see what’s going on. You can follow things up, resend documents if someone is on holiday or sick leave, and make sure nothing gets missed.

That transparency is really important. As the firm grows, managers need to see what’s being sent, where documents are sitting, and what needs chasing. It helps us stay in control.

When software is relevant to your industry, it’s always going to be a better fit. With FuseSign, you’re dealing with people who understand the language, the workflows, and the pressure points.

How is your current e-signing workflow structured and what makes it work?

Once documents have been reviewed and checked, each accountant sends them out to their own clients.

That’s important to us because clients know who they’re dealing with. They’re not getting emails from a random person. They’re getting the signing request from someone they already have a relationship with.

We find clients tend to sign a bit quicker because of that. If they have a query, they know who to speak to. Once the document is signed, we download it, save it to the client file, and still have the FuseSign record showing when it was sent, when it was signed, and by whom.

That audit trail is really valuable, especially if there’s ever a query later.

What has changed for your team and your clients since using FuseSign?

Efficiency and control.

The team find it easy to use and easy to navigate. Pod leaders can see where documents are sitting, what’s outstanding, and what needs attention.

It depends on the week, but around deadlines, we’re probably saving about two hours a week. In quieter periods, maybe closer to an hour.

That might not sound huge at first, but across the year it builds up. And with the cost of employing people, saving one to two hours a week is a good saving.

It also helps with our internal KPIs. If documents are easier for clients to sign, they come back quicker, and the team can move work through faster.

For clients, it’s the flexibility. They can sign from home, on holiday, or even sitting in the park while their child is playing. If it’s only a couple of clicks, they’re more likely to get it done.

It means that clients that aren’t quite as young and adaptive can still pick it up and use it without our assistance. We had a client who’s 66 - after showing him FuseSign he hasn’t needed to come back in for signing assistance since.

How easy has FuseSign been for staff to pick up?

Very easy. They love it.

With some software, you constantly hear people asking, “How do I do this?” or “Where do I find that?” We don’t really have that with FuseSign.

New team members seem to pick it up quickly, and the Karbon integration helps because the information they need is already there. They’re not going back and forth looking for email addresses.

There’s training and support available if we need it, but it’s not software we have to continually train people on. They adapt to it quickly.

Would you recommend FuseSign to other accounting firms?

One hundred percent, yes.

If you’re in the accounting industry, FuseSign is designed for you. The product fits the way accounting firms work, and the support team understands the profession.

That makes a difference. When we ask questions, we’re speaking to people who understand the language and the pain points.

If you’re looking at digital signing, especially if you’re using one of the larger providers, it’s worth looking at how you run your practice and what level of control, visibility, and support you need. For us, it makes sense to use something accounting based.

Want to Simplify Your Signing Process?

Ready to see how FuseSign can support your firm’s next step? Book a demo or start your free trial today.