Accountex Manchester certainly didn’t disappoint. From showcasing Xenon Connect’s latest features and meeting new people to catching up with existing users and hearing their feedback, the stand was busy from start to finish. It was also Hannah and Honor’s first time at the event alongside Gareth and Brian, with Paul Barnes from Cloud Accounting Support Services joining us on the stand. There were plenty of valuable conversations, positive reactions and laughs along the way!
Here are some of our highlights…
Four team members, four different perspectives
Each member of the team member experienced Accountex from a different perspective. Our founder Gareth took to the showcase stage to demonstrate how bookkeeping health checks can help firms build trust, increase fee income and save time. Meanwhile, Head of Partner Success Brian spent the day demonstrating Xenon Connect, supporting existing partners and speaking to prospective users.
For Hannah and Honor from the marketing team, it was their first time attending an event with Xenon. They spent the day speaking to attendees, capturing customer testimonials and hearing directly from users about the positive difference Xenon Connect has made within their firms.
Together, their experience provided valuable insights, so I asked them all to summarise their day by answering a few questions!
What firms really want from bookkeeping tech:
Across the team’s conversations, recurring challenges stood out. We found that many attendees were spending a significant amount of time manually checking accounts and making sure nothing had been missed. Their concerns often came down to three things: time, accuracy and confidence.
Gareth also heard from growing firms that were finding it difficult to maintain control over bookkeeping and reporting quality. Management teams need confidence that work is being completed accurately, without adding too much time to the review process.
Brian’s conversations highlighted another challenge: successfully introducing new technology. Firms were aware of the time required to implement new systems and wanted more support and training for the bookkeeping teams using them day to day.
Automation must solve a genuine problem
Interest in automation and AI remains high, but Gareth noticed that firms are becoming more considered about how they use it. Rather than adopting technology simply because its available, accountants and bookkeepers are questioning which problems it solves and whether it genuinely improves their processes.
This is particularly important as firms automate more of their data entry. Although automation can make inputting faster, firms still need confidence that the resulting bookkeeping data is accurate.
As Gareth explained: “Otherwise, there is little benefit in automating data entry!”
The features that generated the strongest reactions
Xenon Connect’s Bookkeeping Health Check remained one of the biggest talking points for the team at Accountex Manchester. Brian describes it as the core of Xenon and the feature that continues to generate the most interest from accountants and bookkeepers.
Gareth also explored the value of bookkeeping health checks during his Showcase Stage demonstration. The session focused on how firms can use Xenon to build trust with clients, price accurately and save time in their day-to-day work. Following the demonstration, attendees visited the stand to learn more about using the health check right at the beginning of a client relationship as understanding the quality of the bookkeeping a firm is inheriting is vital when preparing an accurate free proposal.
Xenon Connect’s new Visual Anomaly Review (VAR) feature also received a positive response. The feature detects breaks in patterns within accounting data, and some of the practices already testing it visited the stand to share their experiences.
Gareth said “they let us know how much time it has already saved them”.
Good technology still needs the right support
For Brian, one of the clearest takeaways was that successful implementation depends on supporting the people who use the software every day. Although firms could see the benefits of using Xenon Connect, many were conscious of the time involved introducing a new system and training their bookkeeping teams.
The person subscribing to the software is not always the person using it, which makes it important to speak directly to the wider team.
As Brain explained “If they feel supported and educated, they will be more likely to use, retain and recommend Xenon”.
One key conversation that stood our for Brian involved Ellie from SMH, who brought account managers from other firms within the group to the stand. After hearing about her experience with Xenon Connect and seeing the software for themselves, they felt able to return to their partners with a strong case for using it across the group.
Existing users told the strongest stories
Some of the most valuable moments came from existing Xenon Connect users sharing their experiences.
From a marketing perspective, Hannah and Honor found that testimonial-style content received the most enthusiastic response.
Many users were happy to speak on camera about how they use Xenon and the difference it has made within their practice.
Hannah stated that “Many people were happy to speak on camera about their positive experience and how Xenon Connects adds value.”
For Honor, hearing customers describe the benefits in their own words reinforced the value of genuine user stories: “Hearing people explain in their own words why they use it and what it helps them with feels much more relatable than us simply telling people what Xenon does”.
Meeting existing users and hearing their feedback was also a personal highlight for both Hannah and Honor, showing just how valuable these events are for building relationships beyond the software itself.
Final Thoughts
Accountex Manchester reinforced that firms are not looking for technology simply for the sake of it. They want tools that solve genuine problems, help maintain bookkeeping accuracy and save meaningful time – backed by the training and ongoing support needed to use them effectively.
A huge thank you to everyone who visited our stand, watched Gareth’s showcase stage demonstration and shared their experiences with us. We came away with plenty of valuable feedback and look forward to putting what we have learned into practice.
Want to discover how Xenon Connect could support your firm? Book a demo with our team!