May 18, 2026
Most clients switch off when their financial advisor starts “talking numbers”. While the advisor goes through rows of financial data, the client is often thinking, “Okay…but what does this actually mean for my business?”
Here’s the reality: most clients don’t care about the actual numbers as much as the story behind them. When going through financial reports, most clients want an interpretation of the dataset and data-driven guidance on how to steer their business in the right direction.
In this article, you’ll learn how to explain financial reports to clients more effectively using financial storytelling techniques. You’ll also understand why more accounting firms are starting to offer accounting advisory services.
Most advisors’ financial reports show “what happened to the business?” But what clients really care about is “why did this happen?” and “what should I do next?”
You’ll see this clearly in Fathom’s State of Financial Storytelling 2026 survey of 370 finance professionals across 15 countries. It turns out most client requests for reports are driven by practical questions that can only be answered by knowing the “why” behind the numbers. These questions include: “Where has my cash gone?” “Are these variances timing or structural?” “What happens to the cash projection if we add or remove staff?” "Which parts of the business are actually making money?"
Furthermore, the report highlights cash flow as the number one topic in client conversations, reflecting the decision-focused nature of many advisory discussions. For advisors, this means that building client trust requires you to interpret and ground data in real life, rather than just showing data. Tension happens when clients don’t get clear, fast answers to these important questions.
Financial storytelling is the practice of turning financial data into a clear, sequential narrative that connects “what happened,” “why it happened,” and “what should happen next”. In short, you connect the dots in your financial report so your client can make smart, timely decisions.
Financial storytelling makes the numbers “forward-facing”, as compared to traditional “backwards-looking” reporting.
In Fathom’s survey, finance professionals who combine reporting with forecasting, scenario planning, and custom KPIs to “story tell” financial data are 1.6x more confident answering board-level questions. That’s because this combined approach helps give their reports context, sequence, and relevance to their client’s decision-driven questions.
Most of their financial storytelling reports follow a simple flow:
Here are techniques that help improve reporting and client communication for accountants and advisors: lead with the headline, use visual aids, answer the implied question, layer narrative commentaries alongside numbers, focus on decisions, and use the “story structure.”
Start every report with a 2–3 sentence summary of what the numbers mean, without jargon or complex explanations. Here’s an example: “Cash flow dipped this month due to early stock purchases ahead of the busy season. The business is still steady, and hiring next quarter is still on track.”
It speaks plainly, follows the context → movement → meaning → action narrative arc, and gives the client direction. Tools like Fathom’s Commentary Writer can help you. It summarises your report’s key insights and even generates potential stakeholder questions to help you prepare.
Leading with a headline, not data, helps change your meeting from needing to decode numbers for 20 minutes to spending more time discussing decisions.
Visual aids, like cash flow waterfalls, trend lines, and variance charts, show the story in a way tables can’t. They condense raw numbers and dense text into simple images that help your client see the meaning behind the data quickly. Visuals also surface trends and correlations faster than raw numbers do, helping speed up decision-making.
You can automatically integrate visual aids into your reports using financial analysis tools focused on visualising data, like Fathom.
When your client asks a question, answer them and address the fear or goal that prompted them to ask it. For example, if your client notices margins dropping, they may ask you why margins are down. But the real question is usually, “Should I be worried?” which taps into the decision-making aspect of their question.
Using cash flow forecasting and scenario planning tools helps you prepare for implied questions. They let you spot emerging pressures early and show your client how different decisions might play out, even before they ask. This shifts your partnership from transactional to strategic.
A one-paragraph "what this means" per key metric turns your reporting from a data summary to conversation.
You can use tools like Commentary Writer to do this at scale. Set your client’s business context once (e.g., goals, strategy, market conditions, current positions), then it can generate commentaries throughout your reports.
You can tailor these commentaries further by adding report-specific context, such as relevant events, strategy shifts, and seasonal factors.
A useful report helps answer decision-driven questions like: Can we afford to hire? Should we invest now or wait? What happens if revenue slows next quarter?
This is why forecasting matters in advisory. Using tools like cash flow forecasting software can help you help your client see the likely impact of future decisions before committing to them.
Humans learn most through stories. Try using the “story structure” with a hero, setting, conflict, and resolution to turn raw data into a meaningful and memorable story.
Start by identifying your client’s key stakeholders, then setting the context with relevant data. Next, tell the conflict (what changed and why it happened) and end by showing the resolution (what actions should be taken). Using relatable stories grounds your report and helps clients “see” the data.
Clients who understand their numbers make faster decisions and trust their advisor more.
Today, the ability to advise clients is becoming a differentiator for accounting firms. Many accountants are increasingly being asked practical questions around hiring and headcount, and 78% reported that using the right tools has helped them answer decision-driven questions like “Can I afford to hire?”
The most progressive accounting firms are already moving beyond report delivery to report and insight delivery.
The difference between a report that confuses and one that builds confidence is rarely the data; it's the story around it.
Your client wants to feel informed. They want to look at your report and connect the scattered numbers so they can deeply understand their business’s story. This will help them navigate crucial business decisions with confidence. Give them that, and you earn their trust. The more skilled you are at telling the story behind the numbers, the more you can deepen your relationship with your client.
Start by using the right tools. Learn about how Fathom’s Commentary Writer or Management Reporting helps advisors and accountants tell their clients’ story.
Hamidah Abd Rahman is a content writer at The Access Group and Fathom. With a strong focus on B2B industries, she has written content across sectors such as data science, supply chain, aviation, and ERP.
