tax season

uncooperative partner might not be the problem

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why are they unwilling to help?

by ed mendlowitz
202 questions and answers: managing an accounting practice

question: my tax partner gives me a hard time when i ask her for assistance. is there anything i can do to get her to be more responsive?

more:  merge in lower-priced work without losing out | 20 things you need for a business valuation
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response: this can apply to every research question asked by anyone in the firm. besides tax, it can be for audit, internal controls, succession planning or any other client service area.

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keep clients from “balance due” shock

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with just a little advanced marketing, you can get paid year-round and have more satisfied clients.

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

when i talk with prospective clients in any medium, i lead with tax planning. i don’t care if i’m meeting them, calling them or emailing them. i lead with tax planning. the number one complaint clients have about cpas and tax preparers is a lack of planning. they get tax returns and nothing else.

more: stop clients from performing “favors” | who needs fall tax planning? clients … and you | get clients to bring tax docs early…yes, early | why time tracking still matters | make fewer mistakes, increase revenue and capacity | six ways to create a millennial-friendly firm
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

the fun part is seeing the reaction when i mention planning. i tell them that they can know the results while there’s still time to change the results. tax season is no longer stressful because they know the answers in advance about refunds and balances due.
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merge in lower-priced work without losing out

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businessman sitting in office chair, covering his face with his hand

you bought a tax practice! but they charge less than you do. now what?

by ed mendlowitz
 the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor

question: i bought a tax return practice in december from a person who was charging $180 per hour. my rate is $300 per hour so i did not make money and i would like to know what i could do to raise fees so i don’t continue to lose on it.

more: want more tax clients? here’s how | bundle tax services with financial planning | how to begin a business valuation | how to offer conflict resolution | get your clients talking about retirement | when clients remarry | four reasons to perform tax projections
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answer: after a long discussion, it appears that he bought a good practice with good fees charged for the returns. his problem is that he has no employees and did all the work himself – about 750 tax returns, and was totally overwhelmed with non-stop work.
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stop clients from performing “favors”

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“oh, you shouldn’t have.” (you really, really shouldn’t have.)

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

we all have clients who bring in tax documents in laminated three-ring binders. they smile big toothy grins and tell us how they’re our most organized client. there’s no reason for us to organize the documents, as they’ve already done us this huge favor. of course, there will be no reason for us to remove anything from the binder and everything should be left in the binder just as it is.

more: who needs fall tax planning? clients … and you | it’s ok to say no to clients (even the large ones) | you train your clients, whether you mean to or not | business owners face one of three exits | how small firms can win the talent wars | do you know your turnaround time?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

we call these people binder boys. they have no clue that organized for them is not organized for tax return preparation. preparing a return from documents in a binder takes twice as long, at least, as preparing returns from a well-organized pdf file.

we also have the people who use five pounds of staples to organize 20 pages. they don’t want any loose documents falling out of the file.
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bundle tax services with financial planning

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businesspeople having a meeting over coffee sitting together at a table discussing a document, young man and two middle-aged women present

two sample engagement proposals.

by ed mendlowitz
how to build a stronger tax practice

following are two sample engagement proposals for tax return preparation bundled with additional financial planning and business planning services.

more on marketing: when clients haven’t filed taxes for years | seven keys to a complete succession plan | the tax effects of buying or selling a business | elder care: not sexy, but vital | how to guide clients through divorce | help clients manage their investments
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

letter 1:

dear _________________:

it was good meeting with you last week. ed and i are excited to be working with you and look forward to a long and satisfying professional relationship.
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who needs fall tax planning? clients … and you

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avoid balance-due whining sessions and earn additional revenue.

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

you’ve surely had this conversation a million times during multiple tax seasons, most often in april. you give a client a tax return with a $20,000 balance due.

client: i didn’t expect to owe that much.
you: how much did you expect to owe?
client: about $5,000.

more: it’s ok to say no to clients (even the large ones) | control your time: avoid ambush meetings and calls | train your clients before they train you | don’t let clients dictate tax workflow | how small firms can win the talent wars | do you know your turnaround time?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

here’s where my conversations may differ from yours a bit.

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when clients haven’t filed taxes for years

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help them put a stop to this.

by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor

it is not unusual to meet with potential clients that have not filed tax returns for many years.

more on marketing: seven keys to a complete succession plan | how to begin a business valuation | how to offer conflict resolution | get your clients talking about retirement | when clients remarry | seven questions to suggest estate planning | four reasons to perform tax projections | four additional services to suggest
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

with these clients it is important to get them to understand the seriousness of their situation and that the sooner they comply, the greater the likelihood that the worst they would be subject to would be penalties for late filing and payment if they owe money.
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it’s okay to say no to clients (even the large ones)

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working with “smaller” clients can often be more rewarding – and profitable – than “big” clients.

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

there’s a reason you aren’t actively training clients to allow you to work efficiently. you’re afraid that you’ll lose clients.

i guarantee that you will.

more: control your time: avoid ambush meetings and calls | get clients to bring tax docs early … yes, early | why time tracking still matters | make fewer mistakes, increase revenue and capacity | six ways to create a millennial-friendly firm | do you know your turnaround time?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

clients have trained you to be inefficient. they’ll resist retraining. some of them will leave and infect someone else’s practice.

the reason you fear losing clients is that you fear you can’t replace them.

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why business email is doomed

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malware, ransomware, phishing and other hacker tools will make email obsolete.

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

last year, the ceo of slack predicted the demise of business email in five years. i think he’s wrong. i think business email maybe has another two years. there are two obvious reasons why email has a foot in the technological grave.

more: control your time: avoid ambush meetings and phone calls | get clients to bring tax docs early…yes, early | you train your clients, whether you mean to or not | train your clients before they train you | why time tracking still matters | business owners face one of three exits | don’t let clients dictate tax workflow | make fewer mistakes, increase revenue and capacity | how small firms can win the talent wars | easy ways to avoid ‘done but’ tax returns | six ways to create a millennial-friendly firm | do you know your turnaround time?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

first, spam killed the efficiency of email. how much time do you spend each day deleting spam? you can train your spam blocker, but professional spammers get through using variable email addresses and agreements with internet routing companies.
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jason deshayes: what we’re doing isn’t working

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create opportunities for others by getting out of the way.

subscribe to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 podcasts anywhere: apple, google, spotify, iheart, deezer, amazon music and audible, player fm, audacy, gaana (india), and boomplay (africa).

see the disruptors

the disruptors
with liz farr

by age 35, jason deshayes, cpa/pfs, cfp, cka, was already co-owner of a cpa firm in albuquerque. he “hit the magic shangri la that we’re all working for.” but it wasn’t right for him. he was bored with the long hours and felt he wasn’t growing. he wasn’t able to think about his firm the way he wanted to. so he and his partner sold their firm.

more podcasts and videos: heather satterley: you’ve got to meet people where they are | bill penczak: stop forcing smart people to do stupid work | sandra wiley: staffing problem? check your culture | scott scarano: first, grow people. then firm growth can follow | jody padar: build a practice that works for you, not vice-versa | ira rosenbloom: with m&a, nobody wants a fixer-upper | peter margaritis: the power skills every accountant needs | joe montgomery: find the sweet spot of the right clients, right services and right prices | marie green: your bad apples are ruining you | megan genest tarnow: hire for curiosity rather than compliance | clayton oates: one way to keep clients for life | randy crabtree: follow these three rules to keep employees happy | erik solbakken: yes, you can work less and make more | donny shimamoto: future firm growth requires a mindshift | jennifer wilson: empower young workers to build the firm everyone loves | mike whitmire: re-think your hiring and training practices | hector garcia: success strategies of a quickbooks youtube superstar | blake oliver: why tax work yearns to be free| private equity explodes in u.k. | brannon poe: the status quo must go  | accounting nerds, unlock your super powers  | disruptor: jason statts shakes up the status quo | think small to think big with matt wilkinson | when financial statements go extinct with corey schmidt | can geraldine carter save accountants from themselves? | re-inventing accounting with tyler anderson

goprocpa.com exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

today, he’s coo at cook wealth, a hybrid wealth management and tax firm. providing both types of services means that they don’t deal with “this weird thing, where the client’s in the middle, and they have to be the conduit for information going both ways.” he says that getting his cfp has “been so enriching.” deshayes added, “i love what i do, and it’s because i was willing to drop stuff so other people could learn the stuff i learned, and so i could do fun stuff.”  


click “play” to see: what jason deshayes talks about when he’s talking about a “forward-thinking enterprise.” (via wordclouds.com)

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tax & accounting profession grows, but wages don’t

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total employment at tax, accounting, payroll, bookkeeping and related businesses hits a record high of 1,166,700 jobs.

tax preparation and payroll services are exceptions.

by beth bellor

are there really staffing shortages? employment numbers in the accounting profession keep rising.

more on staffing and comp: tax and accounting pay advancing at 5.9% pace | bill penczak: stop forcing smart people to do stupid work | sandra wiley: staffing problem? check your culture | firms rev up expansion plans | accounting jobs up 4% for year | research: accounting pros cautiously optimistic about generative ai | how auditors can beat ai | how tax practitioners became cybersecurity risks | why the u.s. must act now to protect our online privacy | top tax vendors caught red-handed selling private taxpayer data
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

perhaps they could be rising even faster if the right people met the right spots – or the right incentives, according to a new 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 analysis.

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you’re missing 60% of your revenue

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here are four ways to stop leaving that money on the table.

by sandi leyva
the complete guide to marketing for tax & accounting firms

accounting firms have done a great job adopting paperless office technologies, the web and even cloud computing, so you may feel you have been doing all you can to streamline margins, become “client-centric,” as some consultants call it, and grow your practice. but i believe there is even more opportunity that very few, if any, in the accounting profession have fully identified or embraced.

more: calculate your business relationship ratios | what can chatgpt do for accounting professionals? | generative ai: should you avoid it or adopt it? | want better clients? here’s how | get your name in the news | four ways small firms can beat large ones | why you need a link-in-bio tool
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

i only bring this up because i believe most cpa firms are leaving about 60 percent of their potential revenue on the table (and i can prove it). worse, they are not sharing their badly needed financial expertise with more businesses that could be greatly helped, especially now.
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