to most of us, this is busy season. but to a marketer like jean marie caragher, it’s opportunity season. caragher, author of the 90-day marketing plan for cpa firms, offers three simple strategies for leveraging practice-building opportunities while also promoting tax returns. 1. … continued
39% year-over-year increase in first weeks. next question: the accountants outlook for busy season 2015. join the survey; get the answers. tax professionals e-filed about 5.9 million returns through jan. 30, 2015, up 39.1% from the 4.2 million returns e-filed … continued
no kidding! here are 12 ways.
by ed mendlowitz
tax season opportunity guide
tax season presents exciting opportunities for accounting firms and their staffs. every moment should be enjoyed and appreciated.
following are 12 reasons:
1. tax season is profitable and accounting is a business where we try to maximize our earnings. sure, there is a great concentration of work in a short period with occasional pressure, but if handled properly, the work can be managed sensibly with tensions at reasonable levels. i also believe much of the pressure is self-induced by poor scheduling, inadequate quality control and the lack of uniform systems that are followed by everyone in the firm, particularly the partners.
write your congressman!
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
irs regulations are requiring every business with materials, supplies, equipment and real estate to change their accounting method and file an eight-page form 3115 with their tax return and to mail a copy of the form to an irs group in ogden, utah. this is a sin and a travesty. read more →
it’s good for business and considerate to clients.
by ed mendlowitz
tax season opportunity guide
tax season is a business and businesses need to be paid. it is harder to justify prices when providing services rather than products. products are usually priced before delivery while many times services are priced after delivery, i.e. performance.
many accountants price returns before they are worked on, usually basing the fee on last year, or a rate schedule. sending a bill with the return establishes the relationship that you should be paid promptly for the work done.
accountants relieve their worst headaches.
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 sources are reporting on how much time and money small businesses spend each year on accounting and tax preparation and each month on payroll administration.
the data should support practitioners’ value proposition to small business owners: some 40 percent say bookkeeping and taxes are the worst part of being in business.
owners were also surveyed on their opinions of the most burdensome small business management tasks. next time you talk to your clients — or prospective clients — these pain points might be worth including in the conversation…
new data from 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 sources reveals key competitive
comparisons. read more →
use these busy days to get to know your clients better. with a few quick questions, every client meeting can turn into a new relationship-building opportunity. ask how the firm is doing as a whole to assess satisfaction. ask some … continued
how many of these do you need to fix in your firm?
by ed mendlowitz
how to review tax returns
clients have many choices, including the choice of a tax preparer. every new client an accountant gets is because that client left – fired! – their previous accountant.
here is a listing of 21 major reasons why clients switch accountants. ask yourself how many of these mistakes you could correct immediately and think about what that might be worth. read more →
five traits of the best tax season managers.
by ed mendlowitz
how to review tax returns
reviewing tax returns is a key part of tax preparation. it also is an area vulnerable to major bottlenecks and backlogs. inevitably, firms have more preparers than reviewers. the latter are highly skilled professionals who are more difficult to train or find. therefore, you must consider ways to reduce review time, even at the expense of adding preparer time.
the best tax season managers know how to: read more →
set an agenda; call a meeting.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
question: i have many small business tax clients and seem to lose them as they grow. i provide good service, never have extensions and call the clients in july to see if i can update their books and in december if they want any year-end tax planning. what else can i do?
response: based on our conversation, you are their tax preparer and they do not think of you as their “accountant” or business advisor. and based on what you told me, you aren’t, although you obviously have the skills. read more →
when 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 published its analysis, “threat or opportunity as h&r block, liberty jump into bookkeeping services,” by hitendra patil of pransform, it ignited a small firestorm of responses from readers and a reality check for the profession.
related: new strategic ally, or competitive threat?
two distinct groups of voices seem to be emerging with three basic options for independent accounting firms, according to patil who has been studying the profession’s reactions. read more →
new strategic ally, or competitive threat?
practitioners are actively debating the effects and impact of h&r block and liberty jumping into the bookkeeping business, as detailed by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间’ hitendra patil here.
“this is an opportunity to highlight quality,” says wesley middleton, head partner at middleton raines in houston. “the only person who has something to worry about are those that are only focused on price.”
not all practitioners agree in the discussion which began at 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 and has spilled onto the 20,000-member 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 linkedin group. read more →