We’ve reached the point of tax season in which the temptation to lose oneself in online distractions has subsided. Work is cranking up to 11, and there are “American Rescue Plan” (aka Stimulus Part 3) doings to track through Congress.
This is going to be a very interesting tax season. For many of our clients, this initial phase has been extremely busy. Others are keeping their powder dry for the SMB’s who will come flooding in next month.
(And btw, did you see that the US Census reported that new business applications spiked like crazy during 2020? Check out that link and then tell me that there won’t be a strong market over the next few years for competent tax and accounting advisors who know how to communicate their worth.)
This is the time to continue focusing on the highest points of leverage for YOU in your practice.
If you’ve put some “lines in the water”, from a marketing standpoint, then give things some time to percolate. (If you haven’t, we can help.)
Take the time to look from the macro perspective on your workflow, your staffing, and your client flow. If some clients who normally have been in touch by this time of year haven’t communicated, it’s worth doing a manual “reach out” campaign via phone and email. If you’re booked solid, consider incentivizing certain clients (whether positively or negatively) to get their paperwork into you STAT.
(One tactic I’ve seen work is communicating to corp clients that if they don’t have their books in order and submitted by March 1, then they will automatically go on extension. But every practice will be a little different.)
But as the business OWNER, you must take the time to look at these things from the 10,000 foot level.
After all, you are where the buck stops. YOU are the rainmaker. YOU are the one who should be greasing the operational wheels. YOU are the one who is ensuring that your staff isn’t burning out and is taking good care of people, both clients AND prospects.
(One great idea here is to “mystery shop” yourself by calling in as a prospect and evaluating how well your staff handles things. If you want some ideas along those lines, check out our “Office Hours” segment about handling the phone in your free members area on TaxProMarketer.com.)
The point is: if you don’t stay focused on these things, nobody else will.
Set up a scheduled time in your week to evaluate these issues (workflow, staffing, salesmanship, etc.) … or they won’t get improved or handled.
And keep your eyes on that April 15th (or July 15th?) prize.
And until then … serve the world unselfishly and profit.