Hold the Sunscreen!

IMGCAP(1)]Yes, it’s summer, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to forget about your clients, or ease up on your plans to attract new ones, according to Chuck McCabe, president of Peoples Income Tax and The Income Tax School.

“It may not be tax season, but there’s plenty for tax preparers to do to get ready for next year and bring in more business,” he said. “Owning a business is a year-round endeavor if you want to get a leg up on your competition.”

McCabe suggested preparers consider these five marketing things to do during the summer.

  • Review sales and marketing efforts from tax season. “You probably already know whether your sales increased, decreased or stayed the same from last year, but do you know why?” McCabe asked. “Summer is a great time to take a deep dive into your metrics to determine which marketing tactics worked and which tactics didn’t work. Hopefully, before the season started, the preparer set some goals and created a marketing plan. All they need to do now is take a look at whether or not they reached those goals. Even if they didn’t set goals or created a plan, they should still comb through the metrics for their marketing channels to determine the reach of each one.”
  • Review customer surveys. “When it comes down to it, the happiness of your clients is paramount,” McCabe said. “If you didn’t send out customer surveys, maybe now’s the time to do it. If you did, now is the time to review your responses. Make a list of things you did right and a list of things that could be improved. Summer is a great time to look over processes that may have caused unfavorable responses and improve upon them. If you have a staff, gather them together and discuss the responses and opportunities for improvement.”
  • Plan newsletter content for the rest of the year. Now that you’re not buried in tax season, take some time to think about content. Sending newsletters is a great way to stay in contact with clients, educate them on tax and financial related items, and keep them updated on important tax news. Using an editorial calendar is a good way to plan content for the rest of the year. Take a look at important tax dates for the rest of the year, plan out promotions and inform clients of other services you provide.”
  • Focus on post-tax season clients. “There are a few types of clients you should be targeting this time of year,” McCabe noted. “These are taxpayers who need to amend their returns, those who received notices from the IRS or who owe the IRS, and business owners who file quarterly. Now is the time to market your business to them.”
  • Plan for end-of-year tax planning services. End-of-year tax planning is another opportunity for bringing in business, McCabe suggested. “Now is the time to get your ducks in a row so that you are prepared to market those services to clients and potential clients,” he said. “Completing these tasks will set you up for a successful second half of the year and a successful tax season next year.”
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