Tax season is upon us. Here are some things preparers and clients can do to make the experience more valuable for themselves.
Ways to Make Tax Season Better for Clients
- Avoid spelling errors in client’s or children’s names, addresses, or any information that needs to be provided on the return.
- Make instructions easy to follow and get rid of unnecessary or indecipherable instructions.
- Provide a clear comparison to last year’s tax return or to a projection that was prepared with explanations of significant differences.
- Preparers should stop blaming the tax software for an error the client caught, such as “the formula did not flow from last year’s return.”
- Take notes at a client meeting or phone call and then look at them. Also, stop calls when return is being worked on to ask a question about something that was previously mentioned by the client. An alternative is when the preparer took annoyingly meticulous notes but did not look at them when they did the work or reviewed the completed return.
- Keep delivery promises, including following up when you said you would.
- When a higher bill than expected is provided, provide a detailed breakdown or explanation or call the client to let them know before sending the invoice.
- Make sure estimated payments are entered correctly and that there are no omissions of payments.
- Call clients with a heads-up as soon as a surprise result is identified, and do not leave it to the client to find it when they receive the completed return or a final draft to review.
- Preparers should make clients aware of the added value they provide.
Ways to Make Tax Season Better for Preparers
- Clients should collect their data and provide it when it is complete and not send it to the preparer piecemeal. If a client is missing a key item, they could provide what they have with a note about what is missing and say it will be sent as soon as it arrives.
- Clients should do what they say they will do and not delay providing added information when asked for it.
- Clients that give estimated amounts should clearly explain they are estimates and, how they arrived at it and why they cannot provide the actual amounts.
- Clients that are upset with something should complain right away to the partner, and not a staff person, and not delay expressing what they are upset about.
- Clients need to understand that preparers sometimes make mistakes, and they need to accept a rational and reasonable explanation and not keep bringing it up months and years later.
- Clients should make the preparer explain clearly what they are told and should never give a go-ahead without fully understanding what is to be done. Clients should not worry that they keep asking for something to be repeated. When they do, it means the preparer did not explain it clearly enough so it would be fully understood. Clients should understand everything about their return.
- Clients should review the return when it is received by them and not sit on it until eight minutes before it needs to be filed.
- Clients need to understand that taxes have to be paid to maintain our society and that the preparers do not make the rules that cause them to pay taxes; they should also understand that the preparer will work very hard to make sure they do not pay more than they should.
- Clients should understand the basis for the preparation fees and the greater value they receive for it, as well as appreciate the long-term benefits of the relationship. They should recognize that the preparer will always “be there” for them, and they should also pay their bills promptly.
- Clients that refer potential clients.
Takeaways
Tax preparation is a collaboration between the client and preparer and is most successful when both fulfill their roles and are aware of the other’s concerns.
I think this is a good list and suggest that clients review it with their tax preparers and preparers review it with their clients. This is the sage advice I gained from having everything on this list done wrong at least once. I assembled it to make tax season a much better experience for everyone.
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