We all know that every year, tax season is a stressor for everyone: the client, the tax preparer, support staff, even the IRS. Every year we have those clients who wait until the last minute to send you their tax documents and expect you to work a miracle to complete the return by April 15th. And maybe you’ll get some sleep if you’re lucky!
But is that what’s best for the client and the tax preparer? Rushing around, possibly missing some significant deductions, income, or credits. I know this is how my tax season has gone for many years, and I was tired of being worn out by April 15th, and earlier, to be honest.
This past year, I decided to be more intentional about tax season, so I redesigned the entire client experience instead of simply asking clients sooner. Last year I estimated that only about 40% of my clients had submitted everything by March 1st. This year, approximately 60% had done so. A significant shift for a small firm with no additional staff.
My clients were confused. They didn’t know:
I believe the issue revolved mainly around uncertainty, not laziness.
Last summer I started by mapping out a timeline of how I wanted my tax season to progress. Once the timeline was mapped out, I built a communication sequence using ChatGPT, which saved me so much time. The communication sequence discussed every step of my process to hopefully answer my clients’ questions before they had to ask.
The communication sequence addressed the following questions/topics:
Communication started in December with a snail-mail letter to my clients with the entire timeline mapped out.
My clients responded better when they understood the process.
Once January rolled around, my clients started receiving a series of email communications rather than one email of “Please send your tax documents”. Each email had one purpose:
Sending a series of emails reduced surprises and questions.
To reinforce my process, I incentivized my clients who completed the process early by buying them a cup of coffee or tea. They were also entered into a drawing for a Next of Kin Box (NOKBOX) If you haven’t seen this, check them out!
Even though I was incentivizing my clients, I noticed that the office received fewer phone calls from my clients about how to proceed. They knew the steps and the order in which they should be taken. Now, I had a few clients who were out of step, but that happens to the best of us.
The takeaway here was that my clients had better clarity on what my process needed to be. The expectations were laid out in advance and communicated.
My expectations also included some boundaries that were missing in previous years. These boundaries included:
Setting these boundaries helped my clients understand why timing matters.
While I don’t have specific numbers from previous years, I know I was tracking down about 60% of clients’ tax documents and organizers after March 15th. This year, almost 60% of my clients had their organizers and documents to me by March 1st.
Other improvements to the office came from:
To continue managing client expectations, I have a few things I plan to implement next year.
In the end, I didn’t change my clients; instead, I changed the experience they had with my firm. When clients know exactly what to expect, why deadlines matter, and what happens next, they are much more likely to act. Sometimes improving workflow isn't about adding more staff or working longer hours. It's about communicating more intentionally.
After seeing the improvements made this year, I’m looking forward to continuing my progress.