TaxCoach Briefs:    June 26, 2008

Volume 3, Number 26

TaxCoach Briefs archives.

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MARKETING MINUTE (EAL)
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"SPRING TRAINING" HIGHLIGHTS

This weekend, Keith and I hosted nearly 60 of you here in Cincinnati for our first-ever TaxCoach "Spring Training" Boot Camp. While we hit our share of speed bumps, we were pleased with the results. We got a lot of very honest and positive feedback. And I think we may have learned as much about you, our subscribers, as you learned about how to price, promote, and deliver plain-English tax planning.

We were surprised by how hungry you were for more information on core TaxCoach concepts and strategies. We realized, among other things, that we could have done just as well without all the outside speakers we invited to present. We've debated among ourselves and with you whether TaxCoach is more of a tax-planning tool or business-development system. And what we learned is that you see them as two sides of the same coin.

The most popular segment was the Sunday morning "bonus session" titled "How to Sell Tax Planning Fees." Keith and I sat on highback chairs at the front of the room, with an actual tax return in hand, and, as "planner," I interviewed Keith the "client."

Every few sentences, I stopped the interview for a "time out," and reviewed exactly what I said, how I said it, and why I said it the way I did. Then we opened up the discussion to answer questions and share experiences before moving on to the next part of the "interview."

Later that morning, we entered the actual client information into the system, generated a "live" plan within just a couple of minutes, and walked through how to present it for maximum client value. This gave us the opportunity to share pricing strategies -- we heard from one subscriber in Maryland who has billed as much as $5,000 for a single plan, and another in California who has billed over $50,000 in tax-planning fees using TaxCoach. We had much discussion about the concept of year-round retainer fees as an alternative to transaction-based fees. So much, in fact, that we'll make it the topic of July's All-Stars teleseminar discussion.

We also had fun with two "Hot Seats," where we sat subscribers up in the front of the room, asked a few basic questions about them and their practices, and opened them up for audience questions and suggestions. We particularly enjoyed hearing how one subscriber used TaxCoach marketing to grow from 15 clients to 270 in just six months.

The evaluation forms were anonymous, and we promised not to use your comments in our marketing material. But I can't resist quoting one comment that caught my wife's attention:

We recorded the entire weekend. While we're not planning to package a complete "Boot Camp in a Box," if there's enough interest, we'll consider releasing a "highlights" package.

Right now, though, our "to do" lists have "to do" lists! We thank those of you who attended for your great suggestions and feedback, and we look forward to hosting you next year for "Spring Training 2009."

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OF INTEREST (KAV)
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"SPRING TRAINING" PARTICIPANT HIGHLIGHTS

One of the things that the boot camp attendees told us they valued most was masterminding and networking with other subscribers. So in keeping with our relentless sports theme, we asked all registrants to complete a "baseball card" with basic facts about themselves, as a conversation starter, and a basis for door prizes.

You might be amazed at some of the interesting things we found out about your peers!

The subscriber coming from the farthest away was Ron Morgan of Wasilla, Alaska! Ron and his assistant Pamela flew like 632,000 miles into St. Louis, then drove another 6 hours to Cincinnati. For that heroic odyssey, Ron wins two trial months in the All-Stars club, which he had been considering joining for the coaching. Ron also brought us frozen salmon and a great book of lore about Alaska. Ron, you are the best and we appreciate your making such a trip!

Not quite as far, but almost as manic, was Blake Phillips, an All-Stars member from Tucson - because he and his wife drove. From Arizona! Now it's true, they did stop in on relatives in Texas, but that is one long dad-gum car ride, especially at 4 bucks a gallon. Although, Blake reports it was still cheaper than airfare! Anyway, Ed and I are happy to award Blake a free month of All-Stars, for making his epic journey.

Speaking of Journey, two different attendees voted not to stop believing in Steve Perry's power-pop group as their "favorite band." Other bands garnering two votes as favorites include the Beatles, Earth Wind & Fire, and James Taylor. Not surprisingly, Ed was the sole participant listing Frank Sinatra.

However, in addition to having excellent taste in first names, fully 2 out of 2 participants named "Keith" properly listed Led Zeppelin as their favorite band. And the forests will echo with laughter.

Here are some more coldly demographic tidbits:

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UPDATED CONTENT (EAL)
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IRS RAISES MILEAGE ALLOWANCE

Late last month, we discussed strategies for helping clients make the most of high gas prices. We discussed claiming mileage allowances vs. actual expenses, and introduced a Client Alert titled "Help for Rising Gas Prices."

Earlier this week, the IRS raised that mileage allowance to 58.5 cents/mile, effective July 1 through December 31, 2008. So we've updated this information in the TaxCoach system, and, updated the Client Alert.

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MEMBERSHIP OPPORTUNITY (EAL)
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BEAT THE JULY 1 PRICE INCREASE

Since we launched TaxCoach, all the way back in May 2005, we've worked with hundreds of you across the country. We've added new modules, new tax tools, new marketing materials -- most recently, a mailed monthly newsletter, the TaxCoach Lineup. We've proven the concept of planning-based marketing. We've grown from the industry's only "plain-English tax-planning software" into a true business development system. And we've created a national community with our All-Stars Mastermind Group and "Spring Training 2008" Boot Camp.

Adding benefits necessarily involves adding costs, such as additional staff, equipment, and printing and postage costs. In order to continue the level of service that a comprehensive personal coaching, business development, and planning software system like TaxCoach deserves, our subscription rates will be going up marginally.

Several of our own marketing advisors have urged us to raise the rate all the way to $99/month. We certainly think TaxCoach is worth it. But for now, we'd rather "build our base" and expose as many of you as we can to our proactive approach. So, effective July 1, 2008, the new rate will be $69 per month.

But you can still keep the current price -- and get nearly four months free -- by switching to annual "MVP" membership.

The annual rate is always a good deal, getting you 12 months for the price of 10. That's still true at the new rate of $690 which starts July 1. But, if you upgrade to "MVP" membership by June 30, you'll still get the current rate of $590 -- which means that right now, you'll get the next 12 months of TaxCoach for just a little over the price of 8. That's almost 30% off the monthly rate!

If you're already an annual subscriber, you'll get the discounted $590 rate automatically with your next renewal for the remainder of the year. "MVP" means we take care of our best subscribers!

Interested? Call us at 513-321-2820, or email support@taxcoachsoftware.com. We'll contact you to set up the details.

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SUBSCRIBER Q & A (EAL)
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Q: Does the Tax Coach software allow you to add your own recommendations to the plan, or can only the prepared Tax Coach recommendations be used?

A: Thanks for your question.

Currently, the main plan does not let you add your own recommendations. We’ve tried to make the modules as comprehensive and inclusive as possible. Also, the system generates plans in HTML format before rendering them as a PDF file, which would make additional formatting especially difficult.

The Summary Report, however, does let you include your own recommendations, if you download it into Microsoft Word or any other word processor. In fact, when I use TaxCoach with my own clients, I use the Summary Report for my personalized recommendations.

Do you have a particular issue you’d like us to address or recommendation you’d like to include? Please let us know – many of our modules and TaxCoach tools have been added at subscriber request, and we’d like to make the system as valuable to you as we can.

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We're happy to answer your questions on TaxCoach content, features, marketing, or general taxation. While we give first priority to our TaxCoach All-Stars, we work to answer all questions. For best response, email support@taxcoachsoftware.com. If we can't answer immediately, or we think the answer will be useful to all of our subscribers, we'll publish it (anonymously) here in the 'Subscriber Q & A' section of TaxCoach Briefs.

Regards,

Ed Lyon
Keith VandeStadt

www.taxcoachsoftware.com
(513) 321-2820

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