TaxCoach Briefs:    July 10, 2008

Volume 3, Number 28

• Marketing Minute: "Selling" Without Selling
• New Tool: "Networking" PowerPoint
• Subscriber Q & A: Gift and estate tax; Oil and gas

***** Attention All-Stars *****: The July teleseminar is available on the All-Stars page. We saw our highest turnout yet, with great discussion of pricing, promoting, and delivering services under ongoing retainer fees. Our next teleseminar will be on August 12, and we'll focus on Fall marketing. As with this month, we expect to keep the primary focus on the MasterMind discussion. If you have ideas or questions for the group, please email us. See you on the 12th!

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MARKETING MINUTE (EAL)
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"SELLING" WITHOUT SELLING

I spent Wednesday afternoon enrolling one of our northern Ohio members into our new "Hall of Fame" done-for-you client acquisition and client retention system. (We introduced Hall of Fame at last month's "Spring Training 2008" Boot Camp, and we'll be rolling it out nationally later this summer.)

At one point, he mentioned that one lesson he had taken from the boot camp was that he needed to transform his firm into "a selling organization." As he said that, his staff accountant and marketing assistant started turning slightly green and confessed that they were uncomfortable with the thought of "selling" themselves and their firm.

You may be uncomfortable with the thought of "selling" yourself too. After all, you're an accountant. You probably hate to sell! (Duh! I picked Accounting because it was the first thing in the college catalogue that didn't involve either body parts or sales! - Keith)

"Selling" is one of those words that carries a lot of emotional baggage. It means different things to different people. If you grew up with a parent in business or sales, you're probably comfortable with it. But if your image of "selling" conjures up images of a slick-talking car salesman, you probably won't be jazzed about transforming your firm into "a selling organization."

I respect not wanting to "sell." With our Ohio folks, my response to the discomfort with "selling" was to suggest that they focus on transforming themselves into a marketing organization. If their marketing generates prospective clients who are ready to buy -- or at least predisposed that way -- they won't need the sort of hard selling that gives "sales" a bad name.

Here's a strategy for "selling" without actually "selling." It's the same strategy my ninth-grade English teacher, Mrs. Steele, gave me for writing an essay:

1. Tell them what you're going to tell them
2. Tell them
3. Tell them what you told them

Most of us are pretty good at "telling them." We service our clients, help them interpret "the numbers," and save them what we can on their taxes.

But how many of us tell those clients up front that what we really give them is useful business intelligence (a thorough understanding of what the books mean), or "dollars at a discount" (the savings we create through proactive tax planning)?

And when we're done with an assignment, how many of us tell our clients what we told them? How many of us confirm that clients see we delivered the benefits we promised?

Does the thought of "selling" your services make you uncomfortable? Just put Mrs. Steele's advice to work with your prospects. You'll find yourself "selling" more effectively, without having to transform yourself into this.

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NEW TOOL (EAL)
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"NETWORKING" POWERPOINT

One of our newest members emailed a question this morning. He's got eight minutes to talk at his upcoming BNI networking meeting, and he'll have access to a laptop with MS PowerPoint and a projector. Did we have some sort of presentation he could use to introduce the group to proactive planning?

We didn't -- at least, not this morning. But many of you belong to groups like BNI, so Keith and I thought a presentation like our new member requested would be worth creating. (My two-year-old son, Oliver, spends lots of time with his favorite toy train, Thomas the Tank Engine. Thomas works hard to be a "really useful engine," so I'm always looking for really useful additions to TaxCoach.)

We started with the "Business Owners" seminar kit from the Marketing PlayBook, and distilled the presentation down to just six slides. (You can customize it for yourself -- and even drop two of those slides if you like.) It follows the same "10 Most Expensive Mistakes" format of the full seminar:

1. Failing to plan
2. Mistaking "proactive" for "aggressive"
3. Wrong business entity
4. Wrong retirement plan
5. Missing family employment
6. Missing medical benefits
7. Missing home office benefits
8. Missing car & truck expenses
9. Missing meal/entertainment expenses
10. Missing your services!

Now, let's take a moment to talk about what this presentation is not. It's not an introduction to TaxCoach. Why? Because TaxCoach itself should have no meaning to your clients, prospects, or referral sources.

What should grab their attention, like gas prices crossing $4/gallon and heading for $5, is that failing to plan may be costing them a bundle -- and you can cure their pain. (Not TaxCoach.)

TaxCoach works behind the scene, like "that man behind the curtain" in The Wizard of Oz, so the client sees you as the hero.

You'll find the new presentation in the TaxCoach PlayBook, in the "Seminar Kits" section. And if there's a new tool we can create for you, ask us!

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SUBSCRIBER Q & A (KAV)
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Q: Hi, I reviewed your website and I think you have good ideas. Your income tax savings marketing, etc., show good promise. Please let me know if your system is adaptable to a practice based on gift and estate tax planning.

A: I'd love to tell you that our system is exactly what you need for your business -- but I have to confess that it's designed specifically for income taxes, and addresses very little in the way of gift or estate taxes. I've used Kettley's "Back Room Technician" program for those issues, and in fact, we designed TaxCoach to function similarly, but with an income tax focus.

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Q: Last time I spoke with Ed, he mentioned a TaxCoach strategy module on oil and gas, but I can't find it.

A: It's called "Tax-Advantaged Income Generators," and you'll find it in the "Investments" section of the Report screen. This module covers oil and gas programs, equipment leasing programs, and master limited partnerships as opportunities to create tax-advantaged income (as well as passive income) beyond traditional municipal bonds.

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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,

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