TaxCoach Briefs:    April 9, 2009

Volume 4, Number 17

• Marketing Minute: Masterminding Turns Lemons Into Lemonade
• Member Event: 2009 Roundtables: Focus on Masterminding

*****Attention All-Stars and Hall of Fame members ***** The April webinar will be Tuesday, April 21, at 4pm Eastern. (This will be the third Tuesday of the month, rather than the usual second Tuesday.) Our topic will be "How to Become a Published Author in 30 Days or Less, During Tax Season." We'll discuss several strategies for quickly and inexpensively creating a book to establish credibility and authority in your market. And we'll interview Cincinnati Hall of Famer Dave Toney, who accomplished that goal just last week. Keep an eye on your mailbox for a copy of that book, which we'll be sending you to prepare for the call! Mark your calendar now, and we'll have registration info on the All-Stars page shortly.

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MARKETING MINUTE (EAL)
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MASTERMINDING TURNS LEMONS INTO LEMONADE

More than a few of you are busy this time of year, rounding up last-minute filers and preparing extensions for the professional procrastinators. So we'll keep this week's Briefs brief!

I spent most of Wednesday this week at my local Glazer-Kennedy Mastermind Meeting, hosted by Ron Ipach, who many of you met at last year's Spring Training boot camp. This meeting is consistently the best six hours of my month, and this month was no exception. This week, we focused on two issues: proposed regulations limiting use of results-oriented testimonials, and marketing in the "new" economy.

The first discussion centered on pending regulations from the Federal Trade Commission which would essentially shut down the use of results-based testimonials. When the new rules take effect -- probably late this summer -- we won't be able to talk up our clients' best results unless we also talk up typical results.

That may seem like a subtle change. But it's not. It will spell the end of "Jared," for example, the college student who lost 245 pounds eating Subway sandwiches. How can the Subway hold him out as an example when most of their customers don't lose weight at all?

Very few of you actually use testimonials in your marketing, despite their proven power. So very few of you will be directly affected. But the rules will affect those of you who do use testimonials. And, paradoxically, they'll create opportunities for those of you who don't already do so. That's because most of your competitors will read enough about the new rules to conclude they can't use them, and dismiss the idea out of hand. And that, in turn, will open opportunities for your testimonials to stand out even more effectively. In short, the new rules give you a great chance to turn lemons into lemonade!

The "new" economy was the "elephant in the room" for the rest of the session. I know how many of you have been hit by the recession, and I know that many of you are reluctant to commit to spending anything to hold on to your declining business. But why just look at your marketing as an investment in holding your business when you can invest those same dollars in growing your business?

Keith and I have discussed this issue often over the last several months. Right now, most of your peers are hunkering down and hoping to ride the recession out. This creates the opportunity for any marketing to stand out. Now combine today's timing with a proactive, planning-oriented message. Now you're really turning the recession "lemon" into lemonade!

We'll be discussing both of these issues in more detail over the coming months, and we'll hit both of them hard at the upcoming Roundtables. I'll let you get back to your 1040s now, but keep in mind that the coming "off" season presents endless opportunities for those of you who know where to find them and how to use them!

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MEMBER EVENT (EAL)
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2009 ROUNDTABLE: FOCUS ON MASTERMINDING

If you're like most TaxCoach members, you're the boss. You run your practice yourself, probably with a staffer or two, but no partners and nobody looking over your shoulder.

Sure, it's good to be the King (or Queen). But who do you turn to when you have questions you can't answer yourself? Who do you have to bounce ideas or strategies off of? Your local competitors?

TaxCoach Roundtables are a great resource for sharing questions and ideas with regional peers who are not local competitors. In fact, over 70% of last year's attendees who have already registered for this year's event are choosing to repeat the Basic presentation. They've all cited the networking and masterminding, as well as the value of the material, to justify the repeat.

Just listen to what some of last year's attendees said about the networking and masterminding opportunities:

"You'll learn almost as much from the attendees as from Ed and Keith"
James Fleming, Largo, MD

"You should absolutely go – you'll learn so much more than the cost, and not just from Ed & Keith."
Diane Little, EA, CFP, California, MD

"Either the Ed & Keith information or the group discussion would make it worthwhile – together they equal an excellent day."
Dave Toney, CPA, Cincinnati, OH

"I thoroughly enjoyed your presentation and I learned a lot from both of you. The round-table format was great and I learned a lot from the group . . . "
James E. Hall, CPA, Ontario, CA

"If you want to capture the high-end clients, you need to attend the Roundtable. Nothing beats interaction from other tax business owners & the expertise Ed & Keith bring to the table!"
Larisa Humphrey, Atlanta, GA

TaxCoach Roundtables are intensive full-day sessions in hands-on, small-group settings -- hosted at private business clubs, not convention hotels -- dedicated to exploring TaxCoach's unique combination of tax-planning and business development tools.

There are no outside speakers. No outside sales pitches. Just Keith and I, walking you step-by-step through getting the most from your TaxCoach membership.

For 2009, we've picked six convenient locations across the country and six dates from April through October. And this year, each venue offers two sessions:

• On Thursdays, we'll host Basic Roundtables for new users. This is a reprise of last year's agenda in case you missed it, you want a refresher, or you want to send an associate.

• On Fridays, we'll host Advanced Roundtables for more experienced users. We suggest you attend the Basic session before joining the Advanced session, but it's not required.

Come to one or come to both and put your tax-planning practice on steroids! Click here for complete details, including daily agendas, and a registration form. (All-Stars and Hall of Famers, see the Roundtables link in the blue on the All-Stars page to register for free.)

Space is limited, so reserve your seat now. And we mean it! (The Southern California event is just two weeks away, and there are only a few seats left.) Just choose which session best meets your needs:

Click here to register. (All-Stars and Hall of Famers, see the Roundtables link in the blue on the All-Stars page to register for free.) Keith and I look forward to meeting you at a Roundtable in 2009!

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We're happy to answer your questions on TaxCoach content, features, or marketing. While we give first priority to our All-Star and Hall of Fame members, we work to answer all questions. For best response, email support@taxcoachsoftware.com. If we think the answer will be useful to all of our members, we'll publish it (anonymously) here in the 'Member Q & A' section of TaxCoach Briefs.

Regards,

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