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TaxCoach Briefs: June 17, 2010
Volume 5, Number 23
===================================================== RANDOM THOUGHTS ON CONFIDENCE This has been a long week for me. I didn't get a "weekend" because I was busy with Dominique Molina teaching our third Certified Tax Coach™ Academy on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Then I flew home from San Diego Sunday night on a redeye and found myself in an exit-row seat. I thought I'd scored big-time on the extra legroom - but the seat itself didn't recline, which meant no sleep for Ed. And that made for a cranky Tax Coach Monday at the office. At least the Academy went well. As usual, Dominique and I learned as much from the attendees as they did from us. Although I still haven't figured out why Keith asked me to bring back recipes from my trip. (No, Ed, not "recipes" - receipts! Keith) I've been to San Diego six times now in the last 18 months, and every time, the weather in that supposedly "perfect" city has been worse than here in Cincinnati. (Back in April, it started raining literally 10 minutes before my flight landed and cleared up hours after I left.) Last weekend was no exception, especially on Saturday, with gray skies, a high of just 65 degrees, and brisk breezes blowing in from the ocean. I would expect that if we had been 20 miles from Canada, sure. But 20 miles from Mexico? Come on . . . I complained for more of that day than I should have about the weather. I joked even more about how disappointed I was that in all those trips to California, I hadn't yet felt an earthquake. Well, as the saying goes, "be careful what you wish for . . . " Just after 8pm Saturday night, sitting at the desk in my fifth-floor hotel room, I felt the earth move. It wasn't "the Big One" by any means, and lots of attendees didn't even feel it. But it was the real deal as far as I was concerned, measuring 4.8 on the Richter Scale, centered about 30 miles from us in Borrega Springs. Now, I'm a pretty confident guy. But this was a new high, and several of the new CTCs gave me credit for making the earth move with just my mind. Talk about a confidence booster! Keith and I have gradually realized that "confidence" is the most valuable thing we can offer you. Who cares how good our online tax-planning application is if you don't have the clients to plan for? Who cares how good our marketing tools and templates are if you don't have the confidence to use them? If you're like the typical TaxCoach member, you launch your practice with all the right trappings. You've got your degree or your certification. Maybe a nice new office (or at least shared office space) in an upscale part of town. New computers, stationery, and business cards. Powerful software to crunch numbers and file taxes. The only thing you don't have is a clue. Fortunately, you don't have to find that clue by yourself. There's no shortage of marketing coaches like us to help speed the transition. And networking and masterminding with your peers (like at our upcoming Member Appreciation Event) lets you see people who aren't any smarter or better-looking than you succeeding with the same concepts and strategies that may be intimidating at first. Confidence is key to the CTC program, too. Dominique has developed a comprehensive system for selling high-fee tax-planning engagements, with customizable tools and templates for everything from approach letters, scripts, fee schedules, and engagement letters. The technical curriculum covers a variety of tax-planning tools and techniques for fulfilling those engagements. But most attendees tell us what they really get from the program is the confidence to use the material they learn. Of course, sometimes confidence goes a little too far. Sometimes it veers into cockiness. That may have been the case in last week's Briefs, when I ranted about GoDaddy.com forcing me to jump through some irritating hoops to thank me for an "automated" domain-name renewal. Keith was skeptical of my tone and language - but, against his better judgment, he let me have my soapbox. Some of you loved it. One reader who isn't even a tax planner reproduced the piece on her self-publishing blog, promising her readers they would laugh out loud. But some of you thought I missed the mark, and a couple of you even suggested my sense of humor had gone the way of my marriage. Keith and I always wonder if comments like those are outliers or they represent the tip of an iceberg. In this case we think we touched a nerve. (What do you mean "we," kemo sabe? Keith) But, tellingly, nobody argued the point of my piece advising you to seek out (and destroy!) anything that makes it painful for clients to do business with you. I'm not going to apologize for my rant or anything I said. I'm not afraid to touch a nerve if it illustrates my point. And I want these Briefs to be entertaining, thought-provoking, and even controversial so that you'll read them. I realize that means sometimes you'll see me stumble. But I'll take that risk because I'm confident that my points are worth pondering. ===================================================== MEMBER APPRECIATION REGISTRATION I've always been a fan of classic long-form sales letters. I'm a "reader," not a "watcher," and I'll take 32 pages stuffed with bullet points, testimonials, and special "limited-time only" offers over a flashy video or webinar any day. So when it came time for Keith and I to launch TaxCoach, I knew we would do it with a long-form letter. I've also learned that when you're marketing to existing customers, it's smart to appeal to them the same way you attract them originally. So when we launched promotions for the 13 live events we've hosted over the last two years, it made sense to create long-form sales letters for them. If you haven't been to one of our live events, you've missed a lot. Many of you have attended three or four, and we're gratified to know that you wouldn't do that if we didn't deliver genuine, measurable value. At last month's SuperTable, we asked attendees "would you tell a colleague they should attend SuperTable"? Here's what they had to say:
We hadn't even gotten home from SuperTable before we started planning our next meeting. We're hosting a two-day Member Appreciation Event here in the Cincinnati area (actually, across the river at Newport on the Levee), this coming September 30 and October 1. So naturally, we'll be rolling out another long-form sales letter. But some of you don't have to wait for the letter before deciding to sign up. At last week's Certified Tax Coach Academy, several new CTCs said they would see me in Cincinnati this fall. And on this week's Member Call-In, one listener asked where we would be holding the event so that he could make hotel reservations. So we've decided to open registration early. If you're ready to sign up, just click here to register now. Keith and I have always realized our greatest strength here at TaxCoach is the lessons we learn from you, our members. I can write all day long about marketing and fulfilling tax-planning services. But nothing I write is as valuable as the lessons you bring us from the real world. What works? What bombs? Why does it work? Why does it bomb? Those are the lessons members really want to learn. So to thank you for everything you bring to us, we're hosting a Member Appreciation Event. (Ed, how're you coming on that catchier title? - Keith) We're not even charging admission! (We're not "giving it away" because we know that meeting with you personally translates directly into enhanced loyalty, along with new CTCs, All-Stars, and Press Club members.) We'll be rolling out that long-form sales letter soon. We may even give it it's own website - something really clever, like "taxcoachmemberappreciation.com." But you don't have to wait to sign up. Click here to register now! ===================================================== MEMBER CALL-IN WITH ED AND KEITH This week: "the goodness" again, as usual. Good questions, lively discussion, and a truly great "elevator speech" for Certified Tax Coach members — a succinct and poignant two-sentence intro to proactive planning and why clients need it. Looking for clarification on strategies, or additional ways to profit from TaxCoach yourself? Calls are generally held each Wednesday — join us for the next one, on June 23, at 1pm Eastern. Enter a question or just listen in on the repartee. Check the "Contact Us" button within TaxCoach for registration instructions. While our elite members (All-Stars, Press Club, and Hall of Fame) can still schedule time directly with Ed as part of their coaching programs, we simply cannot answer marketing and tax-strategy questions via email or unscheduled calls. ===================================================== We can answer questions on using TaxCoach system features anytime. (Save marketing and tax strategy questions for Member Call-Ins.) For best response, email support@taxcoachsoftware.com. Regards, Ed LyonKeith VandeStadt http://www.taxcoachsoftware.com/ (513) 321-2820 TaxCoach SuperTable Certified Tax Coach™ TaxCoach All-Stars TaxCoach Press Club TaxCoach Closely-Held Insurance Company TaxCoach Cost Segregation TaxCoach Briefs archives . . . |