One of the biggest impediments I see for Enrolled Agents is not knowing how to get their first tax representation client. If they allow it, it causes anxiety and then analysis paralysis. Being concerned with not knowing how to get clients can make you not do any work toward learning your craft. Not knowing how to represent clients can make you not put in the work to market yourself and get clients. See how that can become a vicious cycle? Are you stuck in it right now?
If so, you are in the right place. Today I'm going to share 5 steps to getting your first tax representation client. These 5 things can work even if you do not have a big social media following. Now, this doesn't mean that you should not have an online presence. You definitely should in this world of Google searches.
It means I am going to give you steps to put in place before you build that presence. I am going to build from the ground up here. So you will need to start with implementation step one before you go to the next one. Why am I giving you more than one thing?
I don't know who the originator of the quote is but one of my tax representation mentors says, "One is the loneliest number. Especially in marketing." That is very true (Thanks Uncle Mike!). You may not be able to implement these things all in one day. But I'd suggest implementing one a week to start seeing which one works for you and build your pipeline of leads.
Step 1 - Know who you are in the tax representation marketplace.
You can't introduce yourself to someone if you don't know who you are. I see a lot of my peers advertise themselves as being "Tax Experts". That's nice but what does it mean? Do you know how vague that is? You never want your prospects to be unclear on what you do.
What value do you add? If you do not know the answer to this question you are going to sell yourself short in this industry. I know because I know I've done it myself. I did not realize how much value clients received from working with me. So I worked for free. Don't fall into that cycle. Know who you are, an individual with the highest credential the IRS awards tax professionals. That's a big deal. I always tell my community to own that and walk in their authority.
To help you know your place in the market you need to know where you want to go in the market. I covered this in episodes 1 and 2 of my private podcast. But I also covered them in two articles as well. When you establish your legacy as a tax professional you move in your why and purpose. If you don't know your purpose or why I strongly suggest you take a look at these articles and do the exercises to help you establish this. This passion helps you see the value that you add to other people's lives.
Then you have to learn how to communicate who you are and the value. A rule of thumb for me when looking at a complex tax or business topic is to rely on my business partner. Yes, my 9 year old. If I can explain to my 4th grader how I help people then I can't explain it to anyone. No joke, practicing this with her helped me know my place in the market.
This will take intentional time and maybe even some soul-searching. But it is worth the time investment. You will know what differentiates you from all the other "tax experts" in the world. Remember, if you can't communicate your value to a prospect you can't sell your services.
I’m Kerrina O’Connor, currently I help individuals and small business with their tax preparation, bookkeeping, and accounting. I will be a future EA and I want to be an expert in Tax Resolution, Tax Advisory/Planning, and Real Estate Tax.
2. For the 100 list, the goal is to tell everyone in your list what you do. Even if it doesn’t necessarily start at 100, it should end with 100. Is that correct?
3&4. Got it. Build genuine rapport with current connections and sharing. Now that tax season is over I can commit to doing this more. I’m connecting with people on LinkedIn often, which is interesting because I think I’ve worked with most in the past. So I’ll do a…
With these help of Timalyn, I was able to successfully close my first client, go through the process of onboarding and then working with the IRS to get them First Time Penalty Abatement! My client was awarded back the amount they invested in my firm+ 50% of that amount.
Now I will move on to working with the state for additional penalty abatement.
Thanks Timalyn for your guidance!