Tell Your Clients, 'You're Fired !'

[JohnH]

But...if someone can text....why can't they e-mail? Would it really make a difference to the client?

I have many many many (probably 50) clients who are IT/Computer Software developers...who I am sure text all day long. E-mailing me has never been an issue with any of them.

Believe me....I don't lack understanding of management. I was probably one of the first tax preparers to do internet based clients. And I had the prototype cell phone (over 25 years ago!)

It really comes down to what someone prefers. I like e-mail. I can receive it world wide. But, when I'm "out of the office".....I have the auto-reply that says I'm on vacation...and I'll be back "whenever". I add a few days to "whenever"....so nobody frets if I don't respond the second I get home.

One of the things my clients like is that I return all e-mails/land line calls....asap. Nobody waits........

If you ask your IT clients which they prefer, you might be surprised. Some will say "email", but others will quickly tell you they prefer texting. If they're really honest with you, the ones who prefer texting may also tell you they still email when they must, but they think of people who don't text as being a bit old fashioned & out of touch. I'm not defending that point of view; I am telling you I know for certain that it's out there . And if you ask anyone under age 22, you may just get a blank stare because they won't understand the question. Think about the implications for your business 3-5 years from now.

I like email too, and for many of the reasons you mentioned, but I NEVER use auto-responders. I do that for reasons of security and also to keep the communication process seamless between my clients and me. They don't need to know when I'm away. But there again, it's a matter of personal preference.

Your commitment to response time is absolutely correct. It is a real relationship buider.

[MsTabbyKats]

If you ask your IT clients which they prefer, you might be surprised. Some will say "email", but others will quickly tell you they prefer texting. If they're really honest with you, the ones who prefer texting may also tell you they still email when they must, but they think of people who don't text as being a bit old fashioned & out of touch. I'm not defending that point of view; I am telling you I know for certain that it's out there . And if you ask anyone under age 22, you may just get a blank stare because they won't understand the question. Think about the implications for your business 3-5 years from now.

I like email too, and for many of the reasons you mentioned, but I NEVER use auto-responders. I do that for reasons of security and also to keep the communication process seamless between my clients and me. They don't need to know when I'm away. But there again, it's a matter of personal preference.

Your commitment to response time is absolutely correct. It is a real relationship buider.

LOL John...........I am "old fashioned and out of touch"....and my clients know that I'm an old lady.

It doesn't matter at all what they prefer....if they want to work with me, they do what I prefer....or I don't accept the job (and I turn down several every year)

Again and again and again....I am not trying to build a business. It's strictly by referral....I never spent a penny on ads.

To old ladies such as me (btw...I take no offense of being called "old") ....we look at texting as a way to avoid human contact. I really don't see any point to it, except to send someone a brief message...such as....."I'll be a few minutes late." (There's nothing like watching a young couple in a restaurant...and each one is playing with their phone...oblivious to their live companion!)

Anyway....if I ask someone to send me a pdf of a W-2....I prefer to get that on my computer, in my home....not on my phone (if it even can be done).

This works for me.....it will be working for me as long as I'm doing taxes.

[Guest Taxed]

I gave my iphone to my son because I was NOT using it to its full potential!

I still prefer my Samsung, that holds charge for 10 days!

[JohnH]

Ms TK: I understand. Just keep in mind that "old fashioned" and "out of touch" isn' about years - it's a state of mind. I know 30-year-olds who fit that description. But even the term "old" is relative - after all, you're younger than I am..

And your last sentence is the heart of the matter - if it works for you and you're satisfied with where your business is, then none of this other technology stuff really matters.

[easytax]

I agree with JohnH that younger people prefer texting to e-mails or voice mail. So If I want to grow my business with more young people I do have to keep that in mind. With that said, I will be investigating options after this tax season to see if I can get their text message into my e-mail or some other method so that:

1) I am not checking my cell phone every 10 minutes for text.

2) I am not considered to be available 24/7 to answer tax questions.

I do respond to e-mail and voice mail within 24 hours max. even during the height of tax season. Off season usually within a few hours.

Just about to respond to a voice mail I picked this morning.

If you don't want to give out your cell number, you can use call forwarding from the land line to the cell. That's what I used to do when I was out running errands during business hours.

Cell phones also have the ability to store phone contacts in groups that can be assigned different ringtones, so the business calls could have a different ring than family or friends.

Second cell phones are cheap. No need for contracts or monthly bills. Phones and texts only. A phone is $20 and time can be as cheap as $.04/minute with texts costing $.012 each. Different number to give out. The phone also has an off button.

Tracfone.

I never get texted --- but then -- when I'm awake, I am almost always right by my computer (and don't get out much).

However, should anyone want to text me or want to know how to send or receive texts directly on their PC's --- a simple Bing search on "texting from computer" gives a lot of ways to do it. A FREE and what appears to be easy way is : http://pinger.com/tfw/ .This gives you a phone number (yours alone) and drops everything into your PC. You can also text right out of the PC if you desire.

Kind of a split service --- you aren't bothered if you don't want to be, have a way to save the data to the PC, reply when you want, etc.

Anyway, just thought I'd save those of you "looking at " texting an alternative idea.

[MsTabbyKats]

Free Texting...interesting (but I can already text unlimited from my phone)

What is an advantage of texting over e-mail?

Maybe I am behind the times....but can't anyone who texts also e-mail?

I do understand something like:

Hey...It's your tax preparer....and you didn't send me your stuff yet!

But, wouldn't they have to "send me their stuff" by attachments in an e-mail?

I'm not trying to sound like an old lady.....but isn't texting just redundant of e-mail?

Maybe I'm missing something.....like Blockbuster closed because it's become archaic.

Is e-mail already archaic and inaccessible to the younger generation?

[Guest Taxed]

My son has that pinger service. The only problem with that for business use is that you can not display your business e-mail address. It says received from textfree or something like that.

[Kea]

I agree with MsTabbyKats that there isn't much (anything?) that can be done by text that can't be done by e-mail. With my old cell phone and plan, texts cost extra. I wasn't interested and asked my carrier to disable texting. Last year I bought a smartphone and texting was included in the plan. Since then, there have been a few clients and friends that have sent me texts. I'm not sure how many had tried to send texts to me previously that I never knew about.

[Guest Taxed]

Have you noticed how brokers do NOT allow trade or redemption requests via text message or voice mail for that matter??

It protects them. May be we need to do something similar?

[Jack from Ohio]

I am with JohnH. Come into 2013-2014 and drive the bus in your business, or stay in 2000 and ride the bus while others drive.

Interactive websites, texting, twitter, facebook, e-mail are all the direction that majority of people under 40 are headed. I want to tap that customer base, so I am up to speed on all except twitter, and I just have not taken the time to set twitter up.

[kcjenkins]

My basic problem with texting in business is the difficulty of saving a text message. I want something I can save and keep in the client's file, which shows who sent it, and when. 'copy' then 'paste' to an email is not good enough at documenting who sent it, and does not prove it was not edited.

[Jack from Ohio]

My basic problem with texting in business is the difficulty of saving a text message. I want something I can save and keep in the client's file, which shows who sent it, and when. 'copy' then 'paste' to an email is not good enough at documenting who sent it, and does not prove it was not edited.

Even e-mail cannot provide that level of "not edited" security.

The only "not edited" method is USPS Snail Mail.

[JohnH]

I agree that email is much beter than texting because it is more thorough, easier to archive and refer back to, and so on. I prefer email over texting myself for most (but no all) client communications. But with respect to the long-term outlook for this business, it doesn't matter what I think or what ayone else in this thread thinks about texting. For anyone interested in growing thier business, ignoring this trend will have negative consequences.

Only a few years ago we were having discussions on this and other forums about email communication with clients, and we were hearing many similar objections at that time. Most of the objections revolved around the problem that email was draastically different than telephone conversations or that reliable method of document transfer - the fax machine.

For those who are scaling back, near retirement, or fortunate enough to have plenty of business to choose from, this isn't so much of an issue. But for anyone needing to grow their business, this is something to be aware of. Your competitors certainly are.

Now, even though I'm among those in the "scaling back" mode with my business, nevertheless I'm headed to Best By to pick up my Pebble watch. :)

[Guest Taxed]

My poor fax machine. Does not get much use anymore except for a few outgoing!

All incoming faxes are stored as a pdf and then archived.

[Catherine]

Catherine: FYI, there are several ways to print a text. The simplest is to "copy" it and then "paste" it into an email to yourself, then print the email. On most smart phones (iPhone & Android in particular), you can also save a screen shot to your photos and then print the photo. or email the photo to yourself and then print it. There are other ways, involving using the "edit" feature, but they're a little more complex and generally don"t preserve date info.

here' a video:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DZI92vh3EvA&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DDZI92vh3EvA

I won't blow the $30+/month for the data plan and am still using a "dumb" phone. Right now, since mine has a problem, I've actually switched to an old/abandoned phone of my daughter's temporarily.

Thanks, though.

[Richcpaman]

I find it interesting that a thread about disposing of clients turns into a discussion of how clients are supposed to contact you.

Whatever rings your bell, I say. If its passenger pigeons, than that is great.

But firing clients? Yeah, I got that one.

There are VERY good reasons to fire clients. Mine is the "Caller ID Cringe". If I see the number on the caller ID and I cringe, then its time for me to re evaluate that client.

My number one source to fire them is to raise thier rates. If it was $350 this year, next year it will be $425, and the next it will be $500.

If that doesn't do it, then at least I am making alot more money.

I don't want so many clients that I can't play golf. I also have my financial goals that I want to get too. And I am about 2-3 years away. (I may ALWAYS be 2-3 years away, If I can still handle it, why not?) And since my missus can retire, (possibly) in two years, that lines up well.

The main point of this thread is managing your practice, and not letting your clients manage you.

Rich

[Guest Taxed]

>>> The main point of this thread is managing your practice, and not letting your clients manage you.

Well said my friend. And because none of us run our business exactly the same, the solutions will vary.

No solution is bad as long as it works for you. But one solution that seems to work most of the time is to raise the rates for your aggravation!

[kcjenkins]

Now, even though I'm among those in the "scaling back" mode with my business, nevertheless I'm headed to Best By to pick up my Pebble watch.

Here is Kim's advice about the SmartWatches

Don't buy the Gear - or any smart watch - just yet. Your smartphone already does everything a smart watch can do - only better and faster.

To date, there are only about 70 apps available for the Gear, and battery life is not much better than the average smartphone. Plus, the Gear only works with a Galaxy Note III smartphone or Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet. If you don't own one of these, the Gear is just a regular watch.

Another much-hyped smart watch is the Pebble ($150). It has a better battery life than the Gear - up to one week - but uses a black-and-white e-Ink screen and has few apps.

[JohnH]

Good advice KC. That part of the post was not a joke. I was actually planning to buy one the next day. Went to Best Buy, talked with them, began to have some doubts, and then decided to read some more before parting with the $. The Pebble is very limited for the iPhone. I still intend to buy one, but I'm waiting for more apps and better features.

[kcjenkins]

That's my thought too. I love the Dick Tracy idea, but it's just not ready yet.

[JohnH]

Also, I read that even though the e-ink display is the reason the Pebple has a longer battery life, the Bluetooth connection drains the iPhone battery in about 7 hours on average. And that's without email notifications.

[Jack from Ohio]

Love my laptop...

[Guest Taxed]

JohnH, I must say that for an old fashioned tax preparer (no Efile) you do LOVE your electronic gadgets

[Joel]

I own a Gear and am very pleased with it. My old cell phone was due for replacement and the old eyes had trouble reading the small screen. Since I upgraded to the Note 3, I said why not go with the Gear. I find it convenient to not have to pull out the cell phone for every email received and especially use the Gear to answer calls. If I am driving and receive a call, only a swipe on the Gear and I am talking to the caller. It is not necessary to hold it near my face and I usually rest my hand on the center consul gear shift lever and talk away. Since this is a discussion about communications I will not get into the advantages of the Note 3 and S pen.

[JohnH]

JohnH, I must say that for an old fashioned tax preparer (no Efile) you do LOVE your electronic gadgets

Yes, it does appear to be a paradox, doesn't it?

But I still contend that my disdain for e-flinging isn't a matter of being old-fashioned.

And yes, I freely admit to being a gadget guy - always have been.

Anyhow, take a look at how tech-savy Joel is.

Compared to him, I'm still in electronics kindergarten - and he has quite a few years on me.