PEOPLE

[JohnH]

Text to Joe:  "Hi Joe.  I heard your voice mail.  Probably can't get back to you for a couple of days - too many appointments right now.  If you'll text me the answer to my question, I can at least get your return back in the queue.  Right now it's on hold until I get that info from you.  Thanks, John":

How's that? 

 

I'd be tempted to add "Rita already gave me permission to kill you if you don't respond."

[Margaret CPA in OH]

I don't text clients.  Maybe two clients who are also friends have my cell.  I email.  Yes, you have permission to hug at will, results according to your input.

[Lion EA]

I'm copying & pasting John's message!

[Medlin Software, Dennis]

I do not give out my cell, and it only rings if it is a number in my contact list.  However, you can offer texting to clients.  Personally, I use a "virtual" phone number.  It allows setup to receive text messages, and sends those text messages through to me as email messages.  I can respond to the "text" via normal email, and the recipient receives my replies as a text.  One issue is texting will not usually include earlier messages in the replies, so you may have to manually search your messages to see with the person was writing about/replying to.

There are services where you can make your business number completely virtual, so one number can be used for incoming calls and texts, and how you receive those calls and texts is up to you.  The virtual services can set hours to ring, who to send directly to voicemail, who to manually block, auto junk call blocking, and so on.  The calls you want to receive can be sent to any number or series of numbers, such as a cell or landline.

But to stick to the theme of this thread, the number of times my email, text, or online messages get a response of "I want to talk with a REAL person" is increasing.  I am a real boy... that happens to respond quickly (which some think cannot be real), and yes, most questions have been asked before, so there is likely a cut and paste response/solution I can share.  I cannot make anyone follow the solution, nor can I convince all I really do know what I am doing...  What I mean is it is illogical to ask an expert for help, then question the expert's advice.  Some say logic is going the way of common sense

[Catherine]

@RitaB - is it also OK to kill the clients who call your assistant before dropping off papers, hand them to the assistant, call the assistant when they get back home to make sure the assistant still has them, and then call YOU the next day to make sure YOU got the papers from the assistant?

If so, I'd like to lease a piece of your back forty for a client who desperately needs a Rita-hug.

[RitaB]

28 minutes ago, Margaret CPA in OH said:

I don't text clients.  Maybe two clients who are also friends have my cell.  I email.  Yes, you have permission to hug at will, results according to your input.

This guy does not have email.  Many of my clients do not.  I absolutely prefer email to everything.  Even hugging. 

[Medlin Software, Dennis]

Sadly, it is wisest to have any communication with a customer in written or recorded form.

It is one of the reasons I am letting go of a fun avocation, the need to record the event for times when things go awry.  Avoids the one person's word against the other.  Had a young man utter the magic word (you) in front of a few other choice words.  One of the adults in charge says the young man did no such thing.  Since I now have recording device on the entire time, the recording goes in my report as well...

[RitaB]

19 minutes ago, Medlin Software said:

Sadly, it is wisest to have any communication with a customer in written or recorded form.

That is one reason I text people who don't have email, or have email and don't check it.  I can forward the question and answer to my email and print.  I never answer a client call to my cell phone.  Never.   I use the cell for my convenience, not theirs.

[gfizer]

I prepared a return last week - married couple with 5 kids. They are receiving a federal refund of $12k and a state refund of $60.  He called today wanting to know how they came out.  When I told him he said, "Why I am only getting back $60 on the state?"

WTH, are you serious!?!

[Medlin Software, Dennis]

The virtual phone system I use allows recording.  Must be memorialized in some manner.  Easily resolves the "You told me to...", "I thought you said...", "You never...", and so on.  Always have a record of your communication.  Will not save grief, since some will still argue, but it will give you the proof of what you communicated.

[Roberts]

Last year a new client informed me that his daughter lived with him 90% of the time. We went through that multiple times and every time he informed me of this fact. After e-filed his ex-wife informs him she wanted the child dependent care credit so I need to amend the return for free because it was MY fault that I prepared the return wrong. I sent him a copy of his own emails with his words and his response "yes I said that but you should have known what I wanted." He had $5k withdrawn from his paycheck for dependent care so yeah, I should have known.

He's no longer a client and when he wanted to return I reminded him of his proclamation of my being at fault and why I wasn't doing his return this year.

Having everything recorded is a good idea.

 

[JohnH]

Texts are very easy to memorialize. 

Just take a screen shot and send it to a printer.

(So far I haven't started twittering or snap-chatting with clients - don't know how that would play out...)

[Margaret CPA in OH]

I might try that but for now prefer not to give out my cell to clients if they aren't friends otherwise.

[Jack from Ohio]

[frazzled]

Sign in my office

 

[RitaB]

[JohnH]

On 3/16/2017 at 4:38 PM, Margaret CPA in OH said:

I might try that but for now prefer not to give out my cell to clients if they aren't friends otherwise.

Almost by default, I'm moving to a single cell phone number for everything - business and personal.  It's simpler and less time-consuming.  Being able to identify the caller, plus assigning special ring tones to my family members, makes it easy to take a quick look at the phone before answering a routine call.  I can decline calls which are out of context, knowing that if it's important they will leave a message. Having all the messages in one place is vastly simpler than having to keep track of a business answering service and a personal answering service. My drive time has become much more productive because I can call up the list of declined calls and decide whom I want to get back to while sitting in traffic.

For me, though, the key communication tool is becoming texting. It's more efficient than email, and someone who thinks before texting can compress a vast amount of information in a simple message.  That saves the option of actually speaking with someone (or even composing an email) for the truly important communications. 

Also, I remain convinced that anyone who wants to remain in this business (especially if your growth depends upon bringing in new clients), had better become comfortable with texting.  Otherwise, you can write off 80% of the young people entering the work force today.  They will never become your clients.

 

[Lion EA]

I had given out my cell when I went out on my own, but quickly found out I could have a second line from Optimum for only $14.95/month bundled with our house phone, TV, and internet (actually, hubby noticed that on the bill).  So, I weaned most of my clients off my cell to my office line with all the voice mail, call waiting, caller ID, voice messages sent to my email, etc., services.  I had a couple of holdouts.  But, if someone called my cell, I returned their message from email or my office phone.  I did not call back anyone who didn't leave a message.  Now, as you say, I have a few who text.  I don't like it, because it's not as easy to save to their file on my computer, and I don't like texting back with my old eyes.  But, when I re-printed my biz cards, I added a line for Txt and my cell # after the lines for Tel and Fax.

[SaraEA]

I have a lot of clients who drop off or mail their tax docs.  I email them with my questions or answers to theirs, but I usually call them in person when I'm done to relay the results and any tax advice that appears helpful.  I think they appreciate having contact with a real person somewhere in the process.  It seems kind of cold to drop off tax info and pick up a completed return without ever reaching out to a human being.  Watson could have done their return for all they know.

On the other hand, I've had it with calls from people who just have to talk to me--to make an appointment or tell me they'll drop their stuff off on whatever day.  Wish the receptionist could do better at screening these calls, but she's just as busy as the rest of us.

[Richcpaman]

12 hours ago, SaraEA said:

I have a lot of clients who drop off or mail their tax docs.  I email them with my questions or answers to theirs, but I usually call them in person when I'm done to relay the results and any tax advice that appears helpful.  I think they appreciate having contact with a real person somewhere in the process.  It seems kind of cold to drop off tax info and pick up a completed return without ever reaching out to a human being.  Watson could have done their return for all they know.

On the other hand, I've had it with calls from people who just have to talk to me--to make an appointment or tell me they'll drop their stuff off on whatever day.  Wish the receptionist could do better at screening these calls, but she's just as busy as the rest of us.

Sara:

And that is where I say we make a difference.  If your practice becomes too much drop off, and no personal contact, it becomes a commodity, and the client moving on to the next preparer gets much easier.  I would hope to have time to say hello to my clients, even if it is for hand holding.

I meet a large majority of my clients at drop off.  We get to talk then about the return, so the follow up is email or some phone calls, and I do not meet with as many at pick up.   I also offer to meet after tax season free of charge to go over "other things" that need more time.  

Clients do get in the way of us getting work done....But they are why we have work. I get a lot of biz from other preparers who stop meeting their clients.

Rich