ClientWhys Sites Product Updates
wclaypool
wclaypool
I know it is hard to get excited about our new computer voices...but we sure are. Goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Computer Bitmap Voice and hello to human-like messages for your clients and prospects. Our upgraded tax reminder system allows CPAs, enrolled agents, and tax professionals to automate many office functions like appointment and due date reminders, birthday wishes and much more.
Call (877) 506-0536 to listen to a sample voice.
With the new voice quality, clients and prospects will be impressed with your level of service. You will reduce client penalties for missed tax payments and office hassles when clients no-show for an appointment. Better yet is the administrative savings in labor, postage and printing costs incurred when handling these tasks the old-fashioned way.
We sync up with Google Calendar, so any calendar that can talk to Google can use our system. That means, of course, that we support Outlook calendars. You or your clients can choose the type of messages—voice, text or email. You control the type of messages and text within our preferences menu.
The tax reminders are an add-on to our websites for accountants or lockbox client portals. Give us a call at 1.800.442.2477 x3 if you want to check it out.
wclaypool
We have added some new security features to our websites for accountants product line. These features include some advanced encryption systems on the back-end for both the website and lockbox client portal. We have also added the ability for clients to reset their passwords from the lockbox login link on customers websites. The client will get an email to their main account and follow the link to reset their password. Administrators can reset passwords from the clients detail section within the lockbox. We hope that this self serve feature will cut down on client support calls.
wclaypool
Maybe this blog article should be titled “The Risk You Take with .info in Your Domain Name.” While Google doesn't go out and say it, recent experiences with a CPA website seems to say that a .info domain name is harder to get ranked than a .com. My belief is that since GoDaddy and others sell .info domains so inexpensively, that they are commonly used by spammers and content farms. This all has to do with the Search Engine Rank Position of .info compared to other top level domains like .com.
We had a recent client for whom we could not figure out why they ranked on page one in Bing and Yahoo but were all the way down on page 5 and 6 for Google. We reviewed the SEO keywords, the meta titles, developed quality inbound links and couldn't get any movement. A drastic decision was made to change the domain name to .com. Two weeks later the website is on page 1 in Google for all our search terms…even though Google would view this as a brand new site.
ClientWhys
Tax Accountant SEO Tune Up for Tax Season
We are offering our website customers a discounted Search Engine Optimization tune-up for the upcoming tax season. For $249 (a one-time setup fee), we will review your website and update the meta title, descriptions, h1 tags, and body copy of the entire website to properly fit your market and services. Our website for accountants always get well indexed, but we see times when the keywords do not match the market and adjustments need to be made. It takes time for Google to re-index the changes, so we suggest starting in autumn to prepare for the busy tax season.
We have been providing this service quite frequently in the last month and have seen dramatic changes just by focusing on the right terms. We also suggest working on quality inbound links to your website to help improve your placement against the competition. This includes Patch.com, the Better Business Bureau, and local chambers of commerce listings. Make sure they are updated and point to your website. If you can link keyword phrases, such as "San Diego Tax Planning," directly to your website, it will be even more effective.
To start using the SEO package, please email he...@clientwhys.com with the list of desired keywords. We will get started as soon as you place your order. If you have any specialties or niches, please make sure we target those terms as well. Please use “SEO package” in the email subject line. You can call me at 1.800.442.2477 x222 with any questions on SEO or this package.
ClientWhys
We have had great success with quickly attracting followers to our Facebook Fan Pages for CPAs and tax accounting professionals. This post talks about the 8 fastest ways to get more people to “Like” your Facebook Fan Page. I would really appreciate it if you shared these blog tips with your friends as well.
1. Invite your friends, clients, prospects and colleagues to follow you. If they don’t know you are on Facebook, then it will take longer to build a big following. You can invite people through email or post a status update inviting people to Like your page. Tell them some news or other good information with a link to your Facebook fan page.
2. Post a status update that mentions your fan page—Don’t be afraid to outright ask people to join your Facebook page. Tell them what they will get by “liking” your page.
3. Tag photos from seminar or practice events—If you can get your fans to upload pictures to your page, or tag themselves in pictures you uploaded, this will post to their wall as well and will lead to additional traffic for you. Read this article to learn more about tagging.
4. Create a welcome page—All new visitors to your website should see a welcome page that describes who you are and what value they will find by following your Facebook posts.
5. Add a Facebook “like” badge on your website—There are a number of variations of badges or icons that can be linked or displayed. Click here for some Facebook “like” badge options.
6. Add your Facebook link to your email signature—Every correspondence you send should include links to your social media sites in your signature.
7. Link to your Facebook page from other social sites.
8. Produce content that gets commented and liked—This is rule #1. We see people just sharing other posts all day long. They rarely get any commenting or likes versus Facebook posts that are more original and pertinent to your page. If the post looks like it came from you, you appear to be the authority on the subject and it provides more credibility.
ClientWhys
Clients rely on Facebook, Twitter and Linked In, among other social applications to get information, solve problems and research companies and services. Is your tax accounting practice there with them? Or, are your marketing efforts bogged down with outdated infrastructure that doesn't meet you or your clients' needs?
ClientWhys offers a turnkey Social Media Solution that will help broaden your audience. Our automated system auto posts to your social media sites providing an important presence on Facebook, Linked in and Twitter.
ClientWhys offers two packages:
Automated FaceBook Social Media Campaign- $295 Setup / $24.95 per month
Includes Facebook Fan Page setup, custom welcome page design, auto wall posting of tips and vital information and “Like” email to current email database.
Facebook Campaign plus Twitter and Linked In - $395 Setup / $34.95
Includes all of the above plus a custom Twitter background and auto posting for Twitter and Linked In.
ClientWhys
Adding Google Maps to your Tax Accountant Website.
All of ClientWhys websites include a link to Google Maps from the contact page of our websites for accountants. Some CPAs, Tax Preparers and Accountants want the map to be more prominent on their website. Making it convenient for clients to find your office is one of the primary functions of your website. Google allows you to embed the office map directly on your website. You can even control the dimensions.
Watch the video on the simple steps to add dynamic Google maps to your site.
ClientWhys
New Email Newsletter Introduction Proofing Feature
If you are a user that edits the introduction message of
your client newsletter, our system will now automatically send you a email
proof to review. We have done this to cut down on typo's and formatting issues.
Formatting issues can be minimized by using a text editor and our cut and paste
tools. Microsoft Word is not a web friendly application and text editors help
you start with plain text that can than be formatted within the website editor.
ClientWhys
Add traffic to your website with a TaxBuzz.com Profile Page.
Search engine results and quality inbound links are very important to your business. We created the TaxBuzz.com directory to ensure that our website customers reach maximum search visibility. As a ClientWhys tax accountant website customer, you'll get your first profile free ($19.95 to non-website users) as part of our service. Your profile is your online firm brochure, passed to thousands of people every year.
Getting started - We will do all the work for you. Just email us with your domain name and we will set up your TaxBuzz profile for you. We will give non website customers 30-days to try it out.
Your profile will help drive traffic to your website and improve your results on search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing and allows you to:
Target
and reach prospective clients who are seeking assistance in your areas of
expertise;
Get indexed and show up higher when prospect searches match your offerings
(profiles include keyword-enriched domain names); and
Improve your main website’s Search Engine Results with inbound links from your
profile on TaxBuzz.com.
View Sample Taxbuzz Profile Here
It’s All About Visibility. Make Sure Prospects Can Find You.
The screen captures below show the TaxBuzz profile in action. All with
1st page search results on Google.
ClientWhys
What Does Social Media Have to do with Promoting your Tax Accounting Firm?
There still seems to be confusion on how CPA and tax accounting firms should tackle social media marketing. I talk to clients every day who are either afraid of social media or don’t understand how it applies to their practice. Recent articles from CPA Trendlines review many of the issues that face firms today, creating a group of practices that are either slow to adapt to new technology or are not adapting it at all, and explain what this means for their futures. Google results are starting to pull up more and more social media sites on important keyword searches. So what does that mean to you?
Issue #1 – Google now is indexing and tracking what is being said on social media.
Google is scared to death that users will continue to gravitate to Facebook and Twitter for the most current news. Basically some searchers are starting to view Google search results as dated. Google has made changes in their algorithm to help make their results more timely. That means they are using more emphasis on fresh content and social media trends to identify what sites they should rank highest. A recent article in mashable.com, “How Social Media Affects Content Relevance inSearch,” goes over the technical side of this issue.
Issue #2 – Social media is really just an extension of your client newsletter.
Start thinking of Facebook, Twitter and Linked In as another way to communicate with clients and prospects. When clients refer you to their colleagues, I bet most will Google you first before calling. Do you have a professional website? Do you have a presence on social media sites? Does it look like you are there to help your clients? This first impression will have a direct effect on whether prospects turn to clients, as well as on how much you can bill clients based on their perceived value. Social media just gives you a tool to quickly communicate great tax savings ideas, law changes and best practices to your clients. The viral aspect of people commenting or “liking” your posts just helps build your firm’s credibility. Read our blog article, “Case Studies – Building Client Relationships through Social Media,” to learn more.
Don’t be afraid to tackle change. These social media tools actually are game changers for smaller firms to better compete with older-thinking firms.
ClientWhys
Lockbox Drag & Drop Now for Chrome and the latest editions of Firefox.
The latest upgrade of firefox changed the way they handled the file drag and drop technology for our secure file sharing lockbox. We had to update our lockbox code to handle these changes. We also enabled the drag and drop feature for Google Chrome browser users. We are releasing this update on 11-15. Please report any user issues or problems to our help desk.
ClientWhys
What is a backlink, and why should I care?
One of the most important aspects of online marketing - which is foreign to most CPAs and tax accountants - is backlinking. A backlink is a hyperlink pointed to your website from another site, or it can also be a link within your site that connects one page to another. Backlinks are one of the keys of online marketing for savvy webmasters, and they are essential to your website ranking higher in the search engines.The search engines will give your website a higher ranking in results if they see high-quality, related backlinks to your website. Backlinks can be geography-related, meaning a link from another business or website within your community, or niche-related, like a tax-related blog or website.
To get even more bang for your buck with backlinks, try to link the actual keyword terms to your site. For example, I could link the phrase “Malibu Tax Preparation” from my leereams.com homepage to the Tax Preparation section within my website. Or I could write a press release on Patch.com that links the phrase “Malibu Tax Preparation” back to my website. The search engines will identify these terms with my website and return better search results.
Getting started:
ClientWhys has a testimonial section on our blog where we provide complimentary backlinks to customers who have provided us with nice comments about our products or services. Yes, it is a little quid pro quo. We will add a backlink for your site when you submit a testimonial to us. Just email he...@clientwhys.com with a testimonial and the keyword phrase you want us to use to link back to you. It’s a big step toward getting better search engine results.
Click here to view a sample backlink. Notice this client is on Google page 1 for their keywords.
You can also set up backlinks with customers who have businesses in your area. Provide a section on your website or tax blog where you showcase clients and link to their sites. Ask each of them to reciprocate with a backlink to you. It doesn't take many links to start moving up, and the rewards will be well worth the effort! Make it a pre-tax season project.
ClientWhys
Are bidding sites like Thumbtack worth your time?
Recently, we have seen a multitude of new directory sites that work somewhat like eBay for service providers. With Angie's List going public, awareness is even larger because of added media coverage.
Sites like Yelp, Angie's List, and Thumbtack offer consumers a marketplace to find service professionals. Some even allow customers to post job requests that CPAs and tax accountants can come in and bid on. Basically, these sites are taking the Craigslist.com model to new heights. But do they work? Can they ever attract enough quality service providers and consumers to form a viable marketplace?
The first question I ask is, what type of client are you looking for?
One who looks at your tax preparation or accounting services as a commodity and who is extremely price sensitive? Or one who understands the value you provide and will compensate you for those services. If you are targeting the H&R Block type of market, these directory sites may make sense for you. A second thought is who cares what type of client you are looking for if enhanced search results are your goal.
Having a presence on these directory sites with inbound links (if they allow them) to your website might in fact actually help your own website become more popular with Google and Bing. You don't have to bid on services—you can just set up/modify your listings to show accurate timely information. If a prospect calls you, that is only a plus.
While these sites are being backed by venture capital, I think the jury is still out. I am not convinced that the old-fashioned referral and word of mouth will ever be overridden by directory searches for tax accounting firms. Social media, Taxbuzz.com, Google Places, and Craigslist seem to be the places to start if you want more awareness.
Regardless, these options may be worth investigating if they fit into your online marketing plans.
ClientWhys
Paperless Tax Organizers Save Time and Money
The 2011 editions of ClientWhys tax organizers are now live. Our tax organizers are designed to enable CPAs and tax accountants to maximize client deductions and minimize challenges in preparing and filing tax returns. The tax organizer is provided in three configurations for individuals and one that is specific to the needs of business clients. Format options include PDF and Form Fill PDF versions.
Tax professionals can print, email, add to their Web sites, or upload the tax organizers to their secure client portals. Unlike tax software organizers, our Form-Fill PDF tax organizers are comprehensive and well organized. You and your clients will not miss an important deduction or entry, which will help you to save time during the interview process and allow your appointments to run more smoothly.
The tax organizer is included on our Web site for accountants, or it can be purchased separately by clicking the link below.
PDFTax Organizer for Tax Accountants
Current
Website Users:
The
Tax Organizer will automatically update under Tax Central, sub-page Tax
Organizer. Customers who have set up separate pages for the Tax Organizer will
need to update their settings. Click the link below to view the step-by-step tutorial.
ClientWhys
ClientWhys’ Website for Accountants Offers Built-in Holiday Greeting eCards.
As more and more communication goes online, the ability to easily manage your client communications becomes even more important. Obviously, being environmentally friendly and reducing your postage budget doesn’t hurt either. ClientWhys’ website for accountants, along with its email marketing system, is filled with eCards for all occasions: birthday wishes, holiday and thank-you eCards. Nothing could be easier than using one of our templates to create a card and delivering professionally designed messages to your target audience.
Current website and email subscribers already have access to this capability. Simply log into the editor, click the newsletter or email marketing tabs, view existing messages and browse the designs. Click the link below to watch a short video on getting started.
ClientWhys
Tax Accountant Password Policy Best Practices
A password policy is a set of rules designed to enhance computer and web
security by encouraging users to employ strong passwords. A password policy
should be part of an accounting practice policy manual. Viruses, malware
and hacking are major issues facing tax and accounting professionals.
Guarding client and practice data from unwanted attacks can be helped by
establishing company wide standards and keeping security software
up-to-date.
Here are some simple tips to establish a strong password:
1. Mix upper and lower-case letters. For example - ClientWhys website
for accountants <http://www.clientwhys.com/marketing.iml> passwords are
case-sensitive.
2. Use symbols like (#) or (_), and substitute letters with numerals
(e.g. @lee_p2z).
3. Don't use information that is potentially available publicly. Avoid
using birthdays, names of your pet, spouse, partner or children, the school
you attended or your hometown.
4. Be original: "password," "12345678," "qwerty" and "abc123" are among
the most common passwords. Don't use them!
5. Change Passwords frequently, every 90-180 days. Though this can
backfire if the password is easily forgotten or written down. So use common
sense.
Password policies often include advice on proper password management such
as:
1. Never tell a password to anyone, including people who claim to be
from customer service or security - unless you are certain of their
identity like your own IT staff
2. Never write down a password
3. Never communicate a password by phone, e-mail or instant messaging
4. Log off before leaving a computer unattended
5. Change passwords whenever you think they may have been compromised
While we know this can be more frustrating to manage complex passwords, it
is vital you take precautions.
ClientWhys
I hear the following from my customers from time to time, and it goes against everything I see from top producers: "I don't want to bother my clients by sending them a newsletter or other client communications." My guess is that you do not think you are sending them anything of value. But who wouldn’t want to save on their tax bill? Perhaps Warren Buffet, but the rest of us would like to take every legal deduction possible.
I bet that if you communicate more often than your competitors, you will become a top producer. There is a direct relationship between profit and communication. The more you tell, the more you consult and bill.
If you spend just a few minutes per day thinking of reasons to talk to your prospects and clients with items that might help them, you will find stronger client relationships with all of the benefits…higher billing rates, more referrals, and less client turnover.