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It’s no surprise that tax pros are busiest during, well, tax season. What might come as a surprise though, is how much money tax preparers can make year-round. Most tax preparers can stay plenty busy with year-round tax clients and a suite of other services. So if you’ve been hesitant to pursue a career in tax preparation because of its seasonality, never fear. There are plenty of income streams tax professionals can establish to keep cash flowing all year long.
Offer Advisory Services
Tax and financial advisory services are a logical next step for many tax preparers, especially those who serve clients with complicated tax returns. In these cases, tax advisory services can help them plan out their financial decisions throughout the year to ensure the most favorable tax situation possible. Some tax preparers are already offering this service without even realizing it! While a few free tips here and there help establish goodwill with your clients, if you’re spending significant time helping your clients optimize their finances for their tax return, you can and should separate this service from tax preparation and charge for it appropriately.
Financial advisory or financial planning services focus more on the client’s entire fiscal situation, including paying off debts, investing, and saving for retirement. These services are typically offered by Certified Financial Planners (CFPs). Earning that credential does take some time and effort, but the return on investment can be high as many of your tax clients could become financial planning clients as well.
Offer Payroll or Bookkeeping Services
Perfect complementary services to tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services appeal to tax clients who run small businesses. These tasks are often a headache for small business owners, but finding someone they trust to take over the job can be just as difficult. Since they already trust their tax preparer to handle something as complex as their tax return, trusting them with their books and payroll is a no-brainer. The client is able to remove extra work from their plate and hand it over to someone they know will handle it properly.
An added benefit for the tax preparer? If you’ve been handling your client’s books all year, filing their taxes at the end of the year will be a breeze. Tax returns for clients who haven’t kept records or books properly throughout the year are a headache. But if you’re the one in charge, you’ll know that the books are already accurate, thorough, and ready for the IRS.
Teach Courses on Tax Preparation
The IRS keeps a directory of approved educators who provide continuing education credits to tax preparers. Most of these educators are tax preparers themselves, and their courses can become a significant income stream throughout the year as Enrolled Agents and other tax professionals use them to keep their credentials current.
After gaining some experience in the industry, you can look into the IRS’s Education Provider Standards to decide if becoming a tax educator is right for you. Of course, the IRS wants to ensure that tax professionals are receiving quality education and information, so they don’t approve CE providers lightly. In addition to proving the qualifications of your organization (since individuals themselves are not approved as providers), you’ll also have to submit each program for approval. Alternatively, you could work with an organization that is already an IRS-approved CE provider and work with them to create approved courses.
Speak at Conferences
Tax professionals gather at a variety of conferences every year, often to pursue continuing education credits and to network with other tax preparers. The organizations hosting these events often pay a few speakers to tackle hot topics in the tax industry– from niche tax topics to tips for growing their businesses.
Whether it’s your tax expertise or business acumen, if you have something to offer, look into conferences for tax professionals and review their standards for applying to be a speaker. Many will require a proposal on a specific topic. It’s okay to start with small presentations at small conferences. Not all smaller speaking gigs will be paid, but they usually include free registration to the conference along with some other perks. More importantly, they give you opportunities to practice and grow a reputation for excellent presentations on important tax topics. With time, you may start receiving invitations for paid keynote speaking engagements.
Expand Your Business to be a Tax Service Bureau
Tax service bureaus offer software and other services to tax preparation businesses. Rest assured,you don’t have to be a software developer to become a tax service bureau. Most small service bureaus actually work with a larger, established bureau with tested and proven tax software. The small service bureau pays to “white-label” (i.e. add their own branding to) the software package, which they can then offer to their clients.
This model is especially attractive for experienced preparers who want to help new tax businesses as they enter the industry. You can provide meaningful support, all while building the visibility and reputation of your own tax business.
Conclusion
Tax preparation doesn’t have to be feast or famine. When the “feast” of tax season is over, tax preparers can turn to a variety of other income streams to keep revenue flowing. By offering complimentary services like bookkeeping, payroll, and advisory, or by leveraging your tax knowledge and experience as an educator, speaker, or service bureau, you can ensure that your business thrives year-round.
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