End-of-Year Planning For Your Accounting Firm

Are you ready for the 2025 tax season? Now is the time for Pennsylvania CPAs and accountants to take steps to prepare yourselves and your clients to guarantee the “busy season” runs smoothly and you’re able to service as many clients as possible. Taking certain steps today should ensure a smooth going tomorrow and all the way to Tax Day 2025. The following suggestions are closely integrated and will build on each other. As you work on one area, you will evaluate and solve issues in another, continually improving your firm. 

You are probably keeping up with the ongoing changes in the tax code, but if you’ve fallen behind, now’s the time to catch up. Pay special attention to the areas of the code that may most impact your ideal clients. 

Review your accountant/CPA liability insurance to protect yourself from legal disputes. If your client base has changed or your firm has grown, discuss with your insurer any changes that might be necessary to provide you with full coverage. 

Review your ideal client and strategic business goals to confirm that you are taking steps to grow in the planned direction with your desired client base. If not, evaluate what changes you need to make in order to get back on track, then implement them. 

Review your team and determine if you have the right talent for the kinds of clients and projects you have been working with recently. If you aim to increase your number of certain desired clients or grow in a certain market or industry, evaluate what team members can supply needed talent or if you’ll need to hire new employees.

Communication is key to your success, both communication with your clients and communication among team members. First, meet with your staff and discuss any concerns, needs, or ideas they have that can help make tax season run smoothly. This could include reviewing policies and procedures, setting up communications technology to improve collaboration for a shared client, and evaluating incentives or morale boosters that will help keep your staff motivated during the busy season.

Reach out to your clients in multiple ways. You can easily send automated emails to all your clients reminding them of upcoming deadlines and what documentation they should be collecting. With your ideal clients, take the time to evaluate their records and their past taxes. Call them to discuss steps they could take now to decrease their tax bill for the year. Schedule a meeting to discuss these steps and suggest any add-on services they may benefit from.

By taking advantage of the many technological options available for both tax preparers and clients, you will be able to streamline service, improve client experience, tighten security, and give yourself time for even more clients. Some tech to review and implement could include:

• Tax preparation software: You undoubtedly already have a system, but these programs are continually improving, offering automation of common workflows, integrating the most recent changes to the tax code, and flagging applicable regulations. Review your system to see if it might be time for an upgrade.
• Practice management software: This provides client interface tools, workflow automation, and a safe place for document storage. Also, evaluate current firewalls and other software security.
• Client-interface software: Secure mobile accounting apps let clients upload documents such as invoices and receipts on the go. eSignature software allows clients to sign remotely and securely. Of course, client tax software which you can both access in real time is ideal for giving you the information at your fingertips to provide your clients with the best service. 

Develop a plan to ask your best clients for referrals. Some firms offer incentives, but really, if you ask them when they’re expressing appreciation for your pro-active attention to their needs and your skill in saving on their tax bill, they will probably be happy to recommend you. 

Now is the time to begin to put some of these steps into motion so that next year will run smoothly.