Getting info from clients
I co-own a small virtual tax practice. We provide each client their own personalized 'checklist' of the documents we need to complete their return. It's simple and specific - for example, if asking for a 1099, we include the last 4 digits of the account (most clients have multiple bank/investment accts). Updating the checklist each year is a great way for me to recall issues and highlight tax planning opportunities. But the purpose is to assist clients to stay organized and track what forms/info they need to submit to us. With that said, we tell clients to send us a message when they have provided all of the information requested. Most often, a client will say "I think I'm done" or "you should have everything now" and I can see that they haven't used the checklist because multiple items are missing. This leads to emails and reminders when I'm very busy - of me telling them what is missing and explaining why we need it (defeating the purpose of the checklist). I'm getting to the point where I want to include a disclaimer that says, "you are required to provide the documents on the checklist and anything not provided will be deemed not applicable and not reported on the tax return". This has been a huge pain point. We are a hands-on practice, but IMO collecting tax forms should not be hands on!! I'd rather use that time to add value with tax planning or educating clients (reviewing returns, explaining new tax legislation, etc.). How do I train my clients to use this procedural tool?
**We've explored practice management software - but it is not an option. Hiring an admin to collect tax info from clients is also a nonstarter (due to cost, and training time for limited work - 3 months a year).