Welcome to TaxProBestPractices.Com

1. Business Backgrounds & Basics

This section will ask you some general questions about your business background. This information will help us compare the development of your business with that of others. In the output, you will learn such facts as the most popular conferences and publications. This may help you to allocate your time more efficiently.

Question # 1
Which of the following licenses or designations do you hold? Please check all that apply. If you hold none of these licenses and designations, please check None.

CFA
CFP
CFS
ChFC
CIMA
CIMC
CLU
CPA
CPA/PFS
EA
JD
MBA
MS Taxation
PhD

RIA (Firm Designation)
Series 6
Series 7
Series 8
Series 22
Series 24
Series 62
Series 63
Series 65 (Inv Advisory Rep)
Series 66
State Insurance Licenses
Other
None

Question # 2
We want to understand how your career and business has evolved. What year did you become a CPA or EA (if applicable)? What year did you start or join your current business? And what year did you add financial planning capabilities to your business? If you are not a CPA or EA, please skip the first part of the answer below. If you have not added financial planning capabilities, please skip the third part of the answer below.

Became CPA or EA
Started or Joined Current Business
Added Financial Planning Capability

Question # 3
We want to understand what conferences you attend and find valuable. Please rate each of the conferences that you attend on a scale of 1 -10 (10 = highest) based on the value they add to your business. If you attend none of these conferences, please check None.

AICPA
AICPA/PFS
AIMR
FPA (Formerly IAFP/ICFP)
Gear-Up Tax Seminars
HD Vest (Chapter Meetings)
HD Vest (National)
HD Vest (Vest Fest)
ICIMC
IMA
IMCA
MFA

Morningstar
NAEA
NAIFA (Formerly ACLU)
NAPFA
NATP (Tax Seminars)
SAAFTI
SFP (Formerly CLUA)
State CPA Societies
State EA Societies
Other
None

Question # 4
We want to understand which publications have an impact on your business. Please rate each that you read on a scale of 1-10 (10 = highest) based on the extent to which they help you with your business. If you read none of these publications, please check None.

Accounting Technology
Accounting Today
Asset Manager
Barron's
Bloomberg Wealth Manager
Business Week
California CPA
CPA Journal, The
CPA Software News
Economist, The
Financial Advisor
Financial Planning
Forbes
Fortune
Insight
Investment Advisor
Investment News

Investors Business Daily
Journal of Accountancy
Journal of Financial Planning
Kiplinger's
Money
Mutual Funds Magazine
National EA Journal
New York Times
Practical Accountant
Registered Rep
Smart Money
Today's CPA
Wall Street Journal
Worth
Other
None

Question # 5
We want to understand your use of and satisfaction with continuing education providers. Please rate all those that you use on a scale of 1-10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any continuing education providers, please check None.

AICPA
Brisk Total Tapes
CA CPA Education Foundation
CPEasy
FPA (Formerly IAFP/ICFP)
Gear-Up
HD Vest
NAEA
National Center for PE (NCPE)

National Tax Institute
NATP
Practitioners Publishing Co. (PPC)
Securities Training Corp.
State CPA Societies
State EA Societies
University of Denver
Other
None

2. Clients & Marketing Strategies

This section will ask you some questions regarding your client base and your marketing methods. We will use this information to determine if there are systematic marketing models that work better than others. In the output, you will be able to learn the marketing strategies of the leading CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals. This information may allow you to focus your marketing efforts.

Question # 6
How would you best describe your office location?

Urban
Suburban
Small Town
Rural
Other

Question # 7
What is the average income of your clients? Please allocate individual clients into the following income ranges based on their W-2 income and round out your total with your number of trust & estate, partnership, corporate, and non-profit clients.

Individuals with Incomes <$50,000	%
Individuals with Incomes $50,000 - $99,999	%
Individuals with Incomes $100,000 - $249,999	%
Individuals with Incomes >$250,000	%
Trusts & Estates	%
Partnerships/LPs/LLCs	%
Corporations	%
Non-Profits/Tax-Exempts	%
Other	%
	_____
Total Number of Clients	%

Question # 8
Is your client base generally old or young? Please allocate your individual clients by age below and round out your total with your number of trust & estate, partnership, corporate, and non-profit clients.

Individuals <30 Years Old	%
Individuals 30-50 Years Old	%
Individuals 51-70 Years Old	%
Individuals >70 Years Old	%
Trusts & Estates	%
Partnerships/LPs/LLCs	%
Corporations	%
Non-Profits/Tax-Exempts	%
Other	%
	_____
Total Number of Clients	%

Question # 9
We want to understand which marketing methods are most effective in your practice. Please allocate the source of your new clients (this means new clients to the firm, not a current tax client who becomes a financial planning client or vice versa).

Client Appreciation Events	%
Cold Calls/Telemarketing	%
Direct Mail/DRIP	%
Media Coverage	%
Networking	%
Newspaper Ads	%
Newspaper Column	%
Passive Client Referrals ⁽¹⁾	%
Proactive Client Referrals ⁽²⁾	%

Seminars	%
Street Sign	%
Trade Group Referrals	%
TV/Radio Programs	%
Web Site	%
Yellow Pages Ads	%
Other	%
	_____
Total	%

⁽¹⁾ Passive client referrals are those which you receive solely from delivering good service to your clients; they do not result from specific actions on your part
⁽²⁾ Proactive client referrals are those which you receive from your clients and others as a result of specific action such as asking for referrals

Question # 10
We want to understand your use of and satisfaction with contact management software. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any contact management software, please check None.

Access
ACT
Advent/Qube
Advisor Assistant
Broker's Ally
Broker's Notebook
dbCams+
Excel
EZ-Data
Goldmine
HDV Link
Junxure

Laser Apps
Lotus Notes
Lotus Organizer
Maximizer
MaxxBroker
National Datamax
Outlook
ProTracker
Sidekick
All Manual Methods (e.g., Note Cards)
Other
None

3. Business Economics

This section will ask you for some basic economics about your business. We will use this information to compare the profitability of your business versus those of other CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals. In the output, you will be able to learn such information as the average profit margin of various sized accounting practices or the most popular sources of revenues. This information may provide you some benchmarks on which to evaluate your own business.

Question # 11
How many partners and employees do you have by type? Please be sure to enter a total at the bottom.

Partners/Owners ⁽¹⁾
CPA/EA Licensed Staff
Non-Licensed Book Keepers
Administrative Support
Seasonal Help (Tax Season) ⁽²⁾
Other ⁽²⁾
	_______
Total Staff (Including Self)

⁽¹⁾	To make data comparable across survey participants, please include yourself in your count for partners/owners

⁽²⁾	To make data comparable across survey participants, please count each part-time or part-year employee as 0.5 employee in their appropriate job classification

Question # 12
Please fill-in the chart below using the highlights of your business's income statement. Feel free to estimate; you can always refine the numbers later.

	1998	1999	2000
Number of Year-End Tax Clients ⁽¹⁾
Number of Year-End Financial Planning Clients
Year-End Client Assets Under Administration ⁽²⁾
Total Business Revenues
Total Business Expenses ⁽³⁾
Owner(s) Take-Home Pay and Profits ⁽³⁾

⁽¹⁾	To make data comparable across survey participants, please count each family you serve as one client

⁽²⁾	To make data comparable across survey participants, please include all assets that you have placed for your clients in mutual funds, annuities, stocks, bonds, and fee-accounts in the count for year-end client assets under administration

⁽³⁾	To make data comparable across survey participants, please do not include owners' income in the expense line but rather combine that with any remaining profit to equal owner(s) take-home pay and profits

Question # 13
We want to understand which activities create your revenues. Please allocate your 2000 revenues amongst the categories given.

Tax Services	%
Accounting/Book Keeping	%
Audit	%
Financial Planning/Investment Mgmt	%
Life Insurance Sales	%
P&C Insurance Sales	%
Mortgage Sales	%
Trust Services	%
Business Consulting	%

Technology Consulting	%
Payroll Services	%
Expert Witness Testimony	%
Real Estate Sales	%
Peer Reviews	%
Referral Fees Received	%
Other	%
	_____
Total	%

Question # 14
Do you have any referral or revenue sharing relationships with other financial professionals? How many referrals did you send to the following types of professionals in the year 2000? If you do not have any established referral relationships, please check None.

Estate Attorney
Business Attorney
Mortgage Banker
Trust Officer
Other Banker
P&C Insurance Agent
Life Insurance Agent

Stockbroker
Financial Planner
Investment Manager
Credit Counselor
Other
None

Question # 15
We also want to understand which activities create your costs. Please allocate your 2000 expenses amongst the categories given.

Owners Compensation	%
Non-Owners Compensation	%
Rent/Mortgage	%
Technology (Hardware & Software)	%
Other Office Expenses	%
Other	%
	_____
Total	%

4. Tax & Accounting Business Practices

This section will ask you questions about your practices in the area of tax and accounting which we assume is the primary business of most participants completing this survey. We will use this information to compare your practices to those of other CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals. In the output, you will be able to learn such information as the most popular and well-liked tax software or tax research and alert services. This may help you to evaluate your chosen service providers.

Question # 16
How many tax returns did you complete in the calendar year 2000 (1999 tax returns)?

Individual Returns (1040)
Trust & Estates (Fiduciary) (1041)
LLPs/Partnerships (1065)
Corporations (1120 & 1120s)
Non-Profits (990)
Estate & Gift Taxes (706 & 709)
Self-Employed Estimates (5500)
Other
	_______
Total Tax Returns Completed

Question # 17
We want to understand your use of and satisfaction with tax software. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 -10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any tax software, please check None.

CCH (Pro System fx)
Drake
ExacTax
Lacerte
Microvision
OrrTax
Probate
Pro Series (Turbo Tax)

TAASC Force
Tax Pro (HD Vest)
Tax Wise (Universal)
Tax Works
Ultra Tax (CSI)
Other
None

Question # 18
We want to understand your use of and satisfaction with tax research and alert services. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any tax research or alert service, please check None.

BNA Tax Practices Series
CCH Internet Tax Essentials
CCH Master Tax Guide
CCH Tax Letter
CFS
IRS CD-ROM
Kleinrocks
National Underwriter Tax Facts
PPC Fed Tax Compliance Services

Quick Finder Handbook (TMI)
RIA Checkpoint
RIA Tax Alerts
Tax Analysts One Disc
Tax Analysts Tax Base
Tax Analysts Tax Library
Tax Manage Portfolios Plus
Other
None

Question # 19
We want to understand your use of and satisfaction with accounting software. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1-10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any accounting software, please check None.

AME
Business Works
Creative Solutions
Class
CLS
CSI
Franklen
Great Plaines Dynamics
MAS 90/Sage
Microsoft Money
MYOB

One Write/One Write Plus
Peachtree
Pro Tyme
Quicken
QuickBooks
QuickBooks Pro
TAASC Force
Unilink
Other
None

Question # 20
What hourly rate do you charge for tax and accounting work? If it varies, please average to one number. If you never charge hourly rates, please check None

None

5. Financial Planning & Investment Management Business Practices

Many CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals have reported to us that they have been entering the financial planning and investment management business. This section will ask you questions in this area. We will use this information to determine best practices in building a financial planning and investment management business. In the output, you will be able to view the most popular and well-liked brokerage firms and software providers. This may help you structure your business.

Question # 21
Across all CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals, we have come to believe there are five primary models of entering the financial planning and investment management business. Which of the following best describes your business?

Registered Representative at Independent B/D ⁽¹⁾
Own Registered Investment Advisor ⁽²⁾
Solicitor for TAMP ⁽³⁾
Make Referrals to Others for Compensation
Make Referrals to Others; Receive No Compensation
Other
No financial planning

⁽¹⁾	An independent broker/dealer is a brokerage firm that supports financial planning and investment management business. If you check this answer, you are suggesting that you are a registered rep with one of these firms. Popular firms for CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals include H.D. Vest, 1st Global, GE/Terra, American Express, LPL, Royal Alliance, and others

⁽²⁾	A registered investment advisor is the designation needed to manage assets for a fee. Some CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals have their own RIA. If you have completed an ADV form and have your own RIA, please check this choice

⁽³⁾	TAMPs are turnkey asset management programs. These are fee-based wrap programs that some CPAs, EAs, and other tax professionals utilize. Common TAMPs are SEI, Lockwood, Envestnet PMC, Frank Russell, AssetMark, Buckingham, and Centurion. If this is the primary way you do business, please check this choice

Question # 22
Why did you enter the business of financial planning and investment management? Please rate the importance of each reason below using a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you are not involved in financial planning and investment, please check Not Applicable.

Build Equity in Own Business
Client Demand
Client Retention
Client Satisfaction
Create Non-Hourly-Based Income
Diversify Income
Educate Clients

Increase Income
More Interesting Than Accounting
Personal Interest and Satisfaction
Protect Clients From Others
Other
Not Applicable

Question # 23
How do you transition clients from taxes to financial planning and investments? Again, if you are not involved in financial planning and investment management, please check Not Applicable.

Include in Tax Appointment
Follow-Up After Tax Appointment
Pursue in Non-Tax Season
Reactive to Client Requests Only
Other
Not Applicable

Question # 24
How do you earn income from financial planning and investment management? Please allocate your financial planning and investment management revenues. Again, if you are not involved in financial planning and investment management, please check Not Applicable.

Hourly Fees	%
Up-Front Product Commissions	%
Trailing Product Commissions	%
Quarterly Management Fees	%
Other	%
	_____
Total	%
Not Applicable

Question # 25
Which investment products do you utilize? Please indicate the percentage of your total client assets in the following categories. If you do not advise clients on investments, please check Not Applicable.

Fee-Accounts	%
Stocks/Equities	%
Bonds/Fixed Income	%
Mutual Funds	%
Unit Investment Trusts	%
Variable Annuities	%

Fixed Annuities	%
Life Insurance	%
Other	%
	_____
Total	%
Not Applicable

Question # 26
Which insurance products have you sold? Please allocate your insurance sales by type as a percent of the total number of policies you sold over the last few years. If you do not have an insurance license or sell no insurance, please check Not Applicable.

Term Life	%
Whole, Fixed, or Traditional Life	%
Fixed Universal Life	%
Variable Universal Life	%
Variable Annuities	%
Fixed Annuities	%
Disability	%

Long-Term Care	%
Property & Casualty	%
Other	%
	_____
Total	%
Not Applicable

Question # 27
We want to understand your use of and satisfaction with financial planning and asset allocation software. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1-10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any financial planning or asset allocation software, please check None.

Allocation Master
CFS (FP Tools)
Check Up (HD Vest)
Easy Money
Exec Plan
Financial Profiles
F Plan

Frontier
Frontier (PAP)
Harvest Time
Ibbotson
Inv Sel Strat Guide (HDV)
Master Plan

Methuselah
Mobius M-Plan
Money Tree
Morningstar
MV Optimizer
Navi Plan
Path/Sterling Wentworth
Standard & Poor's
1040 Analyst (HD Vest)
Wilson Associates
Zephyr
Other
None

Question # 28
We want to understand your use of and satisfaction with data and research services. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any data and research services, please check None.

AOL
Bloomberg
Callan
Fast Track
Ibbotson
Morningstar
MSN Money Central
Prima Capital

Reuters
Standard & Poor's
Value Line
Wiesenberger
Yahoo
Zack's
Other
None

Question # 29
If appropriate to your model of financial planning and investment management, we want to understand your use of and satisfaction with your broker/dealer or custodian. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use a broker/dealer or custodian, please check None.

American Express
Fidelity
1st Global
First Trust/Datalynx
FNIC
FSC
GE/Terra
HD Vest
H&R Block
IFG
Jefferson Pilot
LPL

MSC
Nathan & Lewis
National Planning Corp
Raymond James
Royal Alliance
Schwab, Charles
Securities America
SunAmerica
TD Waterhouse
Other
None

Question # 30
If appropriate to your model of financial planning and investment management, we want to understand your use of and satisfaction with portfolio management software. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any portfolio management software, please check None.

Advanced Revelation
Advent/Axys
Captool
Centerpiece
Coros

Datamax
dbCams
Techfi
Other
None

Question # 31
If appropriate to your model of financial planning and investment management, we want to understand your use of and satisfaction with your turnkey asset management provider (TAMP). Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any TAMP, please check None.

Assante/RWB
AssetMark
Buckingham
Callan
Centurion
Flexible Plan Investments
Frank Russell

HD Vest
Investment Consulting Group
Lockwood
Envestnet PMC
SEI
Other
None

Question # 32
If appropriate to your model of financial planning and investment management, we want to understand your use of and satisfaction with mutual fund companies. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any mutual funds, please check None.

AIM
Alliance
American Funds
Delaware
Dreyfus
Federated
Fidelity
Franklin/Templeton
Janus
John Hancock
MFS

Oppenheimer
Phoenix
Prudential
Putnam
Scudder
SEI
T. Rowe Price
Vanguard
Van Kampen
Other
None

Question # 33
If appropriate to your model of financial planning and investment management, we want to understand your use of and satisfaction with insurance and annuity companies. Please rate each that you use on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest). If you do not use any annuity and insurance companies, please check None.

Aegon
Aetna
Allmerica
Allstate
American General
American Legacy
American Skandia
Ameritas
CNA
Conseco
GE
Hartford
ING

Jackson National
Jefferson Pilot
John Hancock
Life USA
Lincoln Benefit
Manulife/Wood Logan
Met Life
Nationwide
Pacific Life
Penn Mutual
People's Benefit Life
Phoenix Home Life
Protective Life

SunAmerica
Sun Life of Canada of US
TIAA/CREF
Transamerica
Travelers
UNUM/Provident
USAA
Valic
WRL
Zurich/Kemper
Other
None

6. Business Policies & Industry Views

As we wrap up here, we want to ask you a couple of general questions regarding the business of being a CPA, EA, or other tax professional. We will tabulate this information and share with you the views of tax practitioners in aggregate.

Question # 34
How do you allocate your time throughout the year?

Tax Services	%
Accounting/Book Keeping	%
Audit	%
Financial Planning/Investment Management	%
Life Insurance Sales (Include LTC & Disability)	%
P&C Insurance Sales	%
Mortgage Sales	%
Business Consulting	%

Technology Consulting	%
Expert Witness Testimony	%
Real Estate Sales	%
Peer Reviews	%
Other Client Activities	%
Managing Own Business	%
	_____
Total	%

Question # 35
What are your goals for your business? Please rate each of the following possible goals on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest).

Acquire Another Business
Create More Free Time
Delegate More Work to Staff
Establish Niche Market
Decrease Number of Clients
Exit Tax Business
Increase Number of Clients
Increase Assets Under Management

Increase Revenues
Increase Income
Limit to Only Comprehensive Client Relationships
Position Business for Sale
Reduce Expenses
Sell Business
Work from Home
Other

Question # 36
What do you feel are the largest threats to your business? Please rate the impact of each of the following on your business on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 = highest).

Bear Market
Competition from Discount Brokers
Competition from Online Services
Difficulty in Finding Qualified Employees
Government Regulation
Lack of Business Exit Strategy

Need Size to Compete
Poor Investment Performance
Poor Technology Expertise
Pressure to Lower Fees
Unrealistic Client Demands
Other

Question # 37
When do you plan to retire?

0-5 Years
6-15 Years
> 15 Years
Never Retire
Other

Question # 38
Which of the following written documents do you have in place? Please check all that apply or None.

Business Plan
Client Agreement
Compliance Manual
Employee Evaluation Procedures
Employee Manual
Marketing Plan
Policies & Procedures Manual
Succession Plan
Other
None