Client Portal Software?

Since the practice started, we have used an encryption service to send clients their documents. After 10 days, the files expire.

We keep getting more and more requests to resend tax returns and are also trying to streamline some of our processes, so we're looking at client portals. At the minimum, we need it to store the client's tax returns and ideally we could use it for some of our onboarding like getting their client agreements signed and their email added to our list. I'm guessing some of those would need another program like Zapier, but if the client portal could at least integrate with external programs to fulfill some of these tasks it would be really helpful.

What software do you all use for your client portals?

TaxDome.

SmartVault is decent but they have gotten rather expensive, IMO.

TaxDome.

SmartVault is decent but they have gotten rather expensive, IMO.

Thanks! Scheduled demos for both.

To add upon Cornerstone's reply:

I would take the opportunity to think about the big picture. If the only thing you need is a portal, that's one thing. But he mentioned TaxDome, which is one of a crop of new "all-in-one" practice management software solutions out there that are developed enough to actually help you run your firm (other examples of this are Canopy, OfficeTools, and Firm360). If there are other process pain points you're looking to resolve in your practice, or that you might anticipate in the next couple years, you might want to strongly consider whether your real need is a a practice management system that includes a portal.

I say to look ahead because especially with a client portal, change can be frustrating. You don't want to transition your clients to one portal only to have to move to another solution in 2 years' time.

Yes, good point. And one thing to consider, including how many users you have, is the cost of utilizing something like SmartVault which is really just a client portal (it has a few new features or features I did not utilize) vs. moving into a practice management system like TaxDome. For me, TaxDome is actually cheaper than SmartVault was, particularly after SmartVault dramatically increased their costs. This would give you something to grow into rather than grow out of.

If there was something more integrated we could use, that would be fantastic. Right now we have a lot of our processes and systems pretty fragmented and it requires a lot of manual entry. Uploading agreements into DocuSign, internal communications through Slack, task management through ClickUp, email marketing through Active campaign, etc. Our big push for this offseason is trying to how to streamline and automate as much as we can. It's becoming increasingly clear how inefficient our current approach is.

If there was something more integrated we could use, that would be fantastic. Right now we have a lot of our processes and systems pretty fragmented and it requires a lot of manual entry. Uploading agreements into DocuSign, internal communications through Slack, task management through ClickUp, email marketing through Active campaign, etc. Our big push for this offseason is trying to how to streamline and automate as much as we can. It's becoming increasingly clear how inefficient our current approach is.

Most, if not all of that, can be achieved via TaxDome. The one that stands out is e-mail marketing, which is really dependent on HOW you do it. The e-mails can be HTML templates and then sent in bulk, so depends on various factors. But, you don't have the analytics of ordinary e-mail campaign providers.

I used Canopy. Handles e-signatures, portal, KBA's, etc.