New Clients Inquiries

Software. Marketing. Training. Running your business.
#1
TAXTAX  
Posts:
85
Joined:
12-Feb-2016 8:33am
Location:
New York City
I got a few new clients inquiries. Some of them are my friends or referrals from clients. Two from unknown source.

I do not advertise at all. i got my clients from friends and through word of mouth.

The Two new clients inquiries are very suspicious.

Client A claimed that she got my name from CPA direct online and had heard great things from my clients. She claimed that she just got married and needs help with her returns. I told her to send me her last year returns and also asked if she would file jointly with her spouse.

There were no answer to my question at all and she sends me a file. My email gave me an alert about the file. I opened with a different computer and the file does not work. So I sent her another email and she has not replied yet.

Client B have quite a lengthy description of his tax situation. He told me that he had all the info ready. I asked him to send his last year returns over and also asked where he got my name. Again the file came back with a link to a cloud drive. I downloaded the file with only one W-2. Again, no answer to how they got my name. I wrote back and asked for more info.

How would you handle it? I felt Client A is probably not for real. But I got a bit suspicious of Client B. What would you do? IS there a safe way of opening these files from unknown people?
 

#2
Posts:
260
Joined:
20-Sep-2020 2:59pm
Location:
US
As a rule I don’t ever open anything I’m not expecting and wouldn’t without talking to them on the phone.

I have an IT company that I have a contract with. They house my servers and handle any issues I have. I can forward them suspicious files and their data security department has a way to open it in an environment to see if it’s malicious or not without risking our network or theirs.
 

#3
CathysTaxes  
Moderator
Posts:
3557
Joined:
21-Apr-2014 9:41am
Location:
Suburb of Chicago
I've received many requests via email from so called prospective new clients. I no longer respond to them.
Cathy
CathysTaxes
 

#4
HowardS  
Posts:
2820
Joined:
21-Apr-2014 3:12pm
Location:
Southern Pines, NC
Lots of scams and malicious attachments out there. I ask for a phone number and I conduct a phone interview before requesting any documentation.
Retired, no salvage value.
 

#5
Posts:
8157
Joined:
4-Mar-2018 9:03pm
Location:
The Office
Any prospective client inquiries that do not come through your "normal" lead channels should be viewed with a high degree of suspicion.

For example, my email address is not publicly listed, to my knowledge. But, spammers do have it unfortunately and I'm sure it's bought and sold in some CPA email databases. Genuine leads who are not referrals almost always submit an inquiry through my website. Referrals will call, text or email. For those who claim they were referred, I want to know who specifically referred them before I dedicate any material amount of time.

Lots of phishing attempts come through via email. It's usually easy to spot these and ignore them.

I would not open any email attachment or download link from a prospective client. They have to upload to my client portal. It's my understanding the portal I use scans for viruses and malware as part of the upload process. While we shouldn't rely on that completely, it's an additional layer of protection.

Of course, there are exceptions to the rule. One time I had a nonreferral call me. Supposedly he googled me and dug through quite a few of those data broker websites to find a phone number. While he was a genuine prospect, I found his behavior bizarre (just submit a website inquiry) and didn't end up taking him on, due to that and a couple other things.
 

#6
Posts:
1199
Joined:
3-Sep-2021 4:01pm
Location:
OH
+1 From Man and the others.

Even if I've spoken to a new client before, I ask them to upload stuff to my portal. My theory would be that if someone was trying to phis or scam that they probably won't go through all the hassle of calling me, signing up for a portal, and uploading all the documents.

I would be extremely cautious about opening attachments or clinking links from someone you don't know. I very rarely click links now a days. All it takes is one time of clicking the wrong thing and now you owe someone over in timbuktu $20,000 to unencrypt your files.
 

#7
CP Hay  
Posts:
226
Joined:
3-Apr-2019 5:24pm
Location:
NEW YORK (NY)
I agree that prospective clients should upload any documents to the portal. I've found that the quality of prospects are low if they are not referrals. Just curious with other practitioners here, have you ever had a great client come from a random unexpected call or just finding you online?
 

#8
Posts:
8157
Joined:
4-Mar-2018 9:03pm
Location:
The Office
Yes. Regularly.

Do you have a niche?
 

#9
Posts:
1199
Joined:
3-Sep-2021 4:01pm
Location:
OH
CP Hay wrote:I agree that prospective clients should upload any documents to the portal. I've found that the quality of prospects are low if they are not referrals. Just curious with other practitioners here, have you ever had a great client come from a random unexpected call or just finding you online?


I have several of my best clients from finding me online. I met with them in person though after the initial call. One of them I have for life because once I got into their QuickBooks it was all out of sorts.
 

#10
Miami88  
Posts:
92
Joined:
4-Jun-2021 8:02am
Location:
Ohio
CP Hay wrote:I agree that prospective clients should upload any documents to the portal. I've found that the quality of prospects are low if they are not referrals. Just curious with other practitioners here, have you ever had a great client come from a random unexpected call or just finding you online?


Yes, quite a few. Some would probably just be classified as good but mainly because they are minimum fee returns but they are easy and the people are nice so I don't mind. Some that aren't good and I wasn't able to weed out initially, don't end up staying more than a year or 2 anyway.
 

#11
Posts:
6043
Joined:
22-Apr-2014 3:06pm
Location:
WA State
CP Hay wrote:I agree that prospective clients should upload any documents to the portal. I've found that the quality of prospects are low if they are not referrals. Just curious with other practitioners here, have you ever had a great client come from a random unexpected call or just finding you online?


Not to pile on here, but I, too, have had great clients come from a random inquiry.
I think your point is that the overall population of nonreferral inquiries is of lower quality than a referral. I'm willing to bet we'll all agree with that too.
That said, being able to qualify prospects is a valuable skill in all types of businesses. Given the current landscape, I think that "filter" needs to be just a little tighter than it has been in the past. The idea of "niching down" is a little easier to carry out right now.
~Captcook
 

#12
CP Hay  
Posts:
226
Joined:
3-Apr-2019 5:24pm
Location:
NEW YORK (NY)
ManVsTax wrote:Yes. Regularly.

Do you have a niche?


Not particularly
 

#13
Posts:
8157
Joined:
4-Mar-2018 9:03pm
Location:
The Office
Makes sense. I would not be excited about walk ins if they were googling "tax prep in [my local area]" to find me. Those that seek me out are seeking a specialist and found me that way first. i.e. As a tax advisor and planner, not a tax return preparer. Generally speaking of course.
 

#14
Posts:
2612
Joined:
24-Jan-2019 2:16pm
Location:
North Shore, Oahu
Phishing!

Do not download or open these documents! The malware will scrape your tax software and file for fraudulent refunds.

The amounts will match their withholdings and you will end up looking pretty bad.

Talk to them first. Ask who referred them specifically. You can ask sniff test things that scammers will not understand or know the answers to.

Don't be afraid to simply say, "I'm sorry, I just don't have the availability to take on your situation right now" if you have a suspicious feeling.
 

#15
Posts:
2887
Joined:
21-May-2018 7:50am
Location:
Northern MI and Coastal SC
I have a dedicated Chromebook I use that is cellular only, not connected to any other device or to any active work account. I have a Gmail account no one knows about that I forward questionable e-mails or documents to so I can run scans on the docs and see what they are. Great way to add a layer of security, though most of my clients have been trained to not send me anything via e-mail that is confidential.

You can generally identify the phishing inquiries by the language. They all use the same language and it is simply pathetic. But, I have been wrong a couple times--I had a guy contact me and I was convinced he was a scammer, but he turned out to be a very legitimate client that lives a couple miles from me.
 

#16
TAXTAX  
Posts:
85
Joined:
12-Feb-2016 8:33am
Location:
New York City
Sadly. There is no response from these two scammers (I now know). Thanks for all your inputs!
 

#17
Posts:
2612
Joined:
24-Jan-2019 2:16pm
Location:
North Shore, Oahu
CornerstoneCPA wrote:I have a dedicated Chromebook I use that is cellular only, not connected to any other device or to any active work account. I have a Gmail account no one knows about that I forward questionable e-mails or documents to so I can run scans on the docs and see what they are. Great way to add a layer of security, though most of my clients have been trained to not send me anything via e-mail that is confidential.

You can generally identify the phishing inquiries by the language. They all use the same language and it is simply pathetic. But, I have been wrong a couple times--I had a guy contact me and I was convinced he was a scammer, but he turned out to be a very legitimate client that lives a couple miles from me.


This is smart - I should splinter off an old device and use it for any items that appear suspect that I "want" to open.
 

#18
Posts:
45
Joined:
15-Mar-2022 6:10am
Location:
Maine
Last year I had someone call me saying she got my name from the IRS directory. ?? That never happened before. I turned her away.

This year I was goofing off in January and checked out the "Nextdoor" site. There was a guy on there looking for a tax pro, so I gave him my number, he called, and sent me a retainer the next day. I was really looking for info on a better electricity provider, I never knew the site existed before.

I get more referrals than I can handle from clients, attorneys, bookkeepers and and other accountants, so I never advertise, and I don't even have a web site (so far only one client has even noticed this glaring lack of professionalism). I ordered business cards once, but I have no idea where they are.

Other than the two exceptions above, I am introduced to a new client by an existing client or contractor. And I ALWAYS call both of them before accepting. I don't open emails or return calls from cold potential clients. The conversion rate on those is less than 5%, and very time consuming.
 

#19
CathysTaxes  
Moderator
Posts:
3557
Joined:
21-Apr-2014 9:41am
Location:
Suburb of Chicago
There is an IRS directory. If you're a lawyer, CPA, EA, or AFSP, then you're in the directory.
Cathy
CathysTaxes
 

#20
Posts:
8157
Joined:
4-Mar-2018 9:03pm
Location:
The Office
Spammers that send phishing emails frequently state they found me in the IRS directory. That alone should give reason to be very cautious of engaging with anyone who initiates email and states that they found you there.
 


Return to Business Operations and Development



Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Google Adsense [Bot], lckent and 41 guests