FAQ for accountants
1 – Can I use the website to find tax advisers to help my clients?
Yes. That continues to be one of the primary purposes of the website. And you can do this without registering or paying us a penny.
Beyond this though you may wish to join the Network as a tax accountant member. The remainder of FAQs on this page relate to this facility.
2 – How do people who need tax advice from accountants find this website?
We have long ranked highly in search engine results when anyone in the UK searches for tax advice. This is a function of our longevity and credibility. People choose our website because it shows up very high in the natural search results (not as an advert) and because we are evidently much more than just a directory service.
3 – Why should accountants want to be listed on a website that offers to find ‘specialist tax advice’?
A good question. And the answer comes from our experience since we launched our original website in 2007.
What is apparent it that thousands of people use our website every month to find tax advice. But much of the advice they seek isn’t complex or difficult. We know it doesn’t all warrant the attention of a tax expert. It just needs someone who has good tax experience from working in general practice.
It is clear that many people who should speak with an accountant don’t think to search for one. They search for ‘tax advice’ as this is what they want first. And when they search for tax advice – they find our website. When it makes more sense for them to talk to a local accountant we want to help them get advice from someone like you. So we re relaunched the website in 2017 and started inviting local accountants to join the Network.
Now we are able to send members new leads to covert into clients – whether for one-off advice or on an ongoing basis.
4 – How often will users be directed to my profile?
As often as is appropriate! We don’t promise you will receive hundreds of enquiries. Just those that match your stated expertise from people for whom your postcode is among the closest of the accountants on our site.
How often your profile appears will depend on which tax specialisms you choose and how many people are looking for help with each of those topics each week. This varies across the year.
The simple fact is that we keep our subs low so that even if you only secured one decent job a year your investment will have proven more than worthwhile. In practice you can expect a lot more than this. But we simply cannot make any promises as there are so many factors that can have an impact.
5 – How can I stand out from the competition on your site?
We encourage visitors to enter their postcode – even though we know YOU are not constrained by your location. But this helps us to show visitors the tax accountants based closest to them who have the required specialism/expertise.
Beyond this we cannot determine what prompts users to choose one adviser over another. They may take account of your photo (seriously), how you describe yourself and your approach or just your location. So do make good use of the facility to say something engaging rather than just repeating standard wording from your website.
If you want to see how close other members are to you, you can use the map at the foot of the Find An Adviser page of the site. But remember they may not have chosen the same areas of specialism as you. So their location may be irrelevant as they are not competing for the same enquiries as you.
6 – In what order will profiles be shown on the site?
An automated rotation system will operate to avoid any ‘favouritism’. Thus each search will show relevant accountants in a different random order (that refreshes every 20 minutes). This is the case unless the user gives their postcode. Where they do this the tax accountants shown first will be those whose addresses are in or are closest to the postcode.
7 – Do I have to give advice for free?
No. You should treat all enquiries you get from our website in exactly the same way as you would if they had come via your own website. It’s entirely up to you whether to offer free advice or to look for ways to help beyond the specific questions raised.
8 – What sort of tax enquiries can I expect?
Over the years we have seen thousands of questions on all tax topics. You will only appear in the search results when someone searches for tax specialisms you have chosen. A significant number of enquiries do not require advice from a tax specialist. Most of our visitors want to talk to a human being rather than simply read technical updates and explanations.
Please note that visitors tend to favour those profiles which include a photo of the accountant. If you include a link to your website this needs to engage visitors too rather than put them off as some accountants’ websites do.
9 – What if I can’t deal with the enquiry?
This will probably be quite rare. If it happens, we ask that you refer the person back to the Network and suggest to them that they contact a different tax accountant or, if appropriate, a tax specialist.
10 – How many tax specialisms can I claim?
Tax accountants can only be associated with up to 5 specialisms. We do not limit the number of specialisms that tax specialists can claim.
11 – What investment do I need to make?
Our membership terms are very financially attractive so you can be confident of recovering many times the value of your investment each year. Even if you only secured one piece of advisory work a year through the site this would still represent a good return on your investment.
There is a one-off registration fee of £25 and a monthly subscription of just £25 for as long as you remain listed on the site.
The monthly subs increase every now and then, for new applicants only, to help maintain the exclusivity of the site.
12 – Is there any long-term commitment?
More good news. We do not look for any long term commitment from you. It’s pay as you go and you can cancel any time. The pressure is on US to ensure you gain continued benefit and value. If you cancel your agreement your profile disappears from the site and you’ll get no more leads.
13 – How easy is it to cancel my subscription?
Simple. At such point as you retire, need a break or have no need of any future leads, just email us or use the contact link at the foot of the page. We’ll cancel your monthly subscription within a few days and that’s it. No further payments will be due and we’ll remove your profile from the site. You’ll then no longer be able to secure any more leads from the Network.
14 – Do I need to report back on the work I get from the site?
No. We encourage tax accountants to provide the leads we supply with the same courtesy and level of client care you would provide to anyone contacting you directly through your own website. Over the years we have received just a handful of complaints re tax advisers’ service levels (never about the advice provided). To protect ourselves we therefore reserve the right to hide your profile so it doesn’t show on the site if we become aware of client complaints and are unable to resolve these with you within 48 hours.
15 – What if I don’t have a website?
It doesn’t matter. The primary links in your profile on our site will encourage users to phone or message you.
16 – Can my firm be listed on the site?
Sorry. We only have a facility to provide links to individual tax accountants. This is because most people want to know who they are contacting. You can however include a link to your website from your profile, along with your direct contact phone numbers.
17 – How do users contact me through the website?
There are 4 possibilities. Ideally users will choose to make contact by (a) telephone or (b) email. Your profile will contain a facility for users to communicate via an email form that will be redirected to your conventional email address.
The third possible approach is borne of experience. This suggests that many users leave the site and ‘google’ the adviser’s name to find out more about them and then approach them directly.
The fourth way is that users will follow the link from your profile and go to your website which will then impact their decision whether or not to contact you.
18 – What level of fees do members typically charge?
Fee rates vary around the country and depend, in some cases, on the nature of the work.
We make it clear to users that they are contacting independent accountants. The only expectation we try to set is that good advice costs good money. What you charge is up to you. It is for you to decide what your market will bear and to use your skills to ensure that users are happy that they will get value for money.
19 – Can I be listed as a tax adviser rather than as a tax accountant?
This may be possible if your tax expertise in one or more topics is more extensive than that of a typical general practitioner. Tax advisers pay higher monthly listing fees than tax accountants. We provide visitors with more profile information about them and feature them on the site and in our weekly tax tip updates. Tax advisers are also required to pay a significant joining fee (partly to keep the numbers down). If you would like to discuss this possibility, please check out the information here for tax advisers.
20 – Why should I join now?
We have set the monthly subs at very competitive rates to attract tax accountants to join the site. We promised to hold these monthly subs steady only for the first 100 tax accountants who join us. Thereafter we plan to increase the rates to maintain a degree of exclusivity and to better reflect the value of being a member of The Tax Advice Network in 2020. The first 200 tax accountants to join us will also receive a complimentary subscription to our weekly tax tips. We have been publishing these since 2007. They are clearly written specifically for general practice accountants who pay £10 per month for them. Join us now and you’ll get them for free.
21 – How can I join?
If you have any further questions, please contact our Chairman, Mark Lee. You can book a convenient time to call here >>>>