Client Relations Flashcards

A prospective client balks at a $6,000 planning fee. Which response best fits the tax coaching approach?

Answer: Show that the identified strategies are projected to save well more than the fee

Value pricing ties the fee to quantified savings, so the conversation shifts from cost to return on investment.

Which statement in client marketing materials would most likely violate Circular 230 §10.30?

Answer: Our firm is an IRS-endorsed tax planning provider

Section 10.30 bars false or misleading statements, including claims of IRS endorsement.

A client asks the coach to take an aggressive deduction that has no reasonable basis. What is the best response?

Answer: Explain the risks and decline to sign a return taking that position

Circular 230 bars practitioners from advising or signing frivolous or unsupported positions, so the coach should explain the risks and decline.

Under Circular 230 §10.22, what is a practitioner's due diligence obligation?

Answer: Exercising due diligence in preparing documents and making representations to the IRS and clients

Section 10.22 requires due diligence in preparing submissions and in representations made to clients and the IRS.

Under the §6107 recordkeeping rules, a paid preparer must keep a copy of each return, or a list of the clients served, for how long?

Answer: 3 years

IRC §6107(b) requires preparers to keep return copies or a client list for 3 years after the close of the return period.

What is the best way for a coach to deliver a completed tax plan to a business owner?

Answer: Hold a presentation meeting that walks through each strategy, the savings, and the implementation steps

A guided presentation builds understanding, shows value, and gets the client committed to implementing the plan.

A client stops responding to requests for the documents needed to implement a strategy. What is the most professional step?

Answer: Send a written follow-up documenting the outstanding items and the consequences of delay

Written follow-up protects the coach and makes clear what the client is responsible for.