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Unlock Your Potential: Why Every IRS Representation Specialist Should Write a Book (And Ways to Get It Done!)

Are you ready to take your IRS Representation expertise to the next level? If you’ve been considering writing a book but haven’t taken the plunge yet, this blog post is your personal cheerleader, here to convince you that now is the perfect time to share your knowledge with the world. Let’s dive into why writing a book can be a game-changer for your career and explore the various ways you can make it happen!

Why Write a Book?

First things first – why should you, a busy tax professional, even consider writing a book? Well, let me tell you, the benefits are enormous:

  1. Establish Your Authority: A book instantly positions you as an expert in your field. Imagine handing a potential client your own book on IRS Representation – talk about making a lasting impression! This is something your competition is NOT doing. Are they going to read it? Probably not, but they will be very impressed.
  2. Attract More Clients: Your book becomes a powerful marketing tool, drawing in new clients who are impressed by your expertise.
  3. Share Your Knowledge: You’ve accumulated years of experience – now’s your chance to help others navigate the complex world of IRS Representation.
  4. Create a Passive Income Stream: Once published, your book can continue to generate income for years to come. Although, don’t expect to make thousands of dollars, but you will make a few extra bucks.
  5. Personal Growth: The process of writing a book will deepen your own understanding and potentially open up new insights in your field.

Convinced yet? Great! Now, let’s look at the different ways you can bring your book to life.

Method 1: Write It Yourself – You’ve Got This!

You’re an expert in your field, and who better to write about IRS Representation than you? Writing the book yourself allows you to infuse every page with your unique voice and perspective. Here’s how to get started:

  1. Outline Your Book: Start by jotting down the main topics you want to cover. Think about the questions your clients frequently ask or the challenges you often help them overcome. This will become the Table of Contents. Then you can write 3-5 bullets under each title. From there you can write 250-1,000 words to fill in each bullet point.
  2. Set a Writing Schedule: Dedicate specific times for writing (for most people this is in the AM). Even if it’s just 30 minutes a day, consistency is key!
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Ultimate Guide to IRS Installment Agreements

Many taxpayers find themselves unable to pay their full tax balances when they file their income tax returns. Some common reasons that people might have for being unable to pay their taxes to the IRS include increased investment returns, more self-employment income, bonuses, and salary increases. When a taxpayer is unable to immediately pay his or her tax debt, making payment arrangements will likely be necessary.

The most common type of payment arrangement taxpayers can make to take care of their tax balances is an installment agreement. With this type of arrangement, taxpayers will make monthly payments to the IRS. In most cases, the payments are made by payroll deductions or direct debits. The set-up fee for a direct debit agreement made online is $31. If the direct debit installment agreement is created over the phone, in-person, or by mail, the set-up fee is $107. Fees can be waived for low-income taxpayers.

If the taxpayer enters into an agreement to pay by other methods, the online set-up fee is $149. If the application is made in-person, over the phone, or by mail, the set-up fee is $225. Low-income taxpayers will be charged a set-up fee of $43.

During the installment agreement, late-payment penalties and interest will continue to accrue. However, the late-payment penalties will be halved during the months during which an installment agreement is effective. Installment agreements can be set up by calling the IRS, using the online payment agreement or OPA tool, or filing form 9465. Here is a guide to what you need to know about IRS installment agreements.

Understanding IRS installment agreements

Taxpayers are responsible for meeting their obligations when they owe outstanding tax liabilities to the government. When a tax liability is overdue, the taxpayer will incur monthly late-payment penalties and added interest. To avoid added charges, taxpayers are advised to pay their balances in full. However, some taxpayers are not able to do so. When taxpayers cannot pay what they owe in full, the IRS allows them to enter installment agreements to make monthly payments.

Taxpayers have the following options when they make payments:

  • Payroll deductions
  • Direct debits
  • Payments through the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System
  • Credit card payments
  • Check or money order payments
  • Payment by the OPA

 

Streamlined IRS Installment Agreements

Streamlined installment agreements are available to individual taxpayers who owe less than $50,000 under IRM 5.14.5.2. This includes all unpaid assessments but does not include … Continue reading

Tax Resolution Marketing Letter: Why it works

In marketing parlance, your most successful marketing piece, the one that becomes your lead generation workhorse, is called a control.

Over the past couple hundred years, there have been a number of marketing controls that have had incredibly impressive runs. Two of the most famous examples from recent times:

  1. The Wall Street Journal’s “Two Young Men” letter, generated nearly $2 billion dollars in sales for the Journal during it’s 29 year run. It was mailed continuously by the Journal to select household mailing lists from 1974 to 2003. It is considered the single most successful direct mail sales letter in history, and is well worth studying.
  2. Self-help guru Tony Robbins has one infomercial that ran continuously in English speaking countries around the world for 18 years. It was literally broadcast 24 hours per day, always available on at least one basic cable channel or over the air broadcast network. Although at much lower volume, that infomercial still runs today. The infomercial sells his flagship “Unleash The Power Within” program, and to this day sales from that program generate $9 million per year in net profit for him.

ControlLetter-1 The power of a control piece cannot be underestimated. Having a solid control, along with a well-defined target market to send or broadcast it to, is almost like an ATM that prints free money.
In 2012, I wrote what would become my direct mail control piece. I affectionately refer to it as the mug shot letter. This letter was the workhorse of my practice, across multiple niche tax resolution markets and a variety of different offers. It worked well for me in the western US, and it’s worked well for coaching clients from Texas to Florida to Chicago in it’s original form. Other practitioners have created heavily modified derivatives that work very well for them, including a CPA in Maine that created a version that has helped take his tax resolution business from just a few thousand dollars in 2013 to over $250,000 in 2015.

Last year, when my postcard sequence to drive people to a webinar wasn’t delivering the results I wanted, I went back to this letter, and results immediately improved.

The obvious question is: Why does this letter work?

Let’s step through it to see why. Tax Resolution Academy® members can download the letter from the tax resolution marketing library.

1. It shows a real human being.

The first thing most … Continue reading