"The season is still far away. I will do it in January." Almost every tax office says it, and January is the worst time to do it. The phone rings all day, clients are in the lobby and nobody has an hour to rewrite a page.
October is quiet. That is the reason to set up the first things now.
What is already moving
The IRS says all PTINs expire on December 31 each year, and that renewal open season begins in mid-October for the following year. That is the preparer's side of the calendar. Your customers' side starts earlier than you think: they compare offices, check who speaks their language and look for how to book, well before January.
What to set up first on your website
Start with the parts a customer uses before they call.
| What the customer asks | Where the answer goes |
|---|---|
| "What kind of returns do you prepare?" | A services page in plain words |
| "Do you speak Spanish?" | The top of the site and the services page |
| "What do I need to bring?" | A short list on its own page |
| "How do I book?" | A visible button and phone number on every page |
| "When are you open this season?" | Hours, and the same hours in your Google profile |
| "Can I trust you?" | Your credentials, described exactly as they are |
Services in plain words
Write what you do the way a customer would say it. Google's help for services says you can group services in categories and add descriptions. Do the same on the site: what is included, who it is for and what happens next.
What to bring
This is the page that saves you the most phone calls. A short list, the same every season, with a note that you will confirm anything specific in the appointment.
Booking
A person who decides at night should be able to book at night. A form that sends an email nobody reads is worse than no form. Decide who looks at requests and how quickly, and say so on the page.
Credentials
The IRS describes its Annual Filing Season Program as a voluntary program for return preparers who are not attorneys, CPAs or enrolled agents. If you hold a credential, describe it exactly. Do not claim one you do not have. Visitors can check the IRS pages.
A realistic October plan
You do not need to do everything at once. Here is an order that fits a busy office:
- Week one: open your site on your phone and write down what a new client cannot find. Check that your name, phone number and address are the same on the site and on your Google profile.
- Week two: rewrite the services page in plain words and add the languages you speak.
- Week three: write the "what to bring" page and decide how booking will work and who answers the requests.
- Week four: set the season hours on the site and in your profile, and read the whole thing once more as a stranger would.
If something takes longer, fine. The point is that the basics are done before the first busy week, not during it.
Where the questions come from
The best material for these pages is what clients asked you last season. If you did not write those questions down, start now: keep a note on your phone and add each new question as it arrives. In a month you will have a list that is better than anything a template can give you. Each question is an objection or a doubt, and each one deserves an answer on the site, in the profile or in a reply.
Mistakes we see often in tax office sites
- A services page that lists forms but never says who the service is for.
- No mention of languages, even though most calls are in two.
- A booking form with no one assigned to answer it.
- Hours on the site that do not match the Google profile.
- Promises about refunds, which a site should never make.
What the site should never promise
No "biggest refund." No "guaranteed." The site describes the service and the process. For legal or tax questions, visitors should talk to a professional about their own situation.
Keep it in step with the season
A site done in October is not finished in October. Hours change in March, the questions change every year, and last season's questions are the best material for this season's pages. Write them down in April while you still remember them.
AI can draft a page in a minute. It does not know your office, your languages or what clients asked you last Tuesday. Someone has to read it before it goes live.
Questions to ask anyone who offers to build or update your site
- Will you learn how my office works and what my clients ask before you write anything?
- Who writes the text, and who checks credentials and wording?
- How will booking work, and who receives the requests?
- How will the site be updated during and after the season?
- Will the domain and accounts stay in my name?
The short version
Set up the parts customers use first, now: services, languages, booking, what to bring and hours. Describe the process and never a refund. Then keep it current through the season.
To see what your site shows a new client today, request an audit or look at our website service.