ProConnect™ Tax spotlight: Trevor Betts, EA

What do the Anaheim Ducks, Target, and Intuit® ProConnect™ Tax all have in common? All three are an integral part of life for Trevor Betts, EA, president of Virtual Tax Solutions in Lake Elsinore, California. I visited with Trevor to learn more about how he uses ProConnect Tax in his practice and discovered some very interesting fun facts.

Scott Cytron: Thank for agreeing to do do this spotlight, Trevor. Can you please tell me a few ways ProConnect Tax benefits your practice?

Trevor Betts: Thanks for having me share my story. Because ProConnect is a web-based application instead of desktop-based allows me to use live integrations that I never could before with my previous software. Not only that, but being able to load it up in a manner of seconds without waiting 5-10 minutes for an update to install is a massive timesaver. The biggest benefit, though, is how it works with Intuit Tax Advisor. One of my major emphases to my clients this season will be that we need to be more proactive; having my tax software work seamlessly with a tax planning tool is a major benefit.

SC: That’s great—and now that Intuit Tax Advisor is included in ProConnect Tax, I’m sure more tax accountants will also find it helpful. What are some of the features you like in ProConnect Tax?

TB: The W-2 import from the payroll provider was a nice feature during extension season. We needed to pull IRS wage and income transcripts for some clients and was able to use the information from that to figure out the state withholding, instead of wasting time on a call to the state or have the client go back and ask their old employer.

The Review Return window is something I never knew I needed, but now I probably couldn’t live without it. I have a multiple monitor set up and one of them is dedicated to that window, so as I go through and enter the return, I can refresh and see the new data. I’m sure this is also going to be much better this year with the new Checkmark feature.

Data Import is one that I’ve tested out a little bit and liked a lot, but will be putting it to a real test this season. I’ve liked it so far, and with my tech stack, it should run smoothly by dragging and dropping the files into ProConnect.

SC: What is unique about your firm compared to other firms?

TB: My firm is fully virtual, and leaned hard into that aspect with my firm’s name. I haven’t carved out any niche’s yet, but besides individual returns, I like focusing on S Corporations for the entities I work with.

SC: What is your vision for your firm going forward?

TB: My vision is to transition my clients to a forward-thinking model, and have multiple client touch points throughout the year with a focus on tax planning and strategizing. The first step will be to overhaul my pricing structure to 3-tiered value pricing, with the end goal that I can provide higher quality service. It may mean that I lose clients, but I believe the model will give me a better work/life balance, while also improving overall revenue. I’ve already adjusted my questionnaires this year to help me gauge how many clients will be interested in more tax planning.

SC: For sure, I’d love to hear more about how your advisory practice will progress. I know you’re active in the ProConnect Tax Community. What motivates you to help others with questions about the software and about tax?

TB: I tend to consume a ton of content when I’m interested in any topic, so when I came across people such as Jason Staats and Logan Graf, I watched and listened to everything they put out. This helped me build the firm I wanted to start—and I am grateful for their advice. It gives me motivation to give back to others who are just starting their journey and pointing them in the directions that I found helpful.

SC: How has your practice changed over the last 5 years?

TB: Previously, I was partnered with my father for roughly a decade, where the main business model of the firm was to drive out to the client. I completely phased that out for my side of the business, and then transitioned my clients to my new firm. One of the driving forces to branch off was to allow room to build a firm for the future. Every decision I have made thus far has been to allow room to expand the business without having growing pains.

SC: I work with my son in my business, so I’m curious what it was like to work with your father … but will save that for another time. For now, what is your firm’s tech stack, and what Intuit products are you using?

TB: I have spent so much time thinking about this over the last two years. It might be easier just to show you the flowchart I created.

In short, Soraban is my client facing portal, ProConnect is my tax preparation software, Sharepoint is for document management, and Karbon handles practice management. They all integrate with each other in various ways. I also use QuickBooks® Online Accountant for my firm’s books. The biggest shoutout in my tech stack that I want to point out is VXT, a VOIP phone system that integrates with Karbon.

An example of how this works would be a client calling about a situation with their upcoming tax return. The call is automatically recorded, and after the call, it is transcribed and gives me an AI summary. I can save this to the Work Item within Karbon with a click of a button. That Work Item was already automatically created from the ProConnect/Karbon integration. Now, three weeks later when I begin working on the tax return, I can quickly review the notes within the Karbon Work Item to refresh my memory.

SC: That’s great; I love to hear stories about how customers are using technology in inventive ways! So what do you like to do in your spare time?

TB: I’m in the busy time period of my life with a 5-year-old and a 1-year-old, but in the few times a year that I can, I love playing tabletop games. X-Wing Miniatures and Snap Ships Tactics are my two games. I also love watching hockey—my favorite team is the Anaheim Ducks.

SC: What was your very first job?

TB: My first job was doing carts at Target one summer. I’ll forever put my cart back now!

SC: I love that. If you were stranded on a desert island with access to just one kind of technology, what would it be and why would you want it?

TB: A fully charged satellite phone, so I won’t be stranded for long.

SC: Thanks Trevor!