Client Experience and Service Expectations
A collection of best practices for working with Rocket Tax to ensure clients are set up for success!
Last updated
A collection of best practices for working with Rocket Tax to ensure clients are set up for success!
Last updated
Service Expectations
You are expected to send an intro message as soon as you pick up (or get assigned) a job to start the engagement off on the right note.
You can use this template as an example (also available in Message Bank discussed later on):
"Hi (client name), My name is (pro name). I'm looking forward to working with you to get your return filed and will be happy to answer any questions you have along the way. I will be following up to ensure that I have all the documents and details I need to successfully file your return and may need some additional information from you along the way. I’ll be keeping in touch with you through this communication portal and would appreciate it if you could check for messages from me every couple of days. You can expect a draft to be ready for your review and signature within 7 business days once all information needed for filing is provided. Thank you, and I will be in contact again within the next couple of days."
If a client sends you a message in the chat, you are expected to respond within 48 business hours as per our service-level-agreement (SLA). Be direct and transparent in your communication so clients have a clear understanding of their status. Please avoid spamming the same message to clients if they're unresponsive (instead you can leave an internal note on the job indicating that you are still waiting on open items as discussed later in this guide). You're supported by customer success if you experience client delays, just let us know and we will try to re-engage the client as soon as possible.
The Taxfyle team will reach out to you to check in with clients throughout the year for jobs pending a response (or update) on your end. With that, please make sure that you have your unread message notifications enabled so that you don't miss any messages. You can verify this by going to your account settings while on the Rocket Tax workspace, clicking Notifications, and checking off the system notification for New Message.
It also helps to prioritize emails from the Worklayer platform so that messages don't get missed in your inbox if you're offline (this can be done in your respective email inbox). If you have any concerns with your notification settings, you may connect with Taxfyle Support for assistance.
When uploading documents to a client's job please use the Document tags to indicate what type of document is being uploaded. This is essential for the internal tracking of the job, so please use this feature accordingly!
Keep in mind that at least two return documents must be uploaded. First, a Draft return to be reviewed by the client, and then a Final return uploaded once the client approves the Draft.
Jobs will be available for pick up once a client has paid for their service through Rocket Tax's platform. Once connected with a client, you are expected to:
Upload a draft of the client's return within 7 business days after verifying that you have all the necessary information or documents to proceed with their return.
Upload the document using the tag "Draft return" and once the client confirms you can then upload the return as a "Final return" document along with the "E-File confirmation".
If there are any open items that you need clarified by the client to proceed with their return, please list them in the job chat and the client will get back to you when available. We encourage you to provide clients with an estimated date of completion (even if that date is at the max 7 days out) and commit to that date.
On the same note, try to avoid providing an estimated date of completion unless you know for certain you can have it done by then. Historically, this can lead to a poor client experience in the event you're unable to meet that commitment (as we understand that things may come up along the way with your day-to-day tasks).
Rocket Tax clients are charged by the Rocket Lawyer team for their service according to the interview questionnaire they fill out. You will see the job specs and will need to confirm that they match the work needed before continuing, as sometimes a client may submit a job with incorrect job specs. Please be aware of this in the beginning stages of the job before beginning preparation of the return. If you’ve identified additional services that need to be added to a job, open the Actions menu on the top right corner of the job, and you will find the ‘Request scope changes’ button.
DO NOT action preparing the return or any add-on service requests before reporting the changes needed using this feature as these changes will need to be discussed with the client before an update is applied to their job. It is your responsibility to be aware of additional work that needs to be completed that was not indicated in the questionnaire, as we can not compensate for additional work unless we are notified ahead of time and the client approves the update.
When a job scope request is entered the job is automatically placed On-Hold (so it doesn't affect your job limit), and the update requested is relayed to the client by the Rocket Lawyer team for the additional work to be quoted. Once approved, we will then apply the update and resume the job.
For more information on how to use the Request Scope Change feature please reference the guide below:
We strongly advise that clients keep all communication with you within the secure job chat for audit log purposes. If a client requests a call right off the bat, we always recommend telling them that Rocket Tax requires communication to stay within the platform.
That being said, if a client is insistent on a phone call, we can make exceptions to this rule depending on the use case and if you are available and willing to provide a call. These requests would need to be flagged to the Taxfyle CS team. In a case where an exception is made and a phone call is allowed, please coordinate with the client to schedule an available time to provide the call and commit to it.
The purpose of these phone calls could be to potentially discuss their draft in more depth and in a shorter time than the job chat allows. Once the call is done, please leave a brief summary in the job's chat as a note of what was discussed for monitoring purposes so the Rocket Lawyer and Taxfyle teams are in the loop. The format for these messages can be something like this:
"Had call with [insert client name] on [insert date]. The takeaways are:
First item - if someone is responsible for doing something, list that out
Second item - if someone is responsible for doing something, list that out"
Some examples where phone calls are acceptable include:
Clients requesting to go over their return
To run through any missing open items
To assist with next steps as far as paying taxes owed
If a client emails you off-platform, please let the Taxfyle support team know so we are aware of what is being spoken about off the platform and cc success@taxfyle.com.
We strongly advise the use of internal notes within the job chat to leave updates for the Rocket Tax teams when applicable.
Internal notes are invisible to clients but visible to our admins so it helps our teams better understand the pulse of a job (you CANNOT communicate with us through notes). Notes can be used to update us when detailing:
What you are missing from the client to continue
When off-platform communication takes place
What you are currently working on in the job
They are functional for less time-sensitive updates you want to leave for our teams focused on the client experience. For things like errors in the job scope, escalations, client login issues/concerns, etc. these updates should be relayed to Taxfyle Support. The use of internal notes can minimize the number of Pro reach outs our teams send out and helps maximize the efficiency of Rocket Tax jobs altogether. Please implement this into your daily practice as it holds tremendous value in improving our processes and job turnaround times.
In the event that you refer to yourself as a Pro, please refrain from identifying as a "Taxfyle" Pro (if it comes up in the chat) for consistency in the client experience. Instead, you can call yourself a Rocket Tax Professional or Preparer (if necessary).
Also, there is no need to bring up your contractor status to clients. They understand that you are not employees of Rocket Tax but third-party providers acting as representatives of Rocket Tax focused solely on their tax preparation.
We want you to take on as many opportunities as you have the capacity to manage (without it diminishing your clients' experience working with Rocket Tax). That said if Rocket Tax or Taxfyle recognizes that a client might be at risk due to a Pro's action (or lack of action), our teams will need to move those jobs so they're properly supported. Some example cases that could prompt jobs being transferred from your queue include (but are not limited to):
You failed to upload a draft for a client within 7 business days after confirming all documentation required for the tax prep
You're failing to respond to your clients within 2 business days on a consistent basis
You haven't checked in with the client close to a major deadline
The client requests a transfer due to poor services being received
You're not receptive to coaching attempts on the Taxfyle side for feedback received on a job
If you have an emergency where you will be unable to respond to clients, please contact Taxfyle support and inform us as soon as possible. If you will be unable to satisfy a client deadline, please inform our teams accordingly so we have sufficient time to transfer their job to another Pro to complete their filing.
You MUST upload the e-file acceptance of a return after filing and before closing a job to verify that it's been accepted by the IRS and state(s). Then inform clients they can contact Rocket Tax support if they need their job reopened to reconnect with you for any reason before closing them out.
Refer to this section of the Pro Guide for an example template to use when closing jobs.
Please make sure to provide clear payment steps to the client so they're prepared to make payments owed or receive refunds due to their appropriate bank account. That way, clients are set up for success post-filing. The more jobs you close with clients following these best practices increases the likelihood of those clients returning to you for any future work requests they may have.
Your jobs are subject to removal if you are unable to follow up with a client (especially around deadline times). Payouts for these jobs will not be issued. If this behavior becomes consistent, you will be removed from the workspace.
Failure to comply with the outlined best practices can result in coaching from our team members or (in some cases) immediate removal from our space
