Accounting firm automation: what to automate first

1. Document requests. Every client gets a checklist of what you need from them this year, and an upload link. Then reminders go out on a schedule until it's all in. The reminder should say what's still missing, not just "please send your documents."

Something like: "Hi Dana, we're almost there on your 2025 return. Still need two things: your 1098 mortgage statement and the 1099 from your brokerage. Upload them here when you get a minute." Specific beats polite-but-vague every time.

2. Deadline reminders. Estimated tax payments are due four times a year, and a lot of clients don't track the dates. A reminder a couple of weeks out and another a few days before keeps them on time without you playing calendar cop.

3. New client onboarding. Engagement letter signed, then a welcome email with the upload link, then the organizer, then a nudge on anything missing. Same steps every time, so nothing depends on somebody remembering.

4. Billing reminders. You'd never let a client miss a deadline, but your own invoices can sit for weeks. A polite reminder on a schedule isn't pushy. It's just consistent.

5. A review request after the return goes out. That's when clients are most relieved. Send one short message with a single link.

6. A check-in between seasons. A simple "anything change this quarter?" email keeps you in the loop before April surprises you.

1. Vague reminders. "Please send your tax documents" makes the client do the work of figuring out what you mean. Name the document, the link and the date.

2. Setting it up in February. The middle of tax season is the worst time to learn a new system. Build it in the summer and test it on a few clients first.

3. Trialing every new AI tax tool. A new one shows up every week. Get the basics running in your practice software first. The big platforms tend to add the popular features eventually, and you avoid paying twice.

Your practice software already does document requests and you just haven't turned them on. Switch them on and rewrite the default reminder so it sounds like your firm.

You're a small shop and the client list is manageable. Email templates and calendar reminders might be all you need.

Last season's process held up. If documents came in on time and nobody burned out, keep it and tweak it.