Welcome to TaxProBestPractices.Com

What organization is in charge of this web site?
Tiburon Strategic Advisors, an independent market research and strategy consulting firm, maintains this web site and database.

How does the survey work?
There are 38 multiple-choice questions. You can answer them in sequence or in any order you prefer. Each question must be answered to enable you to have access to the best practices results for that question.

Can I print out all the survey questions?
Yes. Go to the "Print Entire Survey" page from the Home Page and choose to download the survey as either a PDF (Adobe Acrobat Reader), HTML, or MS Word file format. However, only surveys submitted online will be accepted. Please do not mail us completed surveys.

How many users have completed the survey? What was the average size of their business?

502 tax professionals completed the first round of our survey. The average tax professional who completed the survey had revenues of $256,000 while the median was just below $200,000. Since we have posted the survey online, dozens of additional tax professionals have added their data to the database.

Where do my answers go? What about my privacy?
Your answers are stored on the TaxProBestPractices proprietary database, which is only accessible by having your confidential user ID and password. We recognize that confidentiality and security are of the utmost importance to our survey participants. Our reputation and integrity are directly related to how we maintain the privacy of the contact information and data of survey participants. Your contact information and individual responses to questions in the survey (including your financial information) will be kept strictly confidential. This information is obtained solely for the purpose of conducting research; responses will be utilized in aggregate form only.

What are the graphs for? How are they made?
The graphs are for your use in comparing your practices against others in the industry. The graphs are designed by Tiburon Strategic Advisors through careful analysis and interpretation of the data collected from this survey. The graphs will be updated periodically as the number of survey takers grows.

How do I view, print and/or download the graphs?
There are two ways to download the output graphs from this tool: one at a time or all at once.

Once you have successfully answered a question, the graphs associated with that question will be immediately accessible by clicking on the blue button labeled, "View Current Graphs." This will take you to a new page where a small preview thumbnail of each output graph will be presented. When you click on the thumbnail, a new window will pop open with the full sized output graph. To print or save the graph (one at a time), from the top menu bar on the browser window containing the graph you want, click on the "File" option to reveal the submenu options. From the submenu, select either "Print" or "Save as" and click on it to proceed.

When all 38 questions have been answered, a new download button on the "View All Questions/ Graphs" index page will be activated. This button will lead to a new page where all 159 output graphs will be available for downloading as a zip file. Click on the associated link to download the graphs as a zip file. You will need the WinZip software utility to decompress this file for viewing. To decompress the graphs and print the graphs (all at once), double click on the file and WinZip will automatically open. Choose the file you wish to decompress from within the WinZip file directory, and choose a folder destination. When you are ready, click on the "Unzip Now" button to start the process. When complete, you will have all of the output graphs in GIF format. To print the graphs, click on the file labeled "print_graphs.html." When a new browser window has opened, revealing all of the graphs, choose "Print", under the "File" option in the top main menu.

Why can't I gain access to the graphs?
Users are granted access to the graphs for any question successfully answered. You can view the graphs for each question while you are taking the survey by clicking on the "View Current Graph(s)" button, or at the end from the "View All Questions/Graphs" page. Additionally, if you have answered all 38 questions successfully, you may view, print, or download all of the graphs at once by clicking on the "View, Print, and Download All Graphs" button on the "View All Questions/Graphs" page.

Is there a membership fee for signing up?
No. There are no costs or fees related to taking this survey or viewing all of the graphs. It is completely FREE to use. We seek to understand the industry's aggregate data only and we hope to give something back to the industry in the process.

I forgot my password, what do I do now? Can I change my account information?
You can request to have a new password created for you. Go to the login page and enter your email address in the box for lost passwords. After you have received your new password through your supplied email address, we recommend that you change your password to something more personal by editing your user account information.

Besides altering your password, you can also update your user information if you have switched companies or have a new address. You can access your user account through the "Change User Information" box on the main "Login" page. Keep in mind that your email address is also your login ID, so the email address you enter must be your original email registration address.