Strong Partners
LIQUID TAX GROWS ITS PRACTICE THROUGH UNIQUE PARTNERSHIPS

Starting a business, particularly one with a new concept, is never easy. However, the anxiety can be softened with a helpful and supportive partner.
Such is the case for Ron and Cammy Loftin of Duluth, Georgia, whose one-year-old business, Liquid Tax, got a big boost from Drake Software.
“With Drake as a partner,” Ron says, “our products and services offer a convenience to customers and an opportunity for dealers to increase revenue without increasing overhead.”
For more than 10 years, Loftin has been providing simple, affordable, high quality prepaid cellular services in communities and markets that have been historically underserved. Besides targeting small, independent retailers, Liquid Tax helps independent tax preparers diversify their revenue streams by facilitating relationships with strategic retail partners.

Form dealer network
On the dealer side, the Loftins look for entrepreneurs who already operate small businesses and who, with the help of Liquid Tax, can increase revenue by offering their customers tax preparation services and bank products.
“We provide our dealers with everything necessary to operate a Liquid Tax prep business,” Ron says, “as well as training, marketing and the most recent, in-depth market research thus creating the best opportunity for success. We offer the dealer a chance to increase revenue and provide a convenience to their customers. The customer walks in needing to process a return, and the dealer facilitates that.”
Cammy and her group process the returns using Drake Software and file them electronically.
 “I’ve worked in credit-challenged, under-banked communities for the last 10 years,” Ron says. “We have concentrated on those markets and have done business with those consumers. Now we’re leveraging those relationships into a dealer network. Last year we experienced great success, and we have set goals to grow this dealer network tremendously over the next three years.”
The other side of Liquid Tax focuses on assisting independent tax preparers who want to grow their business beyond one location. The Loftins facilitate a relationship with a supermarket or retailer in the preparer’s community. Instead of signing a year-long lease in a strip mall, they sublease space in a supermarket for two or three months during tax season.
“This is our first year dealing with retailers and supermarkets, and we’re looking for more partners,” Ron says. “Our tax preparer partners offer a convenience to the retailers’ customers, and the tax preparer can take advantage of the retailer’s foot traffic. Liquid Tax doesn’t prepare the taxes; we only facilitate the relationship.”

Drake is user-friendly
Cammy is in charge of day-to-day operations for Liquid Tax. She had prior experience with Drake products preparing taxes and doing bookkeeping, and she chose this software because it is user-friendly.
“Drake’s customer service is great,” she says. “They are a phenomenal company. In the year we’ve been using their products, we’ve really gotten to know Drake’s management. They’ve met with us a couple of times and are very easy to work with. They want us to understand their product and all the different avenues because they want us to be successful. The electronic filing capability is a huge benefit. Our clients can get refund loans from a bank in as little as 24 hours.”
Of course, the Loftins had plenty of questions in the first year as they moved along the learning curve.
“When calling for help, I don’t think the phone ever rang more than twice before someone at Drake would answer on the other end of the line,” Cammy says. “If they couldn’t answer our question, they might put us on hold, or they’d get right back to us.”

From February 2008

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