Updated: Oct. 17, 2024, with comments from Intuit and the AICPA.
TurboTax, the most widely-used do-it-yourself tax preparation in the U.S., is out with a new advertisement in which it is telling Americans that maybe they should save money and have a “tax break up” with their professional preparer by using one of TurboTax’s live experts.
The irritation factor for some tax professionals and CPAs who provide tax preparation services is that Intuit, the maker of TurboTax and several other consumer business programs, also produces a range of tax preparation systems made for professionals who service those same clients. These systems include Intuit ProConnect Tax, Lacerte Tax, and ProSeries Tax. These systems consistently rank at the top of CPA Practice Advisor’s Readers Choice Awards, a non-scientific survey of tax professionals’ technology preferences.
“Tax preparation isn’t just about entering data or completing a form; it’s about trust, accuracy, and making informed decisions,” said Scott Artman, CEO of the National Association of Tax Professionals, an organization of more than 24,000 tax professionals nationwide. “The personal relationship between a tax preparer and their client is crucial. A professional knows you and your financial history, keeps you compliant with regulations and can adapt strategies based on your specific needs.”
The NATP says that the current advertising campaign, “Goes against a key component of Intuit’s business model – selling professional preparation software to the tax professionals they now seem to be undermining.”
“Tax professionals play a critical role in the tax filing, planning, and advisory landscape, one that continues to evolve aided by AI and other technology. The crucial role of CPAs, who serve as expert and trusted advisors to business owners and individuals, was not reflected in an unfortunate recent ad campaign launched by Intuit.
“Following the release of the ad, the AICPA engaged in productive discussions with various stakeholders, including Inuit’s CEO. We want to thank our members, many of whom expressed disappointment with the ad, for their patience as we held these conversations.
“Intuit’s decision to halt the ad is a positive step. We appreciate that in our conversations, Intuit reemphasized their commitment to the CPA community and recognized the importance of growing that talent pipeline. AICPA members interact with Intuit in numerous capacities, and this decision is recognition of how important that interaction is to Intuit.
The TurboTax advertisement suggests consumers can save by using a built-in function in the online software that can connect them with a “TurboTax Expert.” This optional feature is available at an additional cost. Intuit requires that its TurboTax Experts be a CPA, EA or practicing attorney.
Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, provided the following statement to CPA Practice Advisor:
“Intuit is committed to tax preparers and accelerating growth of the tax preparation industry through job creation with more than 12,000 experts on our platform, driving tax preparer revenue with Live experts making nearly $60M in income last year, and best serving the needs of taxpayers. Last year more than 500,000 accounting professionals grew their practices with us through our ProAdvisor program, and we trained more than 129,000 learners on bookkeeping and tax preparation through Intuit Academy.
The TurboTax campaign promotes assisted tax preparation by a local tax expert with the ability to maintain a multi-year advisory relationship with the taxfiler.
Intuit is engaged in constructive conversations with NATP to reaffirm our commitment to tax preparers and expanding their opportunities to serve taxfilers.”
Intuit has drawn some ire from professionals in the past, most notably with one of its earlier campaigns for QuickBooks, in which it suggested business owners didn’t need an accountant anymore.
“Following the release of the ad, the AICPA engaged in productive discussions with various stakeholders, including Inuit’s CEO,” said Barry Melancon, president of the American Institute of CPAs. We want to thank our members, many of whom expressed disappointment with the ad, for their patience as we held these conversations.
“Intuit’s decision to halt the ad is a positive step. We appreciate that in our conversations, Intuit reemphasized their commitment to the CPA community and recognized the importance of growing that talent pipeline. AICPA members interact with Intuit in numerous capacities, and this decision is recognition of how important that interaction is to Intuit.”
For reference, one video from the new TurboTax advertising campaign is at: https://youtu.be/GW7rfwO6_is?si=lQmLEyHOuDD9rnoY
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Tags: Income Tax, Taxes
