User's Manual - Drake Software

Other Resources at Drake Support
Drake Software User’s Manual
Conversions
Publications
Marketing
Kits
Partner
Programs
Business
Planning
Group
To download software to convert data files from other tax programs into Drake format,
go to the Drake Support site and select Resources > Conversions. Choose a tax
year and a brand of software. Read the instructions (available for downloading and
printing) before running the conversion.
From the Drake Support site, select Training Tools > Publications to download some
commonly accessed IRS publications. At the bottom of the publications list is a
Search 1040.com for more publications link, which takes you to the 1040.com website.
From this site, you can search for federal and state tax forms, instructions, and
news; get tax tips; download tax tables; find federal tax estimators and financial calculators;
and get information all professional tax preparers need.
Advertise your business using the newspaper ads, posters, banners, and radio spots
available at the Drake Support site. Select Training Tools > Marketing Kits to access
and order these resources, visit links to other marketing resources, and pick up free
marketing kits from the IRS.
From the sidebar menu, click Partner Programs to access information on Drake’s
partner companies that provide solutions for banking, forms and checks, budgeting,
business planning, Internet services, and electronic tax payments.
Drake clients have exclusive use of the Business Planning Group (BPG). This group
consists of retirement specialists, advanced underwriters, and attorneys who can help
your firm assist your clients in minimizing tax on Social Security benefits, estate tax
planning and reduction, retirement planning, and business continuation and restructuring.
When you work with BPG, it serves as an extension of your practice. Once you’ve
identified a need for services (for example, noticing that your client is paying taxes on
Social Security), you can begin the process of working with BPG. For you as a preparer,
this process has three main steps:
• Complete and submit questionnaire — You and your client submit a simple
questionnaire to BPG for review. Based on that information, BPG’s professionals
develop a plan and recommendations, which they will discuss at length with you,
clarifying details, answering questions, and generally reviewing the facts to finalize
a course of action for your client.
• Present a plan to your client — Once the plan is approved, you present it to your
client. If requested, BPG’s professionals can participate in the presentation, but
this is not required.
• Implement the plan — Although you and your client are responsible for implementing
the plan, BPG is available throughout implementation and will continue
to be available for follow-up.
In addition to helping you guide your clients, BPG can be a significant revenue source
for your business because you can charge consulting fees for both your work and the
time BPG spends on each case (generally four to 10 times the number of hours as an
accounting firm).
For more information on how BPG works, and how you can work with its experts to
benefit your clients, you can either:
272 Tax Year 2012