Find it

Clients rarely ask for sales tax help by name. Here is where the signals show up.

Five places to look

Click a place to see what to listen for.

Client meetings

Clients mention new states, new channels and state letters in passing. Train yourself and your team to catch them in the moment. (Ping does this for you 😉)

SIGNALS
"We got a letter from the Department of Revenue." Urgent
"We just hired a rep in Massachusetts." High
"We're opening a warehouse in Texas." High
"We just started selling online." High
"A customer asked why we don't charge sales tax." High
"We're thinking about selling on a marketplace." Worth a check
Your books

The numbers show nexus before the client does. A quick look at revenue by state tells you a lot.

SIGNALS
Over $100K shipped into one state High
200+ orders into one state High
Payroll in a new state High
Sales tax payable only for the home state High
Marketplace payouts with no tax line Worth a check
A big jump in out-of-state revenue Worth a check
Year-end planning

You're already talking about next year. Add a few questions about where they sell and where they're growing.

SIGNALS
"We're doing about $150K in Florida now." High
"We only file in our home state." High
"Next year we're expanding into three new states." High
"We moved inventory to a fulfillment center." High
"We're not sure if we need to collect." Worth a check
New client intake

The easiest moment to ask. Add one question to onboarding and it never gets missed.

SIGNALS
"We sell online, all over the US." High
"Our inventory sits in a warehouse in another state." High
"Our last firm never mentioned sales tax." High
"We have remote employees in five states." High
"We sell software subscriptions." Worth a check
A one-time sweep

Go through your client list once. An afternoon of filtering usually turns up a handful of clients.

SIGNALS
Ecommerce or online-first clients High
Product companies with out-of-state customers High
Clients with remote staff or reps in other states High
Software companies selling nationwide Worth a check
Clients never registered outside their home state Worth a check

When you find one

  1. WITHIN 48 HOURS Follow up Send the trigger follow-up email while the conversation is fresh.
  2. OVER THE NEXT WEEK Run a nexus check Connect their sales data and see where they owe.
  3. A 20-MINUTE CALL Walk them through it Show them the results in plain terms.
  4. RIGHT AFTER Send the proposal The pitch, emails and proposal are in Sell it.
Playbooks are educational and not tax or legal advice.