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Preparing External Clients for Changes to Your E-Portal – Wisconsin’s Experience
Vicki Gibbons & Ellen Hefty Wisconsin
Department of Revenue August 14, 2011
History Lesson
• SIP (Sales Tax Internet Program) – DOR’s first sales tax return e-file
application – Implemented -1999 – Original returns only – 35,000 returns received per month – SIP Suspension rate - 3% – All return suspension rate 15%
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History Lesson
• Corresponding E-Pay Application – Mandatory for limited taxpayers – 56,000 payments per month – 90% of payments were withholding – DOR incurred a per transaction bank fee
History Lesson
• 2009 - My Tax Account (MTA) – GenTax TAP module configured for WI
– Small external group asked to test
– Implemented February 2, 2009
– Business taxes only - over 200,000 accounts
– Started with sales and withholding and expanded to remainder of tax types
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History Lesson
• 2009 - My Tax Account (MTA) – Publicity through external publications,
presentations, and press releases
– Substantial training limited to business customer service reps
– Mandated e-filing and payment to monthly filers at the time of rollout
2009 – My Tax Account
• Highlights – Allow file and pay for sales tax and other
business taxes
– Replaced bank EFT – no more fees
– Averaged 60,000 returns per month
– E-file users doubled
– Suspension rate around 3%
– Overall suspension rate 6%
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2009 – My Tax Account
• Improved Offerings – Pay-only accounts
o MeF the primary return source
– Mail access
– Electronic web messages
– Wage certification payments and employee maintenance
– State-wide debt collection portal
2009 - My Tax Account
• Immediate Feedback – State-wide registration too difficult (two-
step process)
– Not intuitive o Look-alike forms previously
o Withholding combined file and pay
o Too much new at one time
– Not enough instructions / instructions too difficult
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2009 - My Tax Account
• Lessons Learned – Timing is everything – roll out at your slowest
time of the year for all tax types – Listen to your customers and customer
service representatives – and act accordingly – Practitioner needs are different than business
owners and employees
– Don’t assume tax administrators and programmers know what customers want or need
2009 - My Tax Account
• Lessons Learned – Training is everything – multiple options
prior to roll-out, during rollout, and with each subsequent filing frequency
– Overstaff for customer contacts – borrow staff, cross train, provide help and instructions in multiple forms
– Assume most customers won’t participate until their due date or shortly before regardless of notice
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2009 - My Tax Account
• Check-Back (PDCA) – Customer contacts summarized
– Surveyed 20,000 users o 4,400 responses received
– Practitioner meetings
– Internal discussions
2011 - My Tax Account
• Strategic Direction – Access to registered MTA functions
o Businesses only
o External integration
– Access to non-registered MTA functions o Individuals – different needs
o Inquiries, one-time events
– Balance security with ease of use
– Combined launch page
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2011 - My Tax Account
• MTA Launch Page
2011 - My Tax Account
• Additional Services – Appeals
– Business registration
– Claims for refund
– New corporation questionnaire
– Improved wage certification functionality
– Improved state-wide debt collection
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2011 - My Tax Account
• Help Tools – Filing tips on data entry screens – Links to existing web pages – Pop-up bubbles – Messages at top and bottom of screen – Error messages using color and tip text – Visually impaired tags – FAQs for using application and tax issues
2011 - My Tax Account
• MTA Help Tools
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2011 - My Tax Account
• Communications – External presentations
– Other stakeholders (legislators, etc.)
– MTA and web teasers (more later)
– Training invitations
– Internal announcements and timelines
– Follow-up survey
2011 - My Tax Account
• Training – Live webinars
o Monthly filers first – 90 minutes – 2,000 attendees
o Quarterly next – 500 attendees
– Posted webinars on DOR website
– How-to videos
– External presentations
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2011 – My Tax Account
• MTA Overview Video
2011 - My Tax Account
• The Good – “I love the new system, I cannot believe
how easy it is to use”
– “Site is GREATLY IMPROVED, good work!!”
– “Thanks for the update to your site. It took me 1 minute and absolutely no thinking to file and pay my monthly payroll taxes. Very successful upgrade!”
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2011 - My Tax Account
• The Ugly – “Again, it appears the state implemented
changes for their own benefit only and ignored the needs of the taxpayers and the public users of the my tax account system.”
– “This revision is ten times worse than the previous version that I think was clunky all by itself.”
2011 - My Tax Account
• Browser Information – Internet Explorer 8/9 – 56%
– Internet Explorer 7 – 17%
– Internet Explorer 6 – 6%
– Firefox and Chrome – 11%
– iPad and iPhone; AOL; Linux - < 1%
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2011 - My Tax Account
• Web Messaging – Initially communicated legislative changes – Expanded to reminders
o Pre-filing; late filing history and annuals o No return post-due, but before estimate o Filing frequency changes
– Considerations o Government spam o Third parties o Opt in/opt out
2011 - My Tax Account
• Web Messaging – Increased timely return filing
o Pre due date notice
o Annual change in filing frequency
– Reduced nonfiler estimates by 30%
– Promoted self-service account inactivation
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2011 - My Tax Account
• Benefits to WI DOR – Reduction in data entry and account maintenance
– Customers more self sufficient
– Automated work flow (appeals, etc.)
• Benefits to the Customers – Actions confirmed
– DOR contact avoided with more self-service tools
– Increased awareness of balances
– Reduced post-filing adjustments
Final Thoughts
• You can’t make everyone happy
• Workload is reduced or shifted
• Manage frequency of changes
• Screen consistency • Simple language
• Listen to your customer service reps
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Final Thoughts
• System decisions - balance risk and impact
• New functionality breeds new ideas – what can I do better/easier
• Continuous improvement • E-Portal development and expansion –
your customer will thank you for it … eventually
Questions?
• Contact information: – Vicki Gibbons
o Wisconsin Department of Revenue
o 608-266-3612
– Ellen Hefty o Wisconsin Department of Revenue
o 608-267-1040