Source docs trickle in.
Clients send W-2s, 1099s, and receipts by email, text, and shoebox. Half a return sits idle while a preparer emails "just missing your K-1" for the third time.
CRM CUSTOM CRM · ACCOUNTANTS & CPA FIRMS
A CRM THAT KNOWSIT IS BUSY SEASON.
Practice software treats every client the same and every month like April. We build the opposite: engagements, document requests, and filing deadlines shaped around your service lines, with AI reading the source documents so your staff does not have to.
01 THE PROBLEM
SOUND
FAMILIAR?
Engagement letters are an afterthought.
Scope and fees live in a Word template someone forgot to send. The work starts before the letter is signed, and the write-off shows up at year end.
Deadlines stack up blind.
Extensions, estimates, payroll filings, and 1040s all have their own dates across hundreds of clients. One slipped deadline is a penalty letter and an angry call.
Realization leaks everywhere.
Time gets logged late, scope creeps without a change order, and nobody sees a client is unprofitable until the WIP report lands in the summer.
02 WHAT WE BUILD
YOUR WORKFLOW.
YOUR SYSTEM.
- Client intake New-client and new-engagement intake into one queue, tied to entity type, service lines, and the responsible partner from day one.
- Engagement management Every engagement with its scope, fee basis, deadlines, staff assignments, and documents in one view the whole firm shares.
- Deadline engine Federal and state filing dates, extensions, estimates, and payroll deadlines computed per client and escalated when a return stalls.
- AI document intake W-2s, 1099s, K-1s, and brokerage statements parsed on upload, classified by form type, and matched to the right return automatically.
- AI request chasing Missing-document detection with automatic client follow-ups by email and text until the file is complete, escalating to staff when it stalls.
- Secure client portal A branded portal where clients upload documents, sign engagement letters, and pull finished returns instead of emailing PDFs around.
- Billing and realization Time, WIP, and fixed-fee tracking flowing into your existing billing system so realization is visible before the engagement closes, not after.
- E-file and workflow status Return status from prep to review to e-file acceptance in one board, so no return is quietly stuck in review.
AI, SUPERVISED The AI layer reads source documents, chases the missing ones, and drafts the follow-ups. Your CPAs review the numbers and sign the return. Full audit trail on every file.
03 HOW IT WORKS
WE COME IN.
We map how your business actually runs: who touches what, where the hours go, and which problems are the expensive ones.
WE BUILD IT.
A fixed bid, then a working system in weeks. Your stages, your fields, your rules, with the AI integrations doing the paperwork.
YOU OWN IT.
The code, the database, the accounts: yours. No per-seat pricing, no lock-in, and we stay on for iteration if you want us.
05 COMMON QUESTIONS
How is this different from Karbon or Canopy?
Those are subscriptions shaped around an average firm, priced per seat forever. A ZipLyne CRM is built around your service lines, your engagement flow, and your deadlines, and you own the code and the database outright. The AI document work is native, not a bolted-on add-on.
Is client financial data safe with AI involved?
Yes. The system runs on infrastructure and accounts you own, with role-based access and an audit trail. Source documents are scoped so sensitive financials stay in your environment, and every AI output is reviewed by a preparer before it touches a return.
Can it work with our tax software and QuickBooks?
That is the point. We integrate with your tax prep software, QuickBooks or your GL, e-sign, and your document storage instead of forcing a migration. The CRM becomes the connective tissue across the stack, not another silo.
What does an accounting firm CRM cost?
Fixed bid, quoted before we start, based on scope. Builds start at $7,500. You know the number before the work begins, and there is no per-seat pricing after go-live.
Can it be ready before the next filing season?
Yes. We scope a first working version around a 21-day build, then extend it engagement by engagement while your team already uses it. You are not waiting a full season to see value.