She 2x’d Her Business After Our Service Bureau Convention | SBA Podcast EP 37

 Baldeep (00:00) All right, we are here with another episode of the Service Bureau Accelerator interview series. I am here with Qualena and Ross. Ross, if you want to go ahead and kick things off.

Ross (00:11) Sure. Awesome. All Qualena, well, thanks for jumping in. Thanks for joining us. How are you doing today?

Qualena (00:14) I’m doing good. Thanks for having me. I’m excited to be here.

Ross (00:17) Awesome. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Great to have you. Great to have you. So if you want to kick things off, Qualena, just maybe start with just giving a quick, like, introduce yourself real quick and share a little bit about your experience in the tax industry, like how long you’ve been in for, you know, kind of where, what were you doing before joining the Service Bureau? And we’ll just kind of take it from there.

Qualena (00:37) Okay, so I’d like to start off by saying my name is Qualena. Of course, everybody knows I am Q&Q Tax Pro Solutions. I am Q&Q Tax and Financial. And I started off in 2019 right before COVID hit. I had started my first tax office. It was Q&Q Tax. I didn’t really have any knowledge or education. I kind of googled how to start a tax business in Florida and started writing off the checklist, right? I didn’t have a coach or a mentor or anything like that. So I kind of just winged it. Before that, I used to work for the Nanoboat sunscreen company. Like I said, COVID hit, I started this business. For two years, I was on my own, then I found a coach and a mentor. And she helped me get my business and she gave me software, because before they did even know about software, right? So she helped me grow. And she actually had a resellers program that I joined after I was with her for a year. And that’s how I learned about Service Bureau. So.

Ross (01:50) Awesome, awesome.

Qualena (01:52) By being a reseller with her my first year, I think I made like $25,000 on the back end and I did really, really good. And she was like, hey, are you ready to be your own Service Bureau? I was like, yeah, I think that might be what I want to do. That’s how I found you guys. And the rest is kind of really like history.

Baldeep (02:12) Ha ha ha.

Qualena (02:13) It was like, I’ve only been in the tax business for five years and for me to be in my own Service Bureau was really like a big, it’s a big thing for me. Like I know people who’ve been in the business 10, 15 years and they just now learn about Service Bureau. So I would say that I excel in this space really, really fast. This is actually my second year being a Service Bureau on my own. So I only was in tax business for three years before I started Service Bureau’s program.

Ross (02:44) Yeah, I was gonna say, I was actually surprised for it, because I know we’ve spoken before on, I know last year we were doing a few strategy calls back and forth as well, but it’s like, I actually thought you were in the industry for quite a bit longer, just kind of speaking with you and just kind of knowing what you’re doing in the Service Bureau industry. So yeah, that’s impressive.

Qualena (03:02) Right, yeah that comes from having somebody who actually took me under her wing. She was a great teacher and she kind of held my hand, you know. Then when I got with you guys, it was like take off time. Take off time from there, you know. So yeah, it’s pretty much where I started.

Baldeep (03:14) Ha!

Ross (03:17) Yeah. Awesome. Awesome. So what’s been your, what’s been your focus? Like now, you know, jumping into our program, then obviously, you know, being able to leverage our, our training, the coaching, all the, all the, kind of stuff that we do. What’s been your focus in growing your Service Bureau as far like a specific model? Are you primarily going after EROs? Are you doing kind of like an academy or like what’s been your, your path that you’ve kind of really dialed into to grow your Service Bureau?

Qualena (03:42) Um, yeah, so I would say EROs is like my target audience. I have some packages. They call billionaire boss packages and they kind of include like the software mentorship. I also have a tax academy for people that want to become PTIN holders to EROs. So that’s kind of like my main focus is trying to help EROs grow and scale a business because like I said in the beginning I didn’t have any help. I just kind of had to wing it. So I want to be able to help people grow and actually scale and make some money because the industry is kind of shady when you don’t know nothing. You know what I mean? So I like to give people like the knowledge that they really need to grow in this space.

Baldeep (04:24) Yeah.

Baldeep (04:28) The main thing is if you don’t know what to ask for, a lot of people get screwed over. Or they don’t know what questions to ask. They won’t get it.

Qualena (04:32) Yep.

Ross (04:33) Yeah, they won’t give it.

Qualena (04:35) Yeah, they definitely won’t and I learned that throughout, you know, dealing with different people. Like I said, I just, God blessed me with a great mentor and a coach. You know what I mean? From the beginning, but before her, I was just winging it. I was using free software and stuff. So to actually be here now, like I said, in five years, it’s like crazy. It’s crazy to me. But I, go ahead.

Baldeep (04:57) Yeah. And even not- sorry.

What I was gonna say was even just your growth, I think like the first season with us, you kind of just like dipped your feet in, right? I don’t know how, like you just kind of, you know, a lot of people get their toes in the water, see how it works, make sure everything’s good. And then last year, not this past season, but the year before, right? Your numbers got up. Yeah, I think you got an award too, right? Or you were close to the one, if not got one at the convention. Yeah, and then at the convention.

Qualena (05:26) Yeah, I got one.

Baldeep (05:32) I remember you had a good attitude, like you were really pumped at the convention, I remember that. And then from that year, from the convention to this year, you kind of exploded a bit, right? You had a huge increase in numbers. You more than doubled, I believe, if my numbers are correct. I think you more than doubled. Can you talk a little bit about your experience in just like this past season? Like what changed for you from like the time convention happened to where we’re at now?

Qualena (05:59) Honestly, I’m gonna be honest, I think it was just getting in the room with y’all. You know what I mean getting in the room with other Service Bureaus and then kind of taking what I got from the convention and zoning in on that because like you said before my first year I kind of just like jumped in here at first I’m gonna kind of do it the way I was already taught to do it right so I had to really unlearn from the way I was taught to do it to the way that you guys were teaching me to do it and that’s really what happened I stopped going by what I already thought I knew and I started listening to what you guys were telling me so I went back in I did the whole training all over again, like from scratch. And I zoned in to what y’all told us during the convention. And after the convention, like literally as soon as we left the convention, I just got jumped on trying to get EROs. And I expanded a little bit. I also started offering Service Bureaus as well, which kind of did help me grow a lot. Because the Service Bureaus that I had, they were fairly new to Service Bureau and they kind of just followed what I taught them. I didn’t have to reteach them and they kind of helped me grow a lot. So I would definitely say getting in the room with y’all, being around everybody else and seeing their growth, knowing that it was actually possible for me.

Ross (07:14) For sure. Yeah. That, that community thing, like being able to network. Cause it’s, it’s like just in business in general, you know, it’s kind of a lonely world. I don’t think a lot of people realize that, but you know, like businesses, it can be pretty lonely sometimes. And that’s, that’s why we kind of wanted to have that group and especially do these conventions. We weren’t, we weren’t even too sure we were actually going to do a convention this year, but everyone would like just the amount of excitement that everyone had, especially after your award ceremony last year, we’re like, all right, we, we have to do them like we have to because everyone’s everyone kind of demands it of us at this point. And but like you said, it’s it’s like being in that room, right? Being able to sit down next to people who are doing the exact same thing you’re doing, focusing on the same goals and the same business and just really helps you kind of see and also drive a little bit of that hunger, right? You see what other people can do. It’s like I can do it, too. I’m here. I got the same tools. I got the same. I got the same coaches and mentors that are helping me. There’s no reason why I can’t do it as well. So that’s really cool. Really cool to hear.

So, Collette, you’ve seen like a little bit of the evolution of the training. Because when you joined, I don’t think we had the seven day launch when you first started. It was kind of like, I think it was still the paths. And then we changed up to the seven day launch. Can you touch a little bit on like what that experience has been going through the training, especially as you mentioned, like now, like last year you kind of made that switch. Like, all right, let me dive back through it. Let me like really focus and listen to, you know, what we’re teaching here at SBA. What’s has there been any like key takeaways or like really like major things that kind of stood out to you in the training that really helped kind of push you forward?

Qualena (08:47) Honestly, I think the seven day challenge like you said when I first started the seven day challenge wasn’t there. But I think the seven day challenge for me was really good for me because I’m like a type of person when I get something in my mind I need to get it done right there, you know. So when I first had started the foundation, it was like this process that I had to go through. You know what I mean to actually get through everything and cuz I’m type of person I’m gonna sit down and learn before I just start working. But the seven day challenge and the fast action strategies really helped me like alright, we’re gonna do some work today. You know what I’m saying? Even though I was in training, now after training, let’s do some work instead of just going from training to training to training. You know what I mean?

Baldeep (09:25) Yeah, I think a lot of people overlook the fast action strategies and we do a version of that at the conventions, right? I think this year we have a version plan possibly, right? But like even at the conventions, like the goal is, hey, do this thing to start generating conversations and get results. So yeah, that’s been a, I think very few people pick up on it, but I’m glad you brought that up because that’s like a fundamental thing that we do that really doesn’t exist anywhere else.

Qualena (09:49) Yeah, and because it really makes you get the work right, you know.

Ross (09:51) Yeah.

Ross (09:54) Exactly. Exactly. Right. Like you can watch, you can watch videos for hours and hours and hours and it’s like in one ear out the other and then nothing changed in the business. But it’s like, if we watch this, you know, this section, let’s learn some stuff and now let’s go and take it and actually apply it right now. That’s how, that’s how you can really see growth and actually see change and progress in the business is just taking action. And that’s kind of, that’s just like, that’s the secret at end of the day. There, the secret is there is no secret. You just got to put in the work. Right. So that’s all it comes down to. Awesome. That’s good to hear. Now another area of our business, and this is, we always like to ask everyone their experience with this because talking with a lot of EROs, right, like with our sales team and just over the years that we’ve been in the industry, we know a big concern for a lot of people when they’re either, even just buying software, let alone becoming a Service Bureau, is the support, right? It’s like, hey, when I need help or something’s going on and I need help, how do I get that help? Do you wanna, could you share a little bit of your experience with our support platform, like the ticketing system that we’ve put together, where you can go in when you have questions, you can go open a ticket. What’s been your experience using that, working with our team, or even having tickets go up to me or Baldip to help you out? Just wanna share a little bit about your, yeah, the support that we have in SBA.

Qualena (11:09) I really love the support like it’s unmatched. I would say it’s like literally unmatched. Even though you like you got to put a ticket in, you know, it’s always somebody going to reply even if it’s like hey, what else do you need or we’ll get right back to you. I’ve never had to wait more than a day or so, you know what I mean? And sometimes even if it’s late y’all will reply right away. I like when I get the calls from Hazel and everybody else. You know what I mean? It’s like I know them because I talked to them on the phone so it’s not like a recording or something. You know what I mean? Where I have to push a button. So I really do like the personalization of it. You know, when you talking to the same person and they kind of know exactly what you already going through because you probably had a conversation with them before. Like this ain’t the first time I put this ticket in, right? So I don’t have to keep saying the same thing over. And like I said, I just like the fact that y’all are quick about it. Even if, like I said, it goes up to y’all, you know what I mean? You guys get right back with me, hey, Quilina, how can we help you? And we get it figured out really quickly. Even if sometimes I think I know what I’m talking about, you guys be like, this is what it is, you know what I mean? And I appreciate it. Yeah, sometimes I do need clarification.

Ross (12:22) Sometimes we need clarification.

Baldeep (12:23) Yeah.

Qualena (12:30) So yeah, I just think that I really just like the fact that I know that I’m talking to a real person. Somebody is, you know, kind of help me quickly and I’m not going to be waiting two days or three days for a response.

Ross (12:43) Yeah, awesome. Yeah, that’s been a big focus over the last few years as we’ve grown. It’s like we’ve realized like, okay, our growth, we’re not slowing down if anything, we’re growing faster. So how do we make sure we can continue to support and support that growth with all of our members and still give you guys the time that you need to use the support system and still have really high quality and good response. So glad to hear you’ve had that good experience with it too. So looking forward to this year. Right? Obviously we got the convention coming up in like what we’re at like three weeks now, one, two, three, four weeks. We’re just about a month, a month away for the convention. Other, but other than the convention, cause I know I’m sure you’re excited for that. I’m really excited for it. But other than the convention, like what is there anything that you’re really, really excited to focus on this year for your Service Bureau? Like do you have a goal in mind of what you want to hit this year? And is there anything specific you’re really excited about?

Qualena (13:24) Yeah.

Qualena (13:37) So yeah, so this year I decided that I’m gonna not focus on bringing other Service Bureaus in like I did last year. I’m gonna stick to bringing in some EROs. So my goal now this year is to get 100 EROs under my belt. And I know that it’s gonna be some work, right? You know what I mean? But I just feel like I feel like I’m at the capacity now where I can handle it. Before I was just kind of learning my systems, putting my academies together, building out my stuff. Now I feel like I have the capacity where I can actually have 100 EROs. So that’s going to be my goal for this year. Yeah, to get 100 EROs.

Ross (14:03) Yeah.

Ross (14:16) Nice. Nice. I don’t know. I don’t know if you saw Baldeep and mine’s face when you said that we’re both like, hell yeah. Like 100 EROs. Yeah, you got it. For sure.

Qualena (14:24) Yeah.

Baldeep (14:24) Yeah. And also, also like you made the comment, like, hey, I’m, you said before, hey, you jumped in, had some, some Service Bureaus too. And then maybe one of the things you’re realizing now is you make, it’s less revenue for you per product than you may be used to coming from the ERO relationship. But then also it’s a lot more work on the support and helping them side versus just getting EROs and growing your Service Bureau volume. I mean, there’s nothing wrong with either model. It’s just, this is different, right?

Qualena (14:56) Right. Yeah, it is, it is, like you said, less money in my pocket. So I do want to focus more on EROs, right. Like we, go ahead. I was about to say, yeah, like we had talked before about me, like, real.

Baldeep (15:06) Yeah, there was a… I’ll go ahead. No, no, no, keep going.

Qualena (15:14) working back on my tax academy right because I had first got away from my own office when I started this trying to do both. So besides the EROs I am going to run another tax academy this year just to try to get Q&Q Tax and Financial good team up under it so I’ll also have those splits as well.

Baldeep (15:34) Yeah, and then also keep in mind, like you could also, you know, show your EROs how to build teams. I mean, there’s a lot of ways to build up your volume and we could talk about that more offline as well.

Qualena (15:43) Thank you.

Ross (15:46) Awesome, awesome. So one of the last questions for you here, Qualena, is, you know, there’s a lot of people that are looking at becoming a Service Bureau. There’s a lot more options available these days to become a Service Bureau than there used to be in the past as well. But what would you say to someone if they’re kind of like, maybe they’re on the fence, maybe they’ve looked at our program and they haven’t quite made a decision yet. What would you say to someone who’s looking at joining Service Bureau Accelerator?

Qualena (16:12) Don’t look no further, like you will not find another company that is really dedicated to actually seeing you succeed and giving you all of the tools that you need. There’s no gatekeeping here. There’s nothing that I’ve ever asked and nobody’s answering my question. And the price like I mean the unlimited license, you know what I mean, it’s like everything the unlimited license the training, you know what I mean? And like I said the community as well. I’ve been in a couple of tax communities and this is the best community I found.

Baldeep (16:49) Awesome, well we appreciate that feedback. I got one final thing for you. If one of the millions of people watching this at home says, hey, I like Qualena, I wanna work with Qualena, Q&Q’s got what I need. Where do they find you?

Ross (16:49) Awesome. Love it.

Qualena (16:52) Yes.

Qualena (17:02) You guys can find me at qqtaxpros.com. You can find me on Facebook under Qualena Wilkerson. Also at Q&Q Tax Pro Solutions on Facebook as well. I’m not on TikTok but you can find me on Instagram under Qualena Wilkerson as well. I do have business pages so they will be under Q&Q Tax Pro Solutions.

Baldeep (17:30) Awesome. Well, thanks for being here, Qualena. We’ll go ahead and wrap this up. Have a great rest of your day.

Qualena (17:35) Thank you, thank you, I appreciate it.