Member firms need a website that looks like a firm, not a tax season leaflet
Small accounting and tax practices are busy exactly when they would have time to fix their website. Associations, alliances and franchise systems that serve them keep getting the same request. This page covers how to offer member firms a site under your brand, what should and should not live on it, and the rules practitioners must follow in what they publish.
TL;DR
- Each member firm is a client account under your brand, with its own site, domain and switches you control.
- A marketing site is not a secure client portal. Keep tax documents in the portal your firms already use, and link to it.
- Practitioners before the IRS may not use false, misleading or coercive public communications (31 CFR 10.30). A light review step helps.
- Offer it as a member benefit or a paid add-on on your own billing; we quote our price to you in a demo.
Who runs a network like this
Different organisations end up offering websites to accounting firms:
- Professional associations and societies that want members to look credible and current.
- Alliances and networks of independent firms that share referrals and a common standard.
- Tax practice franchise systems, where the franchisor owns the brand.
- Software and service providers to small firms, who add websites to their offer.
The ownership answer differs. An association member owns its site; a franchisee usually does not. Decide this up front, write it into the membership or franchise agreement, and set the platform up to match. In We.Inc a member firm that leaves can be given its site's code as a download; a franchise location can be paused or reassigned.
What belongs on a member firm's site
| Belongs on the website | Belongs in the secure portal |
|---|---|
| Who the partners and staff are, with real photos | Tax returns, statements, ID documents |
| Services offered and who they suit | Engagement letters and e-signatures |
| Office hours, including the tax season changes | Client messages about their own affairs |
| A short contact form: name, email, phone, topic | Anything with a tax ID or account number |
| Articles the firm actually wrote | Payment of invoices, if handled by the portal |
A website builder is the wrong place for client documents. We.Inc sites are marketing sites; we do not offer a secure document exchange, and nothing here should be read as one. Put a clear "Client login" link to the portal each firm already uses.
The rollout, firm by firm
*Invite a member firm. The invitation comes from your brand.*
*What a member firm sees after signing in: their own space under your brand, where they describe the practice and get a first draft.*
- Invite the firm with its name and a contact.
- The firm describes its practice in plain words and starts from a draft, then edits its own team, services and hours.
- Your reviewer approves the first publish if you have approval on.
- The firm connects its own domain, if you allow it, from the domain panel.
- Approval comes off for that firm once you are comfortable, so busy-season updates are not held up.
Advertising rules for tax practitioners
Practitioners who represent clients before the IRS are covered by Treasury Circular 230. Section 10.30 says a practitioner may not use or participate in any public communication or private solicitation "containing a false, fraudulent, or coercive statement or claim; or a misleading or deceptive statement or claim." It also bars enrolled agents and certain other practitioners from describing themselves as "certified" and from implying an employment relationship with the IRS.
CPA firms are also subject to their state board's rules and to professional ethics codes on advertising and firm names. Those differ by state; check yours.
A website review checklist that covers the common problems:
- [ ] No guaranteed refund amounts or "maximum refund guaranteed" style claims you cannot support.
- [ ] No wording or imagery that suggests a link to the IRS or a government agency.
- [ ] Credentials are stated correctly: CPA, EA and others as actually held.
- [ ] Fees, if shown, match what the firm actually charges.
- [ ] Testimonials are real and permitted.
The single approval step in We.Inc is where this check happens: the firm edits, your reviewer approves or asks for changes.
*One member firm's switches. Turn off the store for firms that do not sell anything; keep approval on for new members.*
Keeping it under your brand
*Design the space member firms sign into: your logo, your colours, your menu.*
Emails that firms receive, such as invitations and "your website is ready", carry your brand and can be sent from your own domain once configured. Help pages show your support address. The branded emails page shows those screens.
Member benefit or paid add-on
Associations often include a basic site in membership to raise its value; alliances and service providers more often charge. If you charge, you can create your own client plans and take payment through your own connected Stripe account, so invoices come from you. If you include it, simply give each firm a plan with the site limit you want. We quote our price to you in a demo.
Search: let each firm be itself
Hundreds of firm sites with the same "trusted local accountants" paragraph are exactly the pattern Google's spam policies call scaled content abuse, where "many pages are generated for the primary purpose of manipulating search rankings". The firms that do well in local search write about their own clients and specialisms: farm accounts, dental practices, cross-border tax. Encourage that, and do not hand out shared body text.
Busy season rules for member firms
Websites for accounting firms have a calendar the rest of the year does not. Agree a few rules with members before the first busy season on the new platform:
| When | What firms update | What you do centrally |
|---|---|---|
| Before busy season | Extended hours, document checklist page, how to book | Turn approval off for firms with a clean track record, so updates are not held up |
| During busy season | Holiday closures, "not taking new clients" notices | Nothing new; no redesigns, no migrations |
| After filing deadlines | Hours back to normal, extension guidance | Review which firms never updated and why |
| Quiet months | New articles, team changes, new service pages | Run the yearly content review against your advertising checklist |
The single most useful thing a firm can publish in January is a plain list of what to bring and how to get it to them securely. That list belongs on the website; the documents themselves belong in the portal.
Where We.Inc fits, and where it does not
Good fit: networks of small and mid-size firms that need credible, easy-to-maintain sites under a shared brand or standard.
Not a fit: if you need a client portal, document exchange or e-signature built into the website. Use a portal product for that and link it.
Book a demo and we will set up a sample member firm under your brand.
Sources
Last checked 2026-10-25. This page is general information, not legal advice.
- eCFR, 31 CFR 10.30, Solicitation.
- Google Search Central, Spam policies for Google web search: scaled content abuse.
Book a demo. Pricing is tailored to your volume and setup, and you get your exact price on the call. 0% transaction fee.
Frequently asked questions
Can member firms exchange documents with clients on the site?
No. The sites are marketing sites, not secure portals. Link to the client portal each firm already uses.
Can we review what member firms publish?
Yes. Switch on approval before publishing for all firms or chosen ones; your reviewer approves or asks for changes in one step.
Can we include websites in membership?
Yes. Give each firm a plan with the site limit you choose, or charge through your own connected Stripe account.
Keep reading
- White label website builder: the We.Inc platform
- White-label websites for associations and chapters
- Client permissions: what each site owner can do
- White-label reseller billing
- Branded client emails
- Website governance policy template
More in White Label
- Your users run their practice in your software. Their website is the one part that isn’t
- Your clients describe the business. The first draft builds itself, under your name
- Chapter websites that outlast the volunteers who build them
- Who changed it, and when: the audit log, line by line
- One brand, hundreds of dealers, and a website for each
- Give business customers and members a website, under your institution's name
- Keep every site on-brand without approving every comma
- Every email your clients get, in your name
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