The Challenge

Smart SETC had a mission to help self-employed individuals claim Self-Employment Tax Credits (SETC) under the American Rescue Plan. These credits were crucial for pandemic relief, but accessing them was anything but straightforward.

Here’s why the process was so tough

Many self-employed people didn’t know they were eligible.
IRS forms and requirements were overwhelming for those who did.
Errors in filing meant losing out on much-needed funds.

Smart SETC aimed to simplify this with a user-friendly platform that

Guided users step-by-step.
Ensured compliance with IRS rules.
Maximized every possible credit.

But obstacles piled up

Integrating with TaxStatus to retrieve IRS data wasn’t easy.
Tight deadlines loomed as legislative changes threatened to complicate filing.

For the people relying on these credits, time and accuracy were critical.

Smart SETC wasn’t just building a tool-they were solving a real problem when it mattered most.

The Idea

Smart SETC had a clear goal: to make it easier for self-employed individuals to claim Self-Employment Tax Credits (SETC) without dealing with the stress of tax jargon or complicated processes.

Here’s what they wanted

A simple platform anyone could use.

Long-term scalability to handle growing traffic and adapt to changes in tax laws.

Key user-friendly features included

Step-by-step questionnaires to confirm eligibility.

Easy upload options for tax returns.

Notifications to guide users towards completion stress-free.

On the backend, we gave Smart SETC tools to stay organized:

An admin panel to manage tickets and referrals.

Essential integrations:

HubSpot for customer management.
Google Analytics to track growth.
TaxStatus for IRS data integration.
DocuSign for secure agreements.
Hotjar to study user behavior.
Stripe & PayPal for secure payments.

The Solution

Turning Smart SETC’s vision into reality meant creating a platform that worked seamlessly for self-employed individuals navigating tax credits.

Here’s how we made it happen

Our process

Discovery & planning (weeks 1-2): We studied Smart SETC’s goals, user challenges, and IRS compliance needs.
Design (weeks 3-4): Clear, simple wireframes and mockups prioritized ease of use, even for non-tech-savvy individuals.
Development: We built the platform piece by piece, integrating tools like TaxStatus and Hotjar, and even redesigned the app midway based on ongoing feedback.

Challenges we overcame

IRS compliance: Accuracy was key, achieved through precise data integration with TaxStatus.
Centralized analytics: A single source for actionable insights covering user trends and system performance.
Simplified UX: Making the platform intuitive without sacrificing key features.
Tight deadlines: Balancing speed and quality to meet looming end-of-year filing requirements.

Main features delivered

For users:

Easy tax return uploads.
Simple questionnaires to check eligibility.
Notifications to guide them to completion.

For admins:

Centralized ticketing for smooth support.
Referral program integrations to drive growth.

Essential integrations:

HubSpot for CRM,
Google Analytics for insights,
TaxStatus for secure IRS data,
DocuSign for agreements,
Hotjar for UX feedback.

The result?

A scalable, intuitive platform that worked and solved a real problem-helping self-employed individuals access critical financial relief with ease and confidence.

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