Patrick Dichter @patrickdichter Twitter profile

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Patrick Dichter

2 years

Updating my bio for new followers - I’ve acquired 3 accounting firms. Appletree provides bookkeeping, tax and consulting to small businesses nationwide. Previous background was sales and advisory. Dad of 3 boys.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

My wife had her first customer today for her mobile veterinary biz. I’m geeking out for her.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Small business owners can make $200-400k doing $1-2M revenue and wear a lot of hats OR Make $500k-1.5M doing $3-6M revenue with a reliable team Just don’t get stuck in between for long with more stress and less income.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Profit sharing is better than giving equity to key employees. Easier to manage, less legal, gives upside, aligns incentives.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Doing 30-60 minutes of work a day while on vaca actually helps me relax and be present. Total blinders and closed email would just stress me out. Anyone else?

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Our gym lets members who own a small biz hang a banner for free. Brands and community don’t build themselves amiright #sweatymarketing

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

@aymanalabdul Truth! And ‘don’t order the fish on Monday.’

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

9 months

I’ve acquired 3 accounting firms. Here’s how the revenue retention has gone 👇

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

I’m trying to close a +$1M small biz while my cousin just sold his fintech company for +$250M….So there’s that.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

8 months

If you’re buying a business you need to increase revenue after your first 2-3 months of integration. Here’s 20 simple, effective ways to boost sales. 💰 👇

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

10 months

Levels to wealth: - ordering appetizers fearlessly - house cleaner & grocery delivery - not worrying about health insurance premiums - full size Halloween candy - buying ski passes for the fam without wincing I’m 2/5. Onwards.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

If you buy a business, expect profitability to drop for 6-18 months. Prior owner kept it lean, you have debt payments, and errrybody wants a raise suddenly. Here’s 5 tactics to help:

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

Finally closed an acquisition today! Appletree Business Services is a bookkeeping and tax firm serving +60 small businesses.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

“My accountant is retiring. Need a new one.” - 1/3 of our marketing leads Could be nothing.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

Holy roll up…my wife is a veterinarian. Her old practice sold to private equity. We move across the country and 3 weeks later the same group buys her new practice.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

“I don’t think I’m the best mom, wife or friend all the time. In fact I’ve been told that. But I’m great at accounting and tax….and I can control that and I love my work.” - a candidate we interviewed this week That call is going to haunt me for a bit. 😳

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

On zoom going over accounting proposal with a dentist… “This all sounds good. What’s the cost?” - him “Depends on your insurance! Ha!” He didn’t laugh. End scene.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

My quick bio for new followers - I’m a small business geek. Sold door to door every summer to pay for college, sales manager for a marketing startup from $0 to $35M, and my last few years I’ve been in small business advising. Fly fisherman. Dad of 3 boys.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

@SullyBusiness A few break my brain moments….I got wait listed at Yale and knew kids whose parents donated money and got in with weaker apps….then my perception of wealth was shattered at U of Denver when friends came from old money…seeing the family safety net of most tech founders

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Searchers trying to buy accounting firms are delusional. I take calls from them every week giving a dose of reality. After looking at hundreds of firms and buying 3, here’s the reality…

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

How to build a small business budget for 2023 in under an hour. Quick n dirty…let’s go! 💰🤓

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Every time a company moves from Quickbooks desktop to Quickbooks online, an angel gets its wings.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

My wife picked up this incredible cake today… The bakery flooded last night and had no power. Staff in rain boots, using lanterns, smiling, cranking orders on Xmas eve. Small business owners built different. 😤

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

It’s not all profits and glory in small biz M&A. Had a sobering conversation with an operator who bought a lab biz 5 years ago. “I’m grinding away. Stressed out. I could’ve made more money working for someone else.”

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

I’ve yet to see an owner doing their own bookkeeping that has clean books. I will share once I see it if that day comes.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

One year ago today I started the conversation that lead to me buying Appletree. Cold email.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Accounting Firm Acquisition #3 within 12 months is official. Here’s why I’m excited about this one…. 👇

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

‘Doing my own bookkeeping was a mistake.’ - Owner who went to Ivy League school and worked in private equity If that big brain realized this, you should too. It’ll fall behind, you’ll make mistakes, and your time is better spent elsewhere.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

7 months

2 year anniversary of my acquisition of Appletree yesterday. Time has flown by.

Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

Finally closed an acquisition today! Appletree Business Services is a bookkeeping and tax firm serving +60 small businesses.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

9 months

Part of my job as owner is being calm, predictable, and positive for our team. What’s that look like? On time, consistent meeting schedule, follow through, pragmatic, upbeat. I vent to my peer group and ride an emotional roller coaster - but I don’t let my team feel that.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Official announcement on another accounting firm acquisition:

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 months

Doing acquisitions is like having kids. 1-2 years later you forget how hard it is and debate doing it again. In other news I just sent another LOI…

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

PSA: talk to your accountant before you implement Profit First. 90% of the time I see owners open +7 bank accounts and make a mess then stop doing it 2-3 months later.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Had coffee today with a guy who sold his accounting biz to a large firm. At least 50% of clients churned out. We haven’t lost a client so far after 4 months. Feeling grateful today.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

If you buy a business, here’s your guide to smooth accounting post close. This will help you get clean financials quickly and avoid painful mistakes:

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

6 months

My badass wife had a news article about her mobile vet biz yesterday. She didn’t enjoy her career much as a general practitioner and now she loves the niche she’s in.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 months

I’m excited to announce we’re now offering Due Diligence and Quality of Earnings services. If you’re looking to buy a business, we can help you earlier and more in depth.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Boomer habits we need more of: Taking notes during meetings Not replying immediately on Slack Sending a hand written note What else?

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

I always wanted to join a group of old timers ‘Panera coffee club’ and then I found #smbtwitter

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Spoiler alert: running a business is harder than searching for a business.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Our small biz bookkeeping and tax firm model that creates a win-win for clients and our team. 🧵

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

We’ve started structured 1-1s and it’s amazing how impactful those 45 minutes are - be consistent, be present, cheerlead and challenge.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Did I enjoy the pumpkin patch? Yes. Did I immediately get on bizbuysell looking at farms for sale after spending $60 and seeing +50 cars at 9am? Also yes.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

The good news: accountants are loyal employees and like security. The bad news: they’ll also stay in a toxic, overworked environment because change is scary. Just had a A+ candidate decline an offer. But I’ll stay on her like Nick Saban on a 5 star recruit

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 months

Friends don’t let friends choose Quickbooks desktop over QB Online.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

My wife is a veterinarian and the clinic she works at sold to private equity a year ago… They manage completely by spreadsheets. Zero sense of the culture and zero office visits. Feels like the wheels are falling off. Lesson in there.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

5 months

No. Your $2M home services business business doesn’t need GAAP financials and accrual basis. Cash basis, good monthly bookkeeping will do wonders.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Had beers with a business broker tonight. 2 big takeaways: 1. 90% of small biz owners over value their business 2. Search fund bros are annoy him and all sound the same

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

10 months

The range of SMB accounting: Bare Bones Bob pays $2k/year. Bookkeeping DIY, payroll DIY, meets tax pro once a year. Lifestyle Larry pays $42k/year. Pays for bookkeeping, payroll, bill pay, quarterly tax meetings, and has fractional CFO. Both own a marketing agency doing $1.5M

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

PPP round 1 worked. It also took 5 years off the life of every accountant.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

11 months

If you’re in a service business, you should be billing labor 3-4x the cost. 2x or less is a slippery slope. And don’t forget owner production time that doesn’t get accounted for or billed.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

7 months

Service businesses are hard enough. Don’t make it harder by building custom software. Off the shelf CRM, POS, etc will do just fine.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Small biz owners hate paying taxes in part because they see it everywhere and feel the transaction. Payroll taxes, sales tax, corporate tax, income tax, capital gains tax. Employees just have a direct deposit with a haircut. If they felt it like biz owners they’d riot.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Between now and April 18 your tax pro is going to: A) fire you as a client B) raise prices 50% C) retire D) die at their desk Here’s why the shit storm is happening 👇

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

4 months

I’m friends with 4 people who bought accounting firms last year. 3 of them feel like their house is completely on fire. Tread carefully and know you’re in for a knife fight in year 1 buying a firm that does tax. Understaffed + change management + staff relationships + client

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Called the plumber after my 3 year old clogged the toilet. Confirmed why everyone wants to buy a plumbing company.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

6 months

Acquisition #1 is the hardest to pull off and you might have to ‘overpay’ but then everything changes.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

6 months

If you’re not making +$80k profit per year, don’t worry about being an S Corp.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

I’m under LOI on another accounting firm acquisition and need to decide go or no go this week. I’ve been getting cold feet and still feel 40% yes 60% no. Here’s the scoop:

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 months

What gets your business from zero to $1M revenue: hustle, moving fast, saying yes to everything, wearing all the hats. To go from $1 to $5M you have to unlearn most those habits - delegate, plan ahead, let your team own it, say no to a lot.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

5 months

How to be ahead of 90% of businesses $1-5M revenue: - Spend more on digital marketing than your car payment - EOS implemented - Monthly bookkeeping - Have +10 google reviews - Reference checks hiring - Consistent leadership and accountability - Raise prices yearly

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Of the 200 accounting firm owners at this association conference there’s 2 of us who come from a searchfund/ETA background. Kevin has a MBA from Harvard. I have a Hawaiian shirt from Hawaii.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

11 months

It was fun to do this article with Hampton and reflect on how we’ve grown 3x in 18 months and show behind the scenes, even though I’m a tiny fish in the amazing group of entrepreneurs in Hampton.

Hampton

@HamptonFounders

11 months

Hampton member @patrickdichter is not an accountant. But that didn't stop him from buying (and 3Xing) an accounting firm. After just 18 months, they're on track for $3.5m Here's a breakdown on the acquisition, growth channels, challenges, untapped opportunities, and more👇

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

I’m at the age where I’m excited about the Herman Miller office chair I just scored on Craigslist…

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

10 months

Had a few alarming calls last week with people running to close on businesses where they’re overpaying by 50-100% and underestimating the work by 200%. i.e. wedding biz Covid bump that doubled SDE in 2022 and YTD 2023 is down 40%. No seller note. No due diligence help or

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Here’s the 7 most costly mistakes I see repeatedly with small business owners trying to grow from $0-2M. 📈 🧵

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

5 months

New life goal….to ski as well and often as my dad at his age. He’s 70, super healthy and still rips. He’ll get +40 ski days this year.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

9 months

The vet clinic where my wife is an employee got bought by big PE. Staff are dropping like flies, not much help from corporate. I’m sure the P&L looks great but capacity is shrinking quickly. I want the opposite for my acquisitions - happy staff, pay raises, more support.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Great trip to Miami with our mastermind. 10 accounting firm owners ranging from $500k - 6M revenue. Everyone shared financials, goals, and got constructive criticism.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

9 months

Bad bookkeeping can be very expensive. Example #735 . You have a $50k deposit from a loan, line of credit, ERC, etc. Bookkeeper categorizes it as income. If it doesn’t get caught you’ll pay $10-15k in taxes on that overstated income. Ouch.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

@sweatystartup Big if true

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

10 months

The GOATs of pricing power: Pumpkin patch Wedding vendors Airport bars Locksmith

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

I’m working on a blog article about small business scorecards and leading indicators. SMBs are fragile. You need to look at data weekly $0-2M. Then monthly data $2-5M. Unfortunately many poor bookkeeping and no data.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

@SMB_Attorney And then he asked you to coffee and did a 47 minute presentation on all the logical reasons whole life insurance is a great investment amiright

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

We’re hiring! If anyone on #taxtwitter is looking to join a great team after 4/18 I’d love to chat. Here’s our Accounting Manager role. First year is $80-110k, second year $90-130k. Will help you get EA or CPA. Remote role with reasonable hours. More details 👇

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

7 months

A candidate I’ve been pursuing for 10 months might join us…. If I think someone is an A+ player I will stay in touch forever to find a seat on the bus for them.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

One of our tax managers feels like he won the Super Bowl this week. A client had massive growth during Covid and got audited. After reviewing everything and talking with our tax manager, IRS sent a no change letter to our client.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

8 months

If you run a professional services business it’s key to pick a lane and stay in it - pricing, value prop, client profile, staff, etc. You cannot be Honda to some, Audi to a few, and a Bentley to your favorites. FWIW we’re a Toyota - reliable, not the cheapest, good value.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

11 months

If you have a fractional CFO and bad bookkeeping, you’re paying them $200-300/hour to try to make sense of messy data. Solid bookkeeping is the foundation and will get you the most value from a fractional CFO.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

My favorite reports in Quickbooks Online: - Trailing 12 month P&L with monthly columns on cash basis - 90 day Accounts Receivable aging summary - P&L for last year with % of revenue for each line item - Balance Sheet at year end vs current Yours?

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

5 months

Each tax season we try do something nice for our staff. Mobile car detailing for our local office staff today. Remote staff are getting care packages shipped. I saw @bhallcpa do this 2 tax seasons ago and stole the idea.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

My friend bought a fencing biz two months ago. Didn’t know anything about fencing. She’s already DOUBLED production by optimizing the schedule, planning better and inspiring the team. SMB inspo of the week.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Our tech stack has +30 SaaS subscriptions. Accounting firm owners have to be mad scientists constantly evaluating tools and going through the fun of migrations.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

I just realized a big part of our new client onboarding could be automated. Feeling excited for the future and dumb for taking this long. Zapier is a helluva drug.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Seeing my wife open her vet biz and my sister in law start at agency recently reminds me how much confusing crap there is for new entrepreneurs… Opening LLC, banking, state registrations, tax questions, getting paid, W9s, legal, credit cards, Quickbooks online, etc

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Keep separate business bank account and credit card ASAP. The biggest bookkeeping messes and tax nightmares are usually caused by mingling accounts.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

The day I’ve waited for years to come and thought might never come… My wife this week: “I’m thinking about opening my own practice.” She’s a veterinarian and has never wanted to do her own thing. Small mobile practice to start.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

My friend Cassi and I worked together for 9 years at our last 2 companies. Those companies hit the Inc500 fastest growing companies list 7/9 years. We both bought small businesses in 2021…

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

11 months

If you’re buying a business via asset sale, the purchase price allocation will have major tax impacts. You’ll want to allocate as much as reasonable to fixed assets vs goodwill because you can depreciate it faster. 5 year vs 15 year schedule. Buyer and seller must agree.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

6 months

We have 3 clients who are CPAs that bought businesses. And they picked us to handle their accounting and tax. 4 parts proud, 1 part wondering why the smartest CPAs are leaving public accounting.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

5 months

One KPI people sleep on: Accounts Receivable $. Set a goal to not let it exceed a certain dollar amount. Invoice faster, remind often, and pick up the phone.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

6 months

Want to sell your business? Messy financials are the #1 deal killer. Get solid accounting 2-3 years prior to listing for sale.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

3 years

Here’s my 4 favorite podcast episodes on small biz from this past year:

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

10 months

Trends we’re seeing with small biz clients: - Home services and trades revenue is steady - Any business reliant on buying FB/IG traffic is struggling - Accounts Receivable balances growing as they get paid slower - Hiring is not as hard as previously - Big EIDL loan balances

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Big month, big goals. The plan: - Mondays get yelled at by @alextoussaint25 . 2 kettlebell classes per week. - Laptop shut by 8:30pm. Bed by 10, wake 5:15. No weekday booze. - Send 3 proposals per week - 2 hours content per week, 3 hours recruiting. No IG 8-5 - 2 date nights

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

90 days post close on the accounting firm. Highs and lows: ✅ Retained all +70 clients ✅ Revenue up 10% YoY ✅ Culture seems healthy in transition 🚫 Understaffed by 2-3 🚫 Information overload 🚫 Closing before busy season

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Looks cool and linear on Twitter. Day to day is a knife fight. Proud of our team and what we’ve done so far

Justin C. Gohn

@justincgohn

1 year

Patrick Dichter @patrickdichter bought an accounting firm in 2021 And he's not an accountant In just over 1 year, he has: • Grown revenue from $1.2mil to $2.2mil • On pace for $3.5mil in 2023 Crazy This is how an outsider is crushing it in the accounting world

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

2 years

Building a 90 day onboarding plan can be a ton of work. 2 new bookkeepers start next week and I’m going to turn it into a competitive advantage… 1/x 🤓

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

10 months

“Full charge bookkeeper” is a term often used in the accounting industry that I wish more folks understood. They can handle fixed assets, depreciation schedule, journal entries, sales tax, accrual accounting, process payroll, clean up a balance sheet and prepare tax returns.

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Patrick Dichter

@patrickdichter

1 year

Limo business for sale doing $2M of SDE in a little town called Aspen. What won’t show up in the financials is the fact that your business slow season is prime fly fishing, and you’re next to 3 world class rivers. That’s worth another $500k… Big gulps huh?

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