What to Expect During Your Signing Meeting with Patrick Accounting

You’ve made the decision to partner with an accounting firm, and now you're wondering, "What happens next?"

Do they truly understand your business? Will they really take tasks off your plate? Will the handoff be seamless or stressful?

As a business owner, you want clarity, not more uncertainty.

That's why, at Patrick Accounting, we’ve built a process that removes the guesswork to make your transition as smooth as possible. We start with a signing meeting to set a strong foundation for our partnership.

In this article, you'll learn what to expect during that call, including the services we'll cover, the digital process, and how we address the most common client concerns—so you can move forward with total confidence.

What is a Signing Meeting?

The signing meeting is a service agreement call between you (the business owner) and our team where we formalize our working relationship. This important step happens after you’ve verbally agreed to work with us and received a ballpark estimate of your costs.

Think of it as the bridge between “Yes, I want to work with you” and actually beginning the work. It’s where we get specific about exactly which services you’re signing up for and how everything will work.

While similar conversations with other firms might be vague or rushed, we’ve specifically designed this call to be thorough and transparent. We want you to fully understand what you’re getting and how we’ll work together before signing anything.

What Happens During the Signing Meeting with Patrick Accounting?

This 30-minute call is where everything comes together. We’ll walk through your proposal in detail, making sure you understand exactly what you’re signing up for and addressing any questions you have about the partnership. 

During this call, we focus on three main areas: reviewing your detailed proposal, walking through the specific services you’ll receive, and completing the digital signing process. Let’s look at each of these components:

1. Reviewing Your Detailed Proposal

We'll present your formal proposal for the first time during this call. While you've already received a ballpark estimate during previous conversations, this is where you'll see the detailed breakdown of:

• Your monthly service fee
• The one-time investment to get started
• Any additional fees that might apply

2. Walking Through Your Scope of Services

We'll go through our service agreement line by line, explaining exactly what we’ll be handling for you. This includes:

• Bookkeeping responsibilities we’ll take over
• Tax services included in your package
• Reporting you can expect to receive
• Advisory services included

This detailed walkthrough ensures you understand exactly what we’ll be taking off your plate. We encourage questions during this part of the call. We want you to feel 100% confident in what you’re signing up for.

3. Digital Signing Process

After reviewing everything together, if you're ready to move forward, we’ll ask you to digitally sign the service agreement right there on the call. Don't worry about printing or scanning anything—we make the process simple and paperless.

Our service agreements are month-to-month, which means you're never locked into a long-term contract. We believe in earning your business each month by delivering exceptional service.

Common Questions We Address During This Call

Business owners often have similar concerns when transitioning to a new accounting partner. We structured our signing call to address these questions head-on, eliminating uncertainty and building confidence in our partnership from day one. Here are some of the most common questions we get during this call:

“Can I split the one-time investment into payments?”

Absolutely! We understand that cash flow is important, especially when you’re making a transition. We typically allow you to break the one-time investment into two or three equal monthly payments to make it more manageable.

“What exactly stays on my plate vs. what will you handle?”

This is one of the most important clarifications we make during the call. We’ll outline exactly which tasks we’ll take over and which responsibilities will remain with you or your team. This prevents any confusion or dropped balls during the transition.

“What if I want to add services later?”

During the call, we'll show you all available service packages. While we’ll recommend the package that best fits your current needs, we’ll also explain other options so you understand what else is available if your needs change in the future.

“How does the transition actually work?”

We’ll walk you through the exact steps of how we’ll begin working together, including what happens immediately after you sign the agreement and what you can expect in the first 90 days of our partnership.

What Happens After You Sign with Patrick Accounting

Once you’ve signed the service agreement, a few things happen next:

Requesting Additional Documents Needed

We’ll need to get some additional documents from you, such as:

• A voided check from the accounts you want to use for payroll processing and your monthly accounting fee
• Signatures on IRS documents that allow us to represent you

Scheduling Your Initial Strategy Session

This is where the real work begins. We’ll schedule your Initial Strategy Session (ISS) with your dedicated accounting team. This is the meeting where we’ll:

• Introduce you to the accounting managers, directors, and staff accountants who will be working with you
• Set up systems and request access to needed systems and accounts
• Begin the detailed process of organizing your financial information

Setting Up Your Payroll Kickoff Call

We’ll also schedule a separate payroll kickoff call to get that process set up correctly from the start.

Why Patrick Accounting’s Process is Different

While many accounting firms focus simply on completing required paperwork, our service agreement call reflects our broader philosophy about client relationships: transparency, clarity, and true partnership. We’ve intentionally designed our process to stand out from traditional accounting experiences in several important ways:

Transparency From Start to Finish

Unlike many accounting firms that rush through paperwork without proper explanation, we believe you deserve to fully understand what you’re signing. Our detailed walkthrough means there are no surprises down the road.

No Long-Term Contracts

We don’t believe in locking clients into lengthy agreements. Our month-to-month service model means we have to earn your business every single month by delivering exceptional service.

Team Approach

You’re not getting just one accountant—you’re getting an entire team dedicated to your success. During the onboarding process, you’ll meet everyone who will be working on your account.

Ready to Start Your Journey to Clarity and Confidence?

Now, you know exactly what to expect during your signing meeting, and you can see how it sets the stage for a successful partnership. 

We know switching accounting partners or signing up with one for the first time can feel overwhelming. That’s why we’ve designed every step with intention, including this meeting, to provide clarity and confidence.

Want to learn more about our approach? Check out “What to Expect During Your First 90 Days with Patrick Accounting” for a detailed look at our onboarding process.

If you haven’t yet signed on with us, now’s the perfect time to explore what that partnership could look like.

At Patrick Accounting, we don’t just onboard clients—we build long-term partnerships grounded in transparency and results. Ready to start your journey? Schedule a call with our team today.