LaSalle Street bridge in Chicago's financial district, black and white.

Bookkeeping · Financial Analysis · Recognition

Every figure,
personally attended.

We keep your books accurate, tell you plainly what the numbers mean, and make sure your business is known by the people who matter most.

The practice

Small by design.

Margin & Mark is a boutique bookkeeping, financial analysis, and AI visibility firm for owner-led companies in Omaha, Memphis, and across the U.S. We take on a limited number of clients, so no one is ever secondary. You will always know who is doing your work, and you can reach them directly.

I

Partners, by name

You work directly with a partner, not a rotating team. The person who keeps your books is the person who explains them.

II

Before you ask

We watch the deadlines and the trends so you don't have to. If something needs your attention, you hear it from us first, with time to act.

III

Discretion, always

Your numbers stay between us. We never share client names or details without written permission.

Operations

Books that are never behind.

Bookkeeping

Every transaction recorded and categorized correctly, every week.

Month-end close

Your books closed on time each month, with numbers you can sign without second-guessing.

Compliance

Deadlines are tracked well ahead and obligations reviewed each quarter. We prepare the records and schedules your CPA needs and coordinate with them directly, so every filing arrives complete, on time, and without incident.

View all bookkeeping services
Spiral staircase inside the Rookery Building on LaSalle Street in Chicago, black and white.
LaSalle Street looking north from Jackson Boulevard in Chicago's financial district, black and white.

Financial Analysis

Know what your numbers are telling you.

Clean books are the starting point. Dustin looks at what they show: where the cash is going, which work actually makes money, and what could go wrong, so you make your next decision with the full picture.

Financial planning and analysis

Where is your profit coming from?

Our financial planning and analysis shows where the business stands today and where it is heading, in plain terms.

Cash flow forecast

What will next quarter ask of you?

Our cash flow forecasting projects cash in and out, so a shortfall shows up early, with time to plan around it.

Financial modeling

What if your top client leaves?

Our financial modeling tests the what-ifs before you commit, so you can see what each option would cost and what it could return.

Recognition · Brand & AI visibility

Known before you're introduced.

Knowing where your margin comes from is half the work. The other half is making sure the right clients find you. Recognition is Margin & Mark's brand and AI visibility practice, led by Nicole. It covers how your business shows up online, so when someone asks a colleague or an AI tool who to call, your name comes up. Margin & Mark accounting clients receive priority scheduling and a preferred rate.

“Ask an AI tool who the best firm in your field is in your city. If the answer isn't you, that's the work.”
Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge in Omaha, Nebraska, at sunset.

Earned attention

Paid ads rent attention. We help you build your own, with a consistent presence across Google Business, Meta, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, and TikTok, before a single dollar goes to boosts.

A website that answers

Your site is now read by AI before it is read by people. We rewrite and restructure it so search engines and AI tools can state exactly what you do, who you serve, and why you are worth recommending.

Content with a point of view

Short-form video, campaigns, and posts built around one clear position, so your business stops blending in and starts being remembered. Every piece is measured and refined each month.

Alongside your team

Already have a marketing team or agency? We work with them as the strategist, setting the direction, reviewing the work, and connecting every campaign to inquiries and revenue.

The Monthly Reading

Other firms send spreadsheets. We send plain English.

Each month, after your books are closed, Dustin writes to you. One page, in plain English: what happened, why it matters, and what to watch next month. If you'd rather talk it through, he'll make the time.

Margin & Mark

October 2026

September closed clean and on time. Revenue finished 4 percent ahead of plan, but the reason matters more than the number: two large service jobs landed early. October will likely give some of that back.

Margin is where I'd ask for your attention. Parts margin slipped from 31 to 28 percent over the quarter. The cause isn't pricing. Standard costs on three product lines haven't caught up to what you now pay suppliers. I'd suggest we update them before your November pricing review.

Cash is healthy, but less of it is free than it looks. Roughly a third of the balance on hand is already committed to payroll, the equipment note, and the December tax deposit.

Nothing here is urgent. All of it is worth a conversation. I'm available Thursday if you'd like to walk through it.

Dustin

Partner

Sample letter. Details are illustrative.

The partners

MeetMargin&Mark

One partner protects your margin.

The other makes your mark.

The Margin

Dustin

Partner, accounting & financial analysis

20+

Years in corporate finance

125 bps

Cut in borrowing costs

2

Graduate degrees: MSF, MBA

It began on LaSalle Street.

Dustin is a corporate finance executive who has spent more than two decades reading the numbers that owners, boards, and lenders make decisions on.

His career began in 2003 at The Northern Trust Company in Chicago, reviewing closed loans line by line. He still works to the standard he learned there. Every figure is checked, and every error is traced to its source.

Much of his career has been spent inside private-equity-owned companies, where results are examined every month by boards, lenders, and investors. He has consolidated financial statements for entities across Europe, Asia, and the United States, built lender packages that kept credit covenants in compliance, modeled capital-raising timing against a $350 million credit facility, and structured short-term borrowing that cut revolver interest by up to 125 basis points. At Cummins Mid-South and at Hub International, a North American insurance brokerage with more than $1 billion in annual revenue, he built the profitability, forecasting, and capital investment models leadership relied on.

At Margin & Mark, Dustin leads bookkeeping, month-end close, compliance, and financial analysis. He writes every client's monthly letter himself, so the person interpreting your numbers is the person who knows them best.

Born and raised in Tennessee, Dustin holds a Master of Science in Finance from Indiana University, an MBA from Benedictine University, and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from the University of Memphis. He is a certified Six Sigma Green Belt.

The Mark

Nicole

Partner, brand & AI visibility

112.2K

Views

up 3,400%

31K

People reached

up 4,200%

2.6K

Page visits

up 846%

One client's Facebook results in 90 days. See the dashboards below.

It began with people.

Nicole is a brand strategist who makes businesses the obvious choice, both to the clients they want and to the AI tools those clients now ask first.

She developed Model Trust Architecture, a framework for making a business identifiable and trusted by both people and the AI tools they ask, so every post, page, and profile reinforces the same position.

She advises business owners, executives, and institutional leaders across company sizes and sectors, including nonprofits, construction, land development, real estate, and law enforcement, and tailors every strategy to the audience each client most wants to reach.

Before brand strategy, Nicole spent a decade in human resources leadership at organizations including Archon Group (Goldman Sachs), Turner Construction, Safety-Kleen, and Data Critical (GE Medical). She led workplace investigations, supported mergers and acquisitions through due diligence and risk assessment, and advised executives on their most sensitive matters. It shapes how she works today. She is discreet, and she knows how people decide whom to trust.

A native Texan who now calls Omaha home, Nicole holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Psychology from the University of Mississippi, with an emphasis in Public Relations and a minor in Spanish. She serves on the Board of Directors for Elkhorn Schools TeamMates, a youth mentoring program.

We don't name our clients.

Every result below is real. The names stay private unless a client tells us otherwise.

Recognition in practice

See for yourself.

These are real Facebook dashboards from three of Nicole's clients, exactly as Meta reported them. Click any one to see the full screen.

Client 1 · 90 days

112K

views

31K

people reached

2.6K

page visits

235

link clicks

Client 2 · 90 days

58K

views

25K

people reached

1.2K

interactions

916

page visits

Client 3 · Long-term

8,800

link clicks

11.1K

page visits

7.1K

interactions

143

new followers

Screenshots shown as reported by Meta. Results vary by business and starting point.

Common questions

What people ask us first.

If your question isn't here, ask us directly.

It starts with an introduction. We meet, learn how your business runs, and listen to what you need. From there we propose a scope, agree on a cadence, and begin with a short onboarding so the work starts cleanly and without disruption to your daily operations.

We review your current books, systems, and recent activity, resolve anything that needs attention, and set up secure access. The timeline depends on the condition of your records, and you'll have a clear one before we begin.

Through secure access you grant directly within your accounting software and financial accounts. You stay in control, and access can be adjusted or removed at any time.

Every month, in writing. After each close, your partner sends The Monthly Reading: a one-page letter explaining what your numbers did, what they mean, and what deserves your attention next. Between letters, you can reach your partner directly.

Yes, and we prefer to. We don't prepare tax returns or provide audit services. We keep your books, prepare the records and schedules your CPA needs, and coordinate with them directly, so filing season arrives organized and without surprises.

Owner-led companies that want the kind of financial clarity usually reserved for businesses with boards and investors. Our partners' experience spans insurance, industrial distribution, specialty chemicals, and consumer finance, and the same discipline applies to any business with real operations and real decisions ahead.

Margin & Mark has partners in Omaha, Nebraska and Memphis, Tennessee, and serves clients across the United States, in person or by private video, by appointment.

Each engagement is priced to the scope of your business. After our first conversation, you'll receive a written proposal with clear terms before any work begins.

If you want tax preparation, an audit, or the lowest possible fee, we are not the right firm, and we will gladly point you to one that is.

The concierge

Request an introduction.

Tell us about your company and what you need. We'll take it from there.

Omaha, Nebraska · Memphis, Tennessee

Serving clients across the United States

By appointment, in person or private video

Every inquiry is read by a partner. Not a sales team. We don't have one.

How may we help?

A partner replies within one business day.

Every inquiry is confidential.