When you open a lengthy statement, you’ll find plenty more than the ledger of transactions. Account summaries, explanations, notices and disclosures can be found in the essential information that a bookkeeper needs.
The processing of all data isn’t necessary if the goal of the project is to move transactions into an accounting system or spreadsheet. A more focused workflow begins by identifying the pages that are useful before creating the output file.
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The number of pages on a page doesn’t automatically mean more useful data
Look at a business that is reviewing its banking operations over a period of months. Although each PDF could contain ten pages or more but only a tiny portion of it will contain the tables required for accounting.
Manually copying the tables is one solution, but it’s slow and can lead to typing mistakes. Businesses can instead convert bank statements to Excel with the intention of limiting the conversion process to pages that are relevant.
Docubrew provides a preview of pages that allows the user to preview and choose what pages are processed. You can also remove cover sheets, disclosures and other pages.
You’ll have more control when you preview the first time
Automation is best utilized in situations where the user can monitor what’s happening.
Rather than using a blind process to process a whole document, Docubrew lets users preview statements before beginning the conversion. The program makes use of the original statement to extract figures instead of trying to estimate the value of financials.
When converting a PDF bank statement to Excel, that preview creates an opportunity to make sure the appropriate pages have been selected and examine the extracted information before downloading the result.
This is an easy but crucial checkpoint when it is about financial documents.
Exports should be designed by the destination
What do you have in mind regarding the sale?
Excel excel is a great tool for bookkeepers that need to review or sort data. If the data is being transferred to another system, CSV may fit the workflow better. Docubrew is also able to output QBO.
If you want to convert their bank statements to CSV could do this through the creation of an CSV file instead of first making an Excel document, and manually altering its format.
Docubrew output can be used in conjunction with accounting platforms such as QuickBooks, Xero and FreshBooks as well as spreadsheets.
Scanned Paper Statements Can Join the same Workflow
Conversion selective isn’t restricted to PDFs that are digitally created.
Sometimes, companies have statements from the past available only in paper scans. Docubrew includes OCR for scanned PDF statements which allows those documents to be processed as well.
It can be beneficial during historical bookkeeping projects where recent records are digital but earlier documents were scanned from paper. Instead of having two distinct workflows, the documents can be processed through the same process of conversion and then analyzed prior to export.
Process Locally or Use Cloud
The outcome of financial documents is just as important as the way they are dealt with.
Docubrew’s Windows desktop application handles the conversion locally, and stores client documents in the system. Cloud processing is accessible to users who prefer browser-based processes. Docubrew says that uploaded files are secured and uploaded documents as well as the converted documents are automatically deleted after 24 hours.
The last step to convert the bank statement as PDF to Excel isn’t to put every page of the document into Excel in hopes of getting a useful output.
Begin by looking at the pages with the data you need. Examine what is being removed. Then choose the appropriate format to meet the accounting task to follow.
A better financial workflow may begin with less processing, but rather by deliberately making less processing.