If you go through a lengthy statement, you’ll usually find much more information than just the transaction ledger. Account summary, notices, explanations texts, disclosures, and other pages surrounding the information that a bookkeeper requires.

If the aim is to transfer transaction data into a spreadsheet or an accounting system, processing everything can be unneeded. A more organized workflow starts by identifying pages of use before creating the output files.

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The number of pages doesn’t necessarily mean that more valuable data is available.

Imagine a company looking over several months of bank activity. The monthly PDFs could contain 10 or more pages but only a small portion of the document contains the essential transaction tables required for accounting.

Manually copying the tables is a solution however it’s slow and could lead to mistakes in typing. Businesses can instead convert bank statements to Excel while limiting the conversion to relevant pages.

Docubrew has a page preview feature which enables the user to see and choose which pages will be processed. You can leave out cover sheets, disclosures and other pages.

A Preview First gives You More Control

Automation is only useful when you can see the process it’s performing.

Rather than simply processing a document in a blind way, Docubrew lets users preview statements prior to completing the conversion. It extracts figures directly from the source statement instead of estimating the financial value.

When converting a PDF bank statement into Excel it gives the user an opportunity for you to verify that the right pages are selected. You can also review the extracted data prior to downloading the final result.

It’s a basic checkpoint but it’s a crucial one if financial documents are involved.

The Export should be shaped by the destination

The next question is what you’re planning to do with the transaction.

Excel is great for bookkeepers needing to review or sort information. CSV might be a better choice when you’re trying to transfer the data to a different system. Docubrew also has support for QBO output.

If you want to convert their bank statements to CSV can do this through the creation of the CSV file, instead of first making an Excel document, and manually altering its format.

Docubrew’s output is optimized to work with accounting platforms like QuickBooks, Xero, and FreshBooks and spreadsheet-based workflows.

Scanned papers can be able to be integrated into the same workflow

Conversion selective isn’t restricted to digitally generated PDFs.

Businesses sometimes have older statements which are available only as scans of paper. Docubrew includes OCR for PDFs that have been scanned and allows these documents to be processed too.

It can be extremely useful when working on historic accounting projects, in which some documents were digitally digitized whereas others were taken directly from paper. Instead of creating two different workflows, documents could be processed using the same general conversion and reviewed before being exported.

Process locally or utilize the Cloud

It is essential to take into consideration how documents are handled and their output.

Docubrew’s Windows Desktop application converts documents locally to the client’s computer. Cloud processing is accessible to users who prefer to use browser-based processes. Docubrew says that uploaded files are encrypted and the files uploaded and the documents converted will be automatically deleted within 24 hours.

The last step in converting an account statement from PDF into Excel isn’t to put each page into the software in hopes of getting a useful output.

Begin by reviewing the pages that contain the information you require. Review the information being gathered. Choose the best format for the next accounting task.

A more efficient workflow for financial transactions can begin with less processing however, it is by intentionally making less processing.