This adventure with you has been so much fun that we wanted to offer you some takeaways that keep on giving. So far, we have discussed how to manage those clients who do offer bank account access as well as various ways to fetch documents.
But what about the clients who don’t offer access?
Sending reminders every single month for your client to upload their statements is time consuming and just unproductive. Additionally, when they do upload the statements, you must go back and check the folders to see if they have indeed done so.
There are a few resources and step by steps that we wanted to show you we have implemented within our own firm to help streamline this process.
Zapier
My Appy Hour partner in crime, Heather Satterley, got me hooked on Zapier. If you haven’t played with this tool, it is a must. The possibilities are endless.
With Zapier, you can easily automate any process that would otherwise require manual input or tedious repetition. It connects more than 5,000 apps together, with no coding background required.
Statement Request to Client
We use Zapier for a variety of things, including automatically reminding our clients to upload their statements at the beginning of the month. We currently use Slack for client correspondence, so we have it mapped directly to that client’s slack channel.
If you are interested in adopting this automation, HERE is the link to copy our workflow.
Notification of Statement Upload
Using Zapier, you are able to set up an automation that will send your team a slack message with the file name and folder location where it was uploaded so that you are always informed of when you receive a new file from your clients.
In this instance, we used Zapier to connect Box and Slack, but there are many different apps to connect in the way that works best for your firm.
To use this zap, CLICK HERE.
Power Automate
If you are a Microsoft user, you can create the same or similar automation using Power Automate. This tool is very similar to Zapier, except it comes as part of the Microsoft ecosystem.
Statement Request to Client
I could not seem to share a link, but was able to grab a screenshot of the flow I chose to use.
If you would like to learn more about how to set up this automation using Power Automate, CLICK HERE.
Notification of Statement Upload
Again, as Power Automate works very similar to Zapier, you are able to create the same workflow. Since you are in the Microsoft ecosystem, you can connect SharePoint to Teams and allow your team to get a notification when files are uploaded.
With a long to-do list as accountants, this doesn’t have to be one of them. As we close the final of our three-part series of statements chasing solutions, we hope you have gained some good insights and can now streamline your firm's statement workflows.
Liz Scott is a multi-business entrepreneur working to bring together technology and accountants through her business, Liz Scott Consulting. A member of Intuit Trainer/Writer Network, she authored and taught Master level courses, including Advisory Guides and Consulting Tools for Accountants. In addition to Liz Scott Consulting, she also owns Accounting Lifeline, a firm to serve small businesses with their financial needs. Liz is a co-host of the "Appy Hour," which helps other accountants learn about the different tools and apps for small business needs. Holding a high passion for real estate investment, she owns properties throughout Oklahoma.
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