Mobile Expense Tracker App: Benefits & How It Works

Combining cloud technology and ever-improving smartphone apps, software companies are able to unlock considerable benefits for you and your employees. Using a mobile expense app will positively impact the way you manage employee expenses as well as your bottom line. Below are some of the most notable benefits you will experience with the use of a mobile expense management app.

On the go expense submission

Paperwork in every form is a drag, even more so for employees focused on preparing a presentation for an important meeting or analysing the outcome of said meeting. And these things are what you want them spending their precious time and energy one, not manual tasks with little added value such as expense submission.

The ability to submit expenses on the go allows your employee to do so immediately following a drive or meeting rather than waiting to get back to the office. This helps eliminate the risk of error and allows them to focus on the more important tasks at hand, rather than trying to remember which client they had lunch with three weeks ago.

Managing expenses with a mobile app turns the time consuming task of submitting expenses into a job done quickly in a few taps while preparing a coffee.

Access anywhere, anytime

A mobile expense tracking app combined with a cloud-based database means that employees can submit, approve and access expense reports at any time, from anywhere. When all you need is an internet connection, this removes barriers to fulfilling tedious but necessary tasks such as expense submission.

If they weren't already, flexibility and workforce mobility have certainly proven to be essential in ensuring business resilience. Replacing paper-based expense submission with a mobile, digital solution is an efficient way of making your employees' lives (and your own!) more hassle-free.

No more data loss

Traveling for work, even if it's by car just across the border, can be overwhelming at any time for employees, more so now with the different restrictions in place. As such, the risk of damaging or losing receipts is increased during business trips. And there is nothing worse for a hard working employee than to travel at some risk to themselves only to realise the money they spent out of pocket may not be recovered due to a misplaced receipt.

A mobile expense management app allows them to scan receipts in real time, thus avoiding data loss of any kind. And with the help of OCR, receipt data is extracted behind the scenes making expense submission a breeze. All the data your employees and financial controllers need is safe, backed up on the cloud.

Real time approval and notifications

With a mobile expense tracking app, you can enforce your corporate expense policies by automating approval processes and providing employees with helpful notifications.

Automated approvals allow you to cut down on the time spent by approvers verifying claims, allowing them to focus on non-compliant or out of the ordinary items. They also cut down on the time it takes for most expenses to be processed, leading to happier employees and cleaner books.

Notifications help positively influence user behaviour and keep track of possibly suspicious activities. This way, when they forget to attach a receipt or if the data entered manually doesn't add up, they will be instantly notified and able to make changes without delaying the process. Notifications also provide information for users to know the status of their claims without having to contact someone from the finance department, reducing the time spent by all parties.

Better spending awareness

With paper-based processes, it is nearly impossible for your employees and managers to have a global view on spend. This would require additional work and spreadsheets, introducing the possibility for errors and forgetfulness.

With a mobile expense management app, the digital database, integrated corporate policies and easy to use reporting tools do the work for you. Indeed, it provides you with business insights on which you can make data-driven decisions. It also provides employees with a certain level of accountability, making them more aware of their own spending and reminding them of existing policies.

Smartphones and apps are ubiquitous nowadays, making it easy for your employees to adopt a mobile expense tracking solution, especially if it improves their experience of submitting expenses. For your organisation, the benefits are just as clear: more mobility, additional opportunities to save money and increase productivity, better expense control and increased policy compliance.