Expense Management News And Insights | Mobilexpense Blog

SpendCatcher OCR Mobile App - Automate Expenses for Efficiency

Written by Jihane Karym | Aug 31, 2022
 

In the past years over half of global website traffic was generated by mobile devices. There are millions of apps available on the different app stores.

It is safe to say that you can do just about anything with your smartphone that you can do with your computer. And that includes expense management.

At Mobilexpense, we believe that expense management should be as easy as taking your phone out of your pocket and snapping a picture. And with SpendCatcher, users can do exactly that, allowing them to be productive wherever they are.

What is SpendCatcher?


SpendCatcher is one of Mobilexpense's mobile apps for on-the-go expense management, available on iOS and Android smartphones and tablets.

With SpendCatcher, transactions are created automatically. Whether it be an expense, a mileage or an allowance, the app guides the user and pre-fills fields wherever possible.

Users generate expenses by photographing a receipt or invoice, putting them through OCR scanning. Creating a mileage is as simple as entering a departure and destination in Google Maps. And as for complicated allowances, SpendCatcher relies on Mobilexpense's powerful engine to calculate them based on a few parameters.

SpendCatcher is user-centric and aims to facilitate the lives of traveling (and homeworking) employees. A mobile app allows people to be productive even in situations where they may otherwise not, such as in a taxi or while waiting for coffee to brew.

We believe that creating an expense should only take a few seconds, and SpendCatcher is our answer to that.

How SpendCatcher works

OCR app for expenses

The SpendCatcher app uses Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to automatically obtain payment information from receipts or invoices.

Users take a picture, the OCR does the rest: reading and extracting the date, total amount, merchant name and city from any proof of payment to create a transaction. The user then verifies and edits the expense line if needed before submitting it.

Mileages

Creating a compliant mileage is as easy as entering a departure and arrival point in the app. With Google Maps, SpendCatcher calculates the kilometres to which it allocates the accurate mileage cost.

This calculation is based on the mileage data, company policies and local rules and regulations (such as engine size or fuel type). Users may manually change the mileage to reflect a detour or kilometres travelled for private reasons. To account for deviations to controllers, users can enter comments.

Allowances

Allowances are notoriously complex to manage, however SpendCatcher makes the process a breeze. Travelers enter their departure and arrival points and date and any meal or accommodation options for which they require an allowance.

This allowance is accurately calculated based on company and country rules, including any necessary deductions (e.g. for meal vouchers or free meals). Users then add the resulting amount to an expense report, as with any other transaction.

User journey

SpendCatcher is your virtual assistant, as a business traveller.

Once you have created a travel request, open SpendCatcher to capture expenses at any time, receiving guidance at every step.

Getting coffee at the station? Snap a picture of your receipt as it is being handed to you and enjoy your drink, safe in the knowledge you will not lose the receipt. By the time you have boarded the train, OCR will have retrieved the relevant data without any further input.

Creating a mileage or allowance takes only a few seconds, and certainly less time than you need to finish that coffee.

On your way home, maybe in the back of a taxi, create your expense report and send it for approval. By the time you arrive home, it may already be approved and processing for payment.

How SpendCatcher improves productivity

The advantages of SpendCatcher are twofold.

  1. SpendCatcher takes the burden of entering information away from the user. Data entry is automated with the click of a button. This allows the user to take care of a low added value tasks such as expense management outside of what would otherwise be a productive part of their day. If a user can create their expenses on the metro or while having coffee, it leaves them more time for higher added value tasks when they are working.
  2. The OCR and HDE ensure higher data accuracy. This saves time for the user at data entry, and for the controller when auditing it. When the data is “first time right”, there is no need for endless back-and-forth between the user and the approver or controller. The controller need only spend time on inconsistencies, rather than verifying every single expense line.

Try SpendCatcher by Mobilexpense today and simplify your expense process while increasing your efficiency and productivity.