Mobile Expense Management: The Ultimate Streamlining Guide

Mobile expense management (MEM) is a must for businesses and individuals alike. It allows users to track and organize mobile expenses on the go.

With the rise of smartphones and technology, expense management apps have changed how we manage our finances, making them faster and more efficient.

As more businesses and individuals start managing expenses with mobile solutions, they will see improvements in the accuracy and efficiency of financial processes.

What is mobile expense management?

Mobile expense management is not just a process, it’s a game-changer. It’s the art of tracking, controlling, and approving expenses incurred by employees using their mobile devices for work purposes such as business travel, client meetings, and remote work. 

It’s about empowering your team to manage their expenses efficiently and transparently, all from the palm of their hand while ensuring you maintain control over costs.

What is a mobile expense management solution?

The best MEM tools include features such as receipt scanning, expense reporting, and integration with accounting software, providing a convenient and stress-free way to manage expenses. 

Here is an example.

Shoeboxed - ideal for small businesses looking to simplify and streamline mobile expense management

Industry leaders love Shoeboxed. It’s a popular expense management device that makes receipt tracking and management on-the-go easy.

Over a million businesses use Shoeboxed as their mobile expense management solution.

Shoeboxed turns receipts into data with automatic data extraction for expense reporting, reimbursements, tax prep, and more while on the road.

Mobile app

Shoeboxed allows users to capture and upload receipts from anywhere by taking pictures using their mobile device’s camera. The app uploads the key data from each receipt or document into the user’s designated Shoeboxed account automatically – no manual data entry on the go.

Magic Envelope service

Shoeboxed has a mail-in service for physical receipts or documents for busy users who want to outsource the scanning process. Users can send batch receipts in a pre-paid envelope or the Magic Envelope, and Shoeboxed will scan, digitize, human-verify, and upload them to their account. They’re stored in the cloud and accessible anytime, anywhere.

The Magic Envelope fits on your dashboard, purse, or briefcase, so you can fill it with receipts as expenses happen – gas, meals, supplies, etc.

Gmail plugin for e-receipts

Users can forward receipts or documents from their email inbox to their Shoeboxed account, use a custom Gmail plug-in to auto-import e-receipts in their inbox and send them to their Shoeboxed account, or drag and drop receipts into the cloud using a desktop or laptop.

Shoeboxed is the only receipt scanner app that will handle both your paper receipts and your digital receipts—saving customers up to 9.2 hours per week from manual data entry!

Mileage tracker

Shoeboxed’s mileage tracker is a mobile expense management feature. Users can log expenses anywhere and use their phone’s GPS to track business mileage.

Shoeboxed will create a trip summary with the date, editable mileage, name, tax-deductible amount, and rate, and it will be added to the travel expenses category.

Organizes and categorizes

Shoeboxed extracts key data from receipts or documents using OCR data extraction – name, date, amount, payment method – and categorizes these expenses into 15 tax or custom categories. That’s how expenses and financial records are organized, which is important when users need to search for specific data while out of the office.

Expense reports on the go

The app converts the stored data into an expense report with images from your mobile device attached, with just a click of a button for quick reimbursements and stores receipts in an IRS-accepted format for tax prep, compliance, and audits.

Shoeboxed has been voted as the best receipt scanner app for tax season by Hubspot and given the Trusted Vendor and Quality Choice awards by Crozdesk.

Integrates with accounting software

Shoeboxed works with the tools you already use.

Shoeboxed integrates with popular accounting software like QuickBooks, Xero, and Wave. All digitized receipts and categorized expenses are synced with the accounting software, which means there are no errors and financial data is always consistent and up-to-date and ready for filing taxes and claiming those deductible expenses!

Why mobile expense management?

Given the benefits, it’s no surprise that there’s been a big increase in the use of mobile devices to manage business expenses in recent years. 

One of the key ways this is achieved is through enhanced mobile device security and efficient expense management.

Here are just a few of the benefits.

1. Convenience

One of the most significant benefits of expense management with a mobile device is you can capture receipts and other financial information on the go with your smartphone.

This means you can record expenses as they happen instead of misplacing a receipt and losing it or forgetting the details later.

2. Faster and less errors

Another benefit of managing expenses with a mobile device is it automates tedious manual tasks such as data entry and expense validation.

This gives employees more time to focus on activities that drive the business.

Digitizing receipts eliminates manual data entry and reduces errors.

3. Visibility

A vital part of an excellent mobile expense management strategy is visibility into business spending.

Organizations can see all their business expenses with MEM solutions, including detailed data usage.

This visibility allows us to see spending patterns, trends, and cost-saving opportunities.

Companies can then make better decisions on managing their expenses.

4. Less overspending

These apps have features to categorize and analyze expenses to help users see patterns and opportunities to cut spending through effective expense management.

Using MEM tools and services can result in big cost savings by identifying areas of overspending.

5. Compliance and communication

Incorporating mobile devices into expense management has improved policy compliance and communication.

Mobile expense management solutions simplify compliance by streamlining and automating critical processes related to company expense policies, approvals, and local regulations.

Implementing an expense management mobile system can help organizations improve their internal operations and cultivate a culture of accountability and transparency.

6. Easier expense submission

Submitting expense reports can be a real hassle for employees.

Proper expense submission means accurately recording all the necessary information, such as the amount spent, vendor, date of purchase, and description of each expense.

Employees must also attach receipts or other supporting documents to support their claims.

Receipt tracking with mobile devices and OCR

One way to report expenses is through receipt tracking with OCR (Optical Character Recognition) technology.

The software processes the receipts using OCR technology, categorizes the expenses, and converts them into digital expense records.

This saves employees time and effort in tracking business expenses for expense reports.

Besides OCR, look for these features in a mobile expense management system device:

• Automatic categorization: The ability to assign expenses to specific categories based on the extracted data.

• Integration with accounting software: Connect your expense management system with accounting software to streamline your financial processes and save time during audits.

7. Faster approvals

Approvals are vital in controlling company spending and ensuring expenses align with company policies.

Managers and supervisors review and approve employee expense claims, checking for accuracy, compliance, and legitimacy.

One of the main benefits of these mobile solutions is the approval process automation.

By integrating with your company’s existing expense policy, employees can submit their expenses, and the system will automatically check if each claim meets the company’s criteria.

This way, employees follow company financial guidelines, and reduce the risk of irregular or unusual spending.

Also, mobile device accessibility allows employees to resolve any issues or discrepancies in their expense reports in real-time, resulting in faster approvals and reimbursements.

A seamless approval process can increase employee satisfaction and expense tracking.

Mobile expense management is now a must for any organization. It not only makes things more efficient but also empowers employees to take control of their spending, fostering a sense of responsibility and ownership.

Frequently asked questions

What should a mobile expense management solution have?

An ideal MEM solution should have a mobile app, receipt-scanning capabilities to digitize data, automatic categorization of expenses, automatically generate expense reports, and integrations with accounting software.

What are the key benefits of using mobile expense management software?

Using MEM software can lead to several key benefits for businesses. These include cost control, increased visibility, streamlined approval processes, and enhanced compliance with company policies. Implementing an expense management mobile solution can also improve overall efficiency and offer insights into potential areas for cost savings or resource reallocation.

In conclusion

Using digital receipts and eliminating physical paperwork boosts speed and efficiency in the mobile expense management process.

By implementing these systems, businesses can benefit from increased productivity, time savings, and improved compliance, all of which contribute to the bottom line.

Caryl Ramsey has years of experience assisting in different aspects of bookkeeping, taxes, and customer service. She uses a variety of accounting software for setting up client information, reconciling accounts, coding expenses, running financial reports, and preparing tax returns. She is also experienced in setting up corporations with the State Corporation Commission and the IRS.

About Shoeboxed!

Shoeboxed is a receipt scanning service with receipt management software that supports multiple methods for receipt capture: send, scan, upload, forward, and more!

You can stuff your receipts into one of our Magic Envelopes (prepaid postage within the US). Use our receipt tracker + receipt scanner app (iPhone, iPad and Android) to snap a picture while on the go. Auto-import receipts from Gmail. Or forward a receipt to your designated Shoeboxed email address.

Turn your receipts into data and deductibles with our expense reports that include IRS-accepted receipt images.

Join over 1 million businesses scanning & organizing receipts, creating expense reports and more—with Shoeboxed.

Try Shoeboxed today!