Deborah Loober’s journey from a paper-heavy to a paperless office began a few years ago after attending a SmartVault webinar, hosted by CPA Practice Advisor. Loober wanted to streamline workflow in order to increase efficiency firm wide, and getting rid of paper copies and eliminating manual filing was a big part of accomplishing this major goal.
“I attended the webinar and was so impressed with what SmartVault could do,” Loober stated. “There was nothing on the market at the time that could offer the same value. Being able to attach source documents right to transactions in QuickBooks supports a highly efficient digital process. We love it.”
Over the years, Loober and her staff had their fair share of shuffling paper.
“Prior to SmartVault, we dealt with a lot of paper, and that made for a painful process,” Loober explained. “If we needed to look up a source document, like a receipt or an invoice, we had to flip through paper files, and that took so much time. We needed a solution that supported a digital process.”
Removing paper from the equation meant that Loober needed to implement a solution that integrated with QuickBooks and enabled staff to attach documents electronically. That solution was SmartVault.
“It was one of the best improvements I’ve made to my firm. We all love SmartVault. All the source docs are attached within QuickBooks, so the information is always at our fingertips. We are so much more efficient now. I could never go back to the old way of working.”
It’s All About the Ease
Loober admitted that she always keeps an eye out for newer and better technology that will improve firm operations, but she also won’t compromise on ease of use.
“SmartVault was the easiest implementation ever. We were literally up and running within an hour.”
A solution that was easy for her staff to learn was key. “It can be the best technology in the world, but if it’s hard to use and takes a lot of effort from staff to get up the learning curve, it’s not very useful to us,” Loober stated. “Seriously, the first day everyone on my staff was cruising along using it.”
Because the software is so intuitive, Loober also commented that she rarely has to call customer service. “But when I do,” she added, “it’s nothing short of excellent. We get our questions answered quickly, and the people are very friendly and attentive.”
Phone calls to customer service are rare, Loober added, because the vendor’s website is also so helpful. “You can find an answer to just about anything on the SmartVault website. They really understand their customers and work hard to make it as easy as possible for us.”
Ease of use extends beyond internal use. Deborah Loober also raves about how easy it is to serve her clients. “Because we specialize in business management, we do everything for our clients from paying their bills to business coaching. With all data available in QuickBooks, I can review the numbers with my clients in one sitting.”
At the End of the Day
SmartVault has proven to be a huge asset to the firm of Deborah M. Loober CPA. Not only did the smooth integration with QuickBooks enable her to go paperless, but also to increase efficiency to an all-time high.
“It was one of the smartest technology moves we’ve made. Since implementing SmartVault, we operate so much more efficiently, and I know I’m not yet using the application to its full capacity…but we’ll get there,” said Loober.
Moving forward, Deborah Loober will continue to improve firm processes and always be on the lookout for the next best technology to continue to improve firm operations. “Our transformation to paperless all started with SmartVault and it’s been such an eye-opener to what a well-built solution can do. For that reason, we are committed to ongoing process enhancements.”
