Redefining Bookkeeping: How Fincent's Timeline is changing the game
Streamlining financial workflows between business owners & bookkeepers.
• 30% increase in user engagement
• 100% User satisfaction
• 40% improvement in bookkeeper collaboration
• 50% reduction in manual work
Description
Fincent's Timeline powers our full-service bookkeeping solution by providing a unified interface for managing financial transactions
Features intelligent categorization and powerful search to streamline monthly closing processes
Enables seamless collaboration between business owners and our expert bookkeepers
Automates routine tasks while maintaining professional-grade accuracy
Situation
Traditional bookkeeping tools like QuickBooks are primarily designed for accountants and can be overly complex for business owners.
Key Challenges Identified:
Data Fragmentation: Transactions scattered across multiple accounts making monthly closing difficult
Manual Processes: Excessive time spent on categorization and reconciliation
Communication Gaps: Inefficient back-and-forth between business owners and bookkeepers
Complex Interfaces: Steep learning curves affecting both clients and bookkeepers
Task
Defining the goals
Our goal was to design an intuitive transaction management system that could:
Unify transactions from multiple sources for efficient bookkeeping
Automate categorization while maintaining professional standards
Enable seamless communication between clients and bookkeepers
Streamline monthly closing processes
Action
Research
Collaborated with our bookkeeping team to understand workflow requirements
Analyzed pain points in monthly closing processes
Studied communication patterns between clients and bookkeepers
Researched best practices in financial data management
Design process
Wire-framing: Created low-fidelity wireframes focusing on bookkeeper efficiency
Prototyping: Built interactive prototypes for core bookkeeping workflows
Usability Testing: Tested with both bookkeeping team and clients
Iteration: Refined based on real-world usage in monthly closing cycles
Key challenges
Search precision: Building a search system that meets professional standards
Rule Creation: Implementing robust categorization rules for consistent bookkeeping
Collaboration: Creating efficient review and approval workflows
Data Accuracy: Ensuring reliable transaction management for financial reporting
Unique approach
Powerful Search: Advanced search & filtering by account, vendor, amount, date, status
Categorization: Standard auto categorisation, Rule-based automatic categorization, Bulk categorization for efficient processing
Collaboration: Attach files, clarify doubts by collaborating at transaction level
Result
Key outcomes
Processing Efficiency: 30% faster monthly closing process
Client Satisfaction: 90% positive feedback on bookkeeping service
Collaboration: 40% reduction in client-bookkeeper email communication
Accuracy: 50% reduction in categorization errors
Customer testimonials
“I like being able to categorize expenses super easily. I think that the support team is super, super fast at turning things around with a sense of urgency.”
Kelsey Willock
Founder, Aura Finance
"Fincent has transformed my financial management. With their diligent handling of bookkeeping tasks and accurate tracking, everything has become more efficient. I appreciate the convenience of their website and mobile app. Highly satisfied with their service."
Grant Sapkin
Founder & CEO, BURRST.IO
Testimonials from Bookkeepers
"Timeline has revolutionized our monthly closing process. The search and categorization features help us maintain consistent books across hundreds of clients."”
Rutuja Tarkar
Bookkeeper, Fincent
"The review system has made client communication so much more efficient. We can flag items, get quick responses, and maintain a clear audit trail."
Taha Qazi
Bookkeeper, Fincent
Visual design & process
Competitors benchmarking
Design iterations
The beautiful GetPaid
Create invoices and send payment requests
Customer experience
Customer feedback, behaviour and insights
Bookkeepers complete monthly closing faster and more accurately
Clients appreciate the transparency and easy communication
Automated features reduce manual workload while maintaining accuracy
Review system streamlines approval processes
Learning & Reflection
Discovered the importance of balancing automation with professional oversight
Learned how to scale bookkeeping processes efficiently
Understood the value of integrated communication tools
Recognized the impact of user-friendly interfaces on service quality
Conclusion
Timeline has become the backbone of our bookkeeping service
Created new standards for client-bookkeeper collaboration
Balanced automation with professional controls
Enabled scalable, high-quality bookkeeping services