Roadtrippers case study
At a Glance
Accounting package:
Previous expense tracker:
- An accordion folder
The competition:
- Abacus vs. Concur vs. Tallie
Wanted:
- A scalable solution
Needed:
- Support for corporate cards
Customer since: 2014
The road to better expenses
The Roadtrippers team was dedicated to building a simple and beautiful product. But surrounded by the chaos of a startup, expenses slipped through the cracks. Beyond an accordion folder, there was hardly any receipt organization. At the end of the month, the team would scramble to find receipts around the office. If submitted at all, expense reports were often haphazardly compiled.
As the fastest-growing travel and planning startup in the US, the Roadtrippers' executive team realized that they lacked the organization required to understand the company's financials and spending. Ken Valuska was brought on as Roadtrippers' financial controller to find and implement a strategy that would scale with the team.
Test driving Expensify's competition
Ken knew that the right receipt tracking solution for their small business had to be an easy one. "Having employees track every expense is a big ask since it’s something on top of their job." He explains, "I knew that just keeping or filing receipts better wasn’t going to be the answer." Ken looked at Expensify, Abacus, and Concur to find a solution.
Immediately, Abacus was ruled out. "Abacus looked like an unfinished product," Ken recalls. "Expenses are already an added burden; I don't want to [give the team] a platform that is a work in progress with potential bugs."
Expensify is the easiest way for employees to track their receipts without having too much added to their plate. Expensify knows what startups need and have the technology to back it — it’s the best of both worlds.
On the other hand, "while Concur was obviously an established company," Ken insists "they were behind Expensify from a tech-standpoint, and we weren't comfortable paying more for features that, for us, were impractical."
For a startup that embraces technological innovations, Expensify is a clear winner. "Expensify is the easiest way for employees to track their receipts without having too much added to their plate." Ken adds, "Expensify knows what startups need and have the technology to back it — it’s the best of both worlds."
Roadtrippers on board with Expensify
The Roadtrippers team loved Expensify's intuitive interface and easy setup. "Expensify sent out links to Roadtrippers employees and we signed up — there was no need for a middle man." Ken recollects, "We received support when we needed it and set-up guides were available online for our employees."
Ken was equally impressed with Expensify's QuickBooks Online integration. "Not only was [the integration] easy to set up," Ken reasons, "but from an accounting and bookkeeping standpoint, Expensify has been extremely helpful. For example, some of our expenses are reimbursable and others are for our corporate AmEx cards. As soon as I press submit, I know that Expensify is sorting all of the different expenses on a given report into the right place in QuickBooks, and that saves us a ton of time.”
We spent twice as much time and effort on expenses without getting nearly as accurate of results as with Expensify.
Transforming roadtrippers’ approach to expenses
Using Expensify's SmartScan feature, employees are no longer required to keep receipts or manually enter receipt data. Since expenses are automatically created after a picture of the receipt is taken, Ken and the Roadtrippers team agree that submitting reports aren't stressful anymore. "People now do their reports in real-time because that's actually easier. When we get a receipt, it has become instinctive to SmartScan it, toss the receipt, and not worry about the rest."
People now do their reports in real-time because that's actually easier. When we get a receipt, it's become instinctive to SmartScan it, toss the receipt, and not worry about the rest.
He continues, "It's astonishing how, before Expensify, we spent days compiling reports and we still didn't get get nearly as good of a result as we do now. We were working harder," Ken admits, “but with Expensify, we are working smarter. Before, we spent twice as much time and effort on expenses without getting nearly as accurate of a result as with Expensify." Roadtrippers’ hectic startup environment still exists. But with Expensify, the spirited startup, motivated by the Cincinnati cityscape, can focus on its goals and explore the open road the way it should be — stress and paper free.
