Automated OCR Invoice Processing from PDFelement to QuickBooks Online (Zapier)

1. **Establish the Cloud Bridge**: Since PDFelement is a desktop-first app, documents must be saved to a 'Watched Folder' in Wondershare Cloud, Google Drive, or OneDrive to trigger Zapier. 2. **Set Trigger**: Choose **Google Drive** (or your preferred storage) as the Trigger App. Select **'New File in Folder'**. Connect your account and pick the folder where you save finalized PDFelement invoices. 3. **Extract Data with PDFelement AI**: Add a step for **PDFelement (Wondershare)**. Choose **'Document Data Extraction'**. Map the 'File' object from Step 2 into this action. This uses PDFelement's AI to pull Vendor, Date, and Total. 4. **Format Dates for QBO**: Add **Formatter by Zapier (Date/Time)**. QuickBooks requires `YYYY-MM-DD`. Map the extracted date from PDFelement and transform it to the ISO format. 5. **Clean Currency Strings**: Add **Formatter by Zapier (Numbers)** if the AI extracted symbols like ' . Use 'Spreadsheet-style formula' to strip non-numeric characters so QuickBooks can process the amount. 6. **Identify the Vendor**: Add **QuickBooks Online** as an action. Choose **'Find Vendor'**. Use the extracted Vendor Name. Check the box 'Create QuickBooks Online Vendor if it doesn't exist yet' to prevent Zap failure. 7. **Create the Bill**: Add a second **QuickBooks Online** step: **'Create Bill'**. Map the Vendor ID from Step 6, the Formatted Date from Step 4, and the Cleaned Amount from Step 5. 8. **Attach the Source PDF**: Add a final **QuickBooks Online** step: **'Upload Attachment'**. Map the 'Attachment' to the Bill ID created in Step 7 and use the 'File' (the actual file object, not the URL) from Step 2. 9. **Test & Turn On**: Click 'Test Step' on each action. Ensure the PDF correctly appears in the QuickBooks Sidebar under 'Attachments'.

| PDFelement Field | Zapier Transformation | QuickBooks Field | Requirement | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | Extracted Vendor Name | **Find or Create Vendor** Step | `Vendor` | Required | | Extracted Date | **Formatter**: `YYYY-MM-DD` | `Bill Date` | Required | | Grand Total | **Formatter**: Remove Symbols | `Amount` | Required | | AI Summary/Notes | No Change | `Memo / Private Note` | Optional | | File Object (Original) | **Direct Mapping** | `Attachable` | Recommended | | Due Date (AI) | **Formatter**: `YYYY-MM-DD` | `Due Date` | Optional |

* **Task Quotas**: Each invoice uses 4-6 Zapier tasks (Trigger + 2 Formatters + Find Vendor + Create Bill + Attach file). If processing >100 invoices/mo, consider the Professional Plan. * **File Accessibility**: Ensure the folder in your cloud storage is 'Public within your Org' or accessible to the Zapier API; otherwise, the 'Upload Attachment' step will fail with a 401 error. * **Currency Mismatch**: If you operate in multiple currencies, you must add a 'Filter by Zapier' step to verify the currency code before sending to QBO, as QuickBooks requires multi-currency to be enabled to accept non-home currency bills. * **Duplicate Bills**: Zapier does not natively check for duplicate Invoice Numbers. Add a 'QuickBooks Online: Find Bill' step before creating one to search by the extracted Invoice ID to prevent double payments.

- [ ] **Trigger Check**: Drop a sample PDF into your cloud folder and verify 'Test Trigger' finds the file. - [ ] **AI Extraction Check**: In the PDFelement step, verify the 'Extracted Data' contains the correct numeric value for 'Total'. - [ ] **Formatter Check**: Confirm the Date Formatter output looks like `2023-10-27` and not `Oct 27, 2023`. - [ ] **Vendor Logic Check**: Verify that if a vendor exists, Zapier finds it; if not, it creates a new one without erroring. - [ ] **QuickBooks Verification**: Open QuickBooks Online and confirm the Bill is 'Unpaid' and the PDF preview is visible in the 'Attachments' section.