Xero announces new integration with Microsoft Outlook

A new integration announced between Microsoft Office 365 and Xero HQ will give accountants and bookkeepers access to client correspondence in one place, and is set to have an immediate impact on time spent tracking down important information living in inboxes.

Emails store valuable information that help people make informed decisions.

If accidentally deleted, archived, or if staff members handling correspondence go on leave, it can take hours to find the right email, costing businesses valuable time and money.

Xero's new add-in will allow practices using Microsoft Outlook to save emails featuring pertinent information and attachments directly to a client record in Xero HQ.

Once downloaded, the Xero HQ add-in will appear in the top right corner of every email.

Users can select any attachments they wish to record, and add tags like GST, general enquiry, or custom tags they've created within Xero HQ, to make it easier to find down the track.

The email is then saved directly to the client notes record in Xero HQ, where all staff can access what they need when they need it.

"Cutting out and preventing administrative burden is very important for all accountants and bookkeepers, and enables them to focus on the work that brings value to their clients," says Neill Fraser, Xero HQ product marketing manager.

"This integration puts the right tool in the hands of the right people, to ensure that staff no longer need to worry about where important emails, information and attachments are filed.

"Emails are the most common way we interact with clients on a daily basis, having all the knowledge we need to make decisions and recommendations to our clients is the backbone of our business," says Nickie Sheehan, RightWay operations manager.

"This add-in makes it easy to extract important information from our inboxes and save it within Xero HQ client records for all staff to view.

Xero set out to tackle a common problem: Finding the exact email you need can be frustrating and time-consuming.

An average business person sends and receives thousands of emails every year, and the old way of ensuring a copy is filed correctly or was accessible to all staff was to forward or print and file emails that might come in handy down the track.

The new Xero HQ add-in for Outlook removes the need to track down an important email by allowing you to file important information in the relevant client record of Xero HQ.

Saved emails are visible to all users within the practice in Xero HQ so no matter who is working on the client, they will always have that information at hand.

In the coming months, Xero will be announcing our first app partnerships which will introduce new opportunities to practices in the Xero HQ platform.