Tell us how you use Simplifi!

Coach Tappan
Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭
edited February 26 in How do you Simplifi?

Attention, Simplifi Beta testers, and new users as well! We need your feedback to make Simplifi a tool that does what you want it to do! Please take a moment to answer these questions to help us learn what you’re looking for:

  1. What first attracted you to Simplifi, and what did you like about it? (Note: Please report Bugs or suggest new features in the appropriate topic.)
  2. What are you using Simplifi for right now, and what do you hope to use it for in the future? (Seeing where your money goes? Reducing debt? Keeping a monthly budget?)
  3. Who do you feel is the ideal user for Simplifi (besides yourself!), and what do you think they would use it for?

We look forward to hearing from you and welcome all your comments! Once we have enough of them, we’ll give you a report on what you’ve told us!

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Comments

  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2019

    Hi! This is Coach Tappan! To kick things off and get the ball rolling, I thought I’d offer my own answers to these questions.

    1. As part of the Simplifi launch team, I was excited about the chance to introduce this exciting new product. But I was immediately captivated by its playful design. It looked like it would actually be fun to use!
    2. Right now, I’m using Simplifi to get a better idea of just where my money is going. Looking ahead, I want to use Simplifi to plan for big expenses, set aside funds for things like home improvement projects, gifts, and vacations.
    3. I believe the perfect user for Simplifi is someone mobile, and active, who doesn’t need a complicated tool to manage their money. Someone who just wants to quickly “check in” and see how they’re doing financially, whenever they want, wherever they are!

    Okay. That’s my two cents! I can’t wait to hear what the rest of you are thinking!

    1. I liked the fact that it was web based and it provided a lot of reports/ways to view my money data. Unlike previous software I’ve used there was no need to sync desktop software to the web (which adds another place for things to break/go wrong). I could get the same up to date info on all platforms. Also, I’ve enjoyed the faster downloads (Quicken takes FOREVER and the information is DAYSSSSS old (many times too old to be of much use).
    2. Right now I’m using Simplifi alongside my current money management software and taking notes of what I like. Ultimately, the goal of the exercise is to evaluate if Simplifi will fulfill my needs so I can lose the desktop software all together.
    3. I think the ideal person would be anyone who wants the ability to easily manage their finances, especially millennials who are getting comfortable in the workforce and starting to invest their money (still waiting on the investments portion of Simplifi guys).
  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    @Brothasoulja Thanks very much for your comments! Your responses are exactly what we're looking for as we work to improve Simplfii to make it a tool that works the way you want it to. You might be interested in exploring some of the options on the Simplifi Insights tab. It allows you to sort and arrange your iincome and expenses in a number of useful ways, including by month, by Category, by Payee and by the Tags you've assigned to each transaction. We appreciate you feeback!

  • IowaBeta
    IowaBeta Member

    I use it to track net worth and to track budgeted spending categories. Overall, I'm pretty happy with it. I do think it would be helpful if some reporting options could be added with the ability to download to CSV or Excel.

  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭
    edited November 2019

    @IowaBeta Thank you for responding! We are currently working on adding import function to Simplifi. There is a way to save Simplifi transactions in CSV format, which can then be imported directly into Excel. First, select all of the transactions you want to export, and then click on the Download icon on the editing bar. Below is a clip that shows how to use that function. We appreciate your comments!

  • bowgy4
    bowgy4 Member ✭✭✭✭
    edited December 2019
    1. What first attracted you to Simplifi, and what did you like about it? (Note: Please report Bugs or suggest new features in the appropriate topic.)
    2. Quicken used to be great and then fell apart. I couldn't use it reliably. Mint is good for tracking overall numbers, but not reporting or planning. Simplfi first off looks great, which led me to believe a good team was behind it. I'm looking forward to having a reliable all-in-one solution again for tracking expenses, saving receipts, reporting, and planning, that my wife and I can both access easily on the go.
    3. What are you using Simplifi for right now, and what do you hope to use it for in the future? (Seeing where your money goes? Reducing debt? Keeping a monthly budget?)
    4. Tracking net worth, visibility to expenses across multiple credit cards for my family, and managing cash flow. I look forward to tracking my investments and seeing historical performance across multiple accounts with the same investments (e.g. four accounts which all have positions in the same funds/stocks).
    5. Who do you feel is the ideal user for Simplifi (besides yourself!), and what do you think they would use it for?
    6. The ideal user is someone that has a lot of accounts and wants to track everything in one place to ensure a growing net worth and prevent monthly cash flow issues. I don't see it as a simple budgeting tool and it's not an investment management platform - it's for people that want to monitor trends, track individual expenses, and generate reports about their spending for things like tax purposes (like how much did I pay in childcare expenses?) or to discuss savings/spending priorities
  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    @bowgy4 This is terrific feedback! Thank you very much for your answers. We're glad you like Simplifi's "look and feel." A lot of care and thought went into the design of the program.

    We appreciate your sharing of your goals for the program. Your comments reinforce two areas we're looking to improve in future versions: more robust support of investments, including tracking and comparison functions, and the ability to generate detailed reports that present information in the ways that work best for you. If you have specific suggestions on features you'd like to see added or improved, we encourage you to post them in our Product Feedback discussion.

    Thanks for your valuable participation in our Simplifi Community!

  • myf
    myf Member ✭✭
    1. The beautiful clean and simple web interface. Access from anywhere.
    2. Daily financial picture for me, and my spouse. Checking, upcoming bills, and investments. I also track specific items to keep expenses down (ordering out) without having to set up a confusing budget program. I hope in the future the ability to connect to my bank's Direct Connect for lightning fast downloads.
    3. Business travelers would be an ideal user. You can check your account from your phone in an Uber, on your pad just before taking off on the plane, and on your laptop from the hotel room.
  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    Thanks! We're pleased you find the interface attractive and easy to use. I understand your interest in using Simplifi to keep an eye on your discretionary spending! I've been using it the same way! And I agree that "Road Warriors" who need to do business while travelling would really benefit from Simplifi!

    Direct Connect is a bit more of a challenge. We can certainly do our best to optimize the speed of downloads, but two-way communication with financial institutions is only needed when you want to send instructions to your banks -- to pay bills, make trades and transfer funds. Simplifi was designed to receive, rather than send financial data, but if enough of our users want other features, we may reconsider. We appreciate your comments.. Keep 'em coming!

  • Laura
    Laura Member ✭✭

    1) Quicken was having so many errors bringing in data for me (particularly with investments) and this interface seemed much better.

    2) I’m using it to create a budget with my spouse as we combine our finances. Hoping it will help us create and stick to a budget, cut any unnecessary spending, and save more.

    3) Hope to see more “how-to” tutorials in future geared at different users! Still getting familiar with it.

  • mazar1977
    mazar1977 Member ✭✭✭✭
    1. I have been a longtime Quicken user and wanted a 100% web-based version of Quicken for years. I was a beta-tester for Quicken for the web but was dissapointed in its dependency on Quicken desktop and the lack of updates specific to my needs. When I heard about Simplifi, I wanted to see if this would solve for my needs.

    2. Right now I use it to download and classify my banking transactions so I can run reports on spending and plan ahead. Main thing I need it reporting, balance projections, and scheduling and adjusting of upcoming bills so I can track what needs paid and what has already been paid and how much money I will have available 1, 2, 6, or 12 months down the road based on current and scheduled transactions.

    3. cannot answer this as there is no ideal user. People want and need different features.
  • Coach Nicole
    Coach Nicole Administrator, Moderator admin

    Welcome to Simplifi @Laura and @mazar1977! We're so happy to have you on board!

  • I am trying out Simplifi after repeated problems with Mint. I am also testing Personal Capital and Copilot.

    I want a visually appealing, fast AND reliable program to track spending, investments and net worth, but I don’t want to spend forever setting it up, maintaining it and fixing errors. I’d like to be able to compare spending habits over years, months and lifetime, creating graphs and charts. I also want to see what is coming in and going out to monitor cash flow.

    Categorization should be easy. I’d like the flexibility to see all my accounts, but make the transactions in some invisible in global budgets and transactions. A phone app is good, but a native tablet app and web app are as well.

    Truth be told, no one touches Personal Capital on net worth and investment tracking. It falls short on tracking spending and budgeting. That’s why I am trying Simplifi.

    While Simplifi is much better looking than Mint, I have to say that Copilot blows everyone out of the water. It’s a personal finance app reimagined for a Google-Apple world. The rest seem like Microsoft-centered creations.

    Yet Copilot lacks the experience of Quicken and is like a true startup. Growing pains.

    I look forward to more. The investment stuff needs to be beefed up. I don’t like the accounts being invisible on the dashboard page. But all in all a promising start.

  • Coach Paco
    Coach Paco Moderator admin

    @jbart65 Welcome to our community!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    @jbart65 Thank you for your helpful and thoughtful insights! Your comments are exactly what we're looking for to improve Simplifi so it works the way you want it to.

  • bankofdad
    bankofdad Member

    I've been a long time Quicken desktop user. I started a SimpliFi trial for my 20 year old son. I used to maintain his accounts in Quicken. But he never liked the experience so it was like pulling teeth for him to use it. Although the desktop client is much better than ever, he and I for that matter want a more modern, web/mobile based platform that we can easily access anywhere and anytime. I assume your strategy was to create SimpliFi with the younger generations in mind? However there seems to be a lot of posts from long time Quicken users who want to move to a modern platform too. So please provide feature parity ASAP between the two and make sure you provide a smooth and easy to use import from Quicken. I'm guessing you have access to all the apis to do so. ;-) Anyway I'm an IT pro (enterprise architect) with over 35 years of IT experience at a fortune 500 company who was excited to hear about SimpliFi. I'm looking forward to migrating off of your legacy desktop client in the near future. Respectively - Dave

  • Coach Paco
    Coach Paco Moderator admin

    @bankofdad Welcome to our community! We look forward to having you and your son give us a shot!

  • willya
    willya Member ✭✭

    What attracted me the most to Simplifi is that it is a paid product with engaged developers. I am a longtime user of Mint and Personal Capital and never liked that they made money selling other services.

    My biggest hope is that Simplifi drastically improves the investment module and adds more value there. Better tracking of overall portfolio performance. Better tracking of net worth. Better tracking of investment property and incomes. I think that allows you to target a lot of people that are happy to shell out extra for a paid service.

  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    @willya Thank you for your thoughtful and helpful comments, and welcome to Simplifi! We wondered if customers would accept a "paywall" for a product like ours (even if it's a fairly low one!), when there are so many free apps out there. Our commitment is to continue to earn your loyalty by providing you prompt, attentive support, and actively responding to your suggestions and requests -- like the improved investment module you mentioned. I hope you feel we're doing okay so far, and appreciate your interest!

  • Is there any type of corporate support for using Simplifi? There are no contact numbers, email or chat box that I could locate.

  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    @treyes814 Welcome to Simplifi! I wasn't able to find your free trial subscription in our system under the email you provided for the Simplifi Community. Did you set it up directly through us at https://www.simplifimoney.com, or did you sign up through the Apple Store or Google Play? If you haven't signed up yet, or you're looking for more information about the program, there are a number of informative articles in our Simplifi Help Center http://help.simplifimoney.com/en/ to get you started.

  • dagnabit2000
    dagnabit2000 Member ✭✭✭

    I have used Quicken for a long time, like others, waited for a true web version of Quicken for a long time. Simplifi seems like it has the best chance of becoming that. I like the interface and the functionality that is already present. I think this has a chance to be great. What is holding it back for me:
    Two features that I would like to see. 1) make the Upcoming section more like the Bills and Income + Calendar features in Quicken. Better would be nice, but more reliable/trustworthy should be priority #1. 2) An easier way to review "New" transactions, by new I mean ones that I have not seen before. That could be new since last login, or have a button to verify you have reviewed the transaction.

    I Use Quicken to track scheduled bills and income in order to ensure my account balance does not go below $0 when schedule transactions are registered, and in order make sure I pay all my bills on time. I also use Quicken to track new transactions to verify there is no fraudulent activity on my account.

    The Ideal Simplifi user is someone who uses for the reasons I stated above, that way I stand the best chance of getting what I want. I also can tell you that with all the issues Quicken is having, I have been looking for a replacement for Quicken that is capable of meeting my needs and it does not exist. That means there is an unmet need.

  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    @dagnabit2000 Thank you for your thoughtful and encouraging comments! They're just the kind of insights and suggestions we're looking for to make Simplifi the kind of program you're looking for!

  • bowgy4
    bowgy4 Member ✭✭✭✭

    @dagnabit2000 The second feature you mentioned, to review New transactions, is possible though somewhat manual, by using the "Reviewed" feature. Click on the gear icon -> Show/Hide Columns -> Reviewed. This will add a round checkmark indicator that you can use to check the transactions you've reviewed. If you use this, then you can easily view only new transactions by filtering to see transactions you haven't marked as reviewed. They are supposed to add the "Reviewed" field to the bulk edit tool very soon - right @Coach Tappan? ;)

  • Coach Tappan
    Coach Tappan Retired Coach ✭✭✭✭

    @bowgy4 That's right! It may take us a while, but we do our best to incorporate good ideas like these into Simplifi as soon as we can!

  • Coach Natalie
    Coach Natalie Administrator, Moderator admin
    Hello @Flopbot,

    Thank you for taking the time to tell us how you Simplifi, and welcome to Simplifi and the Community! We really appreciate your feedback! :smiley:

    -Coach Natalie
  • Mitchel
    Mitchel Member ✭✭
    New user here - strong advocate for cloud software. I've been a Quicken user since 1992 (yup, that would have been a DOS version back then). Switched to a full time ChromeOS machine (so no more Quicken) and tried to make the move to Mint several times but could not get comfortable.

    For the past five years or so I have used a virtual desktop at AWS and then GCP to run Quicken, but just got tired of the hassle.

    I moved to Personal Capital but within three weeks they syncing issues ended its usefulness. I tried Money Patrol (UX is a disaster), Monarch (a close second to Simplifi), and finally settled on Mint. Somehow I missed Simplifi in my reviews and I'm so glad I found it. The UX is on par with Monarch, syncing has been fantastic.

    1 - What attracted me to Simplifi is the User Interface. It is so easy to use, looks just like something out of Google Workspaces. In fact, I would guess they borrow a lot of the same experience elements. Syncing is sooo much faster and sooo much more reliable then ANYONE else - even Mint. As far as completness, Mint is probably closest but the interface is clunky and dated.

    2 - I am at a stage in my life where (thankfully) keeping a hawk-eye to every penny is not necessary. We have learned to live within our means and almost every month income exceeds spending and we are able to stuff some away for retirement and a rainy day. I do like to see where our money goes, spending graphs are helpful to know what is taking up the most of our resources. Trend graphs are nice, too to see how spending evolves over time and other inflationary type trends. I'm still a little new so it will be nice with a year of data under my belt.

    3 - I don't know how to answer the 'ideal user' question. What I've learned from reviewing so many different platforms is that everyone is at different stages financially and have different goals.

    So far, so great. Thank you.
  • docwisdom
    docwisdom Member ✭✭
    1. I was drawn to Simplifi because it came the closest to the budgeting tools available by Simple bank. The budgeting goals and spending are the best features. 
    2. Unfortunately I don’t use Simplifi at all right now because like many Simple bank customers I switched to One Finance and they are not supported by Simplifi. 
    3. The ideal customer is someone who wants a very close eye on their finances and has specific financial goals, and isn’t a One Finance customer. 
This discussion has been closed.