> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://parabola.io/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Automate invoice deduction processing with VLOOKUP-style matching and pivot summarization

> A common pattern for automating retailer deduction reconciliation: parse invoice PDFs, map line items to product groups, and summarize like a pivot table — all in Parabola.

Many brands manage retailer deductions (chargebacks) through a manual process: download an invoice PDF from a retailer portal, convert it to Excel, add lookup columns to map codes to internal categories, pivot to summarize, and reconcile against a contract. This is a strong fit for Parabola because it combines PDF parsing, a lookup join, and aggregation — all steps that repeat every time a new invoice arrives.

## The manual process this replaces

A typical pre-Parabola workflow looks like this:

1. Download an invoice PDF (or backup file) from a retailer's vendor portal.
2. Convert the PDF to Excel.
3. Add a derived column — for example, extracting the last 5 digits of a UPC with a formula like `=RIGHT(I2,5)`.
4. Add a lookup column (VLOOKUP) mapping that derived value against a reference table to bring in an internal category or product group.
5. Build a pivot table to summarize by category.
6. Manually validate the summary against the contract terms and reconcile.

## The Parabola equivalent

<Steps>
  <Step title="Pull and parse the invoice">
    Use [Extract from email](/docs/product/integration/extract-from-email) to ingest the invoice as an email attachment, or [Extract from PDF](/docs/product/integration/pdf-file) for a one-off upload. Configure header fields (invoice number, date) as keys and the line-item table as columns. For scanned or inconsistently-formatted invoices, switch to OCR-first parsing in the PDF advanced settings.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Recreate any Excel formula columns">
    Replace formulas like `=RIGHT(I2,5)` with reproducable and easy-to-use AI steps.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Recreate the VLOOKUP as a join">
    Pull in your lookup/reference table (a UPC-to-product-group mapping, for example) and use [Combine tables](/docs/product/transform/combine-tables) to join it to the invoice line items on the derived key column.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create clean and stunning dashboards to review">
    Use Prowork ro create visualizations to view and share your data.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Format and export">
    Match your target export layout, then send the result to email, a spreadsheet, or your destination system with the appropriate step.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Before you build

To get the mapping right on the first attempt, gather:

* The exact columns and order needed in the final export.
* Where the export should land — email attachment, cloud drive, API, etc.
* A sample of your lookup/reference table headers (for example, the UPC column name and the category column name it should resolve to), so the join keys line up correctly.

## Related

* [Extract from email](/docs/product/integration/extract-from-email)
* [Extract from PDF](/docs/product/integration/pdf-file)