# Email Parser for Customer POs: Handle Attachments, Duplicates and Revisions Source: https://www.digiparser.com/blog/email-parser [See all posts](/blog) Last updated on October 5, 2026 # Email Parser for Customer POs: Handle Attachments, Duplicates and Revisions Purchase orders Email automation [![Pankaj Patidar](https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/17493609?v=4) Pankaj Patidar @thepantales ](https://x.com/thepantales) ![Email Parser for Customer POs: Handle Attachments, Duplicates and Revisions](/images/blog/customer-po-email-intake.svg) An email parser reads messages and attachments and converts their contents into structured fields and rows. For a manufacturer receiving customer purchase orders, the useful output is customer, PO number, delivery details and line items that an order team can review and hand off to Excel or a configured order system. **The important rule: an incoming email is an intake event, not automatically a new order.** One customer PO can arrive, be forwarded again and then be revised. Your workflow must tell those events apart before it creates or changes an order. This guide covers customer POs received by the **seller's order team**. Supplier invoices belong to a separate [invoice-processing workflow](/blog/vendor-invoice-processing), with AP review and accounting controls. ## What does an email parser automate? A mailbox rule gets the message to the right place. A parser extracts the data. Your order process decides what to do with it. Layer Main job Example Mailbox rule Select and forward relevant messages Send customer PO attachments to an order intake address Email and attachment parser Turn content into fields and line-item rows Extract customer PO 8042 and its requested quantities Order review and handoff Decide whether to create, amend or hold an order Match a revised PO to the existing order before making a change Extracting a PO accurately does not establish that it is new, that the customer has credit approval, or that stock is available. Those decisions need the appropriate person or downstream system. Order-intake providers make the same distinction: [Elemica's email order-intake guide](https://elemica.com/learn/automate-order-intake-email-pdf-spreadsheets/) separates extraction from validation and routing, and identifies new orders, amendments and cancellations as different intents. For a smaller manufacturer, a reviewed intake sheet can be a practical first destination before deeper integration. ## Parse the email body, the attachment, or both? Choose based on where the order information actually lives. A PDF may contain the order lines while the message says, "Use our new shipping address." Conversely, the body may simply say, "Please find attached," and add no order information. In DigiParser, open the parser's **Settings -> Parser Settings -> Email**. Choose the email content to process and save the parser. Connected Gmail and Outlook mailboxes have an Email content option in their connection settings. The [email-processing settings guide](/docs/guides/parsers/parser-settings/email-processing) explains these controls. Where the useful information is Intake choice Check before handoff In a PDF or other accepted attachment Process attachments only Confirm the expected file was accepted In the message itself Process email body only Check the newest instruction against quoted earlier text In either place, depending on the customer Process the body if no attachments can be processed Test both formats; fallback does not mean both are extracted In both the message and attached PO Process body and attachments Decide how separate extraction results relate to one order Processing both can create a body document plus attachment documents. Do not turn every extracted document into a separate sales order. DigiParser also keeps an email snapshot with newly received email documents for context and review. Use the saved message to check instructions that could change the meaning of the attached PO. If several attachments must contribute to one extraction result, the combined-attachment setting is another option. Test that grouping deliberately: two attachments might be two orders, or a PO and its specification. File count alone cannot decide. ## Worked example: three emails, one customer order Consider a fictional customer, Northlake Components, sending PO **8042** for item **BR-17**. All quantities use the same unit. This is a workflow design example, not a customer result or a measured DigiParser test. Intake event Content received Order decision A: original message PO 8042, revision 0, quantity 40 Review and create the initial order once B: internal forward Same customer, PO, revision and line content Link to the existing intake record; do not create another order C: revised message PO 8042, revision 1, quantity 30; says it replaces the original Hold for amendment review; update the existing order if approved **The result is one order with a reviewed quantity of 30, not three orders.** That conclusion assumes the revision replaces the earlier quantity and can still be accepted. If production has started, the responsible person must resolve the change before the order is updated. A system that rejects every repeated PO number would stop event B, but could also discard the genuine revision in event C. A system that accepts every new email could create three orders. Neither rule is sufficient. Keep two identities in your intake record: * **Receipt identity:** which email or file arrived, and when. This lets you trace an intake event. * **Business identity:** which customer's PO, revision and order lines the event refers to. This lets you review the effect on the order. A different email message ID does not prove a different order. An unchanged filename does not prove unchanged content. Customer PO numbers also need customer context; different customers can use the same number. When the revision number is absent, compare the relevant content and ask for confirmation where it changes quantity, price, delivery date or ship-to details. An order amendment is a business decision, not merely another row to append. ## A practical six-step customer-PO email workflow ### 1\. Start with one order mailbox and a defined scope Choose one customer group or order inbox. Write down what it receives: PDF POs, scanned attachments, orders in message bodies, revisions and enquiries. Identify who reviews unclear orders and who can approve changes. Avoid forwarding an entire shared mailbox that also handles invoices, quotes and support conversations. Start with selected messages, then expand after checking real intake results. ### 2\. Set and test the forwarding rule [Gmail's forwarding instructions](https://support.google.com/mail/answer/10957?hl=en) include destination verification and filters for selected messages. Keep an accessible original during the pilot so someone can compare the received source with the extracted data. For Outlook, decide whether to forward or redirect. [Microsoft explains](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/mail/use-rules-to-automatically-forward-messages) that forwarded messages appear to come from the forwarding account, while redirected messages retain the original sender. This matters when the receiving parser limits sender access. Test the actual rule rather than assuming the customer's address will always appear as the sender. ### 3\. Select the content and files to accept Use the body/attachment table above. Set file types and sender rules to match the pilot. Test a valid PO, a message with no attachment, and an unwanted attachment such as a signature image. Do not rely on a subject containing "PO" as the only control. A quote request, cancellation or revised PO can use the same subject. Filtering reduces irrelevant intake; it does not establish order intent. ### 4\. Define the fields the order team needs Capture customer identity, customer PO number, revision if present, ship-to details and requested delivery dates. For each line, capture the customer item reference, description, quantity, unit and price when required. Keep identifiers as text when leading zeros matter. Keep the source attached to the review record. Define what an absent field means instead of silently substituting a value from an older order. For item mapping and unit checks before order entry, use the [customer PO handoff test guide](/blog/customer-purchase-order-processing). This email guide covers how the documents arrive and relate to each other; the handoff guide checks what their extracted rows mean. ### 5\. Review new orders, repeats and changes separately Give each intake event a disposition: new, repeat, amendment, cancellation, enquiry or unresolved. An unresolved event stays available for review instead of being silently dropped. DigiParser supplies extracted data for the workflow you configure. Put duplicate-order checks, revision approval and order creation/update decisions in the review process or connected destination. Do not assume extraction alone provides those order controls. For the example above, the reviewer needs both revision 0 and revision 1, the associated order, and the customer's replacement instruction. A spreadsheet can support a pilot if it has a clear owner and controlled handoff. Larger teams may need a shared queue and a tested system connection. ### 6\. Prove the handoff with exceptions Test the sequence, not just one clean PDF. Check that the final destination has one intended order and that each intake event remains traceable. Pilot case Expected result Original PO followed by a repeat forward One order; repeat associated with the existing record Same PO number with a changed quantity Amendment review; no automatic second order Same PO number from a different customer Separate business identity; no false duplicate rejection Body changes the attachment's delivery instruction Reviewer sees the conflict before handoff Two independent POs in one email Two reviewed orders, rather than one incorrectly merged order Cancellation after the order has been released Responsible person decides the next action; receipt alone does not cancel production A pilot passes when it handles these cases in the chosen destination. A correct extraction on the first PDF is only part of that test. ## How much process does your company need? Use company size as a starting point for the pilot, then follow actual responsibilities. For **11-50 employees**, an office manager, owner or order coordinator may handle intake and review. Start with a small customer sample, one intake sheet and a named person who decides amendments. For **51-200 employees**, the order-entry or customer-service lead can coordinate review, while an operations owner agrees the handoff rules. Check who handles customer item references and production changes. For **201-500 employees**, start with a bounded customer group or business unit. Include the order-process owner and the person responsible for the destination system. A department champion can lead the pilot without being the final budget approver. These are practical patterns, not fixed job titles or assumed purchasing authority. Ask who owns the order queue, can authorize changes and can approve a successful pilot's next step. ## Start with an order intake pilot Choose sample customer POs with different layouts and include one repeat forward and one genuine revision. Define the fields, review owner and destination before turning on wider forwarding. [DigiParser's customer purchase-order parser](/solutions/purchase-order-parser) extracts order details and line items for review and a configured handoff. Start with Excel if that is where your team works, or evaluate the connection your order system needs. The goal is a usable order record with a clear next action. **Three messages can represent one order. Make that distinction part of your pilot before you automate order creation.** * * * [See all posts](/blog) Automate recurring documents next: [supplier invoice parser](/solutions/invoice-parser), [customer purchase order parser](/solutions/purchase-order-parser), and [extract data from PDF](/solutions/extract-data-from-pdf) hub. ## Transform Your Document Processing Start automating your document workflows with DigiParser's AI-powered solution. [Start Free Trial](https://app.digiparser.com/auth/join)[Schedule Demo](/contact)